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********************************************
The ARRL Letter

Published by the American Radio Relay League ********************************************

July 28, 2022

John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, Editor <news@arrl.org>

ARRL Home Page <http://www.arrl.org/>ARRL Letter Archive <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> IN THIS ISSUE

- QST Now Offering a Column for Radio Clubs
- Hams on SOTA Event Help Prevent Major Forest Fire
- ARRL Field Day 2022 Contacts Rise to Over 1.2 Million
- Amateur Radio in the News
- ARRL Podcasts Schedule
- Announcements
- In Brief...
- The K7RA Solar Update
- Just Ahead in Radiosport
- Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions

QST NOW OFFERING A COLUMN FOR RADIO CLUBS

ARRL invites you to be part of "Club Station," the newest column in
QST. This column is a space for radio clubs to share the different ways
in which they're successful to help other clubs grow. They do this by
offering advice, and practical solutions to common experiences and
problems.

In each issue, a different club will share how they undertook a
specific activity or project, how and why it was successful, and any
challenges they may have had to overcome throughout the process. Some

The York County Amateur Radio Society (YCARS) in South Carolina
provides a welcoming environment for members to learn new skills. Here,
members are learning how to program a Raspberry Pi. Be sure to read
"Club Station" in the September issue of QST to find out more about
YCARS and how they rebuilt their radio club.

examples include, but aren't limited to, successful community club projects, innovative ways to attract new members, getting youth
involved with ham radio, and developing active hams.

"Clubs are the backbone of the amateur radio community," said ARRL
Field Services Manager Mike Walters, W8ZY. "If your club is doing
something that will inspire other clubs, we want to hear from you!"

"In order to help you tell your story, ARRL has published author
guidelines that are geared toward 'Club Station,' and they include a
club profile form," said QST Editor Leanna Figlewski, KC1RMP. Both of
these documents can be found at www.arrl.org/qst-club-station-guidelines-and-profile-form <http://www.arrl.org/qst-club-station-guidelines-and-profile-form>.
"You don't have to have writing experience to be published in QST. If
your submission is accepted, our editorial staff will work with you to
get your story ready for publication."

All clubs are welcome to participate. The first iteration of "Club
Station" appeared in the August 2022 issue of QST (www.arrl.org/qst <http://www.arrl.org/qst>) and includes more information about what
members can expect to see from the column.

If you have any questions, contact us at clubs@arrl.org. We look
forward to hearing from you about your radio club!

HAMS ON SOTA EVENT HELP PREVENT MAJOR FOREST FIRE

While participating in the Black Hills Amateur Radio Club's (ARC)
annual Summits on the Air (SOTA) event in South Dakota on July 16,
2022, two amateur radio operators helped spot a potential forest fire.

Ryan Lindblom, KE0LXT, President of the Black Hills ARC, and
Christopher Jaques, KD0RAS, had made their trek to Cicero Peak. Just
before heading back down, they noticed what might be smoke or dust to
the south near Hot Springs. Lindblom made a contact on their simplex
frequency to ask a local amateur radio operator if there had been any
reports of Forest Service activity in the area.

An off-duty ranger was monitoring a local ham repeater from his home,
heard traffic from Cicero Peak, and called in the alert. A fire crew
and a helicopter were able to contain a small fire 2.5 miles south of
Pringle, South Dakota.

Ward Hall, WC0Y, attending the Black Hills SOTA weekend for his second
year, reported that a forest ranger on Bear Mountain stepped out of the
ranger tower to greet him, but at the time, was busy monitoring
firefighting traffic.

"I could hear the radio activity while I was on the ground near the
tower," said Hall. "The ranger later told me that the Forest Service
was alerted to a small fire when an off-duty ranger was monitoring a
local ham repeater and heard the traffic from Cicero Peak." Hall said
the ranger credited the ham activity for an early alert that allowed
them to address the fire while it was small. "He was very appreciative
of how the ham activity helped them and asked that I pass it on," Hall
added.

ARRL Dakota Division Director Bill Lippert, AC0W, applauded the work of
the amateur radio operaters for early reporting of what could have been
a major fire, as well as credited the Forest Service for their quick
response.

The Black Hills Amateur Radio Club had 12 people participating in their
Black Hills SOTA weekend. The club has 75 members and covers the Black
Hills region of South Dakota, which is in the southwest corner of the
state. They are headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, and they are
an ARRL Affiliated Club.

ARRL FIELD DAY 2022 CONTACTS RISE TO OVER 1.2 MILLION

Updated numbers from ARRL Field Day 2022 now show 1,235,265 total
reported contacts as of July 26, 2022.

ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE, reported that 4,774
Field Day entries have been submitted, and there were 28,250 Field Day participants.

The class breakdown is as follows:

1,141 Class A (club / non-club portable)

598 Class B (one or two person portable) and Battery (one or two person portable)

56 Class C (mobile)

2,093 Class D (home stations)

735 Class E (home stations using emergency power)

151 Class F (Emergency Operations Centers)

The last day to submit entries was Tuesday, July 26, so the numbers
will change in the coming weeks.

Bourque added that 237 entries are missing, either the required dupe
sheet (or in lieu of that, a Cabrillo-formatted log) or supporting documentation for claimed bonus points. He encourages all entrants to
check the ARRL Field Day Entries Received page at http://field-day.arrl.org/fdentriesrcvd.php to verify that their entry
has been accepted, and if it is complete or pending any supporting documentation.

Additional documentation and log files can be added to previously
submitted Field Day entries by using the link that was provided in the confirmation email that was received upon submittal. Any questions
regarding Field Day entries should be directed to fieldday@arrl.org

AMATEUR RADIO IN THE NEWS

ARRL Public Information Officers, Coordinators, and many other member-volunteers help keep amateur radio and ARRL in the news <http://www.arrl.org/media-hits>.

"Amateur radio group holds Field Day to test readiness <https://www.upandcomingweekly.com/entertainment/8800-amateur-radio-group-holds-field-day-to-test-readines>"

/ Up and Coming Weekly (North Carolina), July 12, 2022. -- The Cape
Fear Amateur Radio Society is an ARRL Affiliated Club.

"Stanly Amateur Radio Club hosts Field Day at Morrow <https://www.thesnaponline.com/2022/07/18/stanly-amateur-radio-club-hosts-field-day-at-morrow/>"

/ The Stanley News & Press (North Carolina), July 18, 2022. -- Stanly
County Amateur Radio Club (K4OGB) is an ARRL Affiliated Club.

"Ham radio enthusiasts connect in West Virginia <https://www.herald-dispatch.com/_zapp/ham-radio-enthusiasts-connect-in-west-virginia/article_c76cee42-bb83-539d-9f5b-55f5322b03be.html>"

/ The Herald-Dispatch (West Virginia), July 25, 2022. -- The
Mountaineer Amateur Radio Association is an ARRL Affiliated Club.

"Local ham participates in national radio program for teachers <https://www.crescent-news.com/news/local_news/local-ham-participates-in-national-radio-program-for-teachers/article_a78ba032-0975-11ed-9458-075380ac370d.html>"

/ The Crescent-News (Ohio), July 25, 2022.

"NORTHERN NEW YORK AMATEUR RADIO ASSOCIATION TO HOLD HAMFEST <https://www.hamiltoncountyexpress.com/news/52669>" / Hamilton County
Express (New York) July 27, 2022 -- Northern New York Amateur Radio Association.

Share <newsmedia@arrl.org> any amateur radio media hits you spot with
us.

ARRL PODCASTS SCHEDULE

The latest episode of the ARRL On the Air
<https://blubrry.com/arrlontheair/> podcast (Episode 31) provides an
overview of the 222 MHz frequency band.

The latest edition of the ARRL Eclectic Tech <https://blubrry.com/eclectictech/> podcast (Episode 65) features a
discussion about lightning protection with Ron Block, NR2B.

The On the Air and Eclectic Tech podcasts are sponsored by Icom. Both
podcasts are available on iTunes (iOS) and Stitcher (Android), as well
as on Blubrry -- On the Air <https://blubrry.com/arrlontheair/> |
Eclectic Tech <https://blubrry.com/eclectictech/>.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The 35th Annual Satellite Educators Association (SEA)
<https://www.sated.org/> Conference will be held on July 29 - 30, 2022.
This year's theme is "Earth Speaks -- We Listen!" The event is hosted
by the Charter College of Education at California State University in
Los Angeles. This year's convention will feature Fredric Raab, KK6NOW, presenting "Classroom Activities with the AMSAT CubeSat Simulator."
Rabb will explore how to engage students with CubeSat operation and transmission of data using the AMSAT CubeSat Simulator. The
presentation will highlight the work by the CubeSatSim educational
materials team of Paul Graveline, K1YUB; Alan Johnston, KU2Y; Fredric
Raab, KK6NOW; Mark Samis, KD2XS, and David White, WD6DRI. SEA is an organization of educators supporting science, technology, engineering,
and math (STEM) learning for pre-kindergarten to post-graduate students
using real-world applications from satellites and satellite data. --
Thanks to Paul Stoetzer, N8HM, at AMSAT <https://www.amsat.org/> for
the updated information

IN BRIEF...

