ARRL has launched a nationwide grassroots campaign aimed at securing the passage of federal legislation that would grant Amateur Radio Operators the same rights to install antennas on their property as those enjoyed by users of TV antennas, wireless internet, and flagpoles.

The campaign, announced in an ARRL Member Bulletin on September 17, 2025, follows the reintroduction of the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act in February 2025 (see ARRL News 02/07/2025). The bipartisan bills—H.R.1094 in the House and S.459 in the Senate—are designed to prevent restrictive homeowners’ association (HOA) rules that currently prohibit or severely limit the installation of amateur radio antennas, even when such antennas are hidden in trees, placed in attics, mounted on vehicles, or look like flagpoles.

“This legislation is about restoring equal rights to licensed Amateur Radio operators,” said ARRL President Rick Roderick. “These restrictions hinder not only the enjoyment of Amateur Radio, but also its vital role in emergency communication during disasters.”

Public Support Needed for Passage

To advance the legislation, ARRL is calling on its members and all licensees of the US Amateur Radio Service to take action by sending letters to their congressional representatives. Through a dedicated online tool at https://send-a-letter.org/hoa/, hams can easily generate and submit pre-drafted letters with a few clicks.

Go to—https://send-a-letter.org/hoa/---and help us by sending your letters to your Representative and Senators.

ARRL has emphasized that every letter matters. “Your Representative and Senators need to know that the passage of this legislation is important to you.”

September is National Preparedness Month, which is a good time to look at your personal, family, and community resilience levels. For 2025, the National Preparedness Month theme is “Preparedness Starts at Home.”

Amateur radio is a valuable resource for communication and community service before and during times of crisis, and can be a significant factor in your home’s level of preparedness.

“Now is the time to make sure everything is in order,” said ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV.

For hams, it means taking the time to check their equipment—from the ground to the antenna, so that it is ready. “Many hams already participate in daily, weekly, and monthly nets that help them hone their communication skills, but if you’re not already active in one, this could be a good opportunity to get into it,” said Johnston.

To extend your personal preparedness into helping provide community resilience, Johnston invites operators to become active in their local ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) activities. “ARES has been leveraging the utility value of the Amateur Radio Service for 90 years,” he said. “We saw last year during Hurricane Helene how vital of a lifeline ham radio operators were for the affected areas.”

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is predicting an above-normal 2025 Atlantic hurricane season.

Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, says that should motivate hams, but not scare them. “Never let your guard down,” said Graves. “Don’t live your life in fear, just be aware.” Graves added that his net operators are spread across the Western Hemisphere, but they still have training sessions via radio nets and Zoom meetings.

See more on ARRL News:

• National Preparedness Month - Have a Go Kit
• National Preparedness Month - Ensuring Family Safety
• National Preparedness Month - Station Readiness
• National Preparedness Month - Get Involved

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Portable operating in the Parks On the Air (POTA) program is one of the most popular ham radio activities these days. Colin Wheatley, W9UPK, author of the July/August 2025 of On the Air article, POTA Activators and Hunters: The Great Symbiosis, joins the podcast to explain more about how POTA works, and how to get in on the fun.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® announces the DXCC® Trident plaque, a new award to honor the accomplishments of radio amateurs who have confirmed contacts with at least 100 ARRL DXCC award entities on each of three modes: phone, CW, and digital. The plaque is endorsable at levels of 200, 300, and Honor Roll, based on achieving that level on all three modes at the time of application.

ARRL Radiosport and Regulatory Affairs Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, says the new award should be exciting to hams. “It gives all participants of the DXCC program, especially those new to DXCC, something fresh to work towards,” he said. ARRL has long had the Worked All States Triple Play award, but this introduces the multi-mode achievement to the DXCC program.

Confirmation of QSOs toward DXCC Trident is done only through the standard process by credits within the ARRL DXCC program via Logbook of The World® (LoTW®). No QSL cards will be accepted with a plaque order. If your DXCC credits are not already visible in LoTW, you must first link your DXCC and LoTW profiles by requesting a credit merge from the ARRL Awards Desk

The earliest QSO date, and starting date for the DXCC Trident award, is November 1, 1976, when RTTY (now included with all digital QSOs) DXCC was introduced.

Additional details for determining eligibility and instructions for ordering a DXCC Trident plaque are included at www.arrl.org/dxcc-trident-award. The plaque is issued by completing the official DXCC Item Order Form which will be used by the ARRL Awards Department to verify eligibility. Plaque prices include shipping and handling and are subject to change without notice. All prices are in US dollars: shipped to US addresses $95; to Canada $114; to other international $134.

Celebrate your achievement and dedication to the DXCC program across all modes with the ARRL DXCC Trident award — a symbol of excellence in amateur radio operating and DXing.

Amateur radio had a crucial role in locating a mother and her 9-year son lost in California’s Stanislaus National Forest. On Friday July 11, 2025, the pair was reported overdue from a day trip to Camp Wolfeboro, a popular scout camp in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, according to a news release.

On Saturday July 12, the Calaveras County Volunteer Search and Rescue Team (SAR) was conducting its monthly training exercise along the Stanislaus River when members received notification that Tami and son Stirling had been reported missing since Friday afternoon and were not answering their cell phones.

The SAR team set up a command post at Black Springs Off-Highway Vehicle riding (OHV) Recreational Area and quickly began initiating a road-based search using four-wheel-drive vehicles and air support from the California Highway Patrol.

Joining the search was a Deputy and a Forest Service Law Enforcement Ranger who responded to 911 texts from campers in the area that a vehicle possibly matching the description of the pair’s missing car had been found. The SAR team began to find handwritten notes posted near a remote Forest Service road and then another about a mile away that included a telephone number and the names of the missing individuals. Just before 6:00 PM, the car and the lost mother and son were found. But the rescue was not over.

SAR team members were unable to communicate with their command post using conventional frequencies and cell phones from their deep woods location. So they used amateur radio frequency to report their emergency traffic. The call was immediately answered by a retired El Dorado County communications supervisor, who is also an amateur radio operator, monitoring from his home. He contacted the El Dorado 911 center, which provided the information to Calaveras County Dispatch. The SAR command post was notified, and the mother and her son were transported to waiting family members.

Young Stirling also had a hand with the rescue. He used his scout whistle to blow SOS, the internationally recognized Morse code distress signal, to give searchers a better chance of locating their position.

Electricity is a killer. About 150 people die each year at work from contact with electricity, according to the Electrical Safety Foundation International. Half of those are from contact with power lines. That data is just workplace deaths, so recreational and public service volunteering aren’t even accounted for.

In a recent article, ARRL New Mexico Section Manager Bill Mader, K8TE, shared safety concerns and processes that can be implemented at ARRL Field Day sites. I’d like to share a simple phrase that may enhance your situational awareness: Look up and live.

“Look up and live” was drilled into me and every other television news employee who worked with electronic news gathering vehicles that had a pneumatic mast or satellite dish. It was the title of [this] industry-standard safety video published by the National Press Photographers Association.

In TV news, where I spent the first two decades of my professional career, there was always a deadline and often a tremendous sense of urgency at the scene of breaking news to get a live shot up first. Before the days of bonded cellular internet streaming, we used radio — microwave and satellite — to take viewers to the scene.

No matter the pressure from news managers, safety was paramount. When we approached a scene, we made sure to park the live truck at least 10 feet away from overhead wires to comply with regulations. My personal minimum was two truck-lengths from any lines, ideally a whole mast-length. If I had a 58-foot mast, I’d try to park at least 58 feet away from the nearest power line.

Identifying overhead lines was ritualistic: As I arrived, I got out of the vehicle, walked 20 feet away, looked up and walked around the entire perimeter of the truck while deliberately searching for overhead lines and obstructions. This additional 45-second process could feel like an eternity when news was unfolding dramatically for me to capture and report — but I couldn’t go live if I was dead.

In pursuit of our amateur radio hobby, we should apply even more diligence. There’s no pressure to get on for a ham radio activation. Take your time, walk around, be diligent. Look up and live.

Portable masts, vertical antennas, wire antennas slung up into a tree — anything you put up can become energized if it contacts an overhead wire. Do not take chances. Even what appears to be a phone or fiber line could be carrying lethal voltages. Do not become the path to ground.

One additional tip that I hope never applies to a radio amateur: Should a vehicle you’re in become energized by a fallen line or a mast erected into power lines, do not leave it unless it is on fire. Call for help via phone or ham radio. Yell at any bystanders to not approach your vehicle. Electricity spreads out from a path to ground in concentric rings of decreasing voltage. Being in contact with different voltages is what will kill you. If a fire requires you to exit, carefully jump clear of the vehicle so as to not contact the vehicle and ground simultaneously. Be mindful of your movements: “Bunny hop” with your feet together or shuffle your feet on the ground in small increments without lifting either of them. Do not provide a path between the different potentials by walking normally or by falling and catching yourself with your hands.

Please be careful when erecting portable gear within the wires environment. Remember: Look up and live.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Everybody’s talking about everyday carry, or EDC, the trendy name for the collection of necessities you tote around with you every day, whether it’s in a pocket or a bag. ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, joins the podcast to talk about easy ways to make radio part of your everyday carry.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

ARRL Field Day 2025 is now in the history books. The Red River Radio Amateurs once again activated their club callsign—W0ILO—as a Class 3A¹ station from the Cass County Highway Department in West Fargo, ND.

We had 22 visitors and operators on our sign-in sheet at the end of the event, including some who were visiting us for the first time to see what ham radio was all about.

Publicity

We would like to extend big thank-you to Chuck KE0MW for doing a great job with our media outreach during the event.

And we had some pre-event media and on-line exposure (thanks to Steve K0STK) including:

• Inforum Article
• KVRR News Segment

⭐ RRRA Members have access to the club’s complete Field Day 2025 Publicity archive

We had several folks come out to visit after seeing the article in the Forum. We also had a few new hams who had gotten their licenses but hadn’t made their first QSOs yet. It was wonderful to see them get their first contacts.

Operating

The bands seemed to be in pretty good shape, and I saw the SSB stations routinely making contacts. I stuck to the digital and CW station, which also did fairly well, although I had to fight with some time sync issues on the FT8 computer. I will be cooking up a GPS-enabled Raspberry Pi for a time sync server next year.

Late in the afternoon, we were visited by our Dakota Division assistant section managers: Nancy K0YL and Rich W0TF. Thank-you so much for making the trip. Nancy and Rich shared some photos of funnel clouds they saw earlier in the day.

And speaking of weather, that was our other visitor for the early evening. While it did not impact us directly, the winds from the outflow boundary prompted us to lower the two antennas we had up: a 40-meter dipole and a 4-element multi-band beam. The dipole was held up by a boom lift that Chuck provided for us. We had that antenna down in seconds. The beam took a bit more work but was lowered within a few minutes. While the antennas were down, I dropped the power to 5 watts and worked some stations on CW. A second storm, which did hit us, followed the first about an hour later. Anton KC0PFS and I rode out the storm in the trailer; fortunately it was just heavy rain.

With the storm passed, we got the 40-meter dipole back up as quickly as it was lowered, as well as the beam, and were back on the air. Around 9 PM, we listened to a pass of RS-44, a linear transponder ham satellite that you can use for FT4, CW, and SSB. I didn’t have a second radio for an uplink, so we just listened to the pass, but it was interesting to hear all the conversations on it.

Our night crew, Tim K0CRF, started getting going around 11 PM on 20-meter SSB. The band seemed to stay viable well past midnight. I took a nap in the passenger seat of my car and woke up around 3 AM because of a passing rain shower. After the rain, I got on 40-meter CW around 3:30 AM, and it was amazing. The noise on the band was gone, stations were spaced out very nicely, and speeds were on the slower side.

Folks started to show back up around 7 AM, and we operated until about noon.

Thank-you to everyone who helped with setup and teardown, and everyone who worked some radio. I’m afraid to start listing folks and forget to mention someone.

