Also in GB2RS this week…

| July 4, 2014

Many stations have been receiving the telemetry transmitted by FUNcube-1, which has now been in orbit for over 220 days. Since launch, data has been received by more than 650 stations around the world and the online data warehouse received its one millionth packet of information in June. The FUNcube team are immensely grateful to all the schools, colleges, radio amateurs and other listeners who are providing this data and want to encourage everyone to continue to listen to FUNcube-1 and to upload the data to the warehouse. The FUNcube records show that there were three stations who uploaded the same one millionth packet to the warehouse. They are G0EID, OM3BC and DL3SER.

The BBC News website recently reported that Samsung is to stop producing plasma televisions by 30 November. Samsung said falling demand meant it would instead focus on producing curved and ultra-high-definition TVs. Other manufacturers including Panasonic, Sony, Hitachi and Pioneer have also pulled out of plasma TV manufacture in recent years. A number of plasma TV models from various manufacturers have been found to emit wide band RF noise, so decreasing the number of sets in circulation may lead to a welcome noise reduction in the long term.

F6HTJ, the keeper of the F5ZAL VHF beacon, has added 30 seconds of Opera OP05 to his 2m beacon. The beacon is on 144.4745MHz USB and reports are welcome. When strong tropo conditions exist, the CW beacon has been received in south G, EI, ON, DL, HB, I8, IG9 and 9H. See bulletin board post (in French).

The World Radiosport Team Championship 2014 operating event will take place on 12 July beginning at 1200UTC and concluding on the 13th at 1200UTC. WRTC2014 pits fifty-nine two-operator amateur radio teams, representing 32 countries, in a battle of operating skill and strategy from identical locations and using identical antenna systems. More about this year’s event is at www.wrtc2014.org.

Chris Stubbs, M6EDF gave a talk on high altitude balloons at Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society on 1 July and launched a high altitude helium balloon as part of his demonstration. The balloon, called CARS-1, contained a GPS receiver and 434.3MHz transmitter and was tracked by amateurs in several countries. It was last heard of at 0645 the following morning as its battery ran flat. It was at an altitude of 5.4km northwest of Paris, and it is believed that it may well have continued flying for some time. A full report, including a video, can be found on www.essexham.co.uk.

The Irish Radio Transmitters Society’s Brendan Trophy for the first two-way transatlantic amateur communication on 2m has gone unclaimed for years but that could change within the coming days. The Brendan Quest team, VC1T, is currently running 750W into a 98 foot long 43-element Yagi at about 25 feet above average terrain at Pouch Cove, Newfoundland, and hopes to achieve 2m transatlantic communication. A detailed operating schedule, operating procedure and the modes that will be used can be found online at www.brendanquest.org, along with a full description of the monster antenna they’re using.

The BBC will mark the centenary of World War One with events running from 2014-2018. This summer, as part of the season, BBC Learning will create eight large-scale inspirational Great War events which will take place throughout the UK, reflecting the dramatic impact the war had on local families and communities. The WW1 At Home Live Events will reflect on the dramatic impact the war had on families and communities, as well as helping people to explore their own relatives’ links to the war. The family-friendly events will include hands-on activities, including communications demonstrations. Several amateur radio clubs are taking part in these events with special event stations or hands on Morse demonstrations for visitors. The next event is on 12 and 13 July at the Wolverhampton and Black Country Show.

Category: GB2RS Headlines