CQ Amateur Radio - December 2021

TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL
http://www.cq-amateur-radio.com $6.99
COMMU C A T I ON S & TE C HNO L OG Y

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ANNOUNCEMENTS EDITORIAL STAFF
Richard S. Moseson, W2VU, Editor
Jason Feldman, KD2IWM, Managing Editor
DECEMBER Susan Moseson, Editorial Consultant
ARCHBOLD, OHIO — The Fulton County Amateur Radio Club will hold WinterFest 2021 from 8-11 a.m. Saturday,
December 4 at the Ruihley Park Pavilion, 401 W. Holland Street. Contact: Bryan Patterson, KB8ELG, (419) 822-5038 CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
or (419) 250-6694. Email: <kb8elg@hotmail.com>. Website: <http://k8bxq.org>. Talk-in 147.195+. VE exams. Kent Britain, WA5VJB, Antennas
MESA, ARIZONA — The Superstition Amateur Radio Club will hold the Superstition SuperFest 2021 from 7 a.m. to Stan Broadway, N8BHL, Emergency Communications
3 p.m., Saturday, December 4 at the Superstition Springs Center, 6555 E. Southern Avenue. Email: <chairman@super- Gerry L. Dexter, The Listening Post
stitionsuperfest.org>. Website: <http://superstitionsuperfest.org>. Talk-in 147.120+ (PL 162.2) or 449.600- (PL 100).
VE exams, card checking, fox hunting, special event station K7A. Joe Eisenberg, KØNEB, Kit-Building
TROY, MICHIGAN — The L’Anse Creuse Amateur Radio Club will hold its 49th Annual Swap & Shop from 8 a.m. to Trent Fleming, N4DTF, VHF Plus
noon, Sunday, December 5 at the Balkan American Community Center, 1451 E. Big Beaver Road. Contact: Russ Price, Tomas Hood, NW7US, Propagation
N8HAR, <n8har1977@gmail.com>. Website: <www.n8lc.org>. T) or alk-in 147.08+ (PL 100). VE Exams. John Langridge, KB5NJD, MF/LF Operating
PLANT CITY, FLORIDA — The Florida Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Council will hold the 46th Annual Tampa Bay Anthony Luscre, K8ZT, Ham Radio Explorer
Hamfest and Electronics Show and the 2021 ARRL West Central Florida Section Convention from 1-6 p.m., Friday,
Irwin Math, WA2NDM, Math’s Notes
December 10 and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, December 11 at the Strawberry Festival Grounds-Expo Building,
301 N. Lemon Street (now Berryfest Steet). Website: <www.tampabayhamfest.org>. Talk-in 147.165+ (PL 136.5). VE Joe Moell, KØOV, Homing In
exams, WAS / DXCC /IARU / VUCC card checking. Steve Molo, KI4KWR, Awards
Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, Analog Adventures
JANUARY Ron Ochu, KOØ ØZ, Learning Curve
LOCUST FORK, ALABAMA — The Blount County Radio Club will hold FreezeFest 2022 from 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Jack Purdum, W8TEE, Microcontrollers
January 8 at the Locust Fork High School, 77 School Road. Website: <www.w4blt.org>. Talk-in 146.700 (PL 91.5). Jeff Reinhardt, AA6JR, Mobile/Radio Magic
ORLANDO, FLORIDA — The South Conway Road Baptist Church will hold the K4KDI Winter Tailgate 2022 from 6 Scott Rought, KA8SMA, QRP
a.m. to noon, Saturday, January 8 at the South Conway Road Baptist Church, 6099 S. Conway Road. Jack, (407) 443- Don Rotolo, N2IRZ, Digital
1963. Website: <www.k4kdi.org>. Rob de Santos, K8RKD, Communications Horizons
FOREST HILL, TEXAS — The Cowtown Amateur Radio Club will hold the Cowtown Hamfest 2022 and the 2022
ARRL North Texas Section Convention from 3-7 p.m., Friday, January 14 and from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, January Bob Schenck, N2OO, DX
15 at the Forest Hill Civic and Convention Center, 6901 Wichita Street. Website: <www.cowtownhamfest.com>. Talk- Tim Shoppa, N3QE, Contesting
in 146.94 (PL 110.9). Jason Togyer, W3MCK, Spurious Signals
LOVELAND, COLORADO — The Northern Colorado Amateur Radio Club will hold its Winter 2022 Hamfest from 8 Gordon West, WB6NOA, Short Circuits
a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, January 15 at the Larimer County Fairgrounds-Thomas McKee 4-H Building, 5280 Arena Wayne Yoshida, KH6WZ, The Ham Notebook
Circle. Contact Joe Hawley, KDØTYU, (970) 689-0828. Email: <president@ncarc.net>. Website: <www.ncarc.net>.
Talk-in 448.025- (PL 100). Free VE exams. AWARD MANAGEMENT
ST CHARLES, ILLINOIS — The Wheaton Community Radio Amateurs will hold its 55th Annual Mid-Winter Hamfest John Bergman, KC5LK, WAZ Award
from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sunday, January 16 at the Kane County Fairgrounds Expo Center, 525 S. Randall Road. Phone:
(630) 923-5447. Email: <info@w9ccu.org>. Website: <www.w9ccu.org>. Talk-in 145.31- (PL 107.2). Brian Bird, NXØØX, USA-CA Custodian
FORT MYERS, FLORIDA — The Fort Myers Amateur Radio Club will hold the 2022 Southwest Florida Regional Steve Bolia, N8BJQ, WPX Award
Hamfest from noon to 5 p.m., Friday, January 21 and from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, January 22 at the Florida Keith Gilbertson, KØKG, CQ DX Award
Southwestern State College, 8099 College Parkway. Website: <www.swflhamfest.info>. Talk-in 147.165 (PL 127.3).
Free VE exams, card checking. CONTEST MANAGEMENT
COLLINSVILLE, ILLINOIS — The St. Louis & Suburban Radio Club will hold Winterfest 2022 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Andy Blank, N2NT, CQ 160 Meter Contest
Saturday, January 22 at the Gateway Convention Center, One Gateway Drive. Website: <http://winterfest.slsrc.org>. John Dorr, K1AR, CQWW DX Contest
Talk-in 146.970- (PL 141.3). VE exams.
JK Kalenowsky, K9JK, CQ VHF Contest
MILWAUKEE, WISCONISN — The Milwaukee Radio Amateurs’ Club will air a special event station from 1600-2300
UTC, Saturday, January 22 to celebrate the club’s 105th anniversary. The club plans to operate HF, VHF, WIRES-X in Ed Muns, WØYK, CQ RTTY Contests
SSB, CW, Digital, FM, C4FM. Certificate is available upon request. Website: <www.w9rh.org/specil-event-stations>. John Sweeney, K9EL, CQ DX Marathon
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI — The Jackson Amateur Radio Club will hold the Jackson MS Capital City Hamfest 2022 Joseph “Bud” Trench, AA3B, CQWW WPX Contest
from 5-8 p.m., Friday, January 28 and from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Saturday, January 29 at the Trademart on the Fairgrounds,
1200 Mississippi Street. Email: <hamfest@msham.org>. Website: <hamfest.msham.org>. VE exams. BUSINESS STAFF
Richard A. Ross, K2MGA, Publisher
FEBRUARY Dorothy Kehwieder, Associate Publisher,
ORLANDO, FLORIDA — The Orlando Amateur Radio Club will hold the Orlando HamCation and the 2022 ARRL Advertising
National Convention from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday, February 11; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, February 12; and from 9 Richard S. Moseson, W2VU, Associate Publisher,
a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, February 13. At the Central Florida Fairgrounds and Expo Park, 4603 West Colonial Drive. Editorial
Phone: (800) 214-7541 or (407) 841-0874. Email: <info@hamcation.com>. Website: <www.hamcation.com>. Talk-in Emily Leary, Sales Coordinator
146.760- (PL 103.5) or 443.050+ (PL 103.5). Free VE exams, special event station K1AA. Doris Watts, Accounting Department
SEBRING, FLORIDA — The Highlands County Amateur Radio Club will hold the Sebring Hamfest from 8 a.m. to 1
p.m., Saturday, February 19 at the First Baptist Church, 111 Lake Josephine Drive. Contact: Rick, KF4Y, <rbg695@hot- CIRCULATION STAFF
mail.com>. Website: <www.highlandsamateurradio.com>.
Cheryl DiLorenzo, Customer Service Manager
BRIGHTON, COLORADO — The Aurora Repeater Association will hold its Swapfest from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sunday,
February 20 at the Adams County Fairgrounds, 9755 Henderson Road. Contact: Wayne Heinen, NØPOH, (303) 699- PRODUCTION STAFF
6335. Email: <in0ara.info@gmail.com>. Website: <www.n0ara.org>. Talk-in 147.15+ (PL 100). VE exams.
Elizabeth Ryan, Art Director
Dorothy Kehrwieder, Production Director
MARCH Emily Leary, Production Manager
CAVE CITY, KENTUCKY — The Mammoth Cave Amateur Radio Club will hold its 46th Annual Cave City Hamfest Hal Keith, Illustrator
beginning 7:30 a.m., Saturday, March 5 at the Cave City Convention Center, 502 Mammoth Cave Street. Contact: Larry
Larry Mulvehill, WB2ZPI, Staff Photographer
Brumett, KN4IV, (270) 651-2363. Email: <lbrumett@glascow-ky.com>. Website: <http://ky4x.org>. Talk-in 146.34+. VE
exams.
CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA — The Mecklenburg Amateur Radio Society will hold the Charlotte Hamfest from
A publication of
3-7 p.m., Friday, March 11 and from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, March 12 at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center, CQ Communications
4551 Old Airport Road. Phone: (704) 948-7373. EMAIL: <info@charlottehamfest.org>. Website: <www.charlotteham- 45 Dolphin Lane
fest.org>. Talk-in 146.655 or 146.940 (PL 118.8). Northport, NY, 11768 USA.
PUYALLUP, WASHINGTON — The Mike & Key Amateur Radio Club will hold its 40th Annual Mike and Key Electronics
Show & Swap Meet from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, March 12 at the Washington State-Pavilion Exhibition Hall, 110 CQ Amateur Radio (ISSN 0007-893X) Volume 77, No. 12,
9th Avenue SW. Phone: (253) 631-3756. Email: <n7wa@arrl.net>. Website: <www.mikeandkey.org>. Talk-in 146.82- Published monthly by CQ Communications, Inc., 45 Dolphin
(PL 103.5) VE exams. Lane, Northport, NY, 11768, Telephone 516-681-2922. E-mail:
ELRYIA, OHIO — The Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society will hold its NOARS Winter Hamfest 2022 from 9 a.m. cq@cq-amateur-radio.com. Fax 516-681-2926. Web site:
to 1 p.m., Sunday, March 13 at the Loraine County Community Center-John A. Spitzer Conference Center, 1005 N. www.cq-amateur-radio.com. Periodicals Postage Paid at
Northport, NY 11768 and at additional mailing offices. Sub-
Abbe Road. Contact: Carl Rimmer, W8KRF, (216) 256-9624 (before 9 p.m.). Email: <winterhamfest@noars.net>. scription prices (all in U.S. dollars): Domestic-one year $42.95,
Website: <http://noars.net>. Talk-in 146.70- (PL 110.9). two years $77.95, three years $111.95; Canada/Mexico-one year
FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA — The Playground Amateur Radio Club will hold the 52nd Annual PARC Hamfest $57.95, two years $107.95, three years $156.95: Foreign Air
from 4-8 p.m., Friday, March 18 and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, March 19 at the NWF Fairgrounds, 1958 Lewis Post-one year $72.95, two years $137.95, three years $201.95.
Turner Boulevard. Phone: (850) 359-9186. Website: <www.w4zbb.org>. Single copy $6.99. U.S. Government Agencies: Subscriptions to
LOOMIS, CALIFORNIA — The Sierra Foothills Amateur Radio Club will hold the Loomis Hamfest 2022 beginning 8 CQ are available to agencies of the United States government
a.m., Saturday, March 19 at the Loomis Historic Train Depot, 5775 Horseshoe Bar Road. Website: <www.w6ek.org>. including military services, only on a cash with order basis.
Requests for quotations, bids, contracts., etc. will be refused and
STUART, FLORIDA — The Martin County Amateur Radio Association will hold the 47th Annual Stuart Hamfest from
will not be returned or processed. Entire contents copyrighted
8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, March 19 at the Martin County Fairgrounds, 2616 SE Dixie Highway (A1A). Contact: Hamfest 2021 by CQ Communications, Inc. CQ does not assume respon-
Chairman (561) 309-8138. Email: <hamfest@mcaraweb.com>. Website: <www.stuarthamfest.com>. Talk-in 145.150- sibility for unsolicited manuscripts. Allow six weeks for change of
(PL 107.2). VE exams. address.
ANNANDALE, VIRGINIA — The Vien na Wire less So ciety will hold WINTERFEST! and the 2022 ARRL Virg inia Sectio n
Con ven tio n from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, March 27 at the Northern Virginia Community College Annandale Campus, Printed in the U.S.A.
8333 Little River Turnpike. Contact: Mike, WA8AHZ, (703) 870-1730. Email: <tablesales2022@viennawireless.net>. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:
Website: <www.viennawireless.net>. Talk-in 146.685 (PL 110.9). VE exams, WAS / DXCC / VUCC card checking. CQ Amateur Radio, P.O. Box 1206, Sayville, NY, 11782
2• CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