Results

At the end of field day our log showed:

And we copied the ARRL Field Day Bulletin.

We had eight different operators (it’s possible there were more, but someone might have operated and forgotten to put their initials and call into the logger).

Thanks, all, for the fun at Field Day 2025. I’m already planning and looking forward to 2026.

ARRL’s Logbook of The World® (LoTW®) is the 2nd most popular benefit among members. It is also an extremely popular service internationally for non-members, as it is the primary means for providing confirmations for ARRL Awards, such as DXCC and Worked All States.

As a part of the ongoing modernization of the ARRL systems infrastructure, LoTW will be receiving major upgrades to the operating system it is running on, the relational database system it uses to store and access logbook and awards data, and server hosting, where it will be fully migrated to the cloud. These changes will, among other improvements, ensure LoTW performance needs can be better met based on user demand.

LoTW will be unavailable from June 27 to July 2, 2025, to complete these upgrades. We will bring LoTW back online if it is available sooner than July 2.

Logbook of The World can be found at lotw.arrl.org. More information about the popular service is available at www.arrl.org/logbook-of-the-world.

If you are a user of LoTW and not an ARRL member, please become a supporter of LoTW by making a $20 (or more) donation to the ARRL LoTW Fund or visit www.arrl.org/donate.

Very 73, and see you on the air!

David A. Minster, NA2AA
ARRL CEO

About Logbook of The World®

Logbook of The World® — LoTW® — is a web-accessed database and repository that enables you to submit electronic logs for amateur radio contacts (QSOs) and for confirmation (QSLs). Users can view submitted QSOs and resulting QSLs online. Radio amateurs can use LoTW to track their progress toward achievements and awards, such as The ARRL Worked All States Award, and amateur radio’s premier award, DXCC®, in which membership is achieved by confirming on-the-air contacts with 100 countries. LoTW was introduced by ARRL in 2003. Today, over 2.1 billion QSO records have been entered into the system.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “With ARRL Field Day weekend just a little more than two weeks away, we talk to ARRL’s Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE; Digital RF Engineer John McAuliffe, W1DRF and Education and Learning Support Specialist Max Freedman, N4ML, about how newer hams can navigate the most popular on-air event of the year. Get recommendations for setups, modes, goals, and more.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

2025 ARRL Field Day is just three weeks away! The excitement is building. Most clubs have their activations planned. In the last two weeks, 350 more sites have been added to the Field Day Site Locator, with a total of 886 listed as of June 5. ARRL Field Day is a great way to connect with your local amateur radio community, for Technician-class operators to get on lower HF bands, to shake down your portable operating gear, and to have fun and enjoy the camaraderie of your fellow hams.

If you can’t make it out to an activation near you, or you’d just rather get on for a little bit from your home station — never fear: there’s an operating class for you.

According to Field Day rules:

Class D stations

are home stations operating from permanent or licensed station locations using commercial power. Class D stations can count contacts with any other station for QSO credit. If you’re operating on a radio plugged into a power supply connected to your wall outlet — this is for you.

Class E stations

are home stations using emergency power for transmitters and receivers. Class E may work all Field Day stations. If you’re operating off a battery, solar, wind, or any other off-grid redundancy — you’re in Class E.

To determine your exchange for ARRL Field Day, use the number of transmitters in simultaneous use, the class of operation, and your ARRL or Radio Amateurs of Canada section prefix. For example, if an amateur in Nebraska turned on their shore-powered home station and operated in the event, they’d be “1 Delta November Echo”. See the full rules for more information and find a list of ARRL Sections at this link.

ARRL Field Day is fun, but the outreach value is serious, according to ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX. “Each year, ARRL Field Day is the driving force for official proclamations declaring amateur radio a vital part of communities,” she said. States like Hawaii and New Hampshire, among others, have joined with towns and counties around the country to declare the importance of amateur radio.

“Having the governor or even a town council recognize the value that the hams in their community provides is invaluable,” continued Harrop. “Not only does it honor the work of amateur radio volunteers, but it raises awareness of ham radio among the public.”

The ARRL Foundation is accepting grant applications from amateur radio organizations for eligible amateur radio-related projects and initiatives, particularly those focused on educating, licensing, and supporting amateur radio activities. To grow amateur radio’s future, youth-based projects and initiatives are especially encouraged.

The ARRL Foundation grants program accepts proposals on a cyclical model three times a year: in February, June, and October. Proposals for the June grant period are accepted through June 30. Awardees will be notified approximately 1 month after the closing of each cycle.

The ARRL Foundation carefully manages a portfolio of endowments where donors have provided specific goals for their gifts, and that portfolio is invested and managed in a way that it can continue to support those goals for many years to come. Additional information and a link to the grant application can be found at http://www.arrl.org/amateur-radio-grants

“ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, returns to the podcast to walk readers through his May/June 2025 On the Air article, Building Simple Antennas for 10 and 15 Meters.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Eric Tichansky, NO3M, of Saegertown, Pennsylvania, has been issued the first Worked All States award from ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® for the 630-meter band. He picked up the award at ARRL Headquarters in Newington, Connecticut, on April 21, 2025. That was the culmination of years of study, work, and experimentation.

Tichansky had a draw to 160 meters early in his ham radio career and was active in contesting and DXing on top band. When he moved to his current home, he was able to experiments with LowFER operation. When 630 meters opened to amateur use, he got straight to work. “It seemed like an unreachable goal at the time, but patience and persistence as well as gaining more and more of an understanding of the capabilities of the band over the years proved otherwise,” said Tichansky.

His transmit antenna system has been a journey in trial, error, and fire—he’s a member of what he calls the “Hall of Flames.” He says he “definitely learned that good quality insulators do make a difference.” After years of work and refinement of matching and loading techniques, his 67-foot vertical with 8 sloping toploading wires as a wire skirt over a large radial field have proven to be the ticket to success. “For reception, I have always used dedicated receive antennas which have included phased Beverages, a full-sized 8-circle vertical array, and various others like a terminated loop,” said Tichansky.

As news of the award achievement spread in the amateur community, even many long-time hams with little or no experience on 630 meters wondered how it worked. Tichansky says Alaska and Hawaii proved especially challenging. “(The states) were certainly a challenge, Alaska perhaps moreso. However, both locations had excellent resident operators and stations and through persistent attempts and the right conditions, two-way QSOs were completed. I have a few CW QSOs with K9FD/KH6 (SK) which still stand as the distance record on 630 for CW. I also have the overall distance record for a QSO with VK4YB via JT9 which took a long time and many attempts, finally finding success on a morning (US side) near the equinox,” he said.

Tichansky says there are several other operators right behind him, with WAS almost completed. In fact, ARRL Awards Branch Manager Sharon Taratula announced today that Edward Gray, WØSD, of Salem, South Dakota, has been awarded 630-meter WAS #2.

Most of the contacts on the band happen just like any other band, says Tichansky, from getting on and calling CQ or replying to one. Very few of his contacts on there were scheduled.

It takes an experimenter’s mind and a lot of patience to be successful on the band, but like with any other operating specialty, there is a community ready to help. “The 630-meter community is very diverse, but there are a number of members that come from particular backgrounds including microwave operations, EME, topbanders and other weak signal communications. The thing we have in common is that we are experimenters and enjoy a bit of a challenge!” exclaimed Tichansky.

He currently has a DXCC total of 17 on the band. Tichansky plans to contribute technical articles about operating on 630-meters to QEX magazine in the coming months. All ARRL members have access to QEX and three other high-quality publications digitally.

The following story appeared in the March 18, 2025 issue of ARRL Club News:

Your club is planning to staff a table at a local community fair or event. Offer to send radiograms. Recruit volunteers to explain what a radiogram is and, later, send the messages. Who in your radio club is active on the traffic nets? How many members know the radiogram format or know how to send a radiogram message on the air? Fear not! Your club can put its best foot forward and hold an amateur radio message fair with minimal traffic-handling skills using an exciting new tool: the Radiogram Portal!

Jonathan Taylor, K1RFD, inventor of EchoLink, has developed a web-based tool that the public can use to enter a short message by following simple instructions. The message will be picked up by a participating amateur radio volunteer operator (called a “radiogrammer”) who logs in to a restricted portion of the website, takes the message off the gateway, and sends it over the air on a National Traffic System (NTS) net for relay to its destination. The recipient will get a local phone call from a nearby ham. Along the way, ham operators will relay the messages by voice, digital, or even Morse code and get valuable practice in emergency public service.

“It’s not a problem if your club lacks an active traffic handler to check into the traffic nets,” says Phil Temples, K9HI, who chairs the ARRL EC-FSC NTS subcommittee. “You merely set up a laptop at your message fair using a Wi-Fi connection and allow members of the public to enter their own messages. Later, a skilled traffic handler in your area will pull the message off the portal and send it in a timely fashion.”

The Radiogram Portal was successfully demonstrated at the 2024 New England Division Convention. An extensive display sponsored by the Nashua (New Hampshire) Area Radio Society highlighted the NTS and the Radiogram Portal running on a computer, along with a trifold that pictured the NTS2 website, the NTS Letter, training videos, and a downloadable handout available for clubs and public gatherings.

Visit the Radiogram Portal for more information about this service.

Many Technician class amateurs miss out on fun and skills learning of traffic handling because they reside in areas of the country where local traffic nets on VHF repeaters don’t exist. The Virtual NTS Training Net (VNTN) seeks to address this problem with the creation of a Zoom-based local traffic net that can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection.

VNTN will accept check-ins and radiogram traffic utilizing standard phonetics and pro-signs; in short, participants will enjoy the same experiences as those who check into conventional “RF” traffic nets. The net will incorporate a “hands-on” training approach in traffic procedures, radiogram creation, and relay.

It is our hope that new amateurs who participate in VNTN will be motivated to join section and region nets on HF after upgrading to a higher license class.

The Net meets Wednesdays at 7:00 PM ET. In future, it is hoped that a west coast version will be established at around 7 PM PT. The VNTN URL is: https://bitl.to/3xj4.

Remember to monitor the NTS website for updates and Zoom URL changes.

“This month, ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, returns to the podcast to update us on ARRL’s new monthly livestream, On the Air Live. The April session of On the Air Live will be a tutorial on the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS). A handheld radio will allow you to use the APRS. Listen in to find out how easy it is, and how to join the April 22 session of On the Air Live. “¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In a Public Notice titled “In Re: Delete, Delete, Delete,” issued on March 12, 2025, the FCC is soliciting public input on any FCC rules in any service that members of the public believe should be deleted or modified “for the purpose of alleviating unnecessary regulatory burdens.” This is the latest in a series of similar proceedings going back to 1996, when the Communications Act was amended to require the FCC to periodically review its rules.

ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®, through its Executive Committee and FCC Counsel, is conducting a review of the provisions in Part 97 and other related rules that apply to radio amateurs. ARRL is also soliciting feedback from its members. Rules identified as outmoded, obsolete, or that for other reasons should be repealed or modified, will be included in ARRL’s filing to be submitted no later than the FCC deadline of April 11, 2025. The deadline for filing reply comments is April 28, 2025.

It is expected that the Commission will incorporate suggestions that it decides worthy of its consideration in a future Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that could be issued later this year. There will then be an opportunity for public comment on the specific rules that the Commission proposes for deletion or modification.

A PDF of the FCC Public Notice is available for review.

Momentum is building for ARRL’s Ham Radio Open House—an amateur radio event for clubs to put their most technological foot forward and show the public the true modern state of amateur radio. The events are to be held in April across the United States, on or close to World Amateur Radio Day (WARD) on April 18. This year’s WARD commemorates 100 years of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU).

The goal for participation is 50 clubs in 50 states – but the more the merrier. ARRL is working with Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI and SciStarter to promote the event as part of April being Citizen Science Month.

“We’ve had a lot of clubs express interest and commitment to be a part of Ham Radio Open House,” said ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX. “Thanks to some great volunteer outreach efforts, clubs are seeing the value of showing off the true current state of amateur radio,” she said.

