Subj : Newsline Part 1 To : ALL USERS From : DARYL STOUT Date : Thu Dec 03 2015 10:01 pm Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) Report 1988 December 4, 2015 Amateur Radio Newsline report number 1988, with a release date of Friday, December 4, 2015 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. Radio amateurs in Australia wind down their tribute to those who fought at Gallipoli. A new island - in New England - is activated. Participants in a solar flare emergency drill celebrate their success. And hams in India press for greater involvement in community service. All this, and more, in Amateur Radio Newsline report 1988, coming your way right now. (Billboard Cart Here and Intro) ** THE LAST HURRAH [DON/ANCHOR]: The battle is almost over. Well, the Battle of Gallipoli actually ended almost 100 years ago -- but amateur radio's centennial commemoration of the World War One conflict has almost concluded too. The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, or ANZAC, made up a big part of that effort - and Australian hams have been transmitting their national pride all year. Amateur Radio Newsline's Graham Kemp, VK4BB, reports from Australia. [GRAHAM]: The Gallipoli commemoration of the Wireless Institute of Australia is getting ready for its "last hurrah," just as in the battle itself 100 years ago. Using the call sign VI4ANZAC, an amateur team will be marking the good work of the First Royal Australian Navy Bridging Train. The unit, which was created in 1915 in Melbourne, employed horse-drawn wagons to carry its equipment to the front. Their wartime efforts were feats of engineering, horsemanship and pontoon bridging. The tribute paid to this unit will mark the move toward closure in the WIA's ANZAC program, which has focused on the battle at Gallipoli. The final commemoration will involve participation of call signs VI3ANZAC, VI4ANZAC, VI6ANZAC and VI8ANZAC. On Dec. 20, an address on the ANZAC 100 campaign, will be heard from VK100ANZAC. And the year will wrap up - and, just like the battle itself, become a part of history. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB. (Wireless Institute of Australia) ** ISLAND HOPPING Hopefully, three members of the Newport County Radio Club might actually be thawed out by now after their recent adventure on an island in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. Paul Silverzweig, N1PSX, Paul Mankofsky, KC1AQP, and Rich Russell, KC1ARO packed their gloves, winter jackets, and some toe warmers, and, with their radio equipment, headed to Gooseberry Island on Nov. 30, to activate it in the U.S. Islands Award Program. Calling CQ on 20 meters with the club's call sign, W1SYE, they accomplished exactly what they'd set out to do -- just as the club had done in September on Turnip Island in Connecticut. And so, Island MA-056S became a reality. Russell told Amateur Radio Newsline, however, that this time, the November temperatures were a bit more challenging than on Turnip Island. Russell said QUOTE "It was somewhere between 36 and 48 degrees, and there was a pretty stiff wind, about 15 knots. We dressed warmly, but it was still pretty chilly." ENDQUOTE Running 80 watts and an end-fed dipole, it must have warmed them, though, to make those all-important 32 contacts, ranging from snowbound Wyoming to such DXCC spots as Italy, Canada, Serbia, Belgium, and a notably balmier Puerto Rico. In fact, if anything needed warmimg more than they did, it was the team's lithium ion phosphate battery. As Russell noted, QUOTE "They don't like freezing temps." ENDQUOTE That's when the men decided to activate just one more thing - the toe warmers they had brought along to put in their shoes and gloves. But they found it also fit nicely with the battery. Said Russell: QUOTE "That worked pretty well, and didn't even overheat the battery. Just took the edge off." ENDQUOTE. ** GIVE THESE YOUNG HAMS AN "A" - FOR "AGAIN" The results are in, and the Schofield Radio Club in Aiken, South Carolina, has once again proudly announced its top 10 ranking to the world. The youngsters at the Schofield Middle School placed fifth among middle schools, and 10th overall among all 62 schools in the nation competing in the annual ARRL School Club Roundup in October. The club is a repeat winner, in fact, having ranked 10th overall in last year's contest, and third for middle schools. The roundup involved students working contacts for three to four hours after school for one week. The Schofield students reached 40 states, 22 countries, and 30 schools, for a total of 520 QSOs. Now the club is concentrating on contacting more students in their own school - and hopes they'll see more members stopping by after class on Thursdays from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. (AIKEN, S.C., STANDARD NEWSPAPER) ** GOOD NIGHT FOR A NET Wednesday, Dec. 3 was a promising night for Rebecca Hughes, M6BUB, the Youth Committee Promotional Manager of the Radio Society of Great Britain. The 16-year-old launched the first gathering of a new Youth Net, reaching out on the North Wales 2 meter repeater, GB3MP. She told Amateur Radio Newsline in an email: QUOTE "The Net is hopefully going to be a way for young licensees to interact with other young people. I had this idea because when I first got my license in November, 2011, I did not know of any youth licensees, apart from my brother." ENDQUOTE She said that her work with the Radio Society has brought her into contact with more young amateurs, and it inspired the idea of the Net. She said QUOTE "My goals and hopes for the Net are to help young hams who may not know any young licensees to gain friends and contacts that they can talk to even when the Net is not on the air." ENDQUOTE (RSGB) --- BgNet 1.0a12 - The Thunderbolt BBS wx1der.dyndns.org Little Rock, AR .