Address Changes: Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO, e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.

Editorial: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, e-mail elindquist@arrl.org.

• FCC issues Gate 3 call signs!
• Andy subs for Wendy on Mir stay
• Mir crew faces breakdown, near miss, bad press
• IARU Administrative Council meets
• Score one for Massachusetts PRB-1 law
• KC5TZQ to retire from NASA
• Form 159 quietly revised
• Elkhart jammers--an update
• Solar update
• In Brief: This weekend on the radio; Section managers re-elected; Special event to mark Sputnik anniversary; Ham radio biathlon set for NNJ; K6PGX honored; FCC personnel changes; Down under low-frequency DX firsts

Get ready to remember another batch of new call signs. Six weeks to the day after the opening of Gate 3, the FCC began processing vanity call sign applications. FCC personnel in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, had spent much of the intervening time clearing out a backlog of vanity applications filed prior to the Gate 3 opening and matching up payments with electronic applications. On Wednesday, September 17, the FCC issued some 500 to 600 vanity call signs to those who had filed applications on August 6, the opening day.

Applicants can check for new call signs at http://www.arrl.org/fcc/fccld.html or by using one of the other popular call sign databases.

Judging from the call signs turning up on the FCC database, some Advanced class hams took advantage of Gate 3 to obtain Group C call signs where the suffix comprised either a first name (we spotted a Joe, a Don, a Ken, a Bob and a Gay, for example) or a set of initials. Perhaps apropos of his QTH, Gene Uliasz of Gun Barrel City, Texas, used Gate 3 to turn KC4WA into K5TNT. Formerly KF6CG, Georgia A. Lawrence of Manhattan Beach, California, obtained K6GAL. Other applicants obtained new Group B call signs, sometimes trading one 2x2 in for another. For example, Karl Mortensen of Wakefield, Rhode Island, swapped KE1FK for KA1RL. Still others went for the snappy suffix. Charles Pharis of Kagel Cyn, California, turned in KK6NE for KA6USA. Michael Amaral of Walpole, Massachusetts, gave up W1IDP to obtain WA1AW. Along the same lines, Michael Esposito of Germantown, Tennessee, swapped WA2VXV for WA2AW. Yvonne Lane of Kingwood, Texas, gave up KF5MY for W5XYL.

A few, like West Gulf Director Jim Haynie, just shortened the prefix. Haynie went from WB5JBP to W5JBP. Others went for one appropriate for their QTH. Teriann Miner of Palmer, Alaska, turned in her lower-48 call sign, KG0OY, for KL7AT.

The Iowa DX and Contest Club got WI0WA.

In all, it appears that the FCC received more than 1000 vanity call sign applications on August 6. Because earlier gates remain open, it's impossible to get an accurate count of applications filed solely under Gate 3, however. The FCC still has not indicated when it plans to open Gate 4, which will make the vanity call sign program available to General, Tech Plus, Technician and Novice licensees.

Astronaut Andy Thomas is studying for his ham ticket in anticipation of spending several months aboard the Russian Mir space station starting in January. He'll replace Wendy Lawrence, KC5KII, in the Mir rotation. Lawrence originally was supposed to replace Mike Foale, KB5UAC, aboard Mir later this month, but in the wake of the problems aboard the space station over the past few months, however, NASA determined it would prefer to have an astronaut aboard Mir who could fit the Russian space suits--in case an astronaut needed to participate in a space walk as Foale has had to do during his Mir stay. Lawrence is too small to wear the Russian space gear, and that same thinking could have been behind swapping Thomas for Lawrence on the subsequent Mir posting.

Lawrence will, however, be aboard the September 25 shuttle flight, STS-86, that will deliver US astronaut David Wolf, KC5VPF, to Mir. NASA decided this week that Mir was safe enough to keep an astronaut aboard. This month's rendezvous and docking will also deliver supplies and return Foale to Earth from his four-month stay aboard Mir. In addition to Wolf and Lawrence, the Atlantis crew will include Commander Jim Wetherbee; Pilot Mike Bloomfield; and Mission Specialists Scott Parazynski, KC5RSY; Jean-Loup Chretien; and Vladimir Titov, KD5AOS. Parazynski and Titov will conduct a spacewalk to retrieve some science experiments from the outside of the station. STS-86 will mark the 20th Atlantis' 20th space mission and the 87th shuttle flight in the program's history.