Many other clubs in overlapping hobbies are being engaged. Several astronomy clubs have agreed to partner with local ham clubs to co-host the event.

A public information training workshop will be held for ARRL Public Information Coordinators, Public Information Officers, Section Managers, club leaders, and others with an interest in hosting and promoting an ARRL Ham Radio Open House. The live, interactive, webinar is scheduled to be held on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 8:30 PM Eastern / 5:30 PM Pacific. Look for a registration link next week.

Plan your Ham Radio Open House in April using the resources and tips at www.arrl.org/world-amateur-radio-day.

On March 14, 2025, ARRL News announced the 2025 ARRL Field Day Theme: Radio Connects

The theme for 2025 Field Day is Radio Connects—highlighting the many ways that wireless technology connects people across distances near and far. The event is part picnic, campout, practice for emergencies, informal contest, and most of all, fun! ARRL Field Day is the most popular ham radio activity held annually in the US and Canada. On the fourth weekend in June each year, more than 31,000 hams get together with their radio clubs, schools, or friends to operate from remote locations. ¹

ℹ️ For more information about Field Day read the logo and theme announcement and visit the ARRL Field Day page.

“There are a variety of antennas that a ham can use on the VHF and UHF bands, from simple whips, all the way up to directional beams. This month’s podcast walks you through the various types and their use cases.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

“World Amateur Radio Day (WARD) is April 18 every year, and in 2025, WARD is extra special [because IARU is celebrating its centenary]. ARRL invites radio clubs and schools to organize a Ham Radio Open House in April, to highlight the Amateur Radio Service for its development and practice of the latest radio communications and technology, and as a hands-on pathway into STEM fields for the next generation. ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX, and Associate Professor of Physics and Engineering at the University of Scranton, Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, join the podcast to talk about what a Ham Radio Open House might include, and how your club or group can start organizing one.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Representatives August Pfluger, R-Tex., and Joe Courtney, D-Conn. announced their joint re-introduction of legislation in the Senate and House to restore the right to Amateur Radio operators to install the antennas necessary to serve their communities.

Homeowner association rules often prevent Amateur Radio operators from installing antennas at their homes even though Amateur Radio has proven to be essential in emergencies and natural disasters such as hurricanes when other means of communication fail.

“Mississippians should have access to every possible means of warning for natural disasters, including amateur radio operators. In an emergency, those warnings can mean the difference between life and death,” Senator Wicker said. “The Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act would remove unnecessary roadblocks that could help keep communities safe during emergencies like tornadoes, hurricanes, and fires.”

“When disaster strikes, amateur radio operators provide vital, often life-saving information, which shouldn’t be hindered by prohibitive rules or confusing approval processes. The Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act eliminates obstacles for ham radio enthusiasts, allowing them to continue their communications and serve their communities in the face of emergencies,” said Senator Blumenthal.

“Natural disasters and other emergency situations that hinder our regular lines of communication are unfortunately unavoidable, which is why we must bolster our emergency preparedness by removing the barriers amateur radio operators often run into when installing antennas. Amateur radio plays a vital role in public safety by delivering critical information to people at all times. My district is home to dozens of amateur radio operators ready to volunteer in the event of an emergency, and I am proud to lead this legislation,” said Congressman August Pfluger.

“As we know from recent natural disasters, amateur radio operators in Connecticut can be a critical component of disaster response and emergency management. It is in our communities’ best interest that we give them the capabilities to operate at the highest level, and with the re-introduction of this bill, we’ve taken a strong step in that direction,” said Congressman Courtney.

Background

The Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act of 2025 (H.R. 1094 and S. 459) would require homeowner associations to accommodate the needs of FCC-licensed Amateur Radio operators by prohibiting the enforcement of private land use restrictions that ban, prevent, or require the approval of the installation or use of Amateur Radio station antennas. Homeowner associations have often prevented installation and use of such antennas through private land use restrictions. This has hindered voluntary training for emergency situations and blocked access to necessary communications when disaster strikes.

Among other provisions, this legislation would:

• Prohibit homeowner association rules that would prevent or ban Amateur Radio antennas;
• Specify an approval process for installing Amateur Radio antennas;
• Provide a Federal private right of action to Amateur Radio operators in disputed cases.

On behalf of America’s Amateur Radio licensees, Rick Roderick, the President of The American Radio Relay League, re-confirmed the ARRL’s full support for the passage of the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act of 2025 and extended his thanks and appreciation to Senators Wicker and Blumenthal and Congressmen Pfluger and Courtney for their unflagging leadership of the bi-partisan effort to support and protect the rights of all Amateur Radio Operators.

The text of the House version (H.R. 1094) is available on-line

As the firestorms across Southern California continue to threaten millions of residents, trained amateur radio operators are serving critical volunteer roles to help officials spot fires before they get out of control. Dry conditions and wind gusts of 100 miles per hour have fueled days of devastating wildfires. Entire neighborhoods have been leveled by infernos.

The Eaton fire burned to the top of Mount Wilson, a critical logistical post for broadcast radio and television stations, as well as communications across the Southland. Federal agencies, air traffic control, local emergency responders, radio amateurs, and others all share tower space on the mountain.

While the main fires have been burning north and northwest of the central section of Los Angeles, just to the south, hams are standing watch. Orange County Fire Watch (OCFW) is a program locally organized by the Orange County Parks Department and the Irvine Conservancy.

During severe fire weather, volunteers go to preassigned locations within parks and open spaces to report conditions. Many of them are hams, using the amateur radio bands to fill in mobile network weak zones. ARRL National Instructor Gordon West, WB6NOA, is among the deployed volunteers. He said hams are stepping up. “We’re all over the ARRL Orange Section on hilltops, reporting the wind and humidity, ash seen coming down, scanning for spot fires (none so far), smoke from the LA fires, guest activity at the parks, and being a presence at trailheads with reflective vests and vehicle signs indicating Fire Watch,” he said.

Ray Hutchinson, AE6H, is a retired Firefighter who serves as the chief radio officer for Fire Watch. He says local clubs are key to providing the needed RF infrastructure. “Our local club, the South Orange Amateur Radio Association (SOARA), an ARRL Special Service Club, provides linked 2-meter and 70-centimeter repeaters: one high level and one coastal, for use by OCFW hams during deployments. There is a formal OCFW Net Control Station (NCS) for the entirety of these events,” he said.

Radio amateurs are also ready and able to serve at evacuation centers, providing support as needed.

Members of ARRL Headquarters staff have been in touch with ARRL volunteers and other ham radio groups around the affected area, and are offering material support for any activations. “It has been a busy start to the year for ham volunteers,” said ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX. “Whether it’s firestorms or ice storms or any other need, ARRL volunteers selflessly serve their communities. We’re mindful that large-scale events like this impact the hams who are active serving,” she said.

ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, has been on calls with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other served agencies, offering ARRL resources. Efforts are being coordinated locally by Emergency Network Los Angeles (ENLA), the Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) group in Southern California.

Johnston urges hams in the affected regions to be ready to take care of themselves and their families before needing to deploy. He points to resources shared by ARRL’s Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) during National Preparedness Month. “These are stressful events for everyone, and being a ham volunteer is really second to keeping yourself and your family safe,” said Johnston.

Related Articles

For National Preparedness Month…

• Resilience Through Amateur Radio
• Ensuring Family Safety
• Station Readiness
• Get Involved

Share your reports with ARRL

Radio amateurs involved in ARES or other volunteer work through ham radio are encouraged to let ARRL News staff know of what’s happening in their local area by emailing news@arrl.org.

If you spot an article in the media that highlights the work of ham radio, alert us via newsmedia@arrl.org.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “In preparation for the first On the Air Live interactive livestream launching on January 28, we take a look at the topic: slow-scan TV (SSTV), a ham radio mode that allows you to use RF to send static images. Steve Ford, WB8IMY, author of SSTV: When a Picture is Worth a Thousand Words in the January/February 2025 issue of On the Air, joins the podcast to share the basics of this mode. Visit learn.arrl.org to register for the January 28 livestream!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® Kids Day runs January 4, 2025 from 1800 UTC - 2359 UTC. Operate as much or as little as you like.

The event is designed to give on-the-air experience to young people, to foster interest in getting a license of their own, and give older hams a chance to share their stations and love for amateur radio with their children. You can share the excitement with your own kids, grandkids, a Scout troop, a church, or the general public!

All participants are encouraged to post their story and thumbnail photos to the Kids Day Soapbox page. Tell the world about your operations, the fun you had, and the contacts you made! Remember, ARRL must have a completed release form in order to include youth photos (younger than 18 years of age) in ARRL publications.

There will be a second ARRL Kids Day on June 21, 2025.

More information, including frequencies, suggested exchanges, and how to download a certificate, can be found on the Kids Day web page.

ARRL Straight Key Night will be January 1, 2025, from 0000 UTC through 2359 UTC. This 24-hour event is not a contest but rather a day dedicated to celebrating our CW heritage.

Participants are encouraged to get on the air and simply make enjoyable, conversational CW QSOs. The use of straight keys or bugs to send CW is preferred. There are no points scored and all who participate are winners. All authorized amateur frequencies may be used but activity has traditionally been centered on the HF bands.

Entries for Straight Key Night must be received by January 3, 2025. Votes for “Best Fist” and “Most Interesting QSO” will be tabulated and included in the results. Send your information to straightkey@arrl.org or by mail to ARRL Straight Key Night, 225 Main Street, Newington, Connecticut 06111. For more information, contact contests@arrl.org or (860) 594-0232.

Find more information at www.arrl.org/straight-key-night

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “In early 2025, the ARRL Education & Learning Department will launch an interactive livestreamed video podcast, On the Air Live. The monthly episodes will be aimed toward educating new and intermediate-level hams, inspiring them to explore the nearly endless aspects of amateur radio and develop their skills. ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, who will host each episode, joins the On the Air podcast to share more details, including upcoming topics and how to participate in real time.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Applications are now being accepted for campers interested in attending the 2025 Youth on the Air Camp. Licensed amateur radio operators, ages 15 through 25, who want to attend are encouraged to apply online at YouthOnTheAir.org. The camp is scheduled to take place June 15–20, 2025, in Thornton (Denver), Colorado and the Denver Radio Club, an ARRL Affiliated Club, is the local host.

The current application period is for the fifth camp for young amateur radio operators in North, Central, and South America. For the best chance at being selected, applications should be submitted by 2359Z on January 15, 2025. Campers will be selected by the working group and notified by February 1.

To encourage attendance from across the Americas, allocations for campers are being held open for various areas of North, Central, and South America. If countries do not use their allocation or should someone within an allocation decline acceptance, those positions will be filled from the remaining pool of applicants. As this will be an ongoing process, everyone will not receive notification of acceptance at the same time. Preference will be given to first-time attendees.

Applications will continue to be accepted through May 1 and up to 50 campers will be accepted. The application process is free, but a $100 USD deposit is required upon acceptance. Should a potential camper be unable to pay the $100 deposit, they may apply for a scholarship or waiver. Campers are also responsible for their own arrival and departure transportation to the camp location. Travel assistance may also be available, especially for those traveling from outside of the USA and Canada. Travel during camp events is provided.

For details about the camp, visit the camp web [site] at YouthOnTheAir.org or email Camp Director Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, at director@youthontheair.org.

Santa Claus will be on the amateur radio airwaves again this year.

The 3.916 Santa Net will be on the air every night at 7:00 PM CST from November 29 through December 24. Reserve a spot with Santa by making a pre-net check in. You can check in each night starting at 6:30 PM CST online at www.CQSanta.com.

Santa and Mrs. Claus will also be on the air, together, thanks to special arrangements with the Cowley (KS) County Amateur Radio Club. They will be on the air on the 147.000 repeater and the Sunflower Net system, between 10 a.m. and noon on November 30 and beginning at 10 a.m. on December 14 and 21. In addition to the local repeater, the Sunflower Net offers connection options to Allstar, DMR, Dstar, Echolink, Fusion, Hamshack Hotline, M17, and P25. The club is also setting up a radio link at the local library to talk to Santa.

