Message 30218 in ARNR.WW
From: PY2BIL
Date: Fri, 18 Sep 26 11:43:00 Z
Newsgroups: ARNR.WW
Subject: Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2551 for Friday, September 18
Message-ID: <54321_PY2BIL>
Path: N2MH4|DK0WUE|F1UBL|K1AJD|LU9DCE|PY2BIL
R:260918/1148Z 37355@N2MH4.#SENC.NC.USA.NOAM LinBPQ6.0.24
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R:260918/1143Z 54321@PY2BIL.SP.BRA.SOAM LinBPQ6.0.25
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2551 for Friday, September 18th, 2026
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2551 with a release date of Friday,
September 18th, 2026 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. Indonesian hams take action during deadly volcanic
eruptions. Gibraltar continues two year-long ham radio anniversaries
-- and HF radio comes to a 12,000-year-old site in Turkey. All this and
more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2551 comes your way right
now.
**
BILLBOARD CART
**
DEADLY INDONESIAN VOLCANO SPURS ACTIVATION OF EMERGENCY NET
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: We begin this week in Indonesia where hams quickly organized
a net for emergency communication amid violent volcanic activity. Graham
Kemp VK4BB has that story.
GRAHAM: Emergency communications were activated and expected to stay
in place in Indonesia through the 24th of September, following volcanic
eruptions at Anak Krakatau earlier in the month. The national amateur
radio organisation, ORARI, cautioned hams to stay off 7.110 MHz to allow
for phone traffic and 7.100 MHz for JS8 Call. The emergency amateur radio
net was also making use of the LAPAN-A2 satellite. ORARI was asking that
the uplink and downlink frequencies, 145.880 MHz and 435.880 MHz, respectively
also be kept clear.
Ageng Aditya, YB1BTM, chairman of IARU Region 3's disaster communication
committee, advised amateurs to monitor all of those frequencies whenever
possible.
This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.
(IARU, WIRELESS INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA, EHAM.NET)
**
LASERS FROM SPACE SEEN AS DELIVERY MEANS FOR SOLAR POWER
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Beaming resources, such as sunlight or energy, from space
is nothing new. In fact, even after the FCC approved a mirror-equipped
satellite to deliver sunlight to earth on demand, a startup company in
Virginia is shaping a space-based pathway for infrared lasers to deliver
solar power around the clock. Kent Peterson KCØDGY has the details.
KENT: Working with a self-imposed deadline of January 2028, Overview
Energy is working on a constellation of satellites in geosynchronous
orbit where solar panels would harvest sunlight to be sent to earth using
infrared laser beams. The light, not visible to the human eye, would
be guided by beacons to solar farms wherever the need is greatest at
any given time. The promise of this technology has already inspired an
agreement between Overview and Meta so that Meta's data centers can become
a major consumer. Overview executives believe the technology would ultimately
support a system that could lower electricity prices without compromising
safety or health on earth.
Skeptics question the economics of the project, noting that the satellites
alone - each the size of two football fields - makes the cost untenable.
Others question the reality of this level of wireless transmission of
power.
Overview Energy is also not the only one in a crowded field. There are
numerous such young companies formed to meet the challenge of harvesting
the sun amid the proliferation of data centers and other potential consumers.
Some projects are studying the feasibility of microwave beams instead.
This is Kent Peterson KCØDGY.
(WASHINGTON POST, TECH CRUNCH)
**
STAMPS, COINS TO MARK MILESTONES FOR GIBRALTAR AMATEURS
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: In Gibraltar, it's a double anniversary year for amateur
radio operators and some keepsakes are in the works to mark the occasion,
as we hear from Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
JEREMY: This has been a big year for the Gibraltar Amateur Radio Society,
which has been marking its 50th anniversary. It is also a big year for
amateur radio, which became active in the British overseas territory
80 years ago with the issuance of the first licence bearing the ZB2 prefix.
The callsign ZB2A belonged to the RAF Amateur Radio Club, which years
later became part of the Gibraltar Amateur Radio Club.
The Gibraltar club's dual celebration this year included a one-week event
hosted by members in May -- an exhibit at which they got on the air with
the special-event callsign ZB2FTY.
Now, before the year winds down, the group is looking forward to keepsakes
being made available for everyone. The Gibraltar Philatelic Bureau will
issue a 50p commemorative coin and a set of four postage stamps on or
about the 20th of November.
This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH.