HAM RADIO NEWS
First Bouvet … and Now Crozet bers The ARRL Letter reports that the club was formed in
After a Covid-induced pause in international travel, 2018. In addition, the foundation awarded its 2021 Yasme
DXpeditions to remote locations are again on the rise. There Excellence Award to Steve Babcock, VE6WZ, in recogni-
has been much written about planned trips to Bouvet, and tion of “his contribution to the art of low-band antennas and
now a solo DXpedition to Crozet (FT5/W) is on the calendar remote operating” through “countless hours of instruction-
as well. The Crozet Islands are a subantarctic archipelago al videos, for free, on his YouTube channel and QRZ.COM
and national conservation area in the southern Indian Ocean page.”
administered by France. The last ham radio operation from Finally, Newsline reports that a newly formed student radio
Crozet was in 2009 and the islands rank third on the DXCC club in India with 43 newly licensed members is getting a
most-wanted list. The ARRL Letter is reporting that French new club station courtesy of the nearby Lamakaan Amateur
authorities have approved a one-person DXpedition to the Radio Club, whose vice president is Ashhar Farhan,
archipelago between mid-December 2022 and mid-March VU2ESE, the developer of the μBITX line of open-source HF
2023 by Thierry Mazel, F6CUK. INDEXA, the International SSB transceiver kits. The club station includes a μBITX
DX Association <www.indexa.org>, has already committed transceiver, power supply, antenna, and feedline.
to supporting the trip, although the amount of its donation
was not announced. It is not clear at this point how long Mazel ARRL Foundation Scholarship Application
plans to be on the islands or what callsign he will be using Deadline Approaching
there. He notes on his Twitter feed (@Crozet2022) that ini- Speaking of students and funding, the ARRL Foundation is
tial reports of re-using a previously issued callsign are incor- currently accepting scholarship applications, with a submis-
rect and says the call to be used on this trip will not be sion deadline of December 31st. The foundation administers
announced in advance. more than 100 different scholarships ranging in value from
$500 to $25,000. All applicants must be FCC-licensed hams
ARISS, Others, Benefit from ARDC Grants living in the U.S., and certain scholarships may have addi-
The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station pro- tional requirements. According to the ARRL Letter, a new
gram (ARISS) is one of several groups receiving grants Scholarship Management Platform is being used this year
recently from ARDC, the organization created to administer which automatically matches up applicants with all scholar-
the AMPRNet “44” internet domain and support other efforts ships for which they may be eligible. The Letter also notes that
through proceeds of selling off some 4 million unused young hams outside the U.S. may apply for scholarships from
addresses within that domain. ARDC (see stories above). Details on ARRL Foundation schol-
The three-part grant to ARISS covers five years and totals arships are online at <www.arrl.org/scholarship-program>.
nearly $1.3 million. According to the ARRL Letter, part 1 of
the grant will pay for taking an ARISS-developed wireless WRTC Announces Team Leaders and
electronics technology kit for students from prototype to oper- Qualified Competitors
ational program; Part 2 will fund educator workshops for The organizing committee of the next World Radiosport
teachers planning to use these kits in preparation for ARISS Team Championship (WRTC) competition has released its
contacts; and Part 3 will help support the ongoing costs of list of team leaders and others who qualify to be team mem-
setting up and conducting amateur radio contacts between bers. According to the WRTC 2022 website, there will be 50
students and space station crews. teams, broken down geographically as follows: Africa – 3
The Letter also reports that the Oregon HamWAN organi- teams; Asia – 8; Caribbean – 1; Europe – 18; North America
zation has received an $88,000 ARDC grant to expand its – 13; Oceania – 3; and South America – 4. The designated
high-speed digital network in the Portland area and to team leaders will be able to select potential teammates from
improve amateur radio emergency communications capa- a pool of more than 270 qualifying amateurs. The competi-
bilities between Portland and the state capital in Salem. tion, originally scheduled for 2022, was delayed a year due
Moving down the coast to California, ARDC is giving the to Covid restrictions that limited access to certain qualifying
Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club $35,550 to build a ham events. It is currently scheduled to be held in and around
station at the new Chrisman California Islands Center in Bologna, Italy in July 2023.
Carpinteria. The installation will include a touchscreen-con-
trolled interactive presentation on amateur radio and other Well-Known Contester/DXer Killed in
wireless technologies to engage visitors when the station is Plane Crash
not staffed. William “Will” Roberts, AA4NC, of Apex, North Carolina, was
Finally, the group is providing a nearly $10,000 to a killed October 21st when a small plane he was piloting
California high school teacher to purchase Raspberry Pi com- crashed soon after takeoff. Both Newsline and the ARRL
puters and Arduino microcontrollers for his computer science Letter report that Williams was an active contester, DXer, and
students and to turn part of his classroom into a makerspace DXpeditioner as well as a musician and a licensed commer-
accessible to all of the school’s students. cial pilot. He competed in the first WRTC in 1990 and returned
as a judge for the 2018 competition in Germany. One other
More Grants to More Groups passenger on the plane was also killed; two children aboard
Not to be outdone, the Yasme Foundation has awarded a were treated for injuries and are expected to survive. A
grant to the Seychelles Amateur Radio Association “to estab- spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board told
lish a facility for the recently formed … club,” according to Newsline that it is too early in its investigation for a cause of
the group’s website. The foundation had previously provid- the crash to be known and that it will likely be a year or more
ed support for license exams and fees for eight club mem- before the investigation is complete.
www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 3

CONTENTS
DECEMBER 2021 • VOLUME 77 NUMBER 12
ON THE COVER:
HAPPY HOLIDAYS
FROM CQ !
This month’s cover comes with 11

a hidden trivia question. Does
it bring back any memories?
Let us know what you think
and we’ll solve the mystery
next month! Happy Holidays
from all of us at CQ!
26
FEATURES TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL: Wireless communication has always been at the
forefront of technology. This month, CQ salutes the role radio has played in
8 THE CENTENNIAL OF DXING expanding our technological universe from Marconi a century ago to modern
The East Coast Advantage to Europe wireless devices. Read all about it on pages 8, 11, 18, 22, 26, 31, 34, 38, 50,
Was First Observed 100 Years Ago 60, 66, and 75.
By Carl Luetzelshwab, K9LA
11 A JOURNEY TO THE MOON AND
BACK
By Stephen Werner, AG4W COLUMNS DEPARTMENTS
18 SATELLITE RAG CHEWING ON A
44 MATH’S NOTES: The Future Still 50 EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS:
SHOESTRING
Will Not Necessarily Be What We Using the Technology We Have
By Dennis Lazar, W4DNN
Think It Will By Stan Broadway, N8BHL
22 ARDUCON: AN ARDUINO-BASED By Irwin Math, WA2NDM 83 VHF PLUS: In Praise of FM Simplex
FOXHUNT TRANSMITTER
46 THE LISTENING POST: China Radio Activity
CONTROLLER
Gives Stations Genuine Names By Trent Fleming, N4DTF
By Charles E. Scharlau, NZØI &
By Gerry Dexter 86 AWARDS: YL Awards
Gerald Boyd, WB8WFK
53 KIT-BUILDING: A Trip West ... and By Steve Molo, KI4KWR
26 PY2GN: BRAZIL’S FIRST PUBLIC
Building Sputnik 89 DX: Get on the Air DX Challenge
WEBSDR STATION
By Joe Eisenberg, KØNEB Awards
By Martin Butera, PY2ZDX/LU9EFO
58 QRP: QRP is Contagious! By Bob Schenck, N2OO
31 AN FLDIGI COMPUTER INTERFACE
By R. Scott Rought, KA8SMA 94 CONTESTING: Getting An Assist
FROM SPARE PARTS
By Phil Karras, KE3FL 60 LEARNING CURVE: Inductors: A By Tim Shoppa, N3QE
Brief Primer 98 PROPAGATION: Solar Cycle
34 TRACKING AND ANALYZING
By Ron Ochu, KOØZ Progression and Forecast
DIGITAL TRANSMISSIONS OF
AIRCRAFT 64 ANALOG ADVENTURES: Haywire By Tomas Hood, NW7US
A Technical “Sidebar” for Hams State
By Murray Green, K3BEQ & John By Eric P. Nichols, KL7AJ 2 ANNOUNCEMENTS
Butler, GDØNFN 66 ANTENNAS: A Deep Dive into End- 3 HAM RADIO NEWS
38 UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER Fed Half-Wave Antennas 6 ZERO BIAS
SUPPLIES FOR THE RADIO By Bob Glorioso, W1IS & 7 NEWSBYTES
AMATEUR Bob Rose, KC1DSQ 43 CQ HALL OF FAME
Or ... Why Aren’t You Using a UPS 75 MF/LF OPERATING: A New Theory of 54 SPURIOUS SIGNALS
Yet? Propagation for Long-Haul DX on
By Michael Tortorella, W2IY 54, 62 WHAT’S NEW
2200 Meters
By Roger Crofts, VK4YB 63 BEHIND THE BYLINES
42 ANNOUNCING: THE 2022 CQ
WORLD WIDE WPX RTTY CONTEST 79 HAM RADIO EXPLORER: Simply 106 CQ INDEX
By Ed Muns, WØYK Simplex 110 LOOKING AHEAD
56 2022 PERIODIC TABLE OF CONTESTS By Anthony A. Luscre, K8ZT 112 HAM SHOP
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ZERO BIAS: A CQ Editorial
BY RICH MOSESON,* W2VU
The Final Frontier …
T
his is being written just a few weeks after all the hubbub Even everyday HF DX communications involve bouncing our
about the near-space trip of “Captain Kirk” (otherwise signals off different layers of the ionosphere, which — while tech-
known as actor William Shatner) aboard Jeff Bezos’s New nically part of Earth’s atmosphere — creates the boundary
Shepard space tourism capsule. Space, it seems, is cool again. between our atmosphere and outer space. In fact, William
But ham radio, it seems, is not … particularly in the eyes of many Shatner’s suborbital flight climbed to an altitude of 65 miles, the
hams. Our technology, in their view, isn’t very high compared lower boundary of the ionosphere’s E-layer. Our HF signals typ-
with such things as smartphones, tablets, and space travel. And ically travel much higher, to the F-layer.
many of these hams pass along this impression to neighbors, The first recorded use of ionospheric propagation for HF com-
friends, and reporters. “Well, it’s not very hi-tech but it still gets munication occurred 100 years ago this month (our second sig-
through …” This is the second big lie that hams tell about them- nificant anniversary this December) and the likely mechanics
selves and their hobby (the first is that ham radio is dying, when behind the paths those signals took is the subject of our lead
licensing numbers are at record levels and keep growing). article in this issue. Making the most of ionospheric propagation
Let me let you in on a little secret (and feel free to tell your requires at least a basic knowledge of “space weather,” as our
friends and neighbors) … if space is hi-tech, then so is ham ability to communicate over great distances depends heavily on
radio. Amateur radio is a spacefaring hobby — best as we can what’s happening on the sun and in the solar wind. Example: A
tell, the only spacefaring hobby — and has been since the dawn solar flare and Earth-directed coronal mass ejection (CME) two
of the space age (actually, even longer, but we’ll get to that). days before the CQ World Wide DX Contest’s SSB weekend at
This month marks a very important milestone in the history of the end of October threatened to severely degrade HF propa-
amateur radio space communications (actually, two, but we’ll gation. Fortunately for us, it missed us and propagation was
get to that, too). Sixty years ago this month, in December 1961, excellent on the contest weekend. But the well-prepared con-
the first amateur radio satellite, OSCAR-1, was launched into tester was aware and ready to make adjustments in strategy if
orbit. It was not only the first amateur radio satellite but the first needed. And our non-contesting colleagues in HamSCI
privately built satellite ever launched, period. <www.hamsci.org> were monitoring the CME’s impact on our
The birth of the amateur radio space program can be traced ionosphere with their personal space weather stations. (In what
to the pages of CQ in April 1959, when then-Semiconductors other hobby do people have personal space weather stations?)
Editor Don Stoner, W6TNS (SK), wrote about plans for a bal- All of this brings me around to the real reason for this rant:
loon-carried, solar-powered, transistor repeater and mused, This issue is our annual Technology Special, in which we spot-
“can anyone come up with a spare rocket for orbiting purpos- light not only the hi-tech aspects of our hobby but some of ham
es?” That throwaway line set in motion Project OSCAR (Orbiting radio’s vaunted tradition of repurposing existing technology for
Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio), in which Don and two other new functions. And in case you were wondering, in addition to
CQ columnists, George Jacobs, W3ASK, and Bill Orr, W6SAI analyzing propagation paths of a century ago, this issue’s arti-
(SK), became heavily involved. cles include just about everything we’ve discussed so far on this
Since 1961, over 100 satellites designed and built by hams page plus more: Moonbounce, satellites, a webSDR that will let
have been launched into orbit, providing long-range communi- you listen in on OSCAR-100 even if you aren’t in its footprint,
cations without worrying about the vagaries of propagation. microcontrollers and FLdigi, monitoring digital transmissions
OSCAR-100 is the first geosynchronous amateur radio satellite, from aircraft, a new look at old antenna technology, and a new
appearing to remain in one spot in the sky, just like those hi-tech theory on long-haul propagation on 2200 meters.
TV satellites. Its “footprint” covers all of Africa and Europe, most So, if you’re looking for a magazine about “making do” with
of Asia and some of South America. Oh, and did we mention aging technology to prop up a shrinking and aging hobby, you’ve
that OSCAR-94 is orbiting the Moon? come to the wrong place. But if you’re looking for a resource on
Nearly 40 years ago, in 1983, Astronaut Owen Garriott, W5LFL making the most of a spacefaring hobby that’s open to anyone,
(SK), took a 2-meter handheld with him into space aboard the that blends internet and RF technology to maximize your enjoy-
shuttle Columbia and made the first ham radio contacts from ment of what AA6JR calls the “magic in the sky,” then look no
Earth orbit. Today, amateur radio is a staple aboard the farther than right here. Because ham radio — and CQ — have
International Space Station, many astronauts hold ham licens- been taking you to “the final frontier” for decades and will con-
es and the ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space tinue to do so as we turn to the next page of our “captain’s log.”
Station) program has introduced thousands of young people to
both amateur radio and careers in science, technology, engi- Beyond Technology
neering, and math (STEM), not to mention space travel.
Of course, ham radio isn’t all about technology. It’s about using
Actually, amateur radio space communications extends back
technology to communicate, and having fun in the process.
even farther. The first two-way amateur radio moonbounce
Highlights of the communication-focused features in this issue
(EME) contact was made in 1960, and pioneering hams had
include our Periodic Table of Contests for 2022—a handy chart
been hearing their echoes off the moon since 1953. Hams began
of major on-air competitions for the entire year—and two looks
conducting experiments with meteor-scatter communications in
at making the most of simplex communication on VHF-FM.
the 1940s. The digital modes used for most meteor scatter con-
Finally, we want to wish all of our readers a Merry Christmas,
tacts today have their roots in software developed by K1JT for
Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, or whatever other holiday
cutting-edge radioastronomy.
you may celebrate to bring a little more THz-range radiation into
our lives in these dark winter months.
*Email: <w2vu@cq-amateur-radio.com> – 73, W2VU
6• CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

NEWS BYTES
Breaking the Glass Ceiling at the FCC
T
hree major nominations by the
White House may shape the
face(s) of telecommunication pol-
icy for the next several years. Acting
FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel was
nominated by President Biden to anoth-
er full term on the commission and as
Chair. Once confirmed, she will be the
first woman to formally hold the FCC
Chairmanship. Rosenworcel has been
an FCC Commissioner since 2012.
According to the White House, she was
instrumental in creating the FCC’s
Emergency Broadband Benefit program
to help fight the “homework gap” during
pandemic lockdowns and help house-
holds struggling to afford internet ser-
vice stay connected. Prior to her
appointment to the FCC a decade ago,
she was Senior Communications Coun- FCC Acting Chair Jessica Rosen-
sel for the U.S. Senate Committee on worcel has been nominated for an addi-
Commerce, Science and Transporta- tional term on the Commission and as
tion, and previously practiced commu- Chair. She will be the first woman to be Open internet advocate Gigi Sohn has
nications law. a Senate-confirmed FCC Chair. (FCC been nominated to the FCC. (George-
(Continued on page 63) photo) town University photo)