Also, for the 4th year, Santa has sent Elf Chucky and his team of amateur radio operators to northern Colorado, to help make sure children of all ages can talk to Santa on station NØP from the North Pole. Thanks to the Longmont Amateur Radio Club and the Northern Colorado Amateur Radio Club, children can get into the holiday spirit by talking to Santa on the radio. Both are ARRL Affiliated Clubs. Get the details on that operation at https://w0eno.org/santa/.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “December is Youth on the Air Month, also known as YOTA Month, and there are plans to celebrate young operators all month long. Blake Pearson, KN4VKY, one of the Americas YOTA Month Participation Coordinators, joins the podcast to explain how young hams can apply to use one of the official YOTA Month call signs, and how you can take part in the YOTA Month operating events no matter what age you are.” ¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The ARES Task Book is an important resource and reference for amateur radio operators who hope to be of service to their communities. ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, joins the podcast to talk about the task book’s place in a ham’s training, as well as recent updates to the book.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Thank-you to the sponsors, attendees, seminar speakers, vendors and volunteers whose presence and contributions helped to make this event a success.

See you next year ‼️

Sponsors

This Hamfest supported by contributions from:

• ARRL
• Bioenno Power
• Heil Sound
• Hammond Manufacturing
• RT Systems
• DX Engineering
• N3FJP
• WA0LIA
• Easy Way Ham Books
• 3rd Planet Solar

How to join the RRRA Hamfest Announcements mailing list

RRRA uses Mailman to manage their mailing lists. These instructions will guide you through the subscription process:

1. Visit the Hamfest Announcements mailing list with your web browser
2. Use the “Subscribing to Hamfest-Announce” form (located about halfway down the page) to enter your email address, name and call-sign. Please use a real zero if there is one in your call sign
3. Click the “Subscribe” button below the form
4. Look for the confirmation message which will be automatically sent to the email address you provided in step 2. You should receive the confirmation message within a few minutes of submitting your subscription request
5. Follow the instructions in the confirmation email to confirm your address.

Please contact the RRRA Webmaster Team if you need help with the mailing list.

All September, the ARRL® Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) has been promoting readiness and resilience for National Preparedness Month. As we come to the end of the month, a hurricane is churning in the Gulf of Mexico, with forecasts of up to 20 feet of storm surge expected to impact large portions of Florida.

This underscores the need to be prepared. Even experienced hams and those who have been through many disasters have to continually work on their resilience plans.

While we have discussed some very basic preparedness tips this month, ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, hopes you will put your skills, equipment, and other resources to use in a group that can make a difference in your community. “If you have the ability, get plugged into a local ARES group. Using your resources to assist local responder agencies, volunteer groups, public service events, and other areas of need are a prime use of amateur radio,” he said.

ARES members will soon great way to practice those skills in controlled situations such as Simulated Emergency Tests or local communications exercises.

On October 5 - 6, Sections will hold a SET, so get involved in your local drill and make a difference in your community through amateur radio.

What happens to all your stuff ❓

Some estimates show that nearly two-thirds of Americans don’t have a plan. For some, it’s procrastination. Others don’t know where to start. “So many times we hear from the family of a Silent Key who are overwhelmed with what to do with a lifetime worth of amateur radio gear,” said ARRL Director of Development Kevin Beal, K8EAL. “Simply thinking through what needs to be done ahead of time can prevent the stress on our loved ones after we are gone.”

ARRL this week held a webinar, hosted by Beal and Dino Papas, KL0S, to discuss the first steps of planning. “It is something that, unfortunately, doesn’t get a lot of attention. The bottom-line up front is, ‘what happens to all our beloved ham gear when that inevitable day comes along that we become a Silent Key?’… Unfortunately, that day may arrive unexpectedly – so we need to prepare ahead of time to make it as simple as possible for our families,” said Papas.

“Your station is an asset, just like anything else you’ve built and put resources into. Deciding now what happens when you become a Silent Key can help solidify your legacy to ham radio,” said Beal. The ARRL Legacy Circle recognizes the generosity of individuals who have planned support for ARRL through wills, trusts, life insurance gifts, and other ways. The ARRL Legacy Circle ensures that ARRL and amateur radio will continue to thrive for generations to come.

As ARRL continues the September series on National Preparedness Month, we turn to a critical element for radio amateurs and especially Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) volunteers: their station.

Many hams have a home station from which we operate on a regular basis. Is your station set up to operate or have the ability to operate off the grid or on alternate power sources? There are many ways to set this up to run on battery power and could even be done temporarily if you don’t have a permanent battery backup situation.

ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, says it is easier than ever to have a backup. “With the new batteries out there, and solar technology both improving in quality and decreasing in price, building a resilient station is no longer difficult or expensive,” he said. Johnston encourages ham radio operators to think about powering more than just the radio on an alternate power source. “Do you have lights that could run off the battery source? Do you have an alternate power source for your computer? What about your internet connection? Is there a backup for it?” he asked.

Johnston says backup generators are great but sometimes are only fed to certain circuits in your home. Amateurs should test their ham station to ensure that it is powered by the generator. If the whole house system does not power the station, a portable generator could be an option. The key is to test the system under blue sky conditions to ensure it works, check for RF noise, and potential power drop.

Having backup antennas is also crucial. “Especially if we are dealing with storms, it may be useful to have alternate antennas on hand, especially for HF and VHF,” said Johnston.

September is National Preparedness Month. In coordination with our partners at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) is producing a series of weekly articles to help radio amateurs and their families stay safe.

For a ham or any other public safety responder, whether paid or volunteer, it is not uncommon to be called out to provide assistance during disasters. We often do not know when we will be called or exactly what the call will involve. We also do not know how long we may be deployed. In the last edition, we focused on our go kit and the tools we should have to deploy as an amateur radio volunteer. But have we made sure our family is prepared for these times, whether we are deployed or will be staying home?

As the theme of this month suggests, ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, says it comes down to being prepared. “Make a plan with your family and ensure basic supplies are available including water, food and first aid capabilities. Do you have a generator or alternate power capabilities and do your family members know how to use it? Have a communications plan, including backup communications, with family members and friends,” he said.

Johnston says to ensure your family knows where to go if they must evacuate for some reason. Always remember your family and your health and safety should always come first.

“Remember that there may be a time that you are the victim. There may be a time that you must turn down a request for assistance because you must take care of your family first. Ask if you can be put in a slot later down the roster to allow time to get your family to safety or have everything settled to ensure your family is cared for before deployment,” said Johnston.

ARRL recognizes the tremendous work ham radio volunteers put into serving their communities. “If your mind is not on the mission, you may be putting yourself and others at risk. Therefore, you should ensure your family’s wellbeing before, during and after a major event,” Johnston continued.

Learn about how to become an ARES Volunteer on the ARRL website at www.arrl.org/ares.

Learn more about how to keep your family safe at www.ready.gov.

September is National Preparedness Month, and ARRL is working to help radio amateurs have a plan for family resilience. Many hams enjoy public service as part of their operating. Being ready to activate for a served agency through the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) involves not only being licensed and trained, but also prepared and equipped.

ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, suggests that hams and their families have a “go-bag”. He says there are a few things to consider: “You need to be able to function while activated, so that means you need a kit for your needs and a kit for your radio needs. If your family is impacted by the situation, they also need to have some gear at the ready.”

On the ARRL website, there’s an Emergency Prep Kit Checklist. It lists the common items such as food and water for several days, a first aid kit, medications, chargers for your devices and other useful items.

Having a kit for your radio is useful as well. “Go kits will vary based on function and need for the field,” said Johnston. “Most kits should include a dual band HT and/or mobile radio with antenna, a power supply and all necessary cables and connectors. Every kit should include note pad or paper of some type as well as pens or pencils. You should have a power source and power cables. If you are working HF then you will need an HF radio and antenna, and if you want digital capabilities, then a computer with software preloaded will be desired.”

Other things you may want will include tape and tools, spare batteries, headphones, flashlights of some sort, cell phone chargers, and a multimeter. Other items that won’t fit in a bag but may be needed include a generator, a working surface like a small folding table, a chair, and some type of shelter.

Need a bag for your go kit? Consider the ARRL Gray Canvas Backpack. $30.00 in the ARRL Store.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The 10-meter band offers something for hams of every license class, including Technicians, who can use voice, Morse code, and digital modes on this band. Scott Freeberg, WA9WFA, joins this episode of the podcast to take us on A Tour of 10 Meters, and to explain why right now is the best time to get on the band, thanks to the terrific radio wave propagation being generated by Solar Cycle 25.” ¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On Thursday, July 11, 2024, ARRL® The National Association for Amateur Radio® joined The Weather Channel for a live chat about the value of amateur radio during hurricane season and beyond.

ARRL’s Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R, talked about how radio helps inform the warning process through surface observations relayed through the Hurricane Watch Net and other nets to WX4NHC, the amateur radio station at the National Hurricane Center.

Viewers were told how local ARRL volunteers serve their local agencies through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES®) and how they could get licensed through ARRL materials and become a part of it.¹

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, joins the podcast to share details about ARRL’s updated Emergency Communication courses, which have been broken into three successive levels – Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced. The courses are available free of charge at the ARRL Learning Center.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In his Power Tool Batteries for Portable or Emergency Operations article (a free preview from the July 2024 issue of QST Magazine), Gordon S. Novak, AF5KA, demonstrates how inexpensive DC–DC convertors can turn easily accessible lithium power tool batteries into a good backup or portable source for powering a radio.

This is a very timely and topical discussion in light of RRRA’s July Portable Operations July Activity.

AF5KA begins with a brief discussion of the DC–DC convertor specifications to look for as well as two types of battery connections: ad-hoc (using ATC fuses) and brand-specific plug-in connectors.

AF5KA then discusses power limitations, provides examples of battery sizes for different power levels, and mentions the easy-to-remember rule of thumb: “the maximum amperage to the radio is three times the ampere-hour rating of the 18V tool battery.” ¹

TL;DR; “Almost any power tool battery will power a QRP radio. An 8Ah battery at 18 V will power a 100 W transceiver.” ²

AF5KA’s article closes with a list of seven power tool battery advantages and a link to information on where to purchase some of the parts mentioned in the article.

On July 1, 2024, ARRL announced the return of the Logbook of The World QSO verification service in their ARRL System Services Disruption bulletin.

Effective 12:00pm ET / 16:00 UTC we will be returning Logbook of The World® (LoTW®) to service.

As work progressed on the network, some users encountered LoTW opening briefly during which some 6600 logs were uploaded. The logs were not processed until this weekend as we tested that the interfaces to LoTW were functioning properly.

We are taking steps to help manage what will likely be a huge influx of logs. We are requesting that if you have large uploads, perhaps from contests or from a DXpedition, please wait a week or two before uploading to give LoTW a chance to catch up. We have also implemented a process to reject logs with excessive duplicates. Please do not upload your entire log to ensure your contacts are in LoTW as they will be rejected. Lastly, please do not call ARRL Headquarters to report issues you are having with LoTW. You can contact support at LoTW-help@arrl.org.

Through the end of the year, you may experience planned times when LoTW will be unavailable. We have been using this time to evaluate operational and infrastructure improvements we would like to make to LoTW. Those times will be announced.

