If you would like to become a member of SELARC, please print out and complete the application/renewal form and return it with your check to: P.O. Box 1324, Hammond LA 70404. Thanks!

==> "We Will Have Hamvention," General Chairman Pledges
In case you missed the earlier announcement, Dayton Hamvention® 2022 is on, Hamvention General Chairman Rick Allnutt, WS8G, said this week. He said many Hamvention volunteers attended the recent Orlando HamCation in Florida and were encouraged to see so many friends at the show.
Many Hamvention tickets were sold at the pre-show price and are also available on the Hamvention website. Hamvention, an ARRL-sanctioned event, will be held May 20 - 22, at the Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center in Xenia, Ohio. ...

==> ARRL Seeks Exemption from Proposed US Forest Service Communication Facility Fees; Comment Period Open Until March 31
ARRL has filed comments with the US Forest Service (USFS) seeking an exemption for amateur radio facilities to a proposed new $1,400 annual administrative fee. The USFS proposal resulted from requirements in the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (aka "the Farm Bill"), which directs the Forest Service to collect fees for issuing communications use authorizations based on the cost to the agency for processing the applications, maintenance, and other related activities. The proposed fee is a new and separate fee, not an increase to fees, such as rent, already being paid. If adopted, the existing fee(s) -- which generally have been around $130 - 140 annually for amateur uses -- would have to be paid in addition to the new proposed annual administrative fee of $1400.
The comment filing window has been re-opened, and additional comments will be accepted through March 31. Any radio amateurs missing the first comment period or wishing to add to their earlier comments are encouraged to do so during this additional period.
"Although the discussion put forward by the Forest Service in its proposal focuses on commercial uses, the proposal would sweep within its requirements amateur radio uses that are solely noncommercial," ARRL said in comments filed on February 22. "Radio amateurs establish and maintain facilities at certain locations for public service purposes with no remuneration or reimbursement. Unlike broadcasters and commercial wireless and fiber providers, radio amateurs are uniquely barred by the terms of their federal licenses from receiving compensation of any sort." ...

==> Ukraine Maintains Ham Radio Silence in State of Emergency
Radio amateurs in Ukraine appear to be diligently maintaining radio silence as the state of emergency declared there just prior to the Russian military invasion remains in effect. A February 24 decree from President Volodymyr Zelensky included "a ban on the operation amateur radio transmitters for personal and collective use." The Ukraine Amateur Radio League (UARL/LRU) reported this past week that it has received many messages of encouragement from the worldwide amateur radio community.
"The LRU informed international amateur radio organizations about Russia's military invasion of Ukraine," said the message from UARL Vice President Anatoly Kirilenko, UT3UY. "To date, there have been many reports from radio amateurs around the world in support of Ukraine."
The International Amateur Radio Union ( IARU) has adopted a neutral stance. "IARU is an apolitical organization focused on promoting and defending amateur radio and the amateur radio services," the IARU said. "The amateur radio service is about self-instruction in communications and friendship between people." IARU Region 1 has said it continues to monitor the development and expect all radio amateurs "to follow their national laws and regulations."
IARU Region 1 also re-posted part of an advisory from the Deutscher Amateur Radio Club HF Committee on February 27. "Any radio amateur currently transmitting from Ukraine is risking his or her life. If you hear a Ukrainian station, do not broadcast its call sign, location, or frequency -- whether on the band, in a cluster, or on social media. You may be putting lives at risk." The DARC's overarching advice: "In the current situation, the best we can do is listen..."

==> FCC: Amateur Service Licensees May Not Use Their Radios to Commit Criminal Acts
The FCC Enforcement Bureau has re-issued its earlier Enforcement Advisory that licensees in the Amateur Radio Service and licensees and operators in the Personal Radio Services are prohibited from using radios in those services to commit or facilitate criminal acts.
"The Bureau recognizes that these services can be used for a wide range of permitted and socially beneficial purposes, including emergency communications and speech that is protected under the First Amendment of the US Constitution," the FCC said. "Amateur and Personal Radio Services, however, may not be used to commit or facilitate crimes."
As it did in advisories in 2021, the Enforcement Bureau is reminding amateur licensees that they may not transmit, "communications intended to facilitate a criminal act" or "messages encoded for the purpose of obscuring their meaning..."

==> 3Y0J Bouvet DXpedition Confirms Departure Date
The 3Y0J Bouvet Island DXpedition has confirmed January 6, 2023, as its date of departure on board the vessel SV Marama. The DXpedition will make the second-most-wanted DXCC entity available for the first time in several years. ...

==> ARISS-International to Conduct Special Digital SSTV Experiment
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS-International) will conduct a digital slow-scan television (SSTV) experiment over Europe on Sunday, February 20. ARISS, which arranges amateur radio contacts between students around the globe and ISS crew members, develops and operates the amateur radio equipment on the space station. The purpose of these experiments is to optimize future transmissions of SSTV images from the ISS, and to investigate alternative transmission methods. ...

==> Geomagnetic Storm Leads to Loss of Up to 40 Starlink Satellites
A geomagnetic storm on February 4 "significantly impacted" the launch of some 49 Starlink satellites. The company said the satellites were intended to achieve low-Earth orbits after being sent aloft on a Falcon 9 launcher. Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by SpaceX to provide satellite internet access. SpaceX said it initially deploys its satellites into low-Earth orbit so that "in the very rare case any satellite does not pass initial system checkouts, it will quickly be deorbited by atmospheric drag." All did not go as planned, however.
"Unfortunately, the satellites deployed on February 3 were significantly impacted by a geomagnetic storm on Friday [February 4]," SpaceX announced this week. "These storms cause the atmosphere to warm and atmospheric density at our low-deployment altitudes to increase. In fact, onboard GPS suggests the escalation speed and severity of the storm caused atmospheric drag to increase up to 50% higher than during previous launches." ...

==> Some New Rules Going into Effect this Year for ARRL Field Day
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.
Starting this year, the maximum PEP output for a transmitter used by anyone submitting a Field Day log will be 100 W. The power multiplier of 2 will remain in place, and the high-power category will be removed from the rules. Until this year, the maximum low-power limit had been 150 W for most ARRL-sponsored operating events. The power multiplier will remain at 5 for QRP participants running a maximum of 5 W or less. As previously announced, 100 W is now the low-power category limit for all ARRL and IARU HF Contests, effective January 1, 2022
A couple of changes instituted initially as accommodations for the COVID-19 pandemic will remain. Class D (Home) stations will continue to be able to earn points for contacts with other Class D stations. The club aggregate scoring change initiated in 2020 as a temporary measure will become part of the permanent rules. In the aggregate scoring plan, the scores of individual stations are combined under the score of a single club. ...

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Stay Radio active -- Hope to see you at the next meeting. Be sure to monitor your weekly nets, e-mail, and the SELARC website at https://www.selarc.org for any updates.

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