Wolf, 41, is both an electrical engineer and a medical doctor. A native of Indianapolis, Wolf is single. He holds 11 US patents and has published more than 40 technical papers. Wolf became an astronaut in 1990. He served as a mission specialist astronaut aboard space shuttle Columbia (STS-58) in late 1993. Wolf has completed training to replace Foale for a four-month stay on Mir and continue the permanent US presence on the station that began with Shannon Lucid in 1996.

Thomas, a native of Australia, is 45 and single. He holds a PhD in mechanical engineering, and he became an astronaut in 1993. Thomas flew his first flight in space on Endeavour in May, 1996.--NASA

The Mir computer crashed again earlier this week, but the crew cobbled together enough spare parts to put it back into service within a day. Sunday's computer failure was the fourth in three months. The computer went down only last week, sending the Russian space station spinning in orbit.

The malfunction was the latest in a series since Mir was damaged in a collision June 25 with an unmanned Progress supply rocket. It forced the crew to turn off lights in most of the Mir's modules. The crew had to fire thrusters to re-aim the spacecraft in the right direction to get sunlight on its solar panels.

A replacement computer and system parts reportedly are aboard Mir, and a completely new computer is to be sent up on a Progress supply rocket next month. The Russians have asked NASA to ferry another new computer to Mir aboard the shuttle later this month as well.

To top the computer failure, the three-man Mir crew, including US astronaut Mike Foale, KB5UAC, took refuge late Monday in the Soyuz transporter as a US military satellite passed by too close for comfort. Reports on just how close the satellite was vary from 470 yards to three-fourths of a mile, depending on the source.

The problems followed in the wake of a damning report from NASA Inspector General Roberta Gross that outlined a host of unsafe conditions and situations that US astronauts have faced aboard Mir. Those concerns were aired during a House Science Committee hearing on Mir safety issues this week. NASA has maintained, however, that Mir remains safe and still plans to post astronaut David Wolf, KC5VPF, to Mir later this month for a four-month stay.

Meanwhile, the new, experimental 70-cm ham radio frequency for Mir, 437.650 MHz, is said to be working well. MIREX will continue the frequency swap test until September 28, then return to 2 meters. BJ Arts, WT0N, reports having an enjoyable chat with Foale on September 8. Foale told Arts that when he gets back to Earth, he wants to take a vacation "somewhere warm."

Foale said he enjoys seeing the .jpg photo files some hams have posted but suggested keeping the size of any .jpg files to 10 kB or less.

Foale returns to Earth next week aboard the space shuttle Atlantis.

The IARU Administrative Council has set up an Amateur Radio Outlook Committee to make general recommendations on the future growth and development of Amateur Radio. Tom Atkins, VE3CDM, was named to head the panel, established in response to changing technology and the Internet. The action came as the Administrative Council met in Beijing September 13-15, following the IARU Region 3 Conference there. The council also approved setting up an ad hoc committee to review the IARU's structure to ensure its long-term viability. The committee--to be designated by President Richard Baldwin, W1RU--will provide a preliminary report at the Council's next meeting in Caracas, Venezuela, in October 1998.

The Council also agreed on the instructions to be given to the IARU delegation to this year's World Radio Communication Conference (WRC-97). The International Secretariat will update this material as new information becomes available. The core delegation to WRC-97 consists of Larry Price, W4RA; Michael Owen, VK3KI; and Wojciech Nietyksza, SP5FM. The month-long conference opens October 27 in Geneva. The Council also reviewed the status of the action plan developed by the 7 MHz Strategy Committee. After WRC-97, information will go out to member societies to update the plan in the light of decisions taken at the conference.

The Council also considered the second published report of the Future of the Amateur Service Committee (FASC). Comments resulting from a comprehensive review of the FASC report to the Region 3 IARU Conference will be incorporated into a further report. That report then will be circulated as the next step in the process of developing an IARU position on a possible revision of Article S25 of the international radio regulations. The Council will develop its own position after it receives the FASC's final report next September.

