On August 11, the FCC announced that the cost of an Amateur Radio vanity
call sign will increase 60 cents, from $11.70 to $12.30
<http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-08-182A1.pdf>.
The fee will increase 30 days after notice of the increase is published
in the Federal Register <http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html>; no
date has yet been set for publication. The FCC is authorized by the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, to collect vanity call sign fees
to recover the costs associated with that program. The vanity call sign
regulatory fee is payable not only when applying for a new vanity call
sign, but also upon renewing a vanity call sign for a new 10 year term.
The vanity call sign fee has fluctuated over the 12 years of the current
program -- from a low of $11.70 to a high of $50. The FCC said it
anticipates some 15,000 Amateur Radio vanity call sign "payment units"
-- or applications -- during Fiscal Year 2009, collecting $184,734 in
fees from the program.
The vanity call sign regulatory fee is payable not only when applying
for a new vanity call sign, but also upon renewing a vanity call sign
for a new term. The first vanity call sign licenses issued under the
current Amateur Radio vanity call sign program that began in 1996 came
up for renewal two years ago.
Those holding "personalized" call signs issued prior to 1996 are exempt
from having to pay the vanity call sign regulatory fee at renewal, as
Congress did not authorize the FCC to collect regulatory fees until
1993. Such "heritage" vanity call sign holders do not appear as vanity
licensees in the FCC Amateur Radio database.
Amateur Radio licensees may file for renewal only within 90 days of
their license expiration date. All radio amateurs must have an FCC
Registration Number (FRN) before filing any application with the
Commission. Applicants can obtain an FRN by going to the ULS and
clicking on the "New Users Register" link
<http://wireless.fcc.gov/uls/>. You must supply your Social Security
Number to obtain an FRN.
The ARRL VEC will process license renewals for vanity call sign holders
for a modest fee. The service is available to ARRL members and
nonmembers, although League members pay less. Routine, non-vanity
renewals continue to be free for ARRL members. Trustees of club stations
with vanity call signs may renew either via the ULS or through a Club
Station Call Sign Administrator, such as ARRL VEC.
League members should visit the "ARRL Member Instructions for License
Renewals or Changes" page
<http://www.arrl.org/fcc/memberlicenseinstructions.html>, while the
"Instructions for License Renewals or Changes" page covers general
renewal procedures for nonmembers
<http://www.arrl.org/fcc/licenseinstructions.html>. There is additional
information on the "ARRL VEC's FCC License Renewals and ARRL License
Expiration Notices" page <http://www.arrl.org/arrlvec/renewals.html>.
License application and renewal information and links to the required
forms are available on the "ARRL Amateur Application Filing FAQ" Web
page. The FCC's forms page also offers the required forms
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/field/regulations/application-filing-faq.htm
One Day Study Session !!!
| Our 1 Day Study session for Ham Radio, will be held at the Newport Red Cross Building on Sept. 13th beginning at 8 am. The Red Cross Building is located on Main Street, directly across from the Court House. If anyone is interested in getting their Technician License, or upgrading their General Class Licesins please call Don Ellison, KI4ORC at the Newport Red Cross Building 423-623-6133, or Velma Wills at home 423-625-8812. Thanks and 73, Velma Wills, AG4XP |
https://www.blogger.com/start
Harry Mills, K4HU (SK) (Aug 14, 2008) -- Harry Judd Mills, K4HU, passed away Saturday, August 9 at the Cardinal Care Center in Hendersonville, North Carolina after a period of declining health. He was 100. Mills was a resident of Hendersonville since his retirement in 1971 after a 30 year worldwide career with RCA as an engineer and manager. First licensed in 1922 as 8VHX, he was a 72 year member of the ARRL, a founder and past president of the Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA) Chapter 76 of Hendersonville and a fellow of the Radio Club of America (RCA).ARRL's "Big Project" Makes a Big Impact on Youth
Mark Spencer, WA8SME, gets ready to demonstrate to educators attending the ARRL Teachers Institute at ARRL HQ how to make a satellite QSO . [S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA]
Since 2001 when the Education & Technology Program - also known as the "Big Project" -- started, ARRL has expanded the scope of its educational outreach programs by providing grants of station equipment and instructional resources for professional development to more than 300 schools (with more schools added each year). The Education & Technology Program has expanded the highly successful teacher development program in electronics, robotics and space -- the Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology.
