Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (A
To : All
From : Daryl Stout
Date : Fri Sep 07 2018 09:50 am
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2132, for Friday, September 7th, 2018
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2132, with a release date of
Friday, September 7th, 2018, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. An AMSAT satellite is plagued by QRM. Hams
in Kenya find their clubhouse burglarized -- and an amateur in
Northern Ireland gets a surprise message. All this and more, as
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2132, comes your way right now.
**
BILLBOARD CART
**
AMSAT BATTLING SATELLITE QRM
PAUL/ANCHOR: We open this week's report with some QRM -- which is
exactly what's been plaguing a new AMSAT satellite, as we hear
from Neil Rapp, WB9VPG.
NEIL: AMSAT is looking for some help in tracking down some
interference to the uplink frequency of its newest satellite.
Drew Glasbrenner, KO4MA, Vice President of operations at AMSAT,
tells us what's happening.
DREW: We've been having issues on AO-92 recently with QRM on the
uplink frequency. You can tell that it's DMR. But because it's
being filtered through the computer on the satellite, and the
audio process, we can't decode it right now.
We have a pretty good idea of where it is. Most likely in the
Midwest, or maybe the Colorado mountain area. We're not hearing
it on real low West Coast passes, and we're not hearing it on
passes that are east of, say, the Appalachians. So, it's mid-America
somewhere. And it's fairly strong when it's there.
NEIL: If you're operating anything... a hotspot, repeater, or just
running simplex in the satellite subbands, which are 145.8 to 146.0
and 435 to 438 MHz, AMSAT is putting out a plea for those stations
to move off those frequencies.
DREW: If anybody does hear it locally, and not through the satellite,
please let us know. Any help that we can get from satellite users or
people who just happen to be listening, and hear and know where it is,
would be very welcome.
NEIL: This particular case of QRM is believed to be near 435.36 MHz.
If you have a report to make, please email it to
[email protected].
DREW: One of the things that we've investigated and ran by some people
that are very familiar with regulations... we had some initial pushback
from people that said, "Who are you to tell us that we can't operate
there?" We're no one to tell you that you can't operate there. However,
hotspots would fall under what's considered an auxillary station in the
Part 97 rules. Auxillary stations are specifically exempted from the
satellite sub-bands. They can not operate there according to FCC
regulation. So it's not just us trying to clear off frequencies for the
satellites. It's FCC regulation that protects those. So, we would like
everybody to cooperate, and clear those frequencies up, and move their
auxillary stations where they belong. But, the request does have some
legal authority behind it.
NEIL: Reporting for Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG.
**
CASE STILL OPEN IN KILLING OF HENRY STANGE WA6RXZ
PAUL/ANCHOR: In a recent newscast, Newsline reported an investigation
into the death of California amateur Henry Stange, WA6RXZ, whose body
was found in a shallow grave in Joshua Tree National Park in June.
Although police did arrest two suspects - a Marine first lieutenant,
and his wife - on August 29th, the Riverside County district attorney
declined to file charges against them, and they were released two days
later. A report in the Desert Star newspaper identified them as Curtis
Krueger, 30, and Ashlie Stapp, 27. The investigation continues.
**
CLUB SHACK IN NAIROBI, KENYA BURGLARIZED
PAUL/ANCHOR: In Nairobi, Kenya, hams were shocked to discover their
club shack burglarized - for the second time - as Ed Durrant, DD5LP,
reports.
ED: Members of the Radio Society of Kenya have reported that burglars
struck their shack in Nairobi again this summer, and while most of the
equipment and supplies taken were of little value, two valuable items
used as amateur radio awards have gone missing. Ted, 5Z4NU, the
society's secretary, told Amateur Radio Newsline in an email that the
building, a former pumping station, was broken into after window bars
and then creating a large hole in the wall by pulling out the main fuse
board. Ted said the shack's interior was extensively damaged, and a
report was made to the police by Hemant, 5Z4HP, who made the discovery.
Ted said that much of the radio equipment stolen was old, unusable,
and without any sale value, and that the clubhouse was used mainly for
monthly meetings. He said the club's station 5Z4RS has not been
operational for some time, and the local membership is limited to only
five or six licensees in Nairobi.
The burglars did take a World War Two-era military Morse Code key,
that the club gave annually as a CW operator's award, as well as a
glass vase used as an award for hams making contacts with stations
in Scandinavia. The club also lost an antenna rotator control, an old
multimeter, and other outdated equipment. He said the damage to the
clubhouse interior was extensive, and because the fuse board had been
pulled from the wall, the clubhouse alarm never went off. The few
remaining pieces of furniture consisted of some chairs, he said.
Ted said he was not optimistic anything would be found, or an arrest
made, adding that the location has been a target like this, on and off
for the past several years.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Ed Durrant, DD5LP.
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