The Council selected "Amateur Radio--Communicating Worldwide for Three Quarters of a Century" as the theme for next year's World Amateur Radio Day, September 20. The theme recognizes the 75th anniversary of the first transoceanic two-way amateur communication, between France and the US, in November 1923. Starting in 2000, World Amateur Radio Day will occur in April, on the anniversary of the founding of the IARU in Paris in 1925.

Among other actions, the Council:

• updated the IARU Strategic Plan for the Development of Support for Amateur Radio. The goal of the associated 1998-99 action plan is to apply resources to enhance support for Amateur Radio in Africa. The plan's implementation will be coordinated with IARU Region 1.
• adopted a resolution encouraging the promotion and development of Amateur Radio digital technology.
• reviewed, updated and approved the present and anticipated future requirements for radio spectrum allocations to the Amateur and Amateur-Satellite Services.
• reviewed planning for IARU participation in the next World TELECOM in Geneva in 1999. The council received a Region 1 report on preparation for Amateur Radio participation in Africa TELECOM 98 in South Africa.
• appointed an ad hoc Monitoring System Review Committee to review the terms of reference of the IARU Monitoring System and make recommendations they deem appropriate. Pedro Seidemann, YV5BPG, was appointed to head the committee.--David Sumner, K1ZZ

A Massachusetts ham recently made good use of the PRB-1 federal pre-emption that was incorporated into that state's laws a couple of years ago to get a very restrictive local zoning bylaw overturned. Recently, the Massachusetts Attorney General's office disapproved the bylaw--known as Article 43--that had passed at the annual town meeting in Easton, Massachusetts. The bylaw applied limitations on the siting of towers, antennas and satellite dishes that would have restricted them from being built closer than 500 feet from existing buildings and prohibited them entirely from residential lots. The bylaw also would have prohibited antennas or dishes located on a structure from exceeding the structure's height by 10 feet.

Armed with a copy of the Massachusetts tower bill provided by ARRL New England Vice Director Don Haney, KA1T, Joseph Goveia, W1LQB, of North Easton wrote the state's attorney general and enclosed a copy of the state's PRB-1 statute. Under Massachusetts law, the attorney general's office must approve all zoning bylaw amendments.

In response, the attorney general told the Town of Easton that the restrictions in Article 43 "as applied to Amateur Radio antennas, violate state law." The AG declared, "No zoning ordinance or bylaw shall prohibit the construction or use of an antenna structure by a federally licensed Amateur Radio operator." The AG noted that zoning bylaws in Massachusetts "may reasonably regulate the location and height of such antenna structures for the purposes of health, safety, or aesthetics" but the bylaws would still have to "effectively accommodate Amateur Radio communications."

The AG also noted that "it is not at all clear that home satellite dishes for television reception would be permitted under this article."

ARRL New England Director Tom Frenaye, K1KI, observed that the Bay State's tower law "gives Massachusetts Amateur Radio operators a very viable tool to use in ensuring that Amateur Radio communications are effectively accommodated by zoning bylaws."--Tom Frenaye, K1KI

Shuttle astronaut and Russian space station Mir veteran, John Blaha, KC5TZQ, will retire from NASA later this month. Blaha will become the assistant vice president, Integration Engineering, for USAA Corp in San Antonio, Texas. While aboard Mir late last year, Blaha made ham radio history when he carried out the first scheduled school QSO between unlicensed students and a NASA astronaut-ham living aboard Mir. Not long before that historic QSO, the FCC had approved third-party contacts with Blaha from the Russian space station.

Selected as an astronaut in 1980, Blaha has extensive flight experience. He flew on six separate shuttle missions during his career. He was the pilot aboard Discovery for the STS-29 mission in March 1989 and flew again on Discovery as pilot for STS-33 in November 1989. Blaha commanded two shuttle missions, STS-43 in August 1991 aboard Atlantis and STS-58 on Columbia in November 1993.

Following extensive training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center outside Moscow, Blaha was named as an extended-duration crew member to fly on the Mir space station. He joined the Mir crew in September 1996 and returned to Earth in January 1997.--NASA

With no fanfare, the FCC issued a new Form 159, Remittance Advice, in July that's somewhat different from the earlier version of the form issued in February. As of September 15, 1997, the FCC requires vanity call sign applicants to file a Form 159 with their applications no matter the method of payment. The FCC still was shipping the old Form 159 as of mid-summer, despite the revision.