Technology Special:
You may read elsewhere about the centennial this month of the 1921
Transatlantic Tests from a historical perspective, and how they marked the
beginning of amateur radio DXing. In this article, K9LA looks at the
anniversary from the perspective of propagation and the beginning
of the “East Coast advantage” in both DXing and contesting.
The Centennial of DXing

The East Coast Advantage to Europe Was First Observed
100 Years Ago
BY CARL LUETZELSCHWAB,* K9LA
ecember 2021 is the 100th anni-
D versary of the December 1921

Transatlantic Test, in which
amateurs in the United Kingdom (in-
cluding American Paul Godley, 2ZE,
who was sent over by the American
Radio Relay League) listened for
American amateurs. Godley set up his
receiving site at Ardrossan, Scotland
(about 35 miles southwest of Glasgow).
This site looked out across the Firth of
Clyde towards the U.S.
This one-way test from the U.S. to the
U.K. was successful with many CW sta-
tions and a handful of spark stations
being heard. December 1921 was actu-
ally the second attempt to receive U.S.
signals in the U.K. The earlier attempt
the previous February was not suc-
cessful — no Americans were heard
due to a variety of reasons — but it was
the spark (pun intended) for the suc-
cessful test later in December. This test
was one-way due to severe antenna
and transmitter power restrictions in the
U.K. at the time.
Most of the stations heard were on the
East Coast of the U.S. The strongest of
the East Coast stations was noted as
1BCG in Greenwich, Connecticut
(licensed to Minton Cronkhite), running
about 1-kilowatt input on CW on a wave-
length of 230 meters (1.3 MHz). The
antenna was a T-cage 100 feet long and
70 feet high with a radial counterpoise.
The farthest station heard west of the
East Coast appears to have been 9ZJ
in Indianapolis. This station was li-
censed to Francis F. Hamilton, and it
* Email: Figure 1. Propagation paths from Ardrossan, Scotland to 1BCG and to 9ZJ. See
<carlluetzelschwab@gmail.com> text for details.
8 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

was a spark station. It ran about 1-kilo- compared to the Midwest and the West similar maps. The path from Ardrossan
watt input to a horizontal antenna at 60 Coast, especially on the lower frequen- to 9ZJ in Indianapolis is 290o at a dis-
feet on 200 meters.1 cies. Let’s estimate the difference in tance of 5,964 kilometers (3,706 miles)
Now let’s go back to the first sentence propagation from 1BCG to Scotland while the path to 1BCG on the East
in the third paragraph: Most of the sta- and from 9ZJ to Scotland. Coast is 282o at a distance of 5,056 kilo-
tions heard were on the East Coast of Figure 1 shows the paths from 9ZJ (red) meters (3,141 miles). Thus, 9ZJ is just
the U.S. Does that sound familiar? It and from 1BCG (purple) to Ardrossan. over 900 kilometers (560 miles) farther
should, as the East Coast has an Thanks to NS6T for this map. Visit from Ardrossan than 1BCG. That could
acknowledged advantage to Europe <https://tinyurl.com/8tzaf87y> to make translate to an extra hop for 9ZJ.2 This
also suggests one more ground reflec-
tion for 9ZJ.
Using the DXAID Version 4.5 DOS
program (1994) by Peter Oldfield,
Figure 2 shows the path from Ardrossan
to both 1BCG (white) and 9ZJ (red).
This is for a December month around
0600 UTC. I’ll use a K index of 1 as
December is a very quiet month with
respect to the activity of the Earth’s
magnetic field. This is a reasonable
assumption as December 1921 was
solar minimum between Cycles 15 and
16. The dark oval in Figure 2 is that por-
tion of Earth in darkness. The yellow dot
in the Indian Ocean is the overhead Sun
(local noon).
Both paths are near the equatorward
edge of the northern auroral oval.
Although it appears that 1BCG might
have an advantage due to just missing
the equatorward edge, it is difficult to
determine the exact relationship of each
path to the auroral oval due to its high-
ly variable nature.
Doing ray traces with Proplab Pro V3
(available from Solar Terrestrial Dis-
Figure 2. Ardrossan to 9ZJ and 1BCG in relation to the auroral oval. patch) for both paths gives the likely
Figure 3. Duct mode from 9ZJ to Ardrossan.

amount of absorption incurred by both stations for elevation
angles around 15°.3 Adding the absorption difference (3.8
dB) to the free space path loss difference (1.4 dB) and the
ground reflection loss difference (4 dB) suggests that 1BCG
had almost a 10-dB advantage over 9ZJ, assuming similar
transmit power and similar antenna performance. One
unknown is how much advantage a CW signal has over a
spark signal since the CW signal has all of its energy in a
narrow band as opposed to the energy being spread out with
a spark signal.
Could there have been a short-term enhancement in 9ZJ’s
signal to allow it to be heard since it was at a disadvantage?
The answer is yes, as ducting in the nighttime electron den-
sity valley above the E-region peak could have been involved.
Figure 3 from Proplab Pro V3 shows that conditions were
favorable for ducting. The wave is refracting in the electron
density valley between the nighttime E-region peak and the
lower F region. Note that the duct avoids transitions through
the absorbing region and avoids ground reflections, which
means less loss.
We have to remember that the model of the ionosphere in
Proplab Pro V3 (and in our other propagation prediction pro-
grams) is a monthly median model. In other words, it’s kind
of an average over the month of December. Thus, the
results only show the possibility of ducting. Unfortunately,
we can’t determine what happened on the exact date.
Similarly, the mechanism that gets the signal out of the duct
is not known. More than likely it was due to a short-term
irregularity in the ionosphere that does not show up in the
model (the real-world ionosphere is not homogeneous and
smooth as in the model).
Summary
The Transatlantic Tests 100 years ago produced the first
observation of the East Coast advantage to Europe in ama-
teur radio. It is a sizable amount, and this continues to be
borne out a century later in contest results and DXing.
Notes:
1. See the comments in the left-hand column on page 12 of The Story
of the Transatlantics (K.B. Warner, QST, February 1922), and in the left-
hand column on page 27 of Official Report on the Second Transatlantics
(Paul. F. Godley, QST, February 1922). For details on the 9ZJ station,
see the comments on page 200 of A Study of Radio Signal Fading (J.H.
Dellinger, L.E. Whittemore, S. Kruse, Scientific Papers of the Bureau of
Standards, Vol 19).
2. It is generally acknowledged that the maximum distance for a sin-
gle hop at HF is 4,000 kilometers. But we have to watch it here. The
amount of refraction incurred by an electromagnetic wave from a given
electron density profile in the ionosphere is inversely proportional to the
square of the frequency. The lower you go in frequency, the more the
wave is bent and the wave doesn’t get as high into the ionosphere. Thus,
the wave ends up taking a shorter hop. The 4,000-kilometer limit for a
single hop is generally applicable to our higher HF bands (12 meters
and 10 meters). For 20 meters, 3,000 kilometers is a reasonable limit
for one hop. On 160 meters, 1,500-2,000 kilometers is likely. On 1.5
MHz (about where 9ZJ and 1BCG were operating), the hop distance will
be even less. This is the rationale for saying 9ZJ likely had an extra hop
compared to 1BCG.
3. With the nighttime E region critical frequency foE being around 0.35
MHz, elevation angles below about 13° will be confined to short and
lossy E hops. Higher elevation angles will go through the E region for
longer hops. Also, the higher elevation angles spend less time transit-
ing the absorbing region, so this results in a smaller amount of absorp-
tion. But as the elevation angle is increased, the more the hops, which
adds more absorption and more ground reflection loss (especially over
average ground, as is likely the case for the first hop out of 9ZJ).

Technology Special:
It takes quite a bit of technology to go to the moon and back, whether you’re
an astronaut or a radio wave! AG4W shares his “travel journal” of making
roundtrips to the moon with the latter.
A Journey to the Moon and Back

BY STEPHEN WERNER,* AG4W
A
fter hitting the Honor Roll and ing is unpredictable. If you don’t have which can result in 6-10 dB of loss. One
DXCC Challenge 2500, I decid- programmable polarity with your anten- of the biggest issues is sky noise. When
ed to take a different direction in nas, you must wait for polarity to shift. the moon is aligned with the Milky Way
ham radio. I have participated in near- Looking at the moon from different loca- or the Sun, the noise makes it impossi-
ly every aspect of the hobby over the tions puts the signal out of phase. That ble to communicate. There is also
last 50 years. During those 50 years, I spatial polarity relies on Faraday rota- Doppler shift which is greatest at moon-
mostly used existing or used equipment tion to make a contact. Libration fading rise or moonset. All of those factors
to gauge my interest. Some inexpensive is due to the rocking motion of the moon make each EME contact that much
starts, like my satellite station, turned into and bouncing off a jumbled surface more exciting.
a significant effort and investment.
In 2016, I started on another item on
my bucket list, moonbounce or Earth-
Moon-Earth (EME). I started with the
idea to do it as inexpensively as possi-
ble and let the other ham do the heavy
lifting. I had read that there were large
EME stations with 8 to 32 Yagis that could
hear single Yagis with a hundred watts.
It is amazing to see how much interest
European hams have invested in EME.
Some of their stations are spectacular!
Some would ask, why work EME? I am
a contester and DXer and this is the ulti-
mate DX contact, nearly 500,000 miles.
They are some of the most difficult con-
tacts that can be made. You will remem-
ber them like working Amsterdam Island
on 160 meters or multi-hop E-skip into
Japan on 6 meters. With sunspots still in
short supply despite Solar Cycle 25
commencing, it seemed like perfect tim-
ing. I am also an experimenter and there
is no part of the hobby that is better at
encouraging homebrew equipment and
experimenting.
Then there are the technical chal-
lenges. With EME, you have to deal with
Faraday rotation, spatial polarity, libra-
tion fading, sky noise, and Doppler shift.
Even working a station one state away,
the path has 251 dB of loss covering
nearly 478,000 miles. Now that is DX.
Only 6% of the radio signal that reach-
es the moon gets reflected back. With
Faraday rotation as the signal passes
through the ionosphere, it rotates in
polarity both on the way up and back.
The amount and speed of rotation shift-
*236 Hambrick Drive

Huntsville, AL 35811 Photo A. The author’s initial antenna installation for EME (the tractor is for catch-
Email: <Stevewerner73@gmail.com> ing moonbeams!)

Fortunately, due to Joe Taylor, K1JT,
and WSJT (now WSJT-X), we now have
the JT65B mode that allows us to male
QSOs 10-15 dB below the minimum sig-
nal required for CW. For most of the
EME QSOs I make, I never hear a sig-
nal. With JT65B, the tone spacing is 5.4
Hz using a 355-Hz passband. It has 65
tones and sync that is interspersed with
the message and sent half the time.
Most transmissions are 1 minute long,
so QSOs last 5-6 minutes, and often
times much longer because of loss of
signal. I find EME operators to be very
patient hams.
Starting With Minimal

Investment (Not)
I planned to start out using a repurposed
and reconfigured 2-meter satellite
antenna for EME, along with a used
150-watt amplifier and JT65B. I took
one Cushcraft 144-20T 20-element
cross Yagi and made it into two Yagis
with at least 17 dBi of gain combined. I
decided I would be much more likely to
make a contact with two Yagis with
about 3 dB more gain than one with the
Photo B. This 400-watt surplus FAA amplifier retuned to the 2-meter band was ability to switch polarity.
too good a deal to pass up. It had been about 15 years since I’d
used my satellite equipment. I enjoyed
using the high Earth orbit satellites like
AO-10, AO-13, and AO-40. It has been
well over 10 years since one of those
has been operational. The nice part
about satellite or EME antennas is that
they don’t need to be high off the
ground. This makes installation and
improvements much easier. The anten-
na and rotors have been outside for over
20 years with no recent maintenance. It
has been interesting bringing that old
rusty gold back to life.
The old Alliance Tenna rotors can be
used for an elevation rotor. You must bal-
ance the weight in front of and behind
the boom. The only disadvantage of
these rotors is they only aim in 10° incre-
ments. This is barely adequate for a very
high gain antenna. I then decided I would
purchase a Yaesu G-550 elevation rotor
that would be better suited for the two
Yagis, along with a used Yaesu G-450A
rotor for azimuthal aiming.
I then decided to upgrade the anten-
nas to 11 elements each and use the
GØKSC Loop-Fed Array (LFA) design
(Photo A). I found another 2-meter Yagi
at the Dayton Hamvention® that had the
extra aluminum I required for the boom
and additional elements. The LFA
design results in better matching, gain
and pattern, but did involve making
Photo C. A metal Wi-Fi box in the junkbox was repurposed as a case for a mail- some interesting trombone aluminum
order sequencer board. pieces for the loop driven elements.

Photo D. Online listing of WSJT EME spots, maintained by NØUK.
Justin Johnson, GØKSC, is very gen- Receiver Research P144VDG <https:// na for the preamplifier. I suggest you
erous with sharing information on how to tinyurl.com/v2pdp8n4> that I used for make the preamplifier easily replace-
build LFA antennas. You can also buy satellites. It had a 0.5-dB noise figure. I able since they tend to get damaged
them from his company, InnovAntennas bought some surplus Ducommun high easily. I have been very pleased with
<www.innovantennas.com>. His web- power coaxial relays for $30 at a ham- the quick turnaround and support ARR
site, “GØKSC – Simple to build, High fest and made a switch box at the anten- provides in repairing its products.
Performance Yagi and Quad Antennas
– Home of the LFA Yagi – Free Yagi
Antenna Designs for Ham Radio”
<www.g0ksc.co.uk>, is amazing. He
has also been great for answering
questions.
The used Mirage amplifier I bought at
Dayton also had a GaAsFET preampli-
fier that needed work. I repaired the pre-
amplifier and started to hook it up to my
Yaesu FT-857. The only upgrade I
made to the FT-857 was adding a
TCXO-9 high stability crystal oscillator.
Most recommend putting the amplifi-
er and pre-amp right at the antenna. For
me, that would involve a number of
problems related to keeping it cool and
dry, and providing power at the anten-
na. I was able to obtain some hardline
which would significantly reduce the
attenuation so I planned to use the
amplifier in the shack to start out.
Then I was offered a 400-watt surplus
FAA amplifier that had been converted
to 2 meters at a price I could not refuse
(Photo B). So my initial rotors, antennas,
and amplifier were all upgraded from my
original plan before my first contact.
When I used the FAA amplifier, I upgrad- Photo E. The author’s EME antennas were originally set up with horizontal
ed the preamplifier to an Advanced polarization.