From humble beginnings in 2003, a single gathering of 12 educators came together at ARRL Headquarters became the Teachers Institute, with the goal to promote wireless technology literacy. Since then, the Teachers Institute has provided teachers from elementary schools to the university level with the basic tools and teaching strategies to introduce the science of radio, space technology, weather, microcontroller basics and robotics in their classrooms. In 2008, the Teachers Institute program has expanded to six four-day sessions that now include ATV and radio astronomy, more hands-on instruction of project kits -- such as a seismometer, a 24-hour clock and A BOT Instructor's Board -- to enhance the teachers' ability to instruct basic robotics, a fox-hunt activity and satellite contacts.
Each year, the League receives gratifying reports from the schools that participate in the Education & Technology Program. The schools tell us that the resources we offer are bearing fruit -- both in terms of licensing students and teachers and engaging them in wireless technology, both in the classroom and in after-school activities.
"The Education & Technology Program is truly one of ARRL's most significant projects," said ARRL Chief Development Officer Mary Hobart, K1MMH. "The contributions of ARRL members make a direct connection to teachers and their students, opening the door to Amateur Radio and other exciting areas of science."
911 -- 2001
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/diglib/lcwa/html/sept11/sept11-overview.html
This Weekend in Contest
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Don't forget the Lighthouse Contest !! Check The ARRL Special Event's !!
A Look At The 146.730 Repeater ...
http://www.wb4gbi.com/englishmtn.html
The 146.940 Repeater.....
http://www.wb4gbi.com/greentop.html#444300
To see all of Tim's Repeaters Click Below...
A Look At WB4GBI Tim Berry,
First licensed in 1973 as WN4GBI, Tim has been an active in East Tennessee Amateur Radio for 30 years. He has held the Amateur Extra Class license since 1982, and also holds the FCC Lifetme General Radiotelephone license (previously the FCC First Class Radiotelephone license) since 1978. He is a member and past president of the Radio Amateur Club of Knoxville (RACK). He is also a member of the Middle East Tennessee Emergency Radio Service (METERS). Tim is also the Owner and Operator of these East Tennessee Repeaters: 52.15/53.15, 144.57/145.17, 144.87/145.47,146.025/146.625, 146.13/146.73, 146.34/146.94, 147.675/147.075, 222.74/224.34,and 449.300/444.300. All these repeaters are located in the Knoxville, TN area. All of Tim's repeaters are open, and hams are welcome to try them out when in the area. Tim has been an amateur repeater owner since 1981. Tim is presently employed as the Chief Engineer of Citadel Broadcasting of Knoxville, which consists of radio stations WIVK-FM, WNOX FM, WNML AM/FM, WNRX-FM, and WOKI-FM. In addition, Tim is also the Chief Engineer of WJBZ-FM in the Knoxville area. He is also the Chief Engineer and Technical Director of the Vol Radio Network, which broadcasts the University of Tennessee football, basketball, and baseball games. He is married to Tammy, KB4TQO, and they have a daughter, Paige. Tim has a website which shares information about the repeaters: http://www.wb4gbi.com
Thanks Tim For All You Do !!
For those who are new or haven't been to KG4QPG website lately come check it out.....
Ok Ladies Here Ya Go !! chick_factor_international-membership.pdf
Chick Factor International
Don't forget to send in your SASE with your membership form. The
address to send it to is Chick Factor International PO BOX 18495
INDIANAPOLIS IN 46218 USA
Heather L. Heininger, KB9ZLB
President of Chick Factor International -- Thanks Robin And Cathy For The Info!!
Lets Talk SWR In General and Deeply !!!
Our Special Discussion For This Week....
In telecommunications, standing wave ratio (SWR) is the ratio of the amplitude of a partial standing wave at an antinode (maximum) to the amplitude at an adjacent node (minimum), in an electrical transmission line.
The SWR is usually defined as a voltage ratio called the VSWR, for voltage standing wave ratio. For example, the VSWR value 1.2:1 denotes a maximum standing wave amplitude that is 1.2 times greater than the minimum standing wave value. It is also possible to define the SWR in terms of current, resulting in the ISWR, which has the same numerical value. The power standing wave ratio (PSWR) is defined as the square of the VSWR.
The voltage component of a standing wave in a uniform transmission line consists of the forward wave (with amplitude Vf) superimposed on the reflected wave (with amplitude Vr).
Reflections occur as a result of discontinuities, such as an imperfection in an otherwise uniform transmission line, or when a transmission line is terminated with other than its characteristic impedance. The reflection coefficient Γ is defined thus:
Γ is a complex number that describes both the magnitude and the phase shift of the reflection. The simplest cases, when the imaginary part of Γ is zero, are:
- Γ = − 1: maximum negative reflection, when the line is short-circuited,
- Γ = 0: no reflection, when the line is perfectly matched,
- Γ = + 1: maximum positive reflection, when the line is open-circuited.