(GIBRALTAR AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY)
**
INDIAN STUDENTS BUILD FLIGHT-READY EAGLESATS
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A project that is part of India's 75 Student Satellites
Mission is about to take flight, as we learn from Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.
JIM MEACHEN: The next two student-built CubeSats to be launched in India
are known as EagleSats and they'll be sent into low-earth orbit this
month carrying amateur radio payloads.
Both will have a real-time AX.25 digipeater with a 435.170 MHz uplink
and 436.547 MHz downlink. SSTV will be available as command-activated
Robot36 SSTV demonstrations. The transmissions wiill be sent over the
9600 bps GFSK downlink as packetized data.
The small satellites, built at the Military College of Electronics and
Mechanical Engineering, are part of the country's 75 Student Satellites
Mission, a national programme created in 2022 to celebrate the nation's
75 years of independence that year from British rule.
The satellites' launch dates are set for Tuesday the 22nd and Wednesday
the 30th of September.
This is Jim Meachen ZL2BHF.
(AMSAT)
**
HF RADIO COMES TO 12,000-YEAR-OLD ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: One of the last things you'd expect to see at a nearly
12,000-year-old archaeological site are modern amateur radio rigs, particularly
radios calling CQ on the HF bands and via satellite. You're about to
hear about it in this next story from Dave Lee M9TLB.
DAVE: Archaeologists believe the wheel had not even been invented yet
when the sanctuary known as Karahantepe was carved into the bedrock almost
12 thousand years ago in what is now the Turkish province of Şanlıurfa/
Special event station TC8KHT will be the first ham radio activation at
the site since its creation around 9400 BC. A team of operators from
the Turkish Amateur Radio Society will be active on the 18th through
to the 20th of September. Where there was once no writing, agriculture
or pottery, there now exists a GridSquare designation of KM97PC. From
there, the operators will be using CW, SSB, FT8/FT4 and the geostationary
satellite QO-100. Any operator completing at least one contact will be
eligible for the free Amateur Radio Karahantepe (pronounce: carra hon
TEP pay) Heritage Award.
Although the Cradle of Civilisation will never be the cradle of amateur
radio, operators will make the most of those three days and then depart,
as scientists continue their work through the Karahantepe (pronounce:
carra hon TEP pay) Research Support Association. There are always new
discoveries to be made - something amateur radio operators can surely
relate to.
This is Dave Lee M9TLB.
(QRZ.COM, TURKISH AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY)
**
ARDC SEEKING VOLUNTEERS TO SUPPORT GRANTS, 44NET SYSTEM
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Support for research and development, for education and
for the 44Net ham radio internet address system continues to play a vital
role in the future of amateur radio. This is why ARDC, Amateur Radio
Digital Communications, is asking for volunteer input on one of several
committees and teams. The private foundation is accepting applications
through to the 30th of October for participation by qualified individuals.
Applicants do not have to be in the United States to be a part of these
teams.
The Grants Advisory Committee reviews applications for ARDC grants; the
Grants Evaluation Team evaluates reports submitted by grant recipients
and the Technical Advisory Committee deals with projects and policies
related to 44Net. There is also a need for volunteers to serve on the
Conduct Review Committee, which is open to individuals who are also serving
ARDC in another volunteer capacity. Committee members evaluate incident
reports involving ARDC's code of conduct.
See the link in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org
for additional information.
[DO NOT READ: https://www.ardc.net/volunteer-with-ardc-in-2027 ]
(ARDC)
**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur
Radio Newsline heard on bulletin stations around the world including
the Montgomery Amateur Radio Club's KV3B repeater in Rockville Maryland
on Sundays at 7:30 p.m. local time.
**
SPECIAL EVENT URGES SAFETY WITH LITHIUM BATTERIES
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Get ready for Fire Prevention Week - and a special message
about some of those lithium batteries many of you have been using. We
hear more from Andy Morrison K9AWM.
ANDY: Hams who rely on lithium batteries for portable operations and
emergency communication may want to check into a special event next month
that highlights safe use and charging practices for these batteries.
Radio operators in North America are activating for Fire Prevention Week,
carrying this public service message from the 4th through to the 10th
of October. All stations will have 1x1 callsigns with the N prefix and
F suffix. The number in between will be for each of the ten US geographic
call regions.
There are also two wildcard stations: KF2IRE in the US and VE3FIRE in
Canada.
Anyone working ten or more of the twelve stations will be eligible for
a downloadable certificate.
This is both a special event and an educational one and is scheduled
each year to coincide with the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. That deadly
blaze raged from October 8th to 10th of that year, destroying 17,000
structures, leaving 100,000 people homeless - and killing 300 people.