While the two forms require essentially the same information, some item numbers on the new form--available via the FCC Web formpage site--are different from those we reported last week (see The ARRL Letter, Vol 16, No 36). For example, applicants enter the Payment Type Code (which is "WAVR") in Item 20A on the new version and Items 14A and 14B on the old version of Form 159. Under Item 21A on the new form, applicants filing only one application may write "1" or simply ignore the box.

The Fee Due, entered in Box 22A, rose to $50 for the ten-year license term as of September 15, 1997. Hams can ignore Items 23A and 24A. Under Item 25, Payer TIN, and Item 26, Applicant TIN, applicants should supply the appropriate Social Security number(s). The new Form 159 contains a Section F for Credit Card Payment Information. Applicants must print their name and sign Form 159.

Authorities in Elkhart, Indiana, report they know who planted repeater jamming devices in the area--including a couple inside beach balls (see The ARRL Letter, Vol 16, No 35), but they can't do anything about it--even though the two people responsible have admitted it to police. That's because the local authorities have no jurisdiction in the case, which involves federal law. The local sheriff's department declined to identify the suspects other than to say that neither are licensed amateurs and that one of them is female. Mike McCauley, KB9GNU, the Public Information Officer for Elkhart County Department of Emergency Management, told Amateur Radio Newsline that not all of the devices were hidden in beach balls. McCauley says that a number of the jamming units were literally sold into the homes of the general public. One was even equipped with a seismic detector that would turn the unit off when a direction-finding team came within about 30 feet of it. Another one was put inside a brand-new TV set that had been returned to a department store then resold. Word is that the pair involved simply do not like ham radio and appear to have a personal vendetta against hams.

Local authorities have reportedly asked the FCC to investigate.--Newsline via KB9GNU and N9PGE

Solar sage Tad Cook, K7VVV, in Seattle, Washington, reports: Solar activity was off a bit this week after the fantastic rise during the recent period. The 90-day average of solar flux rose another two points this week to 79, and the flux on every day was above this running average. As of September 17 the daily flux has been above the running average continuously for 44 days.

Geomagnetic activity was mostly stable this week, with the best day on September 17. Currently as this is written on early September 19 geomagnetic conditions have been unstable and even stormy, but this should stabilize over the next few days.

Look for solar flux to dip as low as the 80s over the next few days, and then bounce back above 90 after September 25, above 100 after month's end, above 110 after October 6 and below 100 again after October 12.

As we move into fall next week, look for better seasonal conditions. With the higher solar activity the upper HF bands should have better propagation.

Sunspot numbers for September 11 through 17 were 98, 97, 85, 74, 61, 62 and 52 with a mean of 75.6. The 10.7-cm flux was 108.6, 109, 107.6, 102.5, 98, 95.4 and 93.1, with a mean of 102, and estimated planetary A indices were 9, 15, 10, 12, 16, 9, and 8, with a mean of 11.3.

• This weekend on the radio: The YLRL Howdy Days event continues until 0200 UTC on September 20; The ARRL 10 GHz and Up Cumulative Contest, the No 1 QRP Afield, the Air Force 50th Anniversary QSO Party, the Washington State Salmon Run, and the Scandinavian Activity CW Contest are on tap. See September QST, page 105, for details.

• Section managers re-elected: Several ARRL section managers unopposed for new terms have been declared re-elected. They include Robert Griffen, K6YR, of San Luis Obispo, California--Santa Barbara Section; O. D. Keaton, WA4GLS, Old Hickory, Tennessee--Tennessee Section; Joe Knight, W5PDY, Albuquerque, New Mexico--New Mexico Section; Richard Mondro, WA4FQT, Dearborn Heights, Michigan--Michigan Section; Randall Carlson, WB0JJX, Wilmington, Delaware--Delaware Section; William Voedisch Jr, W1UD, Leominster, Massachusetts--Western Massachusetts Section; and Bob Vallio, W6RGG, Castro Valley, California--East Bay Section. Their new terms begin January 1, 1998.--Rick Palm, K1CE