I decided to make a homebrew and automatic shutdown on faults. I will replace the coax splitter. It is rated for 2-
sequencer to key the amplifier and pre- get one of the small Arduino kits to kilowatts continuous and would allow me
amp properly. If you don’t get the tim- experiment with that has a nice dis- to use 50-ohm cable to interface with the
ing right, you can damage the relays by play. Before I did those upgrades, I antennas. I bought Messi and Paoloni
hot switching them or drive high power decided it was time to see if it all Hyperflex 10. This is the same size as
into the preamplifier, which will kill it worked. It did. LMR-400 but performs better. At 2
about the same as a lightning strike. In the process of changing my anten- meters it is rated for 1,460 watts.
After having some problems with my nas from horizontal to vertical polariza- I had a lot of trouble getting the anten-
design, I upgraded to a board I pur- tion, I noticed that the RG-11 75-ohm nas resonant again after changing
chased from UA3QLC <https://tinyurl. matching feedlines going to the Yagis polarization. I was lucky to have anoth-
com/y3v5ay4y>. That board was more had melted to the boom. I have found er ham bring over his Rig Expert AA-
reliable and worked until a recent light- several different ratings for RG-11 oper- 230 antenna analyzer. The Rig Expert
ning strike. I packaged the board in an ating on 2 meters. It amazes me that will draw you an SWR curve. By having
old metal Wi-Fi box I had in the junk box manufacturers have rated it from 230 to three hams working on it, we made
(Photo C). I used a RigBlaster Advan- 1,100 watts. Well, I now know 800 watts great progress and got the SWR down
tage to interface my computer to the FT- was too much for the cable I had! JT65B to near 1.1:1. This is the third time I’ve
857 to run WSJT on mode JT65B. runs for a minute key-down so it is an used the Rig Expert analyzers and the
extreme stress test. I decided to upgrade software that goes with them is really
On the Air Off the Moon the system, so I purchased a power split- impressive. You can also use them in
My goal was to have the system work- ter from InnovAntennas in the UK to sunlight.
ing in time for the 2016 ARRL EME
Contests in October and November. My
first EME QSO in the contest was with
I2FAK. He has an amazing antenna.
None of my first nine QSOs included a
U.S. contact. It took a lot of patience to
only work nine QSOs during two whole
nights of the contest, but each contact
was exciting. You can find EME spots
at WSJT EME Link by NØUK <https://
tinyurl.com/44jnnuse> (Photo D).
After my first 14 contacts I changed
the polarization of the antenna from hor-
izontal (Photo E) to vertical (Photo F). I
realized that the pattern was being dis-
torted by using an aluminum tube
between the two antennas. When I
switched to vertical polarization, I also
added two more elements and extend-
ed the boom to get even more gain.
I then worked five more stations over
three evenings. A better antenna sys-
tem is always more important than a
better radio. I also received my first two
EME QSLs. They are special because
the contacts were special and most
show their large antenna arrays.
At the 2018 Dayton Hamvention®, I
was happy to find a Harris FM power
amplifier module that had already been
modified for 2 meters and two 1-kilo-
watt power supplies. The Cherokee
CAR1248FP power supplies provided
48 volts DC at 25 amps. They are capa-
ble of parallel operation.
The amplifier has two of the LDMOS
1.25 KW chips. It did not have the com-
biner. I got this at a great price so I got
to work packaging it in an enclosure with
cooling. I cut holes in an old Palomar
tuner chassis for the cooling fans and
power supplies for my 2-meter solid-
state amplifier (Photo G).
I also have planned several upgrades
for the amplifier to include temperature Photo F. A switch from horizontal to vertical polarization brought better results
monitoring with automatic fan control (note the moon at the upper left).

The change to horizontal polarization low-noise days a month. The best days ing what a modest EME station like
for my EME 2X13 element 2-meter to try for a contact can be found at mine can do. I can work stations with a
Yagis was a nice improvement. The MMMonVHF <www.mmmonvhf.de/eme. little less capability than mine. I have
next month I worked a new band coun- php> (Photo H). even worked a few stations with single
try and 11 new initial contacts. By then Yagis and high power.
I had now contacted 100 different sta- Ongoing Improvements I continue to make progress with
tions on EME. Of those 100 stations, 25 For my next amplifier modification, I improving my 2-meter amplifier. This
were from the U.S. and almost all the added an EMI filter to try to get rid of month, I added two ferrites to the out-
rest from Europe. conducted noise from the power sup- put of the DC power supplies. I used
I have integrated my ERC-M rotator ply. It helped a little, but those 50-volt, my NanoVNA to look at the frequency
controller from Vibroplex with my AZ high-current switching power supplies range of my unmarked ferrites. There
and EL Yaesu rotators and PstRotator output too much noise. Right now, I shut is much less noise on the DC output
software. The ERC-M has a control down my amplifier when I am receiving compared to the problems I had with
card that I mounted in a plastic enclo- very weak stations when the antenna is the AC input to the power supplies. I
sure I already had, plus relay boards pointed at the shack. It surely keeps me used a commercial filter and ferrites on
that go in each rotor. I built them as a busy during EME contacts. Recently the input. I also installed an inductor in
kit. I can now track the moon for EME during the good EME days, I pushed the series with the 120-volt AC fans for the
with my 2x13 LFA Yagis. amplifier harder. Instead of running it at amplifier this month so I could switch
I next upgraded my radio from the 800 watts I pushed it up to 1,000. That the inductor into the line to reduce the
Yaesu FT-857 to an ICOM IC-9700. I is the difference of using 4 vs. 5 watts speed of the fans. I took an old power
did not see the problem with drift that of drive. One of the stations I worked transformer I had and decided to take
some have had, but I did get a BG7TBL was 5BØEME. He had a tough time windings off the secondary of one of
GPS disciplined oscillator at the copying me and gave me a report of - them to get to the right inductance.
Frieidrichshafen Hamfest in Germany 32 dB. The higher power made the dif- The advantage of using an inductor
for $125. It worked well with the new ference to get the QSO completed. instead of a resistor is that you won’t
firmware from ICOM. It is a GPS-disci- Usually, -30 dB is about the lowest you have the power dissipation. I now
plined oven-compensated crystal oscil- can decode on JT65B, but he really have a switched two-speed fan.
lator that outputs a 10-MHz standard worked hard to copy me. I worked 20 The weekend before the 2020
that is accurate to 0.005 Hz within 5 more first-time-contacted stations that CQWW RTTY DX Contest, I decided to
hours and ultimately 0.00025 Hz. month to bring my total number of dif- enter the Italian ARI EME contest. The
I continue to be amazed at a good EME ferent EME stations worked now to 154. best EME propagation in September
opening. You get about four really good On good propagation days it is amaz- was on the Tuesday to Thursday before

that contest. That month, I made con-
tacts with 17 EME stations I had not
worked before, three of which were dur-
ing the contest, bringing my unique sta-
tion total to 171. Most of the stations I
worked during the contest had four or
more Yagis since propagation was not
great. I worked 12 the first day and five
the second day. This was a nice warm
up for the 2020 ARRL EME contest
which was held October 10-11th. That
contest also has a second weekend at
the end of November.
During the first weekend in October,
I burned up the wattmeter I use for 2-
meter EME. I wonder how many hams
can say that? It is a Daiwa CN-801 HP
2-kilowatt wattmeter. It did OK at 700
watts, but burned up at 1,100 watts.
Most of the components in the pickup
got very hot and were charred. I pur-
chased a replacement Daiwa CN-901
HP3, which is designed for 3 kilowatts.
I was surprised to see how many of
the ham stores were sold out of Photo G. A second-hand Harris amplifier already retuned for 2 meters was a flea-
wattmeters during the pandemic. It also market find, seen here built into an old Palomar tuner chassis.
got hot at 1,100 watts. It turns out, in
the manual for both meters, in the notes I decided I was not going to burn up my Dynamics 81000-A wattmeter. What a
it said; “Add 15% of full power at 160- new wattmeter on 2 meters and asked treat that was to use. It can use any of
200 MHz Power Rating MAX 1 kilowatts for an early Christmas gift. I am thankful the Bird elements, too. The 4.5-inch
(144MHz).” You never see that until Santa understands EME contests. It meter is amazing. I enjoy a high-quality
after the purchase and read the manu- arrived just in time for the November piece of test equipment you can trust.
al more than once. weekend. I got a 2,500-watt Coaxial I continue to really enjoy 2-meter
Former CQ Publisher Dick Cowan, ing Solid State Technology and, more recently, Vacuum
ex-WA2LRO, SK Technology and Coating. According to family members, he
had been battling Alzheimer’s disease for several years and
We recently learned of the passing last year of former CQ
passed away in June 2020 from complications of Covid-19.
Publisher Richard A. “Dick” Cowan, formerly WA2LRO. The
Our belated condolences to the Cowan family.
son of CQ‘s founding publisher, Sanford Cowan, Dick took
on the responsibilities of publisher in the late 1950s, even
though he wasn’t listed as such on the magazine’s mast-
head until mid-1967. In 1979, Cowan sold CQ to current
owner Dick Ross, K2MGA, and former Editor Alan Dorhoffer,
K2EEK (SK).
Recalling their relationship in the 50th anniversary issue of
CQ in 1995, Ross noted that Cowan, “was always extreme-
ly fair to me and … gave me the most important thing ever
– freedom. Freedom to learn and explore and see how things
happened and to become part of making them happen.”
Cowan was also founder and publisher of S9 magazine in
the heyday of the CB boom, as well as several others, includ-

Photo H. This graph from MMMonVHF shows anticipated EME conditions for each day of a given month. For a current
graph, visit <www.mmmonvhf.de/eme.php>.
EME. The second half of the ARRL EME contest was the
same weekend as CQWW CW DX Contest. I decided to work
the EME contest instead. It is fun working new countries and
grid squares on EME. During CQWW, I rarely get a new band Holiday
country, even on 160 meters. I made 45 contacts during the Rebates
first EME contest weekend in October. The previous year I 6KRSZLWK:HVW0RXQWDLQ5DGLRRU
made 44 contacts total over both weekends. By November DQ\RIRXUWUXVWHGGHDOHUVEHWZHHQ
2020, I had worked 185 unique stations on EME. Some of 1RYHPEHUWKDQG'HFHPEHUVW
those stations I have worked several times.
DQGVDYHRQDQ\SURGXFWRYHU
Some of my recent QSOs on 2-meter EME were China
XVLQJWKHFRGH
(BA4SI) and Trinidad (9Y4D). We have a short period of com-
mon moon with China, whereas the Trinidad station only runs
150 watts. Both stations took a lot of patience to work on
EME. I am always amazed at how courteous and helpful EME
Holiday21
stations are. Even with few sunspots and no DXpeditions dur- Visit westmountainradio.com for a
ing the pandemic, there is some good DX to be worked. full catalog of products
I was also able to work two stations with single Yagis and
400 watts on EME. One of them I have been trying to work Audioware RIGblasters
for four years. Was part of it luck? Absolutely, but it also helps ([SHULHQFHDXGLR ([SORUHGLJLWDOPRGHVZLWK
OLNH\RXQHYHUKDYH 5,*EODVWHUVWKHJLIW
that I don’t give up easy. EME is not for someone who enjoys EHIRUHZLWK:HVW WKDWNHHSVJLYLQJ
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In conclusion, EME operation is great for the experimenter,
DXer, and contester. Don’t be surprised if you enter into a
continuous state of upgrade to your station, some of which
may happen before the original approach is finished. You will RIGrunners CBA V
learn to develop patience making QSOs, but the rewards of (QMR\HDV\'&SRZHU
GLVWULEXWLRQZLWKRXUORQJOLQHRI *HW\RXUKDQGV
a QSO are amazing. You will also be pleasantly surprised by 5,*UXQQHUSURGXFWV RQWKHQHZ&%$9
how helpful other EME operators are to improve your station EDWWHU\DQDO\]HU
IRUDIUDFWLRQRI
and help you make contacts. My total number of unique sta- WKHFRVW
tions worked on 2-meter EME is now over 200. If someone
told me four years ago that I would work 200 different sta-
sales@westmountainradio.com
tions off the moon, I would have told them they were nuts. 262-522-6503 Ext. 35
westmountainradio.com/holiday21
3RZHUSROHLVDUHJLVWHUHGWUDGHPDUNRI$QGHUVRQ3RZHU3URGXFWV,QF

Technology Special:
One of the technical hallmarks of hams over the years has been
repurposing older technology to perform new tasks. In line with K8ZT’s new
column debuting this month on discovering new aspects of ham radio,
W4DNN shares his experience of getting started on amateur satellites with
a minimal investment in new gear.
Satellite Rag Chewing on a

Shoestring
BY DENNIS LAZAR,* W4DNN
L
ike many of us old time hams, over the past 60 years I derful hobby. But little by little, I felt that new radio itch: The
have moved from novice CW to AM phone, to that new- need for some new challenge. The answer came in the form
fangled SSB and FM repeaters. The past 20 years have of a magazine article about satellites.
been devoted to QRP, Straight Key Century Club, Summits Yes! That was it. I would work the world through the ham
on the Air, Parks on the Air, PSK-31, QRP, and QRO rag sats! However, my loving and supportive XYL Ruthie,
chewing and DXing, among many other aspects of this won- K4KLQ, while always sympathetic to my sometimes-eccen-
tric endeavors, said she was behind me all the way but with
* Email: <w4dnnradio@gmail.com> one caveat. As long as I didn’t spend any money, I could go
Figure 1. If you use compatible rigs, SatPC32 is available to you via the AMSAT website, <www.amsat.org>. This program
brings satellite ops into the 21st century.

plethora of ham satellites from many dif-
ferent countries available for our use,
they are not at all crowded.
Once I discovered this option, I went
to YouTube to watch the many ham
operators who have posted videos of
their satellite operations. Nearly all of
them seemed to own big stations and
expensive dual-band duplex-capable
radios. Due to price tags of close to
$1,000 for even a 25-year-old duplex-
capable transceiver, I would have to use
two independent radios. I needed to see
what I could cobble together from my
current radio inventory to put to use in
this project.
State of the Hobby in the 21st