For the calculation of VSWR, only the magnitude of Γ, denoted by ρ, is of interest. Therefore, we define
- ρ = | Γ | .
At some points along the line the two waves interfere constructively, and the resulting amplitude Vmax is the sum of their amplitudes:
At other points, the waves interfere destructively, and the resulting amplitude Vmin is the difference between their amplitudes:
The voltage standing wave ratio is then equal to:
As ρ, the magnitude of Γ, always falls in the range [0,1], the VSWR is always ≥ +1.
The SWR can also be defined as the ratio of the maximum amplitude of the electric field strength to its minimum amplitude, i.e. Emax / Emin.
To understand the standing wave ratio in detail, we need to calculate the voltage (or, equivalently, the electrical field strength) at any point along the transmission line at any moment in time. We can begin with the forward wave, whose voltage as a function of time t and of distance x along the transmission line is:
where A is the amplitude of the forward wave, ω is its angular frequency and k is a constant (equal to ω divided by the speed of the wave). The voltage of the reflected wave is a similar function, but spatially reversed (the sign of x is inverted) and attenuated by the reflection coefficient ρ:
The total voltage Vt on the transmission line is given by the superposition principle, which is just a matter of adding the two waves:
Using standard trigonometric identities, this equation can be converted to the following form:
where
This form of the equation shows, if we ignore some of the details, that the maximum voltage over time Vmot at a distance x from the transmitter is the periodic function
This varies with x from a minimum of A(1 − ρ) to a maximum of A(1 + ρ), as we saw in the earlier, simplified discussion. A graph of Vmot against x, in the case when ρ = 0.5, is shown below. Vmin and Vmax are the values used to calculate the SWR.
It is important to note that this graph does not show the instantaneous voltage profile along the transmission line. It only shows the maximum amplitude of the oscillation at each point. The instantaneous voltage is a function of both time and distance, so could only be shown fully by a three-dimensional or animated graph.
SWR has a number of implications that are directly applicable to radio use. There are, however, some serious misconceptions regarding the effects of SWR. The ARRL Technical Information Service[1] has a good collection of articles which reveal many of these misconceptions.
- SWR is an indicator of reflected waves bouncing back and forth within the transmission line, and as such, an increase in SWR corresponds to an increase in power in the line beyond the actual transmitted power. This increased power will increase RF losses, as increased voltage increases dielectric losses, and increased current increases resistive losses.
- Matched impedances give ideal power transfer; mismatched impedances give high SWR and increased loss in the transmission line.
- Reflected power in the transmission line is re-reflected at the transmitter, and is eventually radiated by the antenna (minus cable loss).
- The higher voltages associated with a sufficiently high SWR could damage the transmitter. Solid state transmitters which have a lower tolerance for high voltages may automatically reduce output power to prevent damage. Transmitters using tube-type output stages may arc. The high voltages may also cause transmission line dielectric to break down and/or burn.
- VSWR measurements may be taken to ensure that a waveguide is contiguous and has no leaks or sharp bends. If such bends or holes are present in the waveguide surface, they may diminish the performance of transmitter and receiver equipment strings. Arcing may occur if there is a hole, if transmitting at high power, usually 200 watts or more (Need reference for the power statement). Waveguide plumbing[1] is crucial for proper waveguide performance. Reflected power may occur and damage equipment as well. Another cause of bad VSWR in a waveguide is moisture build-up, which can typically be prevented with silica gel or pressurization of the waveguide with dry gas.
- A very long run of coaxial cable especially at a frequency where the cable itself is lossy can appear to a radio as a matched load. The power coming back is, in these cases, partially or almost completely lost in the cable run.
More On SWR
http://www.wenzel.com/documents/swr.html
Well Hope That Everyone Has Enjoyed The news Letter For This Week And That I Haven't Got To Tech On The SWR Factor....
Happy Birthday To Those Who's Birthday Is This Week and In The Upcoming Week, Again Hope That Everyone Is Doing Well...
See everyone on Tuesday's Net I hope, and thanks to all who checked in last week, we had a total of 66 checkin's , also don't forget the ladies net on Monday and Thursday at 8:00pm on the 470 repeater..also
--
Rick Sawaya Sr N4JTQ, NCS 470 ARG Net
Cathy Sawaya KI4YPO, NCS 470 Ladies Round Table
2005 Spence Mountain Loop
Sevierville,TN 37876
865.429.2422
Monitor 145.470 -- 444.300 -- 146.730 --146.940
Member Of SCARS,ECARS,SSCC
OMISS,MWCC,SCERS
Donations to the 145.470 or 146.730 send to:
Tim Berry
214 Echodale Rd
Knoxville TN 37920