We appreciate your patience as we worked through the challenges keeping LoTW from returning to service. We know the importance of LoTW to our members, and to the tens of thousands of LoTW users who are not ARRL members. LoTW, just behind QST, is our second most popular ARRL benefit.¹

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “ARRL Radiosport and Regulatory Information Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, and ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE, join the June episode of the podcast to spread the excitement about ARRL Field Day, which is coming up on June 22 - 23.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “This year’s Dayton Hamvention, coming up May 17-19 in Xenia, Ohio, will be extra special — it’s also the 2024 ARRL National Convention. ARRL Director of Marketing & Innovation Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R, joins this month’s podcast to share details about ARRL-sponsored activities at the show, including several of the ARRL-sponsored forums and the Youth Rally.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “We often hear about served agencies when hams talk about disaster response and emergency communications. ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, joins the podcast this month to discuss exactly what and who served agencies are, and where the Amateur Radio Service fits into their responses.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The Solar Eclipse QSO Party (or SEQP), is an on-air event coming up on April 8, the same day as the next total solar eclipse. The SEQP is a great opportunity for hams to contribute data to studies of Earth’s ionosphere, the part of our atmosphere that makes radio communications possible, and all you have to do is get on the air and operate as you normally would. The lead organizer of HamSCI, Dr. Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, joins us in this episode to explain how to get involved.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On March 22, 2024, ARRL News reported on a change to FCC policy which will nudge Amateur Radio licensing a bit further into the 21st century: beginning March 29, 2024, multifactor (AKA two factor) authentication will be required to login to the Commission Registration System (CORES).

CORES is the FCC system used to pay any application or regulatory fees, manage or reset a password on an existing FRN, or request a new FRN.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has announced an upcoming change to the Commission Registration System (CORES) that licensees use to pay any application or regulatory fees, manage or reset a password on an existing FRN, or request a new FRN. Beginning March 29, 2024, multifactor authentication will be implemented. Users will be prompted to request a six-digit secondary verification code, which will be sent to the email address(es) associated with each username. The user will then need to enter the code into CORES before they can continue.

In a public notice, the FCC said this change will make the system more secure. “This additional layer of security will further safeguard against unauthorized access, thereby enhancing the overall integrity of information contained within the CORES system and improving the security of user data,” it read.

The FCC recommends that users confirm they have access to their username account email and to add a secondary email address, if need be.

Resources are available for those who need assistance with the system. For inquiries or assistance regarding the implementation of multifactor authentication on CORES, submit a help request at https://www.fcc.gov/wtbhelp, or call the FCC at 877-480-3201 (Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 6 PM ET). ¹

On March 15, 2024, ARRL News announced the 2024 ARRL Field Day Theme: Be Radio Active

The theme for 2024 ARRL Field Day is “Be Radio Active.” The event will run on June 22 - 23, and it will be one-part contest, one-part emergency communications exercise, and one-part open house – and a great time. The theme encourages radio amateurs to take advantage of the peak of Solar Cycle 25, which we are nearing. Activity this year is likely to be extremely high thanks to favorable solar conditions. The upper HF bands, such as 15 and 10 meters, should benefit most from the Cycle’s peak. ¹

Visit th ARRL Field Day page for more information about this event.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The January/February 2024 issue of On the Air featured a story from Brian McSpadden Gardener, KE8JVX, about The First-Year Experiences of a General-Class Ham, in which Brian detailed how he got his feet wet as a General, and how he put together his first station for HF.

Brian joins this episode of the podcast to tell us a little more about his first year as a General, as well as what he’s done since then.” ¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Maintaining a junk box—a collection of odds and ends that can be used in future projects and repairs—is a time-honored practice among hams. Every ham radio junk box has to start somewhere, though. The cover story of the January/February 2024 issue of On the Air, A Fine Mess: Starting Your Junk Box, by Eric P. Nichols, KL7AJ, offers advice about how to do just that. The January 2024 episode of the On the Air podcast digs deeper by going on location to the workshop of W1AW, ARRL’s Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station. Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, welcomes us into this working space to show us some real-life junk boxes and discuss how they come in handy. “¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “This episode ties into a feature in the November/December issue called Bits and Baud, which discussed important elements of digital communication, namely the quantity of information a transmission delivers—known as bit rate—and the rate of speed at which the information is delivered, which is known as baud rate. The article’s author, former QST Editor Steve Ford, WB8IMY, joins us to explain more about the differences between bit rate and baud rate, as well as why hams are concerned with these measurements in the first place.” ¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Amateur Radio Operators who are preparing to take the Amateur Extra Class license examination should be aware of an upcoming change to the question pool.

On December 7, 2023, ARRL News announced the release of the 2024 - 2028 Extra-Class FCC Element 4 Question Pool and Syllabus. The new Extra-Class Question Pool is effective from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2028.

ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, and member of the NCVEC QPC, said, “The new pool incorporates significant changes compared to the 2020–2024 version. We carefully went over the pool for technical accuracy, relevancy to today’s amateur radio practices, syntax, grammar, style, format, and clarity and redundancy within and between the pools. With these goals in mind, 82 new questions were created, and 101 questions were eliminated, resulting in a reduction [of] the number of questions from 622 to 603. Over 350 questions were modified. We considered a question modified when the knowledge being tested was not changed but wording was improved, or answers or distractors were replaced.”¹

The 2024–2028 Extra Class Question Pool, supporting diagrams, and syllabus have been published on the NCVEC 2024–2028 Extra Class Question Pool Release page.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast:

“Contesting encompasses so much of the hobby,” says seasoned contester Craig Thompson, K9CT, “from station building, learning how to operate, understanding propagation, knowing rules, learning from your peers,” that there’s something in it for every ham radio operator. As current member and former president of the Society of Midwest Contesters, Craig knows the ins and outs of running a contest club and ensuring that the value proposition makes sense to the average member. In this episode, Craig talks about why you might want to get involved with a contest club, what it entails, and how these specialized clubs stir up on-air activity that benefits every ham.

This discussion extends the November/December 2023 On the Air article, “Joining a Contest Club,” by Leanna Figlewski, KC1RMP.¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On October 27, 2023, ARRL News reported the FCC has scheduled a vote on removing symbol rate restrictions.

ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® welcomes news of a scheduled vote by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to consider removing symbol rate restrictions that restrict digital modes, foster inefficient spectrum use, and dampen incentives for innovation.

In the draft Commission decision, the FCC would replace the current HF restrictions with a 2.8 kHz bandwidth limit. The Commission also announced that it will consider a Further Notice in which it will propose eliminating similar restrictions where they apply in other bands and consider relying on signal bandwidth limits. If both actions are adopted by the Commission, there will be a period for public comment on the Further Notice issues.

In announcing the proposed Commission actions, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said that “We’re bolstering amateur radio. We will vote on a proposal to incentivize innovation and experimentation in the amateur radio bands by removing outdated restrictions and providing licensees with the flexibility to use modern digital emissions.” ¹

🔗 Read The ARRL News Article…

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Gary Mikitin’s, AF8A, article, The Solar Eclipse QSO Party: A Fun Way Support Radio Science in the September/October 2023 issue of On the Air details how hams can contribute data to a study on how the ionosphere reflects radio signals during the eclipse via an easygoing on-air event called the Solar Eclipse QSO Party. Gary, who is the Amateur Radio Community Coordinator of HamSCI, joins us on the October episode of the On the Air podcast, to talk about just how easy it is to participate.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Thank-you to the sponsors, attendees, seminar speakers, vendors and volunteers whose presence and contributions helped to make this event a success.

See you next year!

Sponsors

This Hamfest supported by contributions from:

• ARRL
• Icom
• MFJ
• Buckmaster International LLC
• Hammond Manufacturing
• Mastrant Antenna Guying
• Comet Antennas (NCG)
• RT Systems
• Tigertronics
• DX Engineering
• N3FJP
• FlexRadio
• BeLoud
• Bioenno Power
• Elecraft
• W0HNV
• K0OP
• MyEclipseGlasses
• Blarney Stone
• Heil Sound
• Axis Clinicals

How to join the RRRA Hamfest Announcements mailing list

RRRA uses Mailman to manage their mailing lists. These instructions will guide you through the subscription process:

1. Visit the Hamfest Announcements mailing list with your web browser
2. Use the “Subscribing to Hamfest-Announce” form (located about halfway down the page) to enter your email address, name and call-sign. Please use a real zero if there is one in your call sign
3. Click the “Subscribe” button below the form
4. Look for the confirmation message which will be automatically sent to the email address you provided in step 2. You should receive the confirmation message within a few minutes of submitting your subscription request
5. Follow the instructions in the confirmation email to confirm your address.

Please contact the RRRA Webmaster Team if you need help with the mailing list.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “This month, we talk with Steve Simons, W1SMS, the Technical Coordinator for the Connecticut Section, who shares his experiences as a TC, from coordinating with Emergency Operations Centers during an emergency, to presenting technical papers at ham club meetings, to working with the Section’s Technical Specialists to help local hams with troubleshooting and other technical matters.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Passing traffic is a ham radio activity that’s nearly as old as ham radio itself, and getting accurate messages to their destination in a timely manner takes training and skill. In addition to participating in nets, hams also have the opportunity to take on ARRL Field Organization positions that are responsible for traffic. In this episode, we talk to Ethan Hansen, KC1OIP, who fulfills one such position, Official Relay Station, in ARRL’s National Traffic System. Listen in to learn about what it takes to become an Official Relay Station, how the position makes a difference in the community, and how it benefits your amateur radio skills and experience.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “For the June 2023 episode of the On the Air podcast, ARRL Radiosport & Regulatory Information Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, and ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE, join us to talk about a popular Field Day fixture known as the GOTA (Get On the Air) Station. If you’re a newer ham, or new to Field Day operating, you can find a local Field Day setup that’s running one of these beginner-friendly stations. Tune in to find out how, so you can make plans to operate from a Field Day GOTA Station on Field Day weekend, June 24 and 25.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “With this year’s ARRL June VHF Contest fast approaching on the weekend of June 10, seasoned VHF operator Bob Witte, K0NR, joins the podcast to talk about how to prepare yourself and your station to join in the fun of this beginner-friendly event.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On Monday, May 1, ARRL will launch a survey for members, encouraging their participation as we consider a dues increase.

The survey will include some short questions about raising dues and modifying the way some membership benefits are bundled. The survey will also include an opportunity for members to share their feedback.

The participation of every member is important. All RRRA mebers who are ARRL members are strongly urged to complete the survey in May.

The survey will open on May 1 at www.arrl.org/take-dues-survey. This is a member-only page.

ARRL Members need to be logged into the ARRL website to take the survey. Members who are not logged in may select the Login button on the top of the web page, and they will be prompted to enter their ARRL website username and password.

ARRL members who have not logged in since April 2022 should use these Login Instructions.

Thank you in advance for completing the survey!

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The March/April 2023 issue of On the Air featured an article on The Incident Command System and Amateur Radio, that introduced the Incident Command System (ICS), an emergency management system that public safety agencies use to respond to everything from small incidents to large-scale emergencies. ARRL Director of Emergency Management Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, joins this episode of the podcast to share more about the system’s origins and uses, where and how amateur radio operators fit into the system, and where to get ICS training.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

World Amateur Radio Day (WARD) is the birthday of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU); the worldwide federation of national amateur radio organizations.

WARD is also an opportunity to celebrate Amateur Radio and to raise its visibility through outreach activities.

“On World Amateur Radio Day, all radio amateurs are invited to take to the airwaves to enjoy … global friendship with other amateurs, and to promote [their] skills and capabilities to the public”. ¹

Special Theme for World Amateur Radio Day 2023

The Intertional Amateur Radio Union announces that Human Security for All, HS4A, will be the theme of World Amateur Radio Day on 18 April 2023. For the first time, the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security and the World Academy of Art and Science are partnering with IARU in a campaign to highlight the role that amateur radio plays in addressing the world’s most pressing needs. ²

How to participate

Radio amateurs—either as individuals or as groups—may wish to consider these activities (suggested by ARRL) for participating in, or promoting their hobby through, this event.

