Also in GB2RS this week …

The RSGB HF Contest Committee plays a key role in the enjoyment of amateur radio by many RSGB Members. It is responsible for deciding the HF contesting strategy, organising the HF contesting calendar, setting the rules and providing clarification of the rules to the contest adjudicators. The current Chair of the committee, Nick Totterdell, G4FAL, is approaching the end of his agreed term and has stated that he is not seeking to be reappointed. Any RSGB Member may volunteer to take over the position of Contest Committee chair, which is a three-year appointment. If you would like to be considered, please write to RSGB General Manager Steve Thomas, M1ACB, via email to gm.dept@rsgb.org.uk providing details of your amateur radio and other relevant experience.

The cross-band voice repeater aboard the International Space Station has been set up by the Russian team to help get telemetry from their satellites. Although some amateurs report communicating via the repeater, ARISS would like to remind amateurs that it has not officially been activated for amateur contacts. When the ARISS voice repeater is active and authorised for general amateur voice contacts the uplink frequency is 437.800MHz FM, downlinking on 145.800MHz FM downlink. Meanwhile, if you would like to try receiving the Tanusha telemetry, technical details are on the Southwest State University Space Activity page at http://eng.swsu.ru/space

The National Hamfest takes place at the Newark & Nottingham Showground, Lincoln Road, Winthorpe, Newark NG24 2NY on 29 and 30 September. The site will open at 9.30am each day, with the exhibition hall opening 30 minutes later at 10am. If you want to operate the Hamfest Special Event Station, GB17NH, run by Camb-Hams, please bring your current licence with you.

The new Islands on the Air programme website is planned to launch officially in early September, when the current RSGB-sponsored website will be taken offline. According to IOTA IT Manager Johan Willemsen, PA3EXX, the new website is presently undergoing fine tuning. Software developers should be aware that the change to a new website may affect any application using data from the current http://www.rsgbiota.org website.

The RSGB Convention is at Kents Hill Park Training & Conference Centre, MK7 6BZ from the 13th to the 15th of October. Discounted ticket will continue on sale until 8 October. Under 21s get free admission with suitable identification, although those under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Weekend packages or mix and match deals are still at http://www.rsgb.org/convention and you can also see a provisional programme there.

Thames Amateur Radio Group is pleased to be hosting the RSGB Train the Trainers event on Saturday the 9th of December. Training open to candidates from any club and is delivered free to RSGB Members but the Group will be asking for a £5 donation per candidate towards hall hire, buffet lunch and refreshments. To book contact nigel.m0ich@gmail.com

The ARRL Headquarters will be closed on Labor Day, the 4th of September, and there will be no ARRL bulletin or code practice transmissions that day.

The top-level domain name .radio is now available to the radio industry and amateur radio enthusiasts. It is reserved for individuals and companies with active interest in the radio sector. The .radio domain can be used for web and e-mail addresses and is managed by the European Broadcasting Union with support from other world broadcasting unions. There is a cost for individual radio amateurs. For details, visit https://register.radio/

Category: GB2RS Headlines