Century
I had hoped to make use of the SatPC32
computer tracking and control program
from AMSAT (for a $50 donation; Figure
1) to make my station more state-of-the-
art. Many, if not most, satellite users
today make use of these programs to
Photo A. Old gear can be cobbled together to make a very usable satellite earth facilitate full Doppler tuning. These pro-
station. grams control the uplink transmit fre-
quency as well as the downlink which
XW-2A Preset #3 Beacon: 145.66 results in nearly HF style QSOs with lit-
tle tuning required on the part of the
AOS 435.020 435.025 435.030 435.035 435.040 operator. This can be done with true
2 L 435.025 435.030 435.035 435.040 435.045 duplex satellite transceivers or sepa-
U rate radios as long as they are capable
Mid S 435.030 435.035 435.040 435.045 435.050 of CAT control and compatible with the
p
4 B 435.035 435.040 435.045 435.050 435.055 program. In my case, one of my old rigs
was compatible and one was not (Photo
LOS 435.040 435.045 435.050 435.055 435.060 A). I would have to operate with manu-
VHF Down USB 145.685 145.680 145.675 145.670 145.665 al tuning as hams have done for years
before the advent of full computer con-
Figure 2. This example of KEØPBR’s Cheat Sheet chart illustrates how an invert- trol and as many do still while operating
ing satellite translates frequencies. in the field.
Finding the Rigs

for it. With possible inflation on the hori- meter / 70-centimeter FM transponders The first candidate was an old Yaesu
zon, we needed to be tight-fisted. that are essentially repeaters in the sky. FT-100. The rig suffered from both a
Was I discouraged? No, not at all. I Following a few demos from friends, I defective selector encoder and failing
could happily forgo the new UHF/VHF quickly decided that was not for me. I main tuning encoder. This meant that it
SDR transceiver I had been ogling and didn’t want quick exchanges of call and was extremely difficult to get into the
that monster 2-meter / 70-centimeter grid square on a packed repeater. I want- menus and that hand tuning the radio
Yagi array with computer-controlled ed to rag chew in space! was not reliable. This radio had been on
az/el (azimuth and elevation) rotators For the next weeks, I became obsess- the shelf for some time. But it does
and investigate what I could do with ed, reading Steve Ford’s (WB8IMY) transmit 20 watts on 435 MHz. I hooked
what I had on hand. After all, wasn’t I ARRL Satellite Handbook cover to it up to my computer with a CAT cable
the minimalist guy who was fond of say- cover. Steve promised to show me how and while still not able to access the
ing “CW forever” and that real hams can to “explore, track, and operate ham radio menu items, I could tune it with Ham
work the world with 1/2-watt QRPp? I satellites.” I soon learned that linear Radio Deluxe. The transmit uplink was
was sure I could figure out a way to work transponder satellites were the way to taken care of.
ham sats on a shoestring. go. These birds that receive a whole For the downlink receive function, I
A friend who owned a handheld satel- range of frequencies on one band and made use of my little FT-817 QRP rig.
lite antenna was quick to advise me that then retransmit them on another would This worked well as I learned that on
working the satellites was relatively easy allow me to not only work SSB and CW, most linear transponder satellites, the
if you had a dual-band handheld and as but also facilitate rag chews more than operator tunes the transmitter to keep
little as a 5/8-wave whip or a good mobile 10 minutes long. And, unlike the FM positioned in the bandpass and the
antenna. Yes, true ... if you only wanted satellites, there are a ton of these birds receiver stays pretty much where it
to work the “EZ sats,” those birds with 2- with more on the way. Because of a starts out. (More on this later).

Then there was the antenna to con- the two rigs sitting one on top of the big guns and get some idea of how to
sider; probably the most critical part of other on the shack desk. do this. Following a lot of reading, inter-
the mix. I couldn’t find an outdoor per- According to those in the know, it net browsing, and YouTube watching, I
manently mounted Yagi with cheap wouldn’t work well. In fact, in scouring was ready to give it a shot.
rotator for less than $300. That was not the internet, I could not find a single fool I was pleased to learn right away that
counting coax which, at UHF frequen- who sought to operate linear satellites I could hear the linear satellites. Tuning
cies, is expensive. I decided to experi- with a J-pole, especially with all the sur- around the passband of CAS4A and B,
ment first before hitting up the XYL for rounding structures. One reference for instance, I could hear stations call-
even a modest investment. stated that fixed antennas like a J-pole ing and answering CQs and in some
So I decided to adhere to the QRP don’t perform very well because they cases, actually having mini rag chews.
minimalist route. I would just go ahead have deep signal nulls at higher eleva- Now it was my time to try joining the fun.
and hook up that old J-pole antenna tions. In addition, loss in RG-58 is 6 dB
(Photo B) mounted low on my tower at 2 meters and 10.5 dB at 70 centime- How It’s Done
(next to a satellite TV dish and trees) ters. Still, one could only hope there I learned that the first thing one must do
through its current run of second-hand would be a little RF left coming and is to learn where the satellite transmits
RG-58A/U high-loss coax to a diplexer going. But ignorance breeds hope and and receives and the top and bottom of
(which I did have to purchase) and to at least, I thought, I could listen to the the passband. This is easy to find by
going to the AMSAT website. Then
things get more complicated. Because
the satellite is traveling through space
at thousands of miles per hour, as it
approaches or recedes from your loca-
tion, the transmit and receive frequen-
cies change, moving up or down. This
is due to Doppler shift, the same phe-
nomenon that causes a train whistle’s
sound to rise as the train approaches
and to fall as it passes and recedes from
you. This makes life difficult for the ham
satellite operator.
Without turning this story into a text-
book, I will only briefly explain that for
the UHF/VHF inverting satellites that I
want to work, I have to first hear my
transmitted signal coming down from
the satellite. To do this, I learned to refer
to “The Frequency Cheat Sheet,” a
wonderful resource freely provided to
the ham community by KEØPBR
(Figure 2). It shows the passband of
each popular satellite and the downlink
(receive) frequency for a given uplink
(transmit) frequency.
For the CAS4A satellite, for instance,
I would set my transmitter VFO to
435.035 MHz and set my receiver to
145.670 MHz. This puts me in the ball-
park. When the satellite comes over the
horizon, I begin sending a string of CW
dits while listening with earphones for
my signal coming down to Earth
through the receiver.
I tune the transmitter up and down
until I can hear myself. I then switch to
SSB and tune the transmitter until my
voice sounds normal. I then begin call-
ing CQ. If someone tuning their receiv-
er hears me, they send a string of dits
so they can adjust their transmitter to
zero beat my voice and give me a call.
This is all easier said than done.
In my first few attempts, I could not
even find my dits. A sorry state of affairs!
Photo B. This well-worn J-Pole antenna is very sub-optimal for satellite use. First When at last I found my signal (faintly)
thing I will change when the budget permits is to mount it high at the top of the and as the signal increased, I switched
tower and replace the RG-58 with LMR-400 low-loss coax. to SSB and tried to tune my voice to a

Photo C. A 20-year-old satellite radio and AMSAT’s Satpc32 program brings satellite ops into the 21st century. Nearly as
easy as operating HF.
normal sound, varying the transmitter while calling “CQ satel- trying to keep a voice intelligible on SSB. Until I can hone my
lite.” Then WOW … K8YSE answered and I attempted to tuning skills or spring for a new rig, I will stick mainly to oper-
reply while varying my voice on the uplink while I faded in ating CW.
and out. Later, in an email, John from Ohio said, “Congrats The wrap up to this tale is that I am able to achieve usable
on getting on sats. You were moving up the band and it was satellite QSOs in CW with my extremely minimal equipment
hard to follow you. Doppler control is something that is cru- and minimal operator skills. This has resulted in a happy ham,
cial to making contacts on the linear birds.” It was a disaster happy XYL, and any number of satellite operators who are
but I did end up making a first contact. I had done it! With a very happy that I am not messing up the SSB portions of the
weak signal to high-loss coax feeding a crummy antenna and pass bands — yet.
with a poor operator, it became plain that while I could make
contact, I might never be able to pull off an SSB rag chew
Epilogue: Since preparing this article, I found a 20-year-old
without a few station upgrades.
ICOM IC-910H satellite radio in great condition and for a
Then, on a pass of the CAS4B satellite, Bryan, K5CIS,
wife-approved $600. Coupling it with the Satpc32 program
answered my CQ in CW. I tried to call back but due to a com-
from AMSAT on an old XP laptop computer was flawless
bination of dirty contacts on my paddles (I had only planned
and easy (Photo C). Now I am making SSB and CW con-
to send dits) and my clumsy tuning, I only got out my call and
tacts with my longest rag chew lasting 8 minutes. My best
then lost him. A half hour later, however, on the XW-2A
DX QSO was Gustavo, HC2FG, in Guayaquil, Ecuador!
Chinese satellite, my CQ was answered by Howard,
However you begin your journey, you will find that working
WB2TQE, and, using a different key, we had a real QSO.
the sats is “out of this world.”
This experience was an epiphany for me. The spirit of QRP
came alive.
Resources
CW Forever – in Space You can find a great instructional from AMSAT explaining
As a diehard QRP enthusiast, former QRP Editor of CQ mag- how to operate the linear satellites using two radios without
azine, and author of many QRP-related articles, the name of computer control at <https://tinyurl.com/e99trrk9>. Another
the game had always been that CW can get through like no detailing taking Doppler tuning into the 21st century can be
other minimalist mode. I now learned that this can be applied found at: <https://tinyurl.com/4yej6jy8>. You will find a multi-
to satellites as well. part video presentation that is a how-to-do-it introduction to
First, CW cuts through the noise in satellite work much the satellite operation on a shoestring by KX9X at <https://
same as it does in low-band communications. The human tinyurl.com/3bzs7s3k>. You can download KEØPBR’s
ear can pull out a weak signal which is right at the noise level, Cheat Sheets from his web page at <https://tinyurl.com/
impossible to hear with SSB. Also, the CW signal is as read- d8xnedpv>. For an informative overview from ICOM, check
able at a high pitch as it is at a low pitch so it is not neces- out <https://tinyurl.com/3m9hpdyk>.
sary to keep the transmitter quite as precisely tuned as when

Technology Special:
International rules foxhunting and personal emergency beacons both use AM
transmissions on VHF, but 2-meter AM transmitters are hard to find these days
for practice. How do hams hunting for emergency beacons and 2-meter
“foxes” train? USA ARDF Co-coordinators NZØI and WB8WFK offer a solution
that uses new technology to generate “ancient modulation.”
Arducon: An Arduino-Based Foxhunt

Transmitter Controller
BY CHARLES E. SCHARLAU,* NZØI, AND GERALD BOYD,# WB8WFK
H
aving participated in and con- ancillary radio support positions often days. Notably, the International Amateur
ducted many transmitter hunts participate in these searches. Radio Union’s (IARU) official rules still
over the past 30 years, the The sport of amateur radio direction call for the use of AM modulation (A3A)
authors have long wished for a simple finding1 (ARDF) got its start shortly after for transmitters (or “foxes”) used in
way to conduct quality transmitter-hunt- the close of World War II, and has come competitions held on the amateur 2-
ing practice sessions. Simplicity, for us, a long way from those vacuum-tube meter band.
is defined as utilizing easy-to-obtain, beginnings. But this international sport Hams helping pinpoint locator bea-
reasonably priced equipment that is still clings to some vestiges of its early cons, and those participating in ARDF
easy to use. And a quality transmitter
hunting practice is one that provides a
realistic experience for the participants,
and is pulled off with nary a hitch. What
we’ve longed for is some reliable spe-
cialized equipment to make radio trans-
mitter practice hunts more realistic and
enjoyable for both the hunters and the
organizers.
The hunts we’re talking about are
practice sessions designed to provide
the participants with a genuine learn-
ing-by-doing experience. They are
intended to promote proficiency in find-
ing either of two transmitter varieties:
Locator beacons or ARDF (amateur
radio direction-finding) “foxes.”
Emergency locator transmitters (ELTs)
and personal locator beacons (PLBs) are
electronic, battery-operated transmitters
developed as a means of locating
downed aircraft and individuals experi-
encing an emergency while away from
normal emergency services. Many of
these devices transmit a low-power AM-
modulated signal on 121.5 MHz that can
be used by search and rescue (SAR) per-
sonnel to pinpoint the beacon’s location
using portable radio direction-finding
receivers. Radio amateurs serving in
* USA ARDF Co-coordinator

P.O. Box 516, Cary, NC 27512
Email: <nz0i@openardf.org>
# USA ARDF Co-coordinator Photo A. Photograph of Arducon installed on a handheld transceiver, with com-
Email: <wb8wfk@icloud.com> ponents labeled.

radio sport, both need authentic prac- ministration (FAA) or other authorities. power to serve as a regulation ARDF
tice sessions in order to hone their skills. But affordable, portable, amateur VHF transmitter. With the addition of a suit-
And both activities share many of the transmitters capable of AM transmis- able fixed-value attenuator, an HT can
same challenges for organizers when it sions are not readily available. also approximate the weak output
comes to assembling and conducting And even if portable AM transmitters power of an emergency beacon. All that
authentic practices. are procured, they lack the features to is needed is a transmitter controller to
facilitate direction-finding practice ses- regulate an HT’s transmit timing, and
Organizer Challenges sions. Features to remotely control the provide a means of transforming its sig-
Realistic direction-finding practices are transmitters, and to operate using spe- nals from FM into AM.
usually conducted in woods and forests cific timing and signal characteristics, The well-known Arduino microcon-
where beacon transmitters must be are needed to provide realistic practices troller platform has a capable processor
transported on foot, making portable utilizing few support personnel. and just the right features built in to
equipment a must. Practice transmitters serve as a precision timer and con-
operating on amateur radio frequencies Solution: Arducon troller. It integrates readily with a preci-
allow training sessions to be conducted The ubiquitous 2-meter handheld (HT) sion real-time clock and still has plenty
as needed, without having to coordinate provides a reliable and portable trans- of extra clock cycles to add a laundry
them with the Federal Aviation Ad- mitter solution with sufficient transmit list of features:
• Decoding Dual-Tone Multi-Fre-

quency (DTMF) “touch-tone” for remote
control
• Generating signals to control an
attached transmitter
• Generating Morse code audio tones
• Communicating with a PC over a ser-
ial port
• Controlling a digital attenuator to
generate AM modulation
FM signals are not readily converted

to AM, but FM handhelds are perfectly
capable of transmitting an unmodulat-
ed carrier by simply disabling their
microphone input. That unmodulated
carrier can then be readily AM modu-
lated using a low-distortion digital atten-
uator controlled by the Arduino.
That is the concept that has become
Photo B. Oscilloscope screen capture of the actual AM envelope generated by Arducon: A transmitter controller that
Arducon. combines an Arduino Pro Mini and a
Photo C. Photograph of all components that constitute the Arducon kit.