This is Andy Morrison K9AWM.
(QRZ.COM, AMATEUR RADIO DAILY)
**
FCC TO VOTE ON GIVING HIGH-SPEED SATELLITE MORE SPECTRUM
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: Operators of high-speed satellites are eager to hear
what the FCC has to say about expanding their use of some parts of the
radio spectrum. Daniel Garcia W2DIY brings us those details.
DANIEL: The FCC's calendar for September 30th includes a vote that is
expected to have an impact on space-based broadband services by making
more of the spectrum available to them. Commissioners will consider authorizing
high-speed satellite's use of parts of the 12 GHz and 42 GHz bands. If
approved this could open as much as 1,000 MHz to airplanes, ships and
vehicles on land.
The FCC states on its website that [quote] "Spectrum abundance fuels
innovation and investment in the American space economy. It creates
additional capacity for in-home satellite broadband for video, gaming,
and AI, improves how traffic is routed on the ground, provides better
connectivity to ships and planes, and opens the door to a wide range
of industrial and commercial innovations in space." [endquote]
The commission has been moving ahead on measures designed to help a variety
of space-based services improve their position in the marketplace. Commissioners
voted in the spring to relax power limits on satellites' use of the spectrum.
The goal is to allow more of the spectrum to be available for activities
such as space-based broadband - a move that by some estimates could generate
as much as $2-billion in economic benefits.
This is Daniel Garcia W2DIY.
(REUTERS, FCC.GOV)
**
WORLD OF DX
In the World of DX, the 125th anniversary of the birth of German engineer
Rudolf Hell will be celebrated with the activation of special event callsign
DA125RH from the 1st of October through to the 31st of December. Rudolf
Hell developed the Hellschreiber, considered a precursor to fax machines
and dot-matrix printers. Amateur radio still enjoys using the transmission
method named after him. Operators will be using all modes, including
Hell.
In France, special event callsign TM26SP will be activated by Nicolas,
F4HZS, to mark the upcoming apostolic journey of Pope Leo XIV to France.
Nicolas will be on the air from the 25th through to the 28th of September.
Listen for Juergen, DL3JH using the callsign 8Q7JH from the Maldives,
IOTA Number AS-013, from the 20th of September through to the 10th of
October. Juergen will be using CW, SSB, and FT8 on 20, 15 and 10 metres.
In Bermuda, Al K7AR, Ron WJ7R, and Lee N7NU will be on the air as N7NU/VP9
from the 23rd to the 29th of September. They will be using various modes,
including FT8, and will participate in the CQ WW RTTY DX Contest on the
26th and 27th of September using the callsign VP9I (VEE PEE NINE EYE).
(425 DX BULLETIN)
**
KICKER: TWIN TOWERS, A TRANSMISSION AND A TRIBUTE
STEPHEN/ANCHOR: A special traut in CW: "QST de KL7ERP," its ham radio callsign.
What followed was the transmission of a Slow-Scan TV of an image that
forever changed the NYC skyline, showing lower Manhattan and its so-called
"Tribute in Light." The twin beams stand against the night sky as a radiant
symbol, reaching up from where the Twin Towers had been. Having sent
its message, the station returned to CW and sent its signoff before going
QRT.
This is Jim Davis W2JKD.
(HAARP)
**
the devastating
terror attacks on the United States on September 11th, 2001. The research
facility known by the acronym HAARP tuned its transmitter to 9.11 MHz
on the evening of Friday, September 11th when its first message went
oNEWSCAST CLOSE
With thanks to Amateur Radio Daily, Amateur Radio Digital Communications;
David Behar, K7DB; eHam.net; 425 DX Bulletin; FCC.gov; High-frequency
Active Auroral Research Program; QRZ.com; Reuters; Turkish Amateur Radio
Society; Wireless Institute of Australia; and you our listeners, that's
all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. We remind our listeners that Amateur
Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that incurs
expenses for its continued operation. If you wish to support us, please
visit our website at arnewsline.org and know that we appreciate you all.
We also remind our listeners that if you like our newscast, please leave
us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us.
For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and
our news team worldwide, I'm Stephen Kinford N8WB in Wadsworth Ohio saying
73. As always, we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm)
is Copyright 2026. Amateur Radio Newsline retains ownership of its material
even when retransmitted elsewhere. All rights are reserved.
73 de Bill, PY2BIL
PY2BIL@PY2BIL.SP.BRA.SOAM
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