Subj : Newsline Part 1 To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Fri Apr 21 2017 11:28 am Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2060 for Friday, April 21, 2017 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2060, with a release date of Friday, April 21, 2017, to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. VHF's back on board the International Space Station. Australia prepares for a new shortwave service -- and YLs in Japan are marking a milestone event. All this and more, as Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2060, comes your way right now. ** BILLBOARD CART HERE **** VHF PACKET DELIVERS ON THE SPACE STATION PAUL/ANCHOR: We open this week's report with cause for rejoicing to the skies. So if you follow the International Space Station - or are hoping for a contact someday with one of its astronauts - listen carefully to this report from Amateur Radio Newsline's Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. NEIL: There's good news from outer space! The International Space Station is back on the air on VHF from the Columbus module! After a failure of a VHF handheld in October, a UHF replacement was retrieved from storage, and put into use temporarily. Because failure is not an option, the ARISS team began the process of getting the 17-year-old replacement handheld radio up to the space station until the new mobile radio is ready and certified. At the end of February, the SpaceX 10 launch vehicle, Dragon, flew to the ISS with the HT on board. On Friday, April 14th, it was finally unpacked. Rosalie White, K1STO, ARISS International Secretary, shared the good news with us the day it happened. ROSALIE: The ARISS team was notified this morning that the radio was set up and turned on to 145.825 as the crew just found time finally after unpacking that 5,500 pounds of cargo that got delivered. So, we're back in business again! NEIL: Followers of ISS Fan Club have already posted that they've heard and used VHF packet, and are thrilled to have it again! Rosalie reminds us that they don't know how long the radio will last, and work is still progressing on a permanent replacement. ROSALIE: The Ericsson that we sent up was the very last one that was in storage at Houston. It's only 6 watts, and our new system that we're developing is 25 watts. It's going to make it so much nicer. The audio will be so much better for the school kids. And that system is in the works. We've got the Kenwoods, but the power supplies are in the process of being built, and because they have to be space-certified parts inside, they are extremely expensive. So, if anyone is interested in helping out with some of those costs, they can go to the AMSAT website www.amsat.org or the ARISS www.ariss.org site and contribute. If you are enjoying the use of the packet, we hope to be able to continue that for you and could sure use a hand. NEIL: So if you need your space... consider donating to the cause. Reporting for Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. ** IN CORNWALL, FROM TITANIC TO MARCONI PAUL/ANCHOR: As hams in Cornwall, England prepared for International Marconi Day on Saturday, April 22nd, they were already deeply involved in operating for another on-air commemoration: the 105th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, the ill-fated ocean liner that had a Marconi station on board. Amateur Radio Newsline's Ed Durrant, DD5LP, worked Cornwall special event station GB2GM, and shares this report. ED'S REPORT: April 22nd is a very special day in the world of radio. It's the day that we celebrate the birth of the great inventor, Marconi, without whom radio communications would not be what it is today. There are many stations around the world who will take part in INTERNATIONAL MARCONI DAY. One of those stations I happened to come across on Good Friday commemorating another historical event where Marconi radio operators were involved. The sinking of the Titanic happened when it hit an iceberg 105 years ago. GB2GM is the special event station run by the Poldhu Radio Club from the Marconi Centre in Poldhu, Cornwall, England. Here's my short conversation with Malcolm, GM0DBW, while he was operating the club station. ------ Audio clip from IC-7300 of QSO in here------ ED: So, when tuning around on April 22nd if you hear GB2GM GB2 Golf Mike on the bands, give them a call, and you'll be talking to the museum located in the old Marconi station hut in Poldhu, Cornwall, the site of the first ever transatlantic wireless communication! Full information about the Poldhu Radio Club can be found on their web site at GB2GM.ORG. For Amateur Radio Newsline, this is Ed Durrant, DD5LP. Posted by VPost v1.7.081019 .