2-Meter AM manipulating the control inputs of a
Renesas F1975NCGI digital step atten-
Amplitude-modulated Morse code (A3A) is less spectrum-efficient than SSB uator attached to the HT’s RF output
(J3E), which is commonly used for VHF terrestrial and satellite communications. connector. The result is a stepped AM
So to avoid harmful interference to other amateur radio stations, extra care must waveform that is a close approximation
be taken. When using AM modulation, it is especially important to choose a fre- of a sine wave. The 75-ohm impedance
quency where weak-signal, satellite, and FM repeater communications will not of the F1975NCGI results in an accept-
be impacted. Fortunately, direction-finding practices run low power, tend to last able match to the 50 ohms expected by
only a few hours, and are usually held in forest areas far from most FM repeaters most hanhelds. The Renesas attenua-
and amateur radio stations. Still, long-range repeaters, satellite communications, tor is capable of handling an input sig-
and weak signal band segments must be avoided. Consult the 2-meter band nal up to 600 milliwatts.
plan6 and amateur radio repeater coordinating organization7 for your area for The AM-modulated signal at the out-
more information. put of the stepped attenuator is then fil-
tered using a stub filter before being
Renesas F1975NCGI digital step atten- addition to DTMF control, the Arduino’s sent to the antenna. You should exam-
uator to provide a simple, inexpensive on-board universal synchronous and ine the spectrum of the signals emitted
AM-capable transmitter controller. With asynchronous serial receiver and trans- from Arducon using a spectrum ana-
Arducon, one needs only add a standard mitter (USART) is dedicated to provid- lyzer to ensure compliance with emis-
FM HT and a suitable antenna to create ing a serial interface to a connected PC. sions standards. Additional filters can
a reliable and capable practice beacon. A standard terminal program, such as be added between the Arducon RF out-
In addition, Arducon includes some cool Arduino IDE’s Serial Monitor, running put and the antenna, if necessary, to
features that make all kinds of radio direc- on the PC can be used to configure reduce spurious emissions emitted by
tion-finding activities more fun and easi- Arducon serially. the radio or introduced by the AM mod-
er to conduct. Among those features: Arducon supports FM Morse (F3A) ulation process. A single stub filter cen-
transmissions by generating an audio tered at the third harmonic was found
• Support for all ARDF transmit timing tone that is fed into the HT’s microphone to be sufficient for the 2-meter HTs used
and patterns, selectable by a single input. AM Morse (A3A) transmissions during Arducon development.
configuration setting are accomplished by turning off the A Maxim DS3231 extremely accurate
• Dates and times may be set for trans- microphone audio tone and instead temperature-compensated real-time
missions to start and stop
• Clock precision and stability suffi-
cient to retain close synchronization for
days
• Settings configurable using DTMF
tones or a PC USB port
• Remote over-the-air voltage and
temperature reporting
Want more? The project’s software

and hardware are 100% open source
so you can easily modify Arducon to
meet your needs using freely available
software tools.
Arducon Design
Arducon takes advantage of the widely
available Arduino hardware platform
and free Integrated Development En-
vironment (IDE)2 to hold down costs
while making the project simple to mod-
ify and improve upon. An Arduino Pro
Mini is at the heart of Arducon, and all
the heavy lifting is done in software.
Only a simple interface board is added
to allow the Arduino Pro Mini to control
and be controlled by an HT. The inter-
face board includes “solder jumpers’’
that allow it to be configured for use with
a wide variety of HTs or even HF trans-
mitters for CW ARDF practice sessions.
The audio output from a connected
HT is fed into Arducon, which directly
samples it to decode any DTMF signals
it might contain. Upon receipt of a valid
tone sequence, Arducon will immedi-
ately perform a received command. In Figure 1. A simple diagram illustrating how Arducon connects to an HT.

only a few hand-solderable parts that
ARDF Competition Formats may need to be added. If you only plan
The sport of amateur radio direction-finding is administered and promoted by to use Arducon for FM foxhunts, then
the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU), which has established rules and components to support AM modulation
sanctions biennial world championships and other international ARDF competi- may be omitted. An online user manu-
tions. Under the IARU’s guidance, the sport has evolved over the decades to al3 provides all the details for configur-
include a variety of competition formats listed in the table below. ing and using Arducon. All source files
are available on GitHub,4 where you will
ARDF Format Band / Mode / Typical Number Typical Course also find all the KiCad5 hardware design
Name Output Power of Foxes Length documents.
Classic 80m 80m / CW (A1A) / 3W 5 5-9 km Conclusion

Classic 2m 2m / AM (A3A) / 500 mW 5 5-9 km Arducon makes challenging radio direc-
Sprint 80m / CW (A1A) / 350 mW 10 1.5 km tion-finding practices less challenging
Foxoring 80m / CW (A1A) / 10 mW 4-10 4-8 km for organizers. It also supports practices
that utilize the same modulation format
Blind ARDF 80m / CW (A1A) / 50 mW 3-5 500 m as the genuine events, and cool fea-
tures like remote control and highly ac-
curate timing. And best of all, Arducon
clock is used to provide precise timing for uator has a pin located fully beneath it, allows VHF practice transmitters to be
Arducon. Once configured with the cur- making it difficult to install without the constructed relatively cheaply, yet reli-
rent time, a start time, and a finish time, use of reflow soldering techniques. So ably, using widely available FM hand-
Arducon will start and stop transmissions the creators of Arducon are making pre- held transceivers. The authors hope
precisely at the appointed times. The constructed PCBs available through that Arducon will encourage more indi-
clock drifts by no more than a second a Kickstarter campaign (Visit <https:// viduals and groups to host and experi-
over three days, providing excellent tim- tinyurl.com/cnreucu9>). ence authentic radio direction-finding
ing stability, making Arducon suitable for With a pre-populated PCB there are practices for themselves.
ARDF events that utilize up to five syn-
chronized transmitters whose transmis-
sions must not overlap. Notes:
1. ARRL ARDF website: <https://arrl.org/ardf>
A standard DB-9 connector is used to
2. Arduino IDE: <www.arduino.cc>
access all the essential control and sig- 3. Arducon User Manual: <https://tinyurl.com/rmh22kxz>
nal lines as well as to provide power 4. Arducon GitHub website: <https://github.com/OpenARDF/Arducon>
to Arducon. A standard through-hole 5. KiCad design software: <www.kicad.org/blog>
header is also provided on the PCB to 6. IARU Region 2 Band Plan: <https://tinyurl.com/2suuvsnu>
bypass the DB-9 connector if desired. 7. Amateur Radio Repeater Coordinating Organizations: <https://tinyurl.com/n4753979>
Female SMA connectors are used for
all RF connections. The attenuator
board can be snapped off from the main About the Arducon Kits
Arducon board and controlled via an 8- Editor’s note: As we went to press, a Kickstarter.com fundraising campaign was just getting
conductor ribbon cable if desired or left under way to fund the initial production run of Arducon kits. According to NZØI, the kits are
expected to cost between $50 and $70 each, depending on the number of orders received
off entirely if Arducon will be used only (more kits ordered, lower unit cost). The kits will include a PC board with all surface-mount com-
for FM or CW foxhunts. ponents already installed and tested. The builder will need to install fewer than 10 hand-sol-
To minimize cost and board size, sur- dered parts. Designs for a 3-D printed case will also be available for free, but cases will not be
face-mount devices (SMD) are used included in the kits. The Kickstarter link is at <https://tinyurl.com/cnreucu9>; watch for updates
extensively. The Renesas digital atten- at <https://tinyurl.com/46cbb7hf>.
Figure 2. A simple diagram illustrating how Arducon connects to a PC for configuration or programming.

Technology Special:
Have you ever wondered what the bands sound like in another part of the
world? Or what your signal sounds like at the other end of a path? Now you can
listen for yourself, thanks to the marriage of two technologies, software-defined
radios (SDRs) and the internet. PT2ZDX/LU9EFO introduces us to PY2GN’s amazing
WebSDR station in Brazil.
PY2GN: Brazil’s First Public

WebSDR Station
BY MARTIN BUTERA,* PT2ZDX/LU9EFO
R
adio transmissions have been with us for a long time. who were also hams bringing communication to isolated cor-
In the case of Brazil, since September 7, 1922. The ners of a giant country with continental distances such as
golden age of radio was responsible for the launch of Brazil.
many artists and changed the behavior of society. But times have changed and other communication tech-
Along with commercial radio broadcasts, Brazilian ama- nologies have been developed. But amateur radio has inte-
teur radio also played a large role, with high-level technicians grated many of those changes, such as WebSDR, or soft-
ware-defined radio accessible via the web. One of the most
* Email: <martin_butera@yahoo.com.ar> complete WebSDR servers in the world (Photo A) is locat-
Photo A. General view of the WebSDR station, belonging to William G. Schauff, PY2GN.

ed in the city of Pardinho in São Paulo, to refer to the WebSDR in the city of at age 15, and has been active on the
Brazil. But before I start with this report, Pardinho, Brazil. air ever since.
I would first like to explain: The city of Pardinho is a municipality William’s interest in software-defined
in the interior of the state of São Paulo. radio is entirely due to his friendship with
The population is only 6,508 inhabitants Edson Wander Pereira, PY2SDR, who
What is WebSDR? in an area of 210 square kilometers (81 was part of the team responsible for
For those who are not familiar with what square miles) and its elevation is 898 developing a new open-source algo-
a WebSDR is, here is a brief introduction: meters (2,946 feet) above sea level. rithm to decode radio signal signals in
A WebSDR, stands for a software- The Pardinho WebSDR system is JT65 mode, in addition to having an
defined radio receiver that can be tuned owned by William G. Schauff, PY2GN enormous amateur radio influence in
via WEB (Internet). A WebSDR allows (Photo B). He became interested in Brazil, including his involvement in the
many users to listen simultaneously and radio as a child in the 1960s, watching design of the country’s first nanosatel-
on different frequencies. There are sev- his father use an AM transceiver to com- lite, AESP-14.
eral WebSDR servers in different parts municate with his employees in the When Edson Pereira was living in
of the world. In this report we are going field. He earned his ham license in 1968 Tokyo in the mid-2000s, he introduced
William to a new technology called
“SDR,” sending him an SDR interface.
William quickly configured a Linux serv-
er remotely (Photo C), and the first radio
listeners and radio amateurs were able
to have access to receive signals
through the powerful receiver.
WebSDR Server Configuration

Today
Currently PY2GN’s WebSDR server
(Photo D) is capable of reception on the
VLF, HF, and VHF bands, as well as a
geostationary satellite transponder and
the Radiosonde — SDR probe tracker
to receive telemetry at 402 MHz from
weather balloons.
All of it runs on the Linux Ubuntu oper-
ating system, with eight receiver inter-
faces for SDR (Photo E), each one func-
tioning separately:
1) RTL-SDR for long and medium
wave from 0 to 2.048 MHz with double
G5RV antenna.
2) FCD PRO + on 160 meters from
1.804 to 1.996 MHz with double G5RV
Photo B. William G. Schauff, PY2GN, in his field next to his satellite dishes. antenna.
Photo C. On the left we can see the first SDR in Brazil, put up more than 15 years ago. The kit was sent directly from Japan
by Edson Wander, PY2SDR, to his friend PY2GN, who put it online in 2005 in the city of Pardinho. The photo on the right
shows the SDRShell software developed by PY2SDR in 2006.

3) SDRPLAY on 80 meters from
antenna.
4) SDRPLAY on 40 meters from
antenna.
5) FCD PRO + on 20 meters from
14.000 to 14.192 MHz with NVIS dipole.
6) RTL-SDR for 10 / 11 meters from
26.996 to 29.014 MHz with 5/8-wave
Ringo vertical antenna.
7) RTL-SDR VHF 143.963 to 146.011
MHz, with collinear array of 4 dipoles
(ARS).
8) RTL-SDR VHF 145.976 to 148.024
MHz, with collinear array of 4 dipoles
(ARS).
In addition, the WebSDR can receive

the new geostationary satellite tran-
sponder ESHailSat-2 (QO-100) at 10
GHz, which also runs on Linux Ubuntu
and has one receiver interface for SDR,
with the following configuration:
RTL-SDR + 10 GHz LNB, 1.2-meter
offset parabolic antenna with azimuth of
84° and elevation of 6° (Photo F). The
server may be accessed at <http://appr.
org.br:8902>.
The Radiosonde — SDR probe track-
er is also available <http://appr.org.
br:5000> to receive telemetry at 402
MHz from weather balloons, which are
launched every day in Brazil from 8:30-
11a.m. and from 8:30-11 p.m., The
tracker runs on the Linux operating sys-
tem on Raspberry PI hardware, with the
following configuration: 2X RTL-SDR
402-406 MHz.
The feedlines from the antennas for
the various radios (Photo G) all come
Photo D. WebSDR equipment rack (Photos D-I by William G. Schauff, PY2GN) together at a panel inside the equip-
ment trailer (Photo H).
There are dozens of pieces of equip-
ment and accessories for the correct
operation of the different servers at the
Pardinho WebSDR site, including spe-
cial preamps, filters, dividers, tqo Dell
desktop computers, and a Raspberry
Pi3, all running Linux. They all operate
under the Radiosonde RX WebSDR
software that was developed in the
Netherlands.
Solar Energy
Pardinho’s WebSDR is so complete
that PY2GN has a backup power sys-
tem, made up of a 3Kva sinusoidal PHB
UPS (uninterruptible power supply).
The primary power source, though, is
solar. With an electricity consumption of
approximately 300 watts/hour, the
energy is generated in the field by 36
solar panels of 330-watts, 220-volts tri-
Photo E. WebSDR receivers phase, networked (Photo I).

Photo F. Parabolic dish antennas aimed at the geostationary QO-100 amateur satellite.
Photo G. A general view of the antenna farm.

Solar energy is that produced by light — photovoltaic ener-
gy — or the heat of the sun — thermosolar — for the gener-
ation of electricity or the production of heat. Inexhaustible and
renewable, since it comes from the sun, it is obtained through
panels and mirrors. Photovoltaic solar cells convert sunlight
directly into electricity through the so-called photoelectric
effect, by which certain materials are capable of absorbing
photons (light particles) and releasing electrons, generating
an electric current. On the other hand, solar thermal collec-
tors use panels or mirrors to absorb and concentrate solar
heat, transfer it to a fluid and conduct it through pipes for use
in buildings and facilities or also for the production of elec-
tricity (solar thermoelectric).
Solar energy does not emit greenhouse gases, so it does
not contribute to global warming. In fact, it is shown as one
of the most efficient renewable technologies in the fight
against climate change.
Enter the World of PY2GN’s WebSDR

To start enjoying this complete WebSDR system, you can con- Photo H. Antenna panel
nect through the following link: <http://pardinho.websdr.
com.br:8901/>. There is a short tutorial (in Portuguese), for
general assistance on the WebSDR of Pardinho São Paulo, mentioned above, the public WebSDR in Pardinho is a real-
Brazil at <https://tinyurl.com/aj94cbj7>. There is also a ity today.
worldwide list of different WebSDRs available at <http://
websdr.org>. A Closing Note
The WebSDR is only a part of PY2GN’s station and only one
A Tip of the Hat … of his many interests. William is also an avid EME (Earth-
William, PY2GN, also wants to emphasize that his Brazilian Moon-Earth) enthusiast with more than 1,700 contacts and
colleague, Junior, PY2PE, helped him a lot in the construc- 70+ countries confirmed off the moon. He is also an expert
tion of his station. Junior is a young civil engineer from Sao in propagation, antennas, tracking objects in space, digital
Paulo, who at the beginning of 2010/2011, was already exper- modes, and more.
imenting with SDR in Brazil and wanted to develop a public I leave you with three beautiful videos of the antennas at
access site for digital listening. PY2GN:
It was through this interest that Junior came into contact with
Professor Pieter-Tjerk de Boer, PA3FWM, at the University of • EME tower and antennas: <https://tinyurl.com/4dyemrp9>
Twente, in the Netherlands, who had already been develop- • HF tower and antennas: <https://tinyurl.com/25ncefdr>
ing an open listening site for SDR at the university. • VHF and UHF tower and antennas: <https://tinyurl.
It was thanks to the help of Junior, as well as PY2SDR, as com/df69cpzt>.
Photo I. The solar panels that feed power to the station.

