We are saddened to announce the passing of Noel Harris EI122 who died on 5th April 2013 aged 83. Noel was the longest serving SWL in the Society, his membership going back to the early 60s. We extend our sympathies to Noel's sister Miriam and to his brother Walter. May he Rest in Peace
This year the 81st IRTS AGM is hosted by Shannon Basin Radio Club. The event takes place in the Shamrock Lodge Hotel in Athlone, Saturday April 27th and Sunday April 28th 2013. Tickets for the Dinner on Saturday night (8.00 for 8.30pm) will be available at 30 Euro each from Brian EI8IU QTHR and through IRTS Committee Members. Dress code, as usual, is smart/casual. Menu details is available from the IRTS website. Please visit www.irts.ie for more details.
The next Amateur Station Licence Examination will be held on Thursday 4 July at 2.00 p.m. in the ComReg offices in Dublin. The examination may be held on that day at other centres where warranted by the number of candidates. Full details, including entry procedure, examination fee and how to pay the fee on line are available at www.irts.ie/exam .There is also an exam button on the home page. Places for the examination are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis. Some applications have already been received. Please note that it is necessary to download the application form from the web page and forward the completed form and the appropriate fee in order to secure a place for the examination. If you pay the fee on line you must still complete and forward the application form. The closing date for the receipt of completed applications is Friday 14th June.
In the first three months of this year the special call EI13CLAN has logged over 13,000 contacts, has had 30,000 visits to its QRZ.com page and has made contact with over 140 countries. A number of stations have contacted the IRTS requesting more activity with the call on RTTY as they need the extra points for their CLAN certificate. Any EI's who can activate the call on RTTY are more than welcome to contact Dave O'Connor EI6AL to arrange a band and time that would suit. Contact details are on the IRTS web page.
The AREN Committee would like to thank all that were able to attend last weekend in Dromineer, our host, Declan, EI2GE, and the organiser Conor, EI4JN. It was great to see new Amateur Radio operators attending and participating, alongside more seasoned operators.
Any Amateur Radio operators interested in AREN should contact the AREN Coordinator John, EI7IG at 086 8167310, or via the details on the IRTS or AREN websites.
At a recent meeting of South Dublin Radio Club, Martin EI9KG made a presentation on the use the digital modes JT65 and JT9 to communicate with other radio amateurs and to evaluate long distance propagation with these weak-signal modes.
Martin first outlined the options available for linking a computer to a transceiver, these options range from expensive commercial interfaces to a simple "build it yourself" solution using just a few components. He then covered the digital mode software that can be used to generate the necessary tones for the JT65 and JT9 signals, as well as rig control and logging software than can be used alongside the digital mode software.
While JT65 is derived from communications protocols that were originally designed for VHF work, for example meteor-scatter and moonbounce, Martin's presentation focused on the use of these modes for HF terrestrial communications, and he gave some examples of the long distances that can be covered using very low power and minimal antennas, including indoor antennas. The presentation also showed how JT65 transmissions worldwide are monitored and reported through the PSK Reporter web site, effectively providing a valuable indication of propagation on different bands.
The next monthly meeting of the South Eastern Amateur Radio Group will take place in the Roanmore Social and Sports Centre, Cleaboy Road, Waterford on Monday the 29th April at 8.30 p.m. The meeting will be preceded by a committee meeting at 8.00 pm sharp and as always new members are very welcome. At this meeting Michael EI7GH will give a talk and demonstration on how to construct homebrew traps and tune to desired frequency using an analyser. This demonstration is open to attend for members and non-members also. The next Amateur Station Licence Examination will be held on Thursday 4th July 2013 at 2.00 p.m. in the ComReg offices in Dublin. SEARG will be running a refresher course for anyone who wishes to re-sit the exam and plans for this refresher course will be put in place soon and will be made public as soon as they are finalized. For up-to-date news about the South Eastern Amateur Radio Group and it’s actives you can check our website www.searg.com and you can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
The Hurdy Gurdy Museum of Vintage Radio will be celebrating International Marconi Day, and the tower will be open from 11 AM to 4 PM at least, and probably longer. The Call Sign is EI0MAR. The tower was the site for an experimental Marconi Station in 1905. All visitors are welcome, licenced amateurs, SWLs and anyone with an interest in radio. The museum is located in the Martello Towel, Howth Harbour, Fingal, County Dublin. The web link is bit.ly/QXkBTi
Luc F5RAV returns to Senegal for the fourth year running to reactivate 6V7T from the Le Calao resort shack. He will be there from 26 April until 5 May. QSLs go via his home call.
Two Japanese operators, Yutaka JQ2GYU and his XYL Miho JJ2VLY, will be QRV as NH0J from the Mariana Islands from 27 April until 1 May.
A large group of Italian amateurs will operate from Djerba Island, Tunisia from 27 April – 4 May. They will use the callsign TS8IT. This operation will count as AF-083 for the Islands on the Air Award. QSL manager is IK2DUW.
A number of special prefixes can be heard from Russia between now and 17 July. To celebrate the 27th Summer Universiade (World University Games) being held in Kazan the prefixes R27, RA27, RT27 and RU27 will be on the air.
The First Class CW Operators' Club 75th anniversary activity. Look for Jean, 5T0JL (ON8RA), to be active as 5T1FOC during the month of May. Activity is to celebrate the 75th anniversary of FOC (First Class CW Operators' Club). For more details on the FOC, visit: www.g4foc.org
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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