• Get a station on the air! Create your own personal “event” to talk about amateur radio to others, including family and friends

• Find out more about World Amateur Radio Day by checking the IARU website and other Resources listed [at http://www.arrl.org/world-amateur-radio-day]

• Create and hold a special net or on-air event on World Amateur Radio Day to raise the level of attention for the celebration, and to encourage other hams to talk about our hobby. Consider creating and offering a commemorative certificate for contacting your special activation. It can be an electronic one as these are cost effective

• Get the word out! If you are an ARRL Public Information Coordinator, Public Information Officer, or responsible for radio club publicity, send a press release and conduct some public relations outreach to highlight the day and/or events. Talk about all of the activities radio amateurs have continued to support during the pandemic, and how amateur radio serves our communities. Find recent examples of amateur radio in-the-news at www.arrl.org/media-hits

• Promote your personal World Amateur Radio Day activity(ies) on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook by using the hashtag #WorldAmateurRadioDay. Make sure you send it to various clubs, reflectors, and media ³

Would you like to know more?

The IARU World Amateur Radio Day page presents historical context for this event and discusses the special two-week on-the-air event (April 11–25) for WARD.

The ARRL World Amateur Radio Day page includes links to resources and public relations / outreach materials.

Find on-air WARD events by searching the ARRL Special Events Station database for World Amateur Radio Day; or through the hashtags #WorldAmateurRadioDay, #hamradio, or #ARRL on social media.

About IARU

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) is the worldwide federation of national amateur radio organizations. The membership of the IARU consists of more than 160 member-societies in as many countries and separate territories.

The IARU was founded at a meeting in Paris in 1925 as the international representative of the Amateur Radio movement. At the time the “short waves” were just beginning to be understood and to be exploited for global communication using power levels and antennas that were within reach of private individuals operating from their own homes. These radio amateurs needed an organization to coordinate their activities and to be their voice at international conferences. ⁴

Learn more about the IARU’s history on their About Us page.

IARU Website

https://www.iaru.org/

IARU Contact

iaru@iaru.org

IARU Wikipedia page

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Amateur_Radio_Union

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Radio orienteering (aka Amateur Radio Direction Finding, or ARDF) is a radio sport like no other. It gets you out of your shack chair and bounding through the woods or a park, using a handheld receiver and directional antenna to find a transmitter that’s located somewhere in the vicinity. People of all ages and skill levels can have fun with radio orienteering – and you don’t even need a ham radio license to join in. In this episode, we talk to USA ARDF Co-coordinator Charles Scharlau, NZØI, about how get involved in what he calls, “the only athletic radio sport.””¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “ARRL has designated 2023 “The Year of the Volunteers,” to shed light on the work of the hundreds of volunteers who make ARRL and amateur radio what it is. We’ve got a year-long on-air event to go with it – Volunteers On the Air, or VOTA, is already taking the bands by storm, just two months into the fun. In this episode, we talk to ARRL Director of Operations Bob Naumann, W5OV, and ARRL Radiosport Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, about rules, awards, special activations, and all things VOTA.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On January 6, 2023, ARRL News Reported…

ARRL’s year long operating event, Volunteers On the Air, or VOTA, began January 1, 2023. The event is organized as part of ARRL’s 2023 theme, “Year of the Volunteers,” which recognizes the contributions of ARRL member volunteers, and offers opportunities to become more active and involved in amateur radio and ARRL.

VOTA encourages participants to make contacts with ARRL members and volunteers, earning points for each contact. Point values have been assigned (see the Points Table at vota.arrl.org). All scoring is automatically calculated through ARRL’s Logbook of The World (LoTW, www.arrl.org/logbook-of-the-world). If you are already an LoTW user, continue to upload your QSOs there to participate. If you’re a new LoTW user, visit Getting Started with LoTW.

As part of the event, there will be week-long activations by W1AW portable stations operating in all US states and territories. W1AW/# portable operations are worth 5 points for each contact, and they can be contacted on all bands and modes. There’s also an opportunity to earn the W1AW Worked All States Award. There will be two week-long W1AW operations from each of the 50 states.

Later in the event, an on-line scoreboard, the VOTA Leaderboard, will be activated, allowing each participant to see how their score measures up with other participants throughout the year.

Only two-way contacts qualify for points (cross-band, cross-mode, and repeater contacts are not valid), using any mode (CW, phone, or digital) - including EME and satellite operations - on 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 2, and 1.25 meters, as well as 70 centimeters, VHF/UHF/SHF, and microwave bands available to US amateurs above 2 meters (2190-, 630-, 60-, 30-, 17-, and 12-meter band contacts are not counted for credit in this event).

Join the fun! Visit the official VOTA website for further details: vota.arrl.org. ¹

ARRL Straight Key Night (SKN) is January 1, 2023, from 0000 UTC through 2359 UTC. In the US, SKN begins on New Year’s Eve.

Many hams look forward to SKN as one of the highlights of their operating year. Operators participate using Morse code (CW). All you need is your favorite straight key or bug. Many participants dust off vintage radios and keys and put them back into service each year, just for SKN.

SKN is not a contest, so there’s no need for quick exchanges. However, all hand keys, regardless of age, are welcome. The number of contacts you make is not important. The reward is meeting many new friends as you get together on the air.

Send a list of stations contacted, SKN stories and photos, and your votes for Best Fist and Most Interesting QSO to straightkey@arrl.org by January 31, 2023. [^1]

[^]: “ARRL Straight Key Night Begins January 1, 2023 at 0000 UTC”, ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio, accessed January 29 2022, http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-straight-key-night-begins-january-1-2023-at-0000-utc.

Visit the ARRL Straight Key Night page for more information about SKN.

The ARRL North Dakota Section Manager is looking for someone interested in assuming the position of Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC).

Mark, NY0W, the current North Dakota Section Emergency Coordinator, would like to step down from that responsibity.

Rich Budd, W0TF—the current ARRL North Dakota Section Manager—considers the position of SEC be a very important job. He has held this office in the past and says he learned a lot while having some good experiences.

Please review the ARRL Emergency Coordinators’s Manual to learn more about what this position entails.

If you’re interested in filling this important position in the North Dakota Section, or know of a good candidate, please contact or (the incoming ND Section Manager).

Emergency Coordinator Job Description

From http://arrl.org/emergency-coordinator

The Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) is the assistant to the Section Manager (SM) for emergency preparedness. The SEC is appointed by the SM to administer all matters pertaining to emergency communications and the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES?) on a Section-wide basis. There is only one SEC appointed in each Section of the ARRL Field Organization.

Requirements

Technician-class license or higher; full ARRL membership, and achievement of Level 3 qualifications [in the ARRL Emergency Communications Course]. (Must, within the period of 1 year, from the issuance of this document or appointment as SEC, whichever comes later, or such further time period as authorized by the SM, complete all of the requirements for Level 3 qualification.)

Responsibilities

• Promote and encourage the development of local ARES groups.

• Advise the SM on all Section emergency policy and planning, including the development of a Section emergency communications plan.

• Cooperate and coordinate with the Section Traffic Manager (STM) so that emergency nets and traffic nets properly route welfare traffic in disasters and emergencies. Cooperate and coordinate with other Section leadership officials.

• Recommend candidates for Emergency Coordinator and District Emergency Coordinator appointments (and cancellations) to the Section Manager and determine areas of jurisdiction of each amateur so appointed. Verify that candidates meet training requirements. At the SM?s discretion, the SEC may be directly in charge of making (and cancelling) such appointments.

• Promote ARES membership drives, meetings, activities, tests, procedures, etc., at the Section level.

• Serve in support of local ECs during a communications emergency; to ensure the local ECs have the necessary resources to sustain their mission.

• Collect and consolidate Emergency Coordinator and/or District Emergency Coordinator monthly reports, and submit monthly progress summaries to the Section Manager and ARRL Headquarters. Provide timely reporting of emergency and public safety communications rendered in the Section for potential inclusion in ARRL media relations activities.

• Maintain contact with other communication services and serve as liaison at the Section level with all agencies served in the public interest, particularly in connection with state government, emergency management officials, state and regional Volunteer Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) organizations, and similar agencies. In states with multiple ARRL Sections, the SECs shall work as a team to develop and maintain an appropriate ARES Emergency Communications Plan in conjunction with state officials. Maintain cooperation with the State Government Liaison.

Take a walk down memory lane with ARRL’s collection of holiday themed QST covers from the 1950s to 1980s.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “For many new operators, nets are one of the easiest and best ways to connect with other hams. Some nets are focused solely on emergency communications, others provide the opportunity to pass formal traffic throughout a region, while others are purely social occasions where you can get to know other active hams. Scheduled nets can take place monthly, weekly, or daily, and no matter their frequency (see what we did there!), nets are a great way to practice using your radio and get comfortable with the conventions of communicating on the air.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Even if you’re accessing a repeater, the range of your VHF/UHF handheld can be a bit constraining. You’ll probably never achieve coverage of, say, the entire US Eastern Seaboard or the Continental Divide in the lower 48. But with a couple of handhelds and the right Yagi antenna, you can access satellites in low Earth orbit that will provide you with a much wider footprint than just about any repeater.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Just over two weeks ago Hurricane Ian devastated Sanibel Island and southwestern Florida. It caused tens of billions of dollars of damage and killed more than 100 people. Arc Thames, W4CPD, the Section Emergency Coordinator of ARRL’s Northern Florida Section and Emergency Coordinator of Santa Rosa County Florida, passed traffic during the storm and shares some of his experiences. He discusses gear for ARES deployments (An HT is just fine!) and what you need to know before going out in the field.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

Thank-you to ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, for traveling to Fargo to present his keynote speech during the ARRL Forum at the 2022 RRRA Hamfest and ARRL Dakota Division Convention.

And thank-you the sponsors, attendees, seminar speakers, vendors and volunteers whose presence and contributions helped to make this event a success.

See you next year!

Sponsors

This Hamfest supported by contributions from:

• ARRL
• MFJ
• Quicksilver Radio
• FlexRadio
• Easy Way Ham Books
• N3FJP
• DX Engineering
• COMPACtenna
• Buckmaster International LLC
• Kenwood
• Tigertronics
• Hammond Manufacturing
• Comet Antennas (NCG)
• Elecraft
• Heil Sound
• Axis Clinicals
• Blarney Stone

How to join the RRRA Hamfest Announcements mailing list

RRRA uses Mailman to manage their mailing lists. These instructions will guide you through the subscription process:

1. Visit the Hamfest Announcements mailing list with your web browser
2. Use the “Subscribing to Hamfest-Announce” form (located about halfway down the page) to enter your email address, name and call-sign. Please use a real zero if there is one in your call sign
3. Click the “Subscribe” button below the form
4. Look for the confirmation message which will be automatically sent to the email address you provided in step 2. You should receive the confirmation message within a few minutes of submitting your subscription request
5. Follow the instructions in the confirmation email to confirm your address.

Please contact the RRRA Webmaster Team if you need help with the mailing list.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Building an antenna doesn’t have to involve yards of aluminum tubing and long runs of coax. It can be as simple as soldering and snipping (carefully!) a length of lamp cord. Frequent On the Air and QST contributor Dino Papas, KL0S, provides insight into the construction and tuning of this J-pole antenna, which he built for On the Air from a design by John H. Unrath, K6JHU. Along the way he and host Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY, uncover a bit of J-pole history and dig into why an antenna analyzer is a must-have if you decide to build this project.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Synchronizing clocks with cosmic rays; generating power with graphene; vascular antennas; listening to VLF signals with the NASA Inspire project (https://theinspireproject.org) receiver kit.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

During the ARRL 2022 Second Board of Directors Meeting—July 15–16, 2022—Red River Radio Amateurs was congratulated and recognized for our`contributions to amateur radio on our 50th year of ARRL affliation.

WHEREAS, Red River Radio Amateurs of Fargo, ND has long supported the American Radio Relay League being an ARRL Affiliated Club since September 27, 1969;

WHEREAS, Red River Radio Amateurs members have a long history of supporting emergency communication in the Fargo-Moorhead and surrounding areas supporting local law enforcement agencies, emergency managers, and through ARES;

WHEREAS, Red River Radio Amateurs members have supported the National Weather Service through the Skywarn program;

WHEREAS, Red River Radio Amateurs members have provided communication support for various public service needs including the Fargo Marathon, MS Walk: Fargo, FM Rotary Ride and

WHEREAS, Red River Radio Amateurs stands as a resource to mentor new amateur radio operators including providing licensing classes and VE amateur radio license testing.

