Archived News Script
IRTS Radio News Bulletin Sunday 17th April 2011
Theory Examination
The next theory examination for the Harmonised Amateur Radio Examinbation Certificate (HAREC) will be held on Thursday, 7 July next at 2.00 p.m. in the ComReg offices in Dublin. The examination may also be held on that day at other centres if warranted by the number of candidates.
Full details, including entry procedure and examination fee, are available at www.irts.ie/exam
Up-Coming IRTS Contests
1. 2m Counties Contest Monday April 25th 2011. From 2pm till 4pm. Log to be submitted by May 25th.
2. CW Field Day Sat 4th/ Sun 5th June 2011. Log to be submitted by June 5th.
Calling all active VHF and Higher operators we are trying to get the 2010 Squares table finalized on IRTS.ie. So can anyone that was active on the VHF bands last year please send your Square totals or your log and I can work it out for you to EI2GLB /at/ hotmail / dot/.com . To see the squares table go to www.irts.ie and click on vhf/uhf/shf on the right side of the home page.
International Marconi Day
International Marconi Day takes place this year on Saturday 30th April. The Howth Martello Radio Group will be participating once again as an award station using the call-sign EI0MAR.
This is not a contest but there are several nice awards available for working the officially listed stations, each of which has an historic connection with Marconi. The event is organised by the Cornish Amateur Radio Club. For more information please visit the club's website crac.g4usb.net/cracblog/
EI0MAR operates from the Martello Tower overlooking the East Pier in Howth. The tower now houses a vintage radio museum. In 1905 the British Post Office carried out wireless telegraphy experiments at the tower in Howth using Marconi equipment.
North Cork Radio Group will be active from the 29th of April through 2nd of May and during International Marconi Day.
The call used will be EI-0-IMD from the Mizen head Signal Station, Goleen in West Cork and the duration will be 24hours. NCRG will also use EI1NC/P for the remainder of the weekend until May 2nd. Members attending are Anthony EI3GAB, Pat EI2GHB, Padraig EI5GEB and Claus EI7JZ although other members may operate in short burst while visiting the station.
South Dublin Radio Club
Earlier this month, SDR moved back to its QTH at Ballyroan Community Centre, Rathfarnham. This means that the club once again has the use of two rooms for its meetings on Tuesday nights. The Community Centre has been extensively refurbished over the past two years.
The first meeting in Ballyroan was attended by a record number of members and visitors, who were treated to a presentation on Amateur Television by Ronnie EI9ED. His presentation covered transmitters and receivers for ATV on a number of bands; those more used to HF antennas were intrigued by the miniature size of the antennas for the Gigahertz bands.
This week's presentation covered antenna analysers. Daniel EI9FHB demonstrated a number of professional and amateur analysers and explained how these can be used to identify antenna faults and to tune antennas.
Next week's presentation at the club will be on digital modes.
Lough Erne Club in Top Three for RSGB Award
There will be a special zest at today’s Pearl Anniversary Lough Erne Rally in the SHARE Centre with news that the Club has made it to the top three among top clubs from 13 regions in the UK National Club of the Year competition.
The first, second and third placed award winners will be announced at the RSGB AGM in Derby on Saturday 14th May. Lough Erne Amateur Radio Club has been invited to the awards ceremony where ‘first’, will get the UK National Trophy and £1,000, ‘second’ a plaque and £500 and ‘third’ a plaque and £250. Some one of these awards will go to Lough Erne Amateur Radio Club based in the SHARE Centre County Fermanagh.
At today’s rally, Angus Annan MM0CCR, a past RSGB President will present the Regional Award to the Club, which represented Northern Ireland alongside the top clubs from RSGB’s other 12 regions. Earlier, at the IRTS AGM in Limerick, recognising the achievements of this Club’s enthusiastic members, its Chairman, Michael Clarke Mi5MTC was presented the magnificent Pat Conway Trophy.
At Wednesday’s rally work sharing meeting, when the RSGB letter arrived, Chairman Michael Clarke strongly congratulated his Club’s members. These awards were a tribute to their enthusiasm and companionship. Each individually, and all working together had enjoyed and achieved much during 2010. Well done.
Ballymena ARC
Ballymena ARC (GI3FFF) will be participating in the Steam Traction Rally, at Shanes Castle, Antrim from the 1st May till the 2nd May 2011. They will be putting on displays of amateur radio for the public, as well as activating the castle as part of CASHOTA-NI (castles and stately homes on the air-ni). The club will be using callsign GN4KPT, utilising all modes and bands, please feel free to call in if heard. See gi3fff.synthasite.com/ or www.cashota-ni.org
Bangor and District Amateur Radio Society
Bangor and District ARS meet on the 1st Thursday of every month.
At 8pm on Thursday 2nd June 2011 we are holding our annual BBQ at the scout campsite in the Crawfordsburn Country Park.
As always, visitors are most welcome.
More information from Mike GI4XSF on 028 4277 2383, or club website :
Cork Radio Club
The next monthly meeting of Cork Radio Club will be held on Monday April 25th at 2030 in the Community Centre, Main Street, Carrigtwohill.
Dave Deane EI9FBB, who is EI's only ARRL DXCC Card Checker, will make a presentation on ARRL's Logbook of the World and EQSL.
Final preparations for clubs participation in the following weekends International Marconi Day will also be discussed. The callsign EI5IMD will be activated from Brow Head near Crookhaven in West Cork to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the setting up of Marconi's Wireless Station in 1901. The reception of strong signals from Poldhu in Cornwall at Crookhaven convinced Marconi that bridging the Atlantic by radio was possible. Prior to that it was believed that radio waves travelled by line of sight only.
Visitors and new members will be very welcome on the night and further information can be had from Jeremy EI5GM on 083-3317710 or Dave EI4BZ on 087-6290574. You can email to info at Cork Radio Club dot com.
DX News
Special calls have been aired over the past two months to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Holyland Contest in Israel. The calls are 4X20HC and 4Z20HC and will be QRV till the end of this month. This is a good opportunity for the prefix hunters to get a couple of new ones. QSLs go via 4Z4TL.
Another one for the prefix chasers this week is 4A0IARU which will be active from Mexico where the usual prefix is XE. The station will be QRV from 18 – 24 April and celebrates World Amateur Radio Day on 18 April and the 86th anniversary of the founding of the International Amateur Radio Union.
A group of Brazilian operators are off to the island of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean where they will be heard as TO2FH from 18 – 25 April. They intend being on all bands 160 – 10m with SSB, CW, RTTY and PSK.
The well-known DXer Dov 4Z4DX will be in Nepal signing 9N7DX from now till the end of April. He is accompanied by his XYL Anat who has the call 9N7YL. Activity is planned for 20/15/10/6m using CW, RTTY and PSK31.
Finally a reminder that our own DXer Dave EI9FBB will be QRV later this week from Monaco as 3A/EI9FBB. The days to look out for him are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (20 – 22 April) mainly in the afternoons.
Items for inclusion in next week’s Radio News can be
submitted via e-mail to “newsteam /at/ irts / dot / ie” for automatic forwarding to both the radio and printed news services. Urgent news items for the radio news maybe telephoned to the radio news editor, Aidan, EI7JC on 085 7100511.
Please note that items for the radio news should reach the editor no later than midday on Thursday in order to be guaranteed inclusion in the following Sunday’s bulletin.
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