• Special event to mark Sputnik launch anniversary: Special event station M1ASE (Amateur Satellite Experimenters) will mark the 40th anniversary of the launching of Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957, by the Soviet Union. The 184-pound, basketball-sized sphere ushered in the era of the space race. At the height of the Cold War and several months into the International Geophysical Year, the Soviet Union had beaten the United States into space, a symbolically significant achievement. Within a year, the US government created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. M1ASE will be on air for 24 hours on October 4, 1997. Then, activity will continue into November, ending at 2359 UTC on November 3, the date of the 40th anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 2. M1ASE will be active in voice mode on all available analog satellites, concentrating on RS-10, RS-12, RS-15, RS-16. An SWL award, special QSL cards and an award certificate are available for those working M1ASE on more than one satellite.--AMSAT News Service/John Heath, G7HIA; NASA

• Ham radio biathlon set for NNJ: Here's a new twist on club fund raising that should appeal to the athletically inclined who enjoy ham radio contesting and the great outdoors. The Vernon (New Jersey) Township RACES/ARES holds a ham radio biathlon Sunday, September 27, to raise money to pay its repeater insurance premium. Here's how it works. The objective is to get to a prearranged destination under your own power, set up a station, and make as many QSOs as possible. Then, at 12:30 PM, all stations will break down and head back to the start/finish line for a timed finish. The event will be held at the Hidden Valley Ski Area in Vernon, which sports over 4000 feet of ski trails and up to a 600-foot rise. The operating point will be the top of the mountain, and all modes and bands from 1.8 through 440 MHz may be used. The groups are charging a $5 entry fee. Contestants get bonus points for contacts on CW, HF, and the use of photovoltaic power.--Deborah McKay, N2TTP/The Hudson Loop

• K6PGX honored: Norman L. Chalfin, K6PGX has been honored by the Radio Club of America for his numerous professional accomplishments. Chalfin will receive the Edgar F. Johnson Pioneer Citation at the annual Radio Club of America Awards Banquet November 21 in New York City. For many years, Chalfin, now in his 80s served as a patent attorney for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he was also active with the JPL Amateur Radio Club. Among other accomplishments, he also served as a volunteer historian to AMSAT for more than two decades and provided much of the ham-satellite materials used in ham radio films produced by Dave Bell, W6AQ, and Amateur Radio promotional videos by the team of Roy Neal, K6DUE, Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF, and Frosty Oden, N6ENV. Chalfin is founder of the Newsline Support Fund and was fund administrator for more than a decade.--Amateur Radio Newsline

• FCC personnel changes: Regina M. Keeney became the new chief of the FCC's International Bureau on September 15. The former Wireless Telecommunications Bureau head replaces Peter Cowhey, who announced his resignation last month. Keeney had, at one point, been considered for appointment to the FCC. Since 1995, she has served as chief of the FCC's Common Carrier Bureau. In other changes, the FCC announced that Richard D. Lee has been named acting chief of the FCC's Compliance and Information Bureau. Since 1995, he's served as the FCC's deputy managing director. Mary Beth Richards, currently deputy chief of the Common Carrier Bureau, has been appointed to succeed Lee as deputy managing director.--FCC

• Down under low-frequency DX firsts: The first two-way VLF CW contacts between Australia and New Zealand have been logged. ZL3FJ used 100 W on 176 kHz and a 122-meter (approximately 400 feet) mast to work AX2TAR (operated by VK7ZAL) in Australia late last month. Reports were Q5 on both ends of the circuit. An attempt at an SSB contact was less successful. VK7RO and VK7ZAL both had solid copy on ZL3FJ, who was unable to read AX2TAR due to QRM from local power line carriers. The mast used by ZL3FJ had recently completed service for an MF AM broadcast station.--Thanks to Bob, ZL2CA, and the Wireless Institute of Australia

The ARRL Letter is published by the American Radio Relay League, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259. Rodney J. Stafford, KB6ZV, President; David Sumner, K1ZZ, Executive Vice President.

Circulation, Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO, e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.

Editorial, Rick Lindquist, N1RL, e-mail elindquist@arrl.org.

Visit the ARRLWeb page at http://www.arrl.org.

The purpose of The ARRL Letter is to provide the essential news of interest to active, organizationally minded radio amateurs faster than it can be disseminated by our official journal, QST. We strive to be fast, accurate and readable in our reporting.

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