THEREFORE, be it resolved that the ARRL Board of Directors hereby congratulates and recognizes the Red River Radio Amateurs for its contributions to amateur radio on its 50th year of ARRL affiliation. ¹

RRRA President Jake K0RQ reports that a plaque will be presented to the club during fall 2022 by Bill Lippert, AC0W, ARRL Dakota Division Director.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “VARAC – a new way to chat digitally on HF; antennas for Europa; beaming power from Earth orbit.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Getting the most out of your transceiver’s scanning functions.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “A discussion with lightning protection expert Ron Block, NR2B.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Norm Fusaro, W3IZ, discusses his experience with antenna system downsizing.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Is 222 MHz really a forgotten frequency band?”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

On July 7, 2022, ARRL News reported on the impending retirement of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) legacy COmmission REgistration System (CORES) on July 15, 2022.

This system change is important to radio amateurs because CORES is where we pay the recently instated application fees.

The updated version of CORES has been available since 2016, and now its use will be mandatory for all amateur licensees when submitting amateur-related applications.

…

Licensees that do not already have an FCC CORES Username Account must create one with a unique username (a valid email address) and password. After creating the account, when logged in, users should associate their existing FRN or FRNs with this account. Instructions for doing so are on the FCC Registration Help page. One’s FRN is printed on all current amateur applications and licenses, and will not change. FRNs can also be found by looking up one’s call sign in the Commission’s ULS (https://wireless2.fcc.gov/UlsApp/UlsSearch/searchLicense.jsp) or by using the FCC’s advanced search page.

The FCC has posted Tutorial Videos to assist with the transition. ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, recommends viewing the videos “Getting Started With the New CORES,” which explains how to register for a CORES Username Account, and “Associating an FRN to a Username,” which instructs Legacy CORES users on how to link one or more existing FRNs to a username. FCC CORES Registration Instructions can also be found on the ARRL website.

Additional information is available on the FCC website or by calling the FCC Licensing Support Center at (877) 480-3201, Option 4, and on the FCC’s e-support page. ¹

📰 Read the complete news article at arrl.org

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “The Carrington Event of 1859 ranks among the most intense solar eruptions in recorded history. As we approach the peak of the current Solar Cycle, which is estimated to occur in 2026, could it happen again?”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

Field Day Photos contributed by these RRRA Members:

• KC0PFS

Please contact the Webmaster Team if you have additional Field Day photos to add to this album, can identify unknown individuals, or have comments / questions about this photo album.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “What’s old is new again: Coherent CW. David Kazdan, AD8Y, explains how his research group at Case Western Reserve University is adapting this vintage mode for a 21st century application.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

ARRL has built an infrastructure for EmComm within our public service organization that we call the Amateur Radio Emergency Service®, or ARES®. This is both an organization and a framework for people to volunteer, take needed training, join a local group, and then practice or drill to ensure readiness when required. It is the responsibility of your Section Manager to ensure that the position of Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) is staffed and managing emergency communications.

Read the editorial on the ARRL website

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Discussing ARRL Field Day in particular and off-the-grid operating in general with ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Hamvention 2022 roundup with Pascal Villeneuve, VA2PV, the QST magazine Product Review editor.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Dr Brian Callahan, AD2BA, discusses a proposal to embed data into SSTV images. Also, lens antennas for UHF and above.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Discover what FM really means, and how it is different from AM.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “ARRL’s Radiosport Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, describes a brand new on-the-air contest for digital communicators that will debut on June 4.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Who was Wes Schum? According to Nick Tusa, K5EF, he was one of the unsung heroes of amateur radio. Find out why.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Should you invest in a Digital Multimeter (DMM)? As it turns out, a DMM doesn’t have to be expensive and it is more useful than you might imagine.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

World Amateur Radio Day (WARD) is the birthday of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU); the worldwide federation of national amateur radio organizations.

WARD is also an opportunity to celebrate Amateur Radio and to raise its visibility through outreach activities.

“On World Amateur Radio Day, all radio amateurs are invited to take to the airwaves to enjoy … global friendship with other amateurs, and to promote [their] skills and capabilities to the public”. ¹

Radio amateurs—either as individuals or as groups—may wish to consider these activities (suggested by ARRL) for participating in, or promoting their hobby through, this event.

• Get a station on the air! Create your own personal “event” to talk about amateur radio to others, including family and friends

• Find out more about World Amateur Radio Day by checking the IARU website and other Resources listed [at http://www.arrl.org/world-amateur-radio-day]

• Create and hold a special net or on-air event on World Amateur Radio Day to raise the level of attention for the celebration, and to encourage other hams to talk about our hobby. Consider creating and offering a commemorative certificate for contacting your special activation. It can be an electronic one as these are cost effective

• Get the word out! If you are an ARRL Public Information Coordinator, Public Information Officer, or responsible for radio club publicity, send a press release and conduct some public relations outreach to highlight the day and/or events. Talk about all of the activities radio amateurs have continued to support during the pandemic, and how amateur radio serves our communities. Find recent examples of amateur radio in-the-news at www.arrl.org/media-hits

• Promote your personal World Amateur Radio Day activity(ies) on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook by using the hashtag #WorldAmateurRadioDay. Make sure you send it to various clubs, reflectors, and media ²

The ARRL World Amateur Radio Day page includes links to resources and public relations / outreach materials.

Find on-air WARD events by searching the ARRL Special Events Station database for World Amateur Radio Day; or through the hashtags #WorldAmateurRadioDay, #hamradio, or #ARRL on social media.

About IARU

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) is the worldwide federation of national amateur radio organizations. The membership of the IARU consists of more than 160 member-societies in as many countries and separate territories.

The IARU was founded at a meeting in Paris in 1925 as the international representative of the Amateur Radio movement. At the time the “short waves” were just beginning to be understood and to be exploited for global communication using power levels and antennas that were within reach of private individuals operating from their own homes. These radio amateurs needed an organization to coordinate their activities and to be their voice at international conferences. ³

Learn more about the IARU’s history on their About Us page.

IARU Website

https://www.iaru.org/

IARU Contact

iaru@iaru.org

IARU Wikipedia page

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Amateur_Radio_Union

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Speaking with Carl Nord, WA1KPD, about using the Weak Signal Propagation Reporter (WSPR) mode at the nano-watt level. Also, what’s driving the increasing number of FM broadcast translators?”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Chatting with Steve Allen, KC1SA, about the basics of circuit simulation software.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “A chat with Dave Slotter, W3DJS, the creator of HamPi, a collection of more than 100 amateur radio applications for the Raspberry Pi microcomputer.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Relax and take an audio tour of the 10 meter band!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “A conversation with Barry Feierman, K3EUI, about utilizing VARA FM software for digital communications using inexpensive VHF handheld transceivers. Also, the demise of Google’s Loon project.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “ARRL Radiosport Manager Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, discusses the increasing weak-signal activity on the 222-MHz band.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “YouTube is increasingly becoming the go to resource for information on a variety of amateur radio topics. In this episode we speak with two YouTube veterans: Dave Casler, KE0OG, and Steve Goodgame, K5ATA.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

After taking a few detours over the past couple of years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ARRL Field Day rules are being updated on a permanent basis starting this summer.

ARRL conducted a Field Day community survey with invitations propagated far and wide, and direct emails sent to more than 15,000 individuals and ARRL-affiliated clubs. After sorting through, reviewing, and discussing the survey results, the ARRL Programs and Services Committee recommended a number of rule changes for ARRL Field Day, which will take place this year over the June 25–26 weekend. ¹

Please visit the Some New Rules Going into Effect this Year for ARRL Field Day ARRL news article to learn about the specific rule changes.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Sal Defrancesco, K1RGO, discusses his 630-meter receiving loop antenna design that was published in the February 2022 issue of QST magazine. Also, a quick look at the new Yubico Bio security technology.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Speaking with H. P. Friedrichs, AC7ZL, about his new book “Marvelous Magnetic Machines” and the pleasures of extreme homebrewing.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “If you’re thinking about giving CW operating a try, check out this conversation with Michael Fluegemann, KE8AQW.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

The ARRL Programs and Services Committee is seeking input from stations and groups that participated in ARRL Field Day 2020 and 2021 and has posted a survey. The committee said the survey results may help shape the development of Field Day rules for 2022 and beyond. ¹

The survey is accepting responses until January 17, 2022.

Please visit the ARRL News article—ARRL Surveying Field Day Participants—to learn more about the survey.

For a limited time a free downloadable reissue of the December 1915 QST (in PDF format) is available to ARRL members who visit http://www.arrl.org/qst-reissue.

This special reissue has been released on the occasion of the membership journal’s 100th anniversary.

More information about this download—including a contact address—is available from ARRL News

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Chatting with Nelson Sollenberger, KA2C, about his ultra-sharp filters that allow two transceivers to operate in the same band at the same time. Also, a discussion of those mysterious computer POST beeps.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Discussing station grounding and bonding—and the new edition of the book of the same title—with Ward Silver, N0AX.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Learn how you can extend the reach of your handheld transceiver.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Let’s take a deeper dive into the 1921 Transatlantic Tests with Clark Burgard, N1BCG, and also discuss the on-air activities that will be taking place this month to celebrate the historic anniversary.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “A discussion of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests with Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA. Also, what’s old is new again – the chlorine battery.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Q-Signals are as old as amateur radio itself and they are still in use today. Although originally intended for CW use, you’ll hear them in voice communication as well.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Everything you wanted to know about Beverage antennas with Ward Silver, N0AX”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Acoustic dampening with a clever screw design. Also, a conversation about the state of amateur television with Jim Andrews, KH6HTV.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

Josh Nass, KI6NAZ, of @Ham Radio Crash Course, talks about what ham radio is and answers the question…. “Why Ham Radio?” ¹

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Contest season is underway! Time for some tips from veteran competitor Chris Plumblee, W4WF.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “A conversation with Steve Allen, KC1SA, about the how the current semiconductor shortage is impacting the world in general and amateur radio in particular.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “ARRL Laboratory Manager Ed Hare, W1RFI, explains the new FCC RF exposure rules.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “The ARRL Handbook has been published for nearly 100 years and it remains one of the top sources for information about ham radio technology and much more. Steve Goodgame, K5ATA, explains why even beginners will find the Handbook to be indispensable.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

From ARRL News …

Channels 1 and 2 on 60 meters will be available starting on August 30 for interoperability between US government and US amateur radio stations involved in Hurricane Ida emergency communications. This situation will remain in place until the storm has passed and the need for these channels no longer exists, or on September 6, whichever comes first.

These frequencies will be used: Channel 1 Primary voice traffic 5332 kHz channel center, 5330.5 kHz USB voice; and Channel 2 Digital traffic 5348 kHz channel center, 5346.5 kHz USB with 1.5 kHz offset to center of digital waveform. Stations on 60 meters are asked to yield to operational traffic related to Hurricane Ida. ¹

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Getting reacquainted with receive audio filters, and a conversation with Bryant Julestrom, KC0ZNG, about his unique AC Dummy Load project in the July 2021 QST Hints and Hacks column.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

The 2021 RRRA Hamfest is currently featured in the image scroller on the ARRL home page along with the QSO Today Virtual Ham Expo, the Huntsville Hamfest, and the Northeast HamXposition.