Technology Special:
A project built around a dental floss box and a mint tin … it practically
screams ham ingenuity! So improve your dental hygiene and build a fun
project all at the same time, courtesy of KE3FL.
An FLdigi Computer Interface from

Spare Parts
BY PHIL KARRAS,* KE3FL
Manual. See <https://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Fldigi> on Wikipedia and the
beginners’ guide at <www.w1hkj.com/
beginners.html>.
Mints and Dental Floss

Back to this project and why I wanted to
do it. This project came about because
the ARRL Emergency Coordinator for
Carroll County, Maryland, decided to
give us all practice in how to use FLdigi.
I thought this was a good idea since I
was now retired and could actually
spend time on ham radio and emer-
gency communications stuff.
I started this FLdigi practice using just
the microphones and speakers of both
the radio and the laptop computer. As
time went on, I got tired of using micro-
phones to pass the data noise from
radio to computer and from computer
Photo A. Wires in the mic that needed to be identified for making the right con- back to radio. The noise level was sim-
nections at the switchbox. ply way too high. I also realized that I
couldn’t bring this setup into a noisy
emergency environment, either. I had
T
his type of project may not be for the PC audio input port, unless your PC to find some way to reduce and / or elim-
everyone. But if you’re a “make do audio input port can be switched from inate the FLdigi noise and to keep back-
with whatever’s available” sort of stereo to mono input mode. ground noise out of the mic to keep from
ham, it could be right up your alley. It sending that noise, along with the
includes going into a special mic circuit About FLdigi FLdigi message, to the transmitter.
to bypass what the mic normally does, First let me explain just a little of what My first thought was to buy a box that
to use it for a direct data connection to FLdigi is. FLdigi is a computer program would hook up my computer to my
run FLdigi. But I found that everything I that allows one to use the sound card Yaesu FT-8900 radio. This would cer-
wanted to do could be done with parts I of a computer in order to send and tainly be easy to do, but then I looked
had on hand. For the most part, these receive digital communications wher- around my radio and electronics work
are electrical, not electronic, parts. I ever the FCC rules allow. In this case, rooms. I had a boatload of basic parts
used two switches, two 3.5-millimeter we’re using VHF frequencies, but oth- here, so I got the idea that I should see
stereo audio sockets, one 1-megohm ers have used this program to commu- if I could use some of these parts I’ve
resistor, and one 0.1-μF capacitor. Also, nicate on HF as well. The messages collected over the years to make some-
one empty dental floss box and one sent can be written words / forms, or thing that works. I figured it wouldn’t be
empty Altoids® tin. In all, I used far fewer data files like small low-resolution pic- pretty, but if it worked, I’d really love
electronic and mechanical parts / con- tures. There may be cables and boxes being able to say, “I did it my way.”
nectors than I expected. Also needed out there that can be purchased for your The first thing I attempted was to find
was a 3.5-mm mono-to-stereo convert- radio to do this type of communicating out which two wires coming from the mic
er for the audio from the transceiver to (my preference was to roll my own). For into the radio would be needed to put
more information on FLdigi, you can the computer FLdigi noise directly into
* Email: < ke3fl@yahoo.com> read articles about it on the web or you the radio. The Yaesu uses a CAT 5
Website: <http://cs.yrex.com/ke3fl> can peruse the FLdigi beginner’s User’s eight-wire connector, and I wanted to

I then used an empty Altoids®
box for the audio from the
FT-8900 to the PC and / or a
speaker.
wire up a connector to accept input from

either the mic or from the PC, and plug
directly into the mic port. So the mic
would plug into my extra port, the PC
would plug into an audio socket, and
then I’d have another eight-pin connec-
tor to plug from this circuit into the radio
mic port.
This turned out to be impossible. None
of the wires going into the radio came
directly from the mic. Or, at least I
couldn’t find them. I had to skip doing it
that way and so I opened up the mic and
found the wires from the mic element
(see Photo A). I cut the red wire (see
prototype in Photo B) and ran that to a
dental floss box outside the mic case.
In this box, I had a switch to attach the
mic element to the mic circuit or to
attach the output of the PC audio port
to this circuit (see Photo C). The black
wire from the mic was assumed to be
ground and I simply added a second
wire from the ground side of the PC
Photo B. Prototype of the connections needed to connect the computer audio audio to this wire. This is still working
into the radio’s mic line. well for me. Also see the schematic in
Figure 1.
If you noticed a red rubber band on
the mic, you probably guessed that it is
to keep the mic turned on when used
with the FLdigi data going from the com-
puter to the radio to be transmitted. I first
tried doing this by simply holding the mic
transmit button down by hand. Un-
fortunately, during one such transmis-
sion I accidentally let go of the button
too soon. I had to do that transmission
Figure 1. Mic-to-computer connections over again and decided I didn’t want that
to ever happen again, and so I added a
simple fix — the rubber band.
I then used an empty Altoids® box for
the audio from the FT-8900 to the PC
and / or a speaker. It contains an on-off-
on switch and two output audio ports.
One output goes to the audio input on
the PC, and the other goes to an exter-
nal speaker. The on-off-on switch then
controls the speaker when I’m receiv-
ing FLdigi data. When the switch is on
in one direction, it sends the audio to
the external speaker through a 1-
megohm resistor, so the audio is very
low but can heard. In the center-off posi-
tion, no audio goes to the external
speaker. The last “on” section goes
directly to the speaker for full audio. See
Photos D and E, and Figure 2.
This arrangement works really well for
me. I can, at times, close my eyes and
Photo C. Connections in the dental floss box listen to the low FLdigi data coming in,

going to my speaker and PC with very
low audio to the speaker. When the
FLdigi part is done, I can switch it back
to full audio for regular voice communi-
cation. (NOTE: Switching between vol-
ume levels while receiving a digital
message is not recommended because
it will interrupt the reception and add
random characters into the message or
picture.)
All in all, this was a very simple pro-
ject to do, even if I had a few false starts
and had to rethink how to do what I
wanted to do. A rubber band is not the
best solution. A switch would be better,
but that transmit switch is not a simple
on/off, Tx/Rx, switch. It has multiple
connections which I do not yet want to
figure out, or look up, so I can figure out
how to replace it with an actual locking
switch that keeps it in transmit until
switched the other way for receive. Or,
perhaps I’ll figure out a way to make a
tab to push into the switch inside the
Photo D. Radio-speaker connections, using an empty mint tin (front view). case to keep the button in the transmit
position. That’s a “simple” mechanical
solution. Perhaps one day I’ll get to the
point where I want to have that instead
of the rubber band.
If anyone has any other ideas for the
transmit button / switch, I’d like to hear
from you about it.
DC12 GO-BOX SERIES
MITY GO-BOX
9 to 20 Ah LiFePO4 Battery
Powerpole Port - DVM - USB Charger
Photo E. Radio-speaker connections (top view)

MAX GO-BOX
12 to 50 Ah Bioenno L iFePO4 Battery
High Vol to External Speaker Powerpole Port - DVM - USB Charger
Radio Audio Out Available with a 9 Ah to 50 Ah Bioenno

off 47-52 Ω Power Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery.
Direct solar panel input to built-in MPPT
Low Vol PC Audio Input solar charge controller, 150 or 300 watts.
Powerpole and Automotive type outlet;
USB QC3.0 fast charger and DVM. Rain
Radio Ground/Common to PC Audio Common tight and ready to go for your emergency
power requirements.
Speaker Common
CHARGED - READY TO GO
Figure 2. Schematic of radio-speaker output connections (866) 747-5277

Technology Special:
Most hams are fascinated by all sorts of communications technology,
even that which operates outside the ham bands. And if you have family
members flying somewhere, chances are you keep track of their flight on
your computer. How about tracking it yourself? K3BEQ and GDØNFN
show us how.
Tracking and Analyzing Digital

Transmissions of Aircraft
A Technical “Sidebar” for Ham Radio Operators
BY MURRAY GREEN,* K3BEQ AND JOHN BUTLER,# GDØNFN
I
t never ceases to amaze how ama-
teur radio operators use a diversity
of existing communications systems
to keep mentally active during periods
of low sunspot cycles and especially
during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Take
for example, a number of Ham Cam
International1 ham radio operators
located on the Isle of Man and in
England who decided to build and run
their own ADS-B ground stations that
can be installed anywhere and receive
real-time data directly from airplanes on
their computers.
By doing so, they join tens of thou-
sands of individuals, some hams, some
not, who track aircraft by detecting and
analyzing their digital transmissions as
they fly within receiving range of their
location. This data is also distributed
throughout the aviation industry by the
Photo A. L-R: Raspberry Pi, RTL SDR receiver, 1.090-GHz antenna
“FlightAware” organization as an elab-
orate information tool. There are over
30,000 ADS-B receiving stations in 197
countries providing this information.2
Interest to Hams?
You may ask: “How is this of interest to
amateur radio operators?” Fair enough.
For starters, it provides valuable edu-
cation about communication technolo-
gy in the low microwave bands. Hams
are able to detect and analyze 1.090-
GHz transmissions, learn about the
characteristics of that frequency (re-
member, there’s a ham band close by
at 1240-1300 MHz), what antenna is
best-suited for reception and assemble
the equipment necessary to receive
* Email: <k3beq@verizon.net>
# Email: <gd0nfn@gmail.com> Photo B. L-R: 5.2-volt, 2.5-amp power supply, Micro SD card reader, Micro SD card

and process the received data trans-
missions. They also provide a public
service by distributing the received data
to the aviation community and, in turn,
the public for use in determining where
aircraft are located at any specific time.
It is a change of pace for the amateur
and an education in aircraft transmis-
sions at a GHz frequency.
How to Receive Aircraft

Transponder Transmissions
To begin with, the digital protocol used
is called ADS-B or Automatic Depend-
ent Surveillance – Broadcast. ADS-B
replaces radar systems as the primary
surveillance method for controlling air-
craft worldwide. Aircraft flying in inter-
national air space, for example, utilize
transponders to continuously transmit a
digital signal on 1.090 GHz to identify
the aircraft and its position. Depending
on the type of aircraft, power output is
130-250 watts. These are the signals
we’ll be looking for.
In order to detect the aircraft’s
transponder signals in your radio shack,
the following basic equipment is
required. Please do not be intimidated
by the gear; it is not that complicated to Figure 1. Receive perimeter map centered on the Isle of Man, showing transpon-
assemble, and some of the items may der signals as far as 300 miles from co-author GDØNFN’s location. Each ring is
already be in use in your radio shack. A 50 miles in diameter.

dedicated computer is required if you antenna can be purchased to start. If • On drop-down menu, click on “How
intend to continuously monitor aircraft. using the FlightAware USB adapter, to Build a PiAware ADS-B Receiver”
Here’s what you’ll need, as seen in ensure the antenna has an SMA con- • Watch the video shown: <https://
Photos A and B: nector. If you use a telescoping mast youtu.be/A15lyH63cnM>
antenna, collapse it to a quarter wave-
1. Raspberry Pi3 with power supply length (6.9 centimeters / 2.7 inches) to This consists of the following how-tos:
(5.1 volts, 2.5 amps recommended) maximize reception.
2. Micro SD card (8 GB or larger) • Download PiAware software
3. Micro SD card reader. If your com- Application •Write the software to your micro SD
puter does not have a built in SD card card using “Etcher” software
It is recommended that you go to the fol-
reader / writer, a USB SD card reader / • Edit “piaware-config.txt” to configure
lowing URL for equipment options and
writer will be required (Photo B) your WiFi settings
instructions on assembling the equip-
4. USB SDR ADS-B receiver. The • Put the micro SD card into your
ment to track aircraft):
receiver translates the 1.090-GHz radio Raspberry Pi
signal into something the computer can • <http://flightaware.com>; click on • Plug in your RTL-SDR receiver
understand. Sign up in the upper right hand corner • Connect the antenna and power sup-
5. A 1.090-GHz antenna. An indoor • Click on ADS-B (top left/center) ply to the Raspberry Pi
To link the ADS-B equipment to your

PC / Mac, type the assigned IP address
into your browser (on the same net-
work); no hard links to the computer are
required. As your data is fed to the inter-
net, you can see you own data by going
to: <https://tinyurl.com/b65vjjnc> (The
last group of characters designates
your account name)
Note: You should wait about four or
five minutes for your PiAware software
to start and then you can associate your
FlightAware account with your PiAware
device to receive all the benefits.3 Once
your device is running, look up the IP
address in your router’s admin and go
to the assigned IP address in a brows-
er on the same network. If the device
hasn’t been claimed, a link to claim the
PiAware device will display.
Operating Procedures: There

Aren’t Any!
The most interesting thing about moni-
toring ADS-B signals is that it is all auto-
Making DX Happen matic with no manual intervention.
Once set up, the computer and the
Since 1983 associated equipment do all the work

by receiving the digital signal from the
aircraft and uploading it to the Flight
Aware central server. Welcome to the
world of full automation.
WWW.INDEXA.ORG Fun and Games
ϱϬϭ;ĐͿ;ϯͿŶŽŶͲƉƌŽĮƚŽƌŐĂŶŝǌĂƟŽŶ
Some amateurs have turned the data
into a competitive communications
sport to see who can capture the most
aircraft signals in a given timeframe. As
always, those with the better antenna
system win.
/Ey ΛŝŶĚĞǆĂͺĚǆ
Triangulation for Older
Systems
/ŶƚĞƌŶĂƟŽŶĂůyƐƐŽĐŝĂƟŽŶ Aircraft using an older identification sys-
ϮϯϬϵ>ŝŶĐŽůŶǀĞ͕^ĂŝŶƚůďĂŶƐ͕tsϮϱϭϳϳ͕h^ tem can be traced using the MLAT
(Multilateration) system where four
receiving sites have their data analyzed

centrally so that triangulation can be used to determine the aircraft’s position and From MILLIWATTS
KILOWATTS
speed. All of this is automatically done by the FlightAware software.
To
SM
The locations of aircraft within your receiving range will display on a map on
your computer (Figure 1). You can also track the number of flights tracked by your
More Watts per Dollar
SM
receiver by distance on a daily basis (Figure 2).
Summary
Experimenting has always been a part of the amateur radio community. Exploring Transmitting &
enables us to educate ourselves in new avenues of communications whether it is
directly or indirectly related to our hobby. Whether you live close to an airport or in
“flyover country,” you can track passing aircraft and hopefully have fun doing it.
Audio Tubes
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3CX1200Z7 4CX15000A 6146B
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Figure 2. The coverage graph shows the aircraft positions reported by distance Toll-Free: 800-737-2787
from the receiver. The majority of reports are from stations receiving data from (Orders only) 800-RF PARTS
aircraft 50-150 miles from the receiving station.
Website: www.rfparts.com
Notes: Fax: 760-744-1943
1. See Green, “Streaming Video Over Internet Protocol for Radio Amateurs,” CQ February
2021, p.52
888-744-1943
2. See <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FlightAware> Email: rfp@rfparts.com
3. As a thank you from FlightAware, users sending ADS-B data receive the following:
• Live data on flightaware.com (subject to standard data processing delay of up to 2 minutes)
• Access to up-to-the-second live data received by the local device (accessible from the stats
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• Data from local device highlighted on FlightAware track logs
• Detailed statistics on site performance
• A free Enterprise Account (USD $89.95/month value)
• To claim benefits, go to Section 5 of “How to Build a PiAware ADS-B Receive”

Technology Special:
One thing all our technology needs is a reliable source of power.