The annual EAA AirVenture is underway in Oshkosh, Wisconsin through
Sunday, July 31, 2022, and amateur radio is represented throughout the
air show. An ARRL "Radio Communications" exhibit is supported by member-volunteers in Hangar B (booth #2152), and has attracted hundreds
of attendees seeking information about becoming a ham. ARRL is posting
photos from the event to its Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10159330375167408> page.
Children attending AirVenture can build a small ARRL radio receiver kit designed by Levi Zima, KN4YHS, as part of KidVenture, a hands-on
exhibit area at AirVenture. Among the other ham radio exhibitors and participants are Icom America, Ham Radio Outlet, and West Mountain
Radio. Look for special event stations on the air from AirVenture
including W9W at the historic War Birds of America aircraft display and supported by Icom America (40 - 10 meters near 7.225, 14.250, 21.235,
and 28.425 MHz), and W9ZL, organized by members of the Fox Cities
Amateur Radio Club <http://www.fcarc.club/> (on, or near, 7.250,
14.270, and 50.150 MHz).

On the weekend of September 10 - 11, 2022, the Sommerkamp Facebook
Group is inviting all amateur radio operators to participate in the
Sommerkamp Memorial Activity. The on-air event is to honor Wolfgang
Sommerkamp, DJ2YL (SK), the founder of the Sommerkamp Radio company who
passed away in 2021. Activity will be on 80 meters, 40 meters, 20
meters, 15 meters, 11 meters, 10 meters, and 2 meters with frequencies:

- 7.101 MHz

- 14.301 MHz

- 21.301 MHz

- 28.301 MHz

- 144.301 MHz

Organizers emphasized this is not a contest and there is nothing to
win. The on-air memorial is designed as a "friendly get -together on
the airwaves" to share what equipment you use and when you purchased it
and, if you are a longtime Sommerkamp radio owner, and how you acquired
your radios. More information about the event is available at their
special website <https://dl2au.de/html/sommerkamp_memorial_day.html> or
at the Sommerkamp Facebook page. <https://m.facebook.com/groups/224973084337664/>

THE K7RA SOLAR UPDATE

Tad Cook, K7RA, of Seattle, Washington, reports for this week's ARRL Propagation Bulletin:

Although images of the sun this week showed plenty of sunspots, only
two new spots emerged: one on July 21, and another on July 25.

Average daily sunspot number declined from 137.3 to 91.1, and the
average daily solar flux softened by 50 points to 107.6.

Geomagnetic indicators began this reporting week fairly active, with
planetary A index at 22, then it quickly quieted down to an average of
11.7 for the week, higher than the 9.4 average reported last week.
Average middle-latitude A index increased from 9 to 10.4.

A look back a year ago shows this cycle is progressing nicely. In
ARLP030 in 2021 average daily sunspot number was just 48.9, and average
daily solar flux only 81.3.

A year prior, the average daily sunspot number in 2020 was just 3.1!
That is because there were five days with no sunspots, and then two
days with a sunspot number of only 11, which is the minimum non-zero
sunspot number.

A sunspot number of 11 does not mean 11 sunspots. It means there was
just one sunspot group (which counts for 10 points) and one sunspot in
that group (counting for 1), producing a total of 11, because of the
arcane historical method of counting sunspots.

Predicted solar flux shows it peaking at 130 on August 11. Predicted
flux is 98 on July 28, 96 on July 29 - 30, 98 again on July 31 and
August 1, 96 on August 2 - 3, 98 on August 4, then jumping to 115 on
August 5 - 6, 113 on August 7 - 8, then 120, 125, 130 and 125 on August
9 - 12, 120 on August 13 - 15, 118 on August 16 - 17, then 114 and 110
on August 18 - 19, 108 on August 20 - 21, then 106 and 102 on August 22
- 23, 100 on August 24 - 27, and 108 on August 28 - 29.

Predicted planetary A index is 8 on July 28-29, 12 on July 30, 8 on
July 31 and August 1, 5 on August 2 -3, 8 on August 4, 5 on August 5
-10, 8 on August 11 -12, 5 on August 13 - 16, 22 on August 17, 15 on
August 18 - 19, 8 on August 20 -21, 5 on August 22 - 25, 10 and 12 on
August 26 - 27, and 5 on August 28 - 29.