Click the image to view a complete screenshot of the ARRL homepage.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “To turn off your station computer or leave it on – that is the question. Also, Dr Brian Callahan, AD2BA, about a protocol to send binary data via Morse code.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Learn all about the new ARRL online Learning Center scheduled to debut this month!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “The mystery of Schumann Resonances, and a discussion about stealth antennas with Grant Connell, WD6CNF.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In his A Sensitive Field Strength Meter for Foxhunting article (a free preview from the July 2021 issue of QST Magazine), Woody White, KZ4AK, presents the Field Strength Meter (FSM) for Foxhunting he built based on a design featured in the June 2001 QST article Simple RF-Power Measurement by Les Hayward, W7ZOI, and Bob Larking, W7PUA.

KZ4AK begins with a brief discussion of the W7ZOI/W7PUA digital readout FSM he built. And he quickly arrives at a key design consideration relevant to Foxhunting: “… signal trends are harder to follow on digital readouts than with an analog meter.” ¹

His article covers:

• Why a sensitive wide dynamic range FSM is a useful Foxhunting tool
• Considerations related to the meter’s lack of selectivity
• Circuit simplifications for Foxhunting and construction style

KZ4AK’s article references two QST articles about similar FSMs and includes the complete schemetic diagram for his FSM.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Will AM broadcasts go digital in a new way? The story of the last analog TV stations. A chat with John Stanley, K4ERO, about the low bands and the new solar cycle.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “ARRL Field Day is just weeks away. Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC, the president of the Nashua New Hampshire Area Radio Society, offers advice about how to enjoy one of the largest ham radio operating events of the year!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Talking with Patrick Stoddard, WD9ELK, about the current state of amateur radio satellites, including tips for Field Day.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

HamSCI is looking for ham radio operators to make recordings of time-standard stations during the June 2021 annular solar eclipse across the Arctic Circle as part of a citizen science experiment. Researchers will use the crowd-sourced data to investigate the superimposed effects of auroral particle precipitation and the eclipse on HF Doppler shift.

Participants would collect data using an HF radio connected to a computer running open-source software. A precision frequency standard, such as a GPS-disciplined oscillator, is desired but not required to participate. Radio amateurs and shortwave listeners around the globe are invited to take part, even stations far from the path of totality.

Last year’s eclipse festivals included more than 100 participants from 45 countries. The experiment will run June 7–12. All participants will receive QSL certificates and updates as the data is processed. This is a pilot experiment for HamSCIs Personal Space Weather Station project, which seeks to develop a global network monitoring the geospace environment. For more information and set-up instructions, visit the June 2021 Arctic Eclipse Festival page on the HamSCI website. ¹

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Digitally-active hams have been using the PSKReporter site on the web for many years, but few have heard from the person behind the technology, Philip Gladstone, N1DQ – until now!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “A discussion of the importance of grounding with Ward Silver, N0AX”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Diagnosing and treating several troublesome patients at W1AW with station manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

The ARRL Virgina Section Convention 2021 on the Zoom teleconferencing service from 9AM to 2PM on Saturday, April 24, 2021.

The convention presented three seminar tracks which have been archived on YouTube:

• Boot Camp
• Hot Topics
• ARES & AUXCOMM

Please contact convention@viennawireless.net with questions about these archived recordings.

About Vienna Wireless Society

The Vienna Wireless Society (VWS) was founded in 1963. With a membership of about 280 licensed amateur radio operators and twice-monthly meetings, VWS is among the largest and most active Amateur Radio clubs in Northern Virginia. [Their] program of radio-related activities and public service rests on three main pillars (outlined in [their] bylaws): (1) scientific, technological, and educational activities, (2) recreational operating activities, and (3) emergency service activities. ¹

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “The interesting history of Trainphone, and advice from Paul Wade, W1GHZ, about operating at 10 GHz.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

Two years ago KA0LDG made a presentation titled RF Exposure Evaluation for Amateur Radio Operators (PDF and Powerpoint versions are available in the Training and Education | Presentations folder on the RRRA Groupware server) in anticipation of the updated FCC RF exposure rules.

This week ARRL reports in ARRL General Bulletin ARLB011 (2021) and the Updated Radio Frequency Exposure Rules Become Effective on May 3 News story:

The FCC has announced that rule changes detailed in a lengthy 2019 Report and Order governing RF exposure standards go into effect on May 3, 2021. The new rules do not change existing RF exposure (RFE) limits but do require that stations in all services, including amateur radio, be evaluated against existing limits, unless they are exempted. For stations already in place, that evaluation must be completed by May 3, 2023. After May 3 of this year, any new station, or any existing station modified in a way that’s likely to change its RFE profile—such as different antenna or placement or greater power—will need to conduct an evaluation by the date of activation or change. ¹

According to Greg Lapin, N9GL, chair of the ARRL RF Safety Committee and a member of the FCC Technological Advisory Council (TAC):

“For amateurs, the major difference is the removal of the categorical exclusion … which means that every ham will be required to perform some sort of calculation, either to determine if they qualify for an exemption or must perform a full-fledged exposure assessment. For hams who previously performed exposure assessments on their stations, there is nothing more to do.” ²

Amateur Radio operators—especially those who have never conducted an RF exposure evaluation of their station—are encouraged to review the ARRL News Updated Radio Frequency Exposure Rules Become Effective on May 3 article and visit the ARRL RF Exposure page for more information and resources.

RF Exposure Calculators

• VP9KF Amateur Radio RF Exposure Calculator
• N7OH RF Exposure Calculator - HTML5 calculator with local storage

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “This month it’s all about Parks On The Air – one of the most popular activities in amateur radio today. We chat with Audrey Hance, KN4TMU, who recently enjoyed her first Parks On The Air activation.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Rediscovering PSK31, and a chat with author Phil Salas, AD5X, about the new generation of vector network analyzers (VNAs).”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “AM is far from dead, as this conversation with Clark Burgard, N1BCG, will demonstrate!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In his Welcome to Cycle 25 article (a free preview from the April 2021 issue of QST Magazine), Steve Ford, WB8IMY, discusses the new solar cycle that is under way and how it is having a positive effect on HF band conditions.

WB8IMY begins with some background information on solar cycles and discusses discovery of harbingers of the next solar cycle.

His article covers:

• Differing predictions for Cycle 25
• Changes in HF band behavior
• Benefits for low-power operating and mobiles
• Tips for preparing for the cycle peak

A 2021 Propagation Forcast sidebar by Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA—originally published in the January/February 2021 Issue of NCJ—discusses the question “How big will Cycle 25 be?”

In closing, WB8IMY writes:

Better days are on the way—we just don’t know by how much. All hams will benefit regardless of license class. Who knows? History may repeat itself and Cycle 25 could even rival Cycle 19.¹

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Do amateur radio and scientific research go together? Yes! Just ask Kristina Collins, KD8OXT.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “What does the new solar cycle have in store for the HF bands? Propagation expert Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA, tells us what to expect.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Receiving images from NOAA weather satellites; a chat with K7NVH about rockets and high-altitude balloons.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “Taking a closer look at HF antenna tuners, along with some shopping tips!”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Audio devices and your station computer; the joys of QRSS.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

From ARRL News:

The ARRL Board of Directors will look into the use of electronic balloting systems “to augment paper balloting for ARRL elections.”

The Board instituted a hybrid paper and electronic balloting process in the fall of 2012, which was popular among those who took advantage of it, but overall voter participation declined significantly, and the Board’s Ethics and Elections Committee decided in 2015 to return to using solely paper ballots. The Ethics and Elections panel said continuing changes in technology, the acceptance of remote meetings, and significant advancements in voting processes since them have made electronic balloting worth a second look. ¹

Read the rest of the article on the ARRL website.

From ARRL News:

Orlando HamCation has announced it will sponsor the HamCation QSO Party over the February 13–14 weekend (UTC), “to create a fun way for amateurs to celebrate the Orlando HamCation experience over the air.” The HamCation QSO Party will be a 12-hour event on HamCation weekend. HamCation 2021 was to host the ARRL National Convention, which now will take place in 2022.

“The QSO party will replicate the camaraderie and social experience of attending HamCation and provide a way to have fun on the radio, since HamCation 2021 will not be held due to COVID-19,” the HamCation QSO Party Committee said. The HamCation QSO Party will run from 1500 UTC on February 13 until 0300 UTC on February 14. It will be a CW and SSB operating event on 80, 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters. Any station may work any other station. ¹

The Orlando HamCation Special Edition online event over the February 13–14 weekend will take the place of what would have been the HamCation 2021 in-person show.

The online event will include youth, technology, contesting, and vendor webinar tracks. ARRL will also present two webinars on Saturday, February 13.

• ARRL Member Forum at 1 PM EST, moderated by ARRL Southeastern Division Director Mickey Baker, N4MB
• Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES®) presentation at 3 PM EST, moderated by ARRL Director of Emergency Management Paul Gilbert, KE5ZW. The ARES presentation will include panelists from ARRL Section Emergency Coordinators in Florida

Live, online prize drawings also are scheduled during the HamCation Special Edition online event. ¹

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Synchronous AM and a chat about a clever Fox In A Box.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s monthly On The Air podcast: “A chat with Curt Laumann, K7ZOO, about inspiring club activity with project nights.”¹ The project discussed is a 2M Vertical Antena Build.

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at the Blubrry On The Air Page
• Search for ARRL On The Air in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL On The Air Podcast

On the Air podcast complements the bimonthly On the Air magazine (an ARRL membership benefit) with additional resources, techniques, and hints.

The host of On The Air is Becky Schoenfeld, W1BXY. The first episode of On The Air was published on January 16, 2020.

About ARRL On The Air

On The Air is a collection of resources for new ham radio licensees:

• On the Air Magazine
• On the Air Podcast
• On the Air Blog
• On the Air Facebook

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Going on the hunt for interference with ARRL Assistant Laboratory Manager Bob Allison, WB1GCM.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed

About the ARRL Eclectic Tech Podcast

Eclectic Tech is a biweekly magazine-style podcast which highlights technical and scientific topics involving amateur and non-amateur technology. The podcast often features interviews with individuals who are involved in projects of interest to radio amateurs. The host of Eclectic Tech is Steve Ford, WB8IMY.

Eclectic Tech is ARRL's successor to its acclaimed The Doctor is In podcast which presented lively discussions of many technical aspects of Amateur Radio from April 7, 2016, to December 19, 2019.

The first episode of Eclectic Tech was published on February 13, 2020.

ARRL News reports that registration is open for the online Ham Radio University (HRU 2021) held on January 9, 2021; HRU 2021 will also serve as the online convention of the ARRL NYC-Long Island Section.

With COVID-19 restrictions precluding an in-person gathering, the 22nd annual Ham Radio University (HRU) educational conference will be held as a virtual event on Saturday, January 9, 2021, from 8 AM to 4 PM EST (1300–2100 UTC) as a GoToWebinar online video conference.

Individual registration is now open for HRU’s 14 informational presentations covering a broad range of amateur radio activities.

Topics include amateur radio emergency communications; the basics of HF operating; communicating through amateur radio Earth satellites; remote station operating over the internet; software defined radios; HF and UHF digital communications, and using Raspberry Pi computers in amateur radio.

HRU 2021 will also serve as the online convention of the ARRL NYC-Long Island Section. Participation in HRU 2021 will be free, with a suggested donation of $5. Advance registration is required for each presentation. ¹

ARRL News reported on December 21, 2020, “The FCC is encouraging users of the Universal Licensing Service (ULS) to have an e-mail address on file with the FCC.” ¹

This is to ensure that ULS users are ready for the FCC’s upcoming transition to electronic-only licensing correspondence.

FCC Notice

ULS users can log-in to their accounts on the ULS homepage to add or update their e-mail address.

In this episode of ARRL’s biweekly Eclectic Tech podcast: “Technology at station W1AW with Joe Carcia, NJ1Q. Also, 6th generation Mesh networking.”¹

In addition to listening here you can:

• Listen on Apple iTunes
• Listen online at
  • ARRL's Eclectic Tech Page
  • Blubrry Eclectic Tech Page
  • TuneIn's Eclectic Tech Page
• Search for ARRL Eclectic Tech in your podcast app
• Subscribe to the Blubrry RSS feed