When normal utility power cuts out for one reason or another, a UPS, or
uninterruptible power supply, can help you shut things down in an orderly
fashion and possibly avoid damage to your gear from voltage transients
in the power line.
Uninterruptible Power Supplies for

The Radio Amateur
Or … Why Aren’t You Using a UPS Yet?
BY MICHAEL TORTORELLA,* W2IY
Y
ou’re enjoying a friendly QSO with a fellow ham across
the continent. QRN is down, signals are strong, and
copy is easy. Then — all of a sudden — everything
shuts down. No lights, no air conditioning, and no signals.
What on Earth!? Simple, but painful: A utility outage. Forty
minutes pass with no AC coming into the shack. This doesn’t
happen every day, but this time Murphy’s Law reigns
supreme. The QSO is busted, and your friend is left won-
dering where you got off to. Worse yet, when the utility power
returns to normal, instead of hearing signals, you hear only
the hiss of electrons running around pointlessly. Something
in the receiver got fried by a voltage transient. Aargh! Can
anything be done? Read on…
Protect Your Gear

The so-called “uninterruptible power supply,” or UPS, is an
electronic assembly that has a 120-volts AC input and that
continues to supply 120-volts AC output for some period of Photo A. CyberPower 1350AVRLCD uninterruptible power
time after the input is disconnected. It is placed between the supply (UPS) in service at W2IY.
wall receptacle and the equipment to be protected. The pur-
pose of the UPS is to continue to supply (power temporari-
ly) to the equipment on the protected side in the event of an Plain, Massachusetts <https://tinyurl.com/n4fd5dk8>. The
outage or other failure that causes the utility, 120-volts AC original purpose of this invention was to provide uninterrupted
to disappear. power to alarms and signal systems (such as railway signal
When the personal computer (PC) age began, it was rec- systems) critical to the safety of life and property. The first UPS
ognized that an undisciplined AC primary power source could was a large and ungainly thing. It was not intended for home
cause all sorts of unpleasant problems. Most older (and some use. However, refinements have been made over the years so
contemporary) PCs do not respond well to a sudden loss of that by the time the PC world was ready for the UPS, the UPS
primary power. Voltage transients accompanying a sudden was ready for local applications.
loss of utility power could damage hardware. Disorderly shut-
down of the operating system could, and usually did, result How Does a UPS Work?
in all sorts of mayhem. So there was ample reason to pro- The key component of any UPS is a means for storing elec-
vide a PC with a stable source of power, one that would not trical energy that is released when needed. Many energy
disappear suddenly (as could happen, for instance, when the storage schemes have been used, including mechanical fly-
utility suffered an outage). wheels and batteries. UPSs designed for home use invari-
One might think, then, that the UPS was developed in ably use rechargeable batteries for their energy storage
response to this need. This is a reasonable supposition, but it medium.
is incorrect. The UPS concept actually dates back to 1934, with The UPS receives primary power from the electric utility (or
U.S. Patent no. 1,953,602 issued to John Hanley of Jamaica your local solar power system, or whatever else might feed
the receptacles in your home of office). It also contains a sen-
* Email: <w2iy@verizon.net> sor circuit to detect when that primary power goes away, a

Photo B. CyberPower 1350AVR LCD
display
DC-to-AC converter that changes the

(typically 12 volts) battery DC power to
120-volts AC, and a scheme for switch-
ing automatically to the power generat- Photo C. PowerPanel™ home screen
ed in the UPS when the primary power
is interrupted. will be able to supply backup power in operation. It is intended only to give the
In a way, the word “uninterruptible” is the event of a utility outage, and other user enough time to shut down any pro-
an overstatement. A UPS can provide key parameters. You may also be able tected equipment gracefully, and to
backup power for some limited period of to enable or disable an audio alarm ensure that damaging voltage transients
time that depends on the design speci- which may be available to alert you do not enter the equipment via the power
fication of the UPS as well as the current when the UPS switches to backup input port.
draw of the protected equipment. Typi- mode. UPS monitoring and control soft-
cally, for a PC, a consumer-grade UPS ware can be a valuable enhancement Maintenance
provides power for a few, perhaps tens to your use of the system. See Photo C Most consumer-grade UPSs today
of, minutes, usually enough for the user for a screenshot from the PowerPanel™ use gel cell batteries as their backup
to close active programs and shut down UPS management software. power storage medium. These cells are
the PC in an orderly fashion. Of course, quite robust but will slowly discharge if
UPSs with more capability (longer back- Signal Purity not at least trickle-charged. Therefore,
up period or greater protected unit power Many UPS manufacturers caution that it is wise to leave a UPS permanently
draw) are readily available, but typical the UPS output is not a pure sine wave connected to utility power so that its bat-
consumer-grade UPSs should be and that consequently the primary UPS teries will remain charged and in good
viewed as only a means of providing application should be for protecting condition. Other than this, not much
short-term protection, just enough for the equipment for which this is not a con- maintenance attention is required.
user to shut down the PC in accordance cern. For instance, you may not want to When the batteries do reach their end
with the PC manufacturer’s recommen- use a UPS for high-end audio equipment of life, they are usually easily replace-
dations. because of the possibility that the signif- able by hams with even a modest level
icant harmonic distortion on the input AC of repair skills. The most difficult part
Software waveform could somehow leak into the can be locating the hidden fasteners
Many contemporary UPS systems, audio circuitry. My experience has been holding the case together. You can find
especially the more costly ones, that this is not a serious objection in ama- instructions for disassembling most
include, in addition to a built-in display teur radio applications, for two reasons. UPS units in the online resources pro-
(see Photo B for an example), a data First, I have been using various UPS vided by the UPS manufacturer.
interface (serial, or, more commonly, units in my ham shack for many years
USB) to a PC. Software can be installed and have never experienced any noise
on the PC that allows a user to monitor or other undesirable effects in any What Does This Have to Do
and control the UPS “remotely.” Often, receiver during routine operation (when With Ham Radio?
this software is proprietary to the par- the UPS is simply passing the utility Time was when ham rigs contained cir-
ticular UPS manufacturer but may be power through). Second, the period of cuits based on vacuum tubes. Well, the
offered to users of the UPS at no addi- time when the UPS is providing backup march of progress is unstoppable, and
tional cost. You can view the input and power, and hence “dirty” AC, is not the vacuum tube begat the semicon-
output voltages, battery condition and intended to last long, certainly not long ductor diode and transistor, and the tran-
state of charge, estimated time the UPS enough for any kind of long-term, routine sistor begat the integrated circuit, and the

integrated circuit begat the microproces- Here is where the UPS comes in. needs. This is also probably conserva-
sor, and we can probably list even more Voltage transients that may occur when tive, and if you are a better engineer
begats than occur in Deuteronomy. As mains power is suddenly cut off can than I am you can work out more exact
ham radios were designed and modern- cause damage to sensitive (difficult-to- figures using correct power factors
ized to take advantage of these new replace and/or NLA) semiconductors in rather than conservative guesses.
active technologies, point-to-point wiring the transceiver. A UPS is a good way Don’t forget to allow some margin for
gave way to wire-wrap circuits, which to protect your equipment from this fail- possible future growth, safety, etc.
gave way to printed circuit boards with ure mode. Furthermore, you may
through-hole components which, in turn, remember an instance (I certainly do) Experience at W2IY
gave way to surface-mount passive and when you were in the middle of a QSO I have been using a UPS ever since my
active devices. and your equipment suddenly went station became dominated by solid-
While this is good news for advanced dead. Your QSO partner is left won- state equipment. Photo A shows a
performance and bang-for-the-buck, it is dering what happened, where did you Cyberpower 1350AVRLCD in service
a double-edged sword for a few reasons. get off to? Goodbye, QSL card. And of at W2IY. Its specifications include:
First, hams have always prided them- course, Murphy prescribes that this will
selves on their ability to diagnose fail- happen on the last QSO that you need • Input 125-volts AC, 12A
ures and make repairs on their equip- for WAS, or WAZ, or something else • Output 125-volts AC, 10.8A, 810W
ment. This was much easier when equally frustrating. If this was because • Total output current 12A.
vacuum tubes and point-to-point wiring of a utility outage, a UPS could help you
were the norm (well, to be fair, even in avoid this madness. This UPS runs a 30-amp, 12-volt DC
the early days of semiconductors point- Of course, what we said before about power supply, a PC, and a few other
to-point wiring was used; the venerable the typical consumer-grade UPS being lower-power-drain peripherals. The DC
National HRO-500 is a good case in able to provide backup power for only a power supply runs a 100-watt class
point). However, as printed circuit limited period of time still applies. So transceiver, a 65-watt 2-meter base sta-
boards and multilayer boards with sur- you don’t use the UPS to continue oper- tion, and an automatic antenna tuner. I
face-mount devices became more com- ation beyond a fairly short period of also run a digital GMT clock off the pro-
mon, it became more difficult for the time, for example, enough to graceful- tected side of the UPS so that I don’t
average ham to continue to be his/her ly exit your current QSO, but not enough have to reset the clock when a utility
own repair facility. In addition to the to work a contest throughout a signifi- power outage occurs.
mechanical repair difficulty now intro- cant utility power outage. But the pos-
duced by surface-mount technology, it sibility of avoiding damage to your Conclusion
can happen (and often does) that cer- equipment, as well as avoiding QSO For a variety of inescapable reasons,
tain semiconductor devices (particularly frustration, makes it well worth an modern ham radio equipment is more
microprocessor and memory devices, investment in even a modest UPS. susceptible to damage from voltage
and RF power transistors) become Ones that are suitable for ham shack transients (including lightning, static dis-
obsolete after what many might consid- use typically cost less than $100 and charge, and line voltage transients) than
er a fairly short period of time after initial will provide you with enough time for a older rigs. Susceptible semiconductors
sale of the transceiver or automatic graceful shutdown. UPSs of this kind are harder to remove and replace for the
antenna tuner or other necessary tool. are available at office supply stores, ham who does not have specialized sol-
When this happens, even repair by the home improvement stores, and many dering equipment. Some semiconduc-
manufacturer (who presumably has the online retailers. tors may become obsolete rather quick-
tools and skills necessary to deal with ly, rendering repair of units using these
the surface-mount issue) is out of the Sizing a UPS for Your Station next to impossible. For these reasons,
question because the necessary parts When you go to buy a UPS, you will see taking steps to protect equipment from
are no longer available, or as they say that its capacity may be stated in watts damaging voltage transients is a prudent
in the trade, NLA. or VA (volt-amperes). VA are like watts, and cost-effective course of action.
Consequently, hams who respect but for AC they are not the same as Much attention has been given to meth-
their equipment look for ways to protect watts unless the power factor is 1. In ods for protecting against lightning and
it against environmental insults. There most practical equipment, power fac- static discharge damage. It is at least as
is certainly a great deal of interest in tors are less than 1, so the VA number important to consider the other primary
lightning protection because it is wide- overstates the power (in watts) the UPS ingress point for damaging voltages, and
ly understood that a lightning strike, or can protect for. In practice, this means that is the utility power input to the power
even a buildup of static electricity on an that when developing requirements for supply. We recommend routine use of a
antenna, can damage sensitive semi- your UPS, you typically add up the UPS in the amateur station to keep your
conductors in a receiver. An ARRL power consumption (in watts) of all the transceiver and other expensive system
book1 has recently been published to equipment you want to protect and components from being damaged by
provide hams with practical sugges- choose a UPS that can handle at least utility outages or junk that comes in over
tions for mitigating lightning damage. this much power. If the UPS specifica- the power lines, as well as to provide
This addresses damage that may tion is in watts, you can compare your time for a graceful shutdown of the
sneak in to your transceiver through the need in watts directly with the specifi- equipment and any possible QSO in
antenna port(s). But a transceiver is cation. If the UPS specification is in VA, progress.
also connected to the world through its you may conservatively multiply your
power supply (which may be external to REFERENCES:
total watts computation by 1.5 to com- 1. H. W. Silver (2015), Grounding and
the physical transceiver box itself). So pare against the VA capacity. This is a Bonding for the Radio Amateur. ISBN 978-1-
you want to consider damage that may relatively easy way to find a UPS that 62595-065-9. Newington, CT: American Radio
enter via its power connections. has enough capacity to serve your Relay League.

Holiday Gift Ideas for the
Hams in Your Life...
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CQ Communications, Inc.
Phone: 516-681-2922
http://store.cq-amateur-radio.com
Announcing:
2022 CQ World Wide WPX RTTY Contest
February 12-13, 2022
NEW! Starts 0000 UTC Saturday; Ends 2359 UTC Sunday
Youth
y
Categor Log Deadline: 2359 UTC February 18, 2022
Thrill in the chase of over 2,300 unique callsign Entry Categories

prefixes from 200+ DX entities in the world’s The competition is divided into Single Operator and Multi-
largest everyone-works-everyone RTTY contest. Operator categories. Single Operator categories also offer
four Overlay categories which may be entered IN ADDITION
The CQ World Wide WPX RTTY Contest is an immense- TO the normal Single Operator category. All entry categories
ly popular operating activity that enjoys broad participation may use QSO finding assistance except for the Classic
by amateurs around the