Sunspot numbers for July 21 - 27, 2022 were 124, 107, 96, 80, 100, 78,
and 53, with a mean of 91.1. 10.7-centimeter flux was 121.7, 114.7,
110.5, 107.1, 102.3, 98.8, and 98, with a mean of 107.6. Estimated
planetary A indices were 22, 11, 17, 9, 6, 8, and 9, with a mean of
11.7. Middle latitude A index was 14, 11, 15, 9, 8, 7, and 9, with a
mean of 10.4.

Send your tips, questions, or comments to k7ra@arrl.net.

A comprehensive K7RA Solar Update is posted Fridays on the ARRL
website. For more information concerning radio propagation, visit <http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals> the ARRL Technical
Information Service, read
<http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere> "What the Numbers
Mean..." and check out <http://k9la.us/> the Propagation Page of Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA.

A propagation bulletin archive <http://arrl.org/w1aw-bulletins-archive-propagation> is available. For customizable propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio <https://www.voacap.com/hf/> website.

Share <k7ra@arrl.net> your reports and observations.

A weekly, full report is posted on ARRL News
<http://www.arrl.org/news>.

JUST AHEAD IN RADIOSPORT

- July 28 -- RSGB 80-Meter Club Championship (digital)

- July 30 -- Feld Hell Sprint (digital)

- July 30 - 31 -- RSGB IOTA Contest (CW, phone)

- July 30 -- WAB 144 MHz Low Power Phone (phone)

- July 30 - 31 -- Satellite Tennessee State Parks on the Air (all)

- July 31 -- ARS Flight of the Bumblebees (CW)

- August 2 -- Worldwide Sideband Activity Contest (phone)

- August 2 -- ARS Spartan Sprint (CW)

- August 3 -- Phone Weekly Test (phone)

- August 3 -- 144 VHF-UHF FT8 Activity Contest (FT8)

- August 4 - 5 -- Walk for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)

- August 4 -- SKCC Sprint Europe (CW)

- August 5 -- QRP Fox Hunt (CW)

Visit the ARRL Contest Calendar <http://www.arrl.org/contest-calendar>
for more events and information.

UPCOMING SECTION, STATE, AND DIVISION CONVENTIONS

- July 30 - 31 | ARRL West Virginia State Convention <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/arrl-west-virginia-state-convention-and-ham-fest>,

Sutton, West Virginia

- August 6 - 7 | Cedar Valley ARC Techfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/cedar-valley-arc-techfest-arrl-iowa-state-convention-1>,

hosting the ARRL Iowa State Convention, Central City, Iowa

- August 13 | Tidewater Hamfest and Swap Meet <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/tidewater-hamfest-and-swap-meet-arrl-virginia-state-convention>,

hosting the ARRL Virginia State Convention, Portsmouth, Virginia

- August 20 - 21 | Huntsville Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/huntsville-hamfest-arrl-southeastern-division-convention-1>,

hosting the ARRL Southeastern Division Convention, Huntsville, Alabama

- August 26 - 28 | Northeast HamXposition <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/northeast-hamxposition-arrl-new-england-and-hudson-division-convention>,

hosting the ARRL New England and Hudson Division Conventions,
Marlborough, Massachusetts

- September 2 - 4 | Shelby Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/shelby-hamfest-arrl-north-carolina-section-convention-1>,

hosting the ARRL North Carolina Section Convention, Shelby, North
Carolina

- September 11 | ARRL Southern New Jersey Section Convention <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/arrl-southern-new-jersey-section-convention-1>, Mullica Hill, New Jersey

- September 17-18 | QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo <https://www.qsotodayhamexpo.com/> (online event). ARRL is a QSO Today
partner.

- September 23 - 24 | HRO Superfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/hro-superfest-arrl-central-division-convention>,

hosting the ARRL Central Division Convention, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

- September 24 | Red River Radio Amateur Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/red-river-radio-amateur-hamfest-arrl-dakota-division-convention>,

hosting the ARRL Dakota Division Convention, West Fargo, North Dakota

- September 24 | Spokane Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/spokane-hamfest-arrl-washington-state-convention>,

hosting the ARRL Washington State Convention, Spokane Valley,
Washington

- October 1 | Wichita Area Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/wichita-area-hamfest-arrl-kansas-state-convention>,

hosting the ARRL Kansas State Convention, Wichita, Kansas

- October 1 | Rock Hill Hamfest <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests/70th-annual-rock-hill-hamfest-arrl-south-carolina-section-convention>,

hosting the ARRL South Carolina Section Convention, Rock Hill, South
Carolina

Search the ARRL Hamfest and Convention Database
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests> to find events in your area.

HAVE NEWS FOR ARRL?

Submissions for the ARRL Letter and ARRL News can be sent to
news@arrl.org. -- John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, ARRL News Editor
<news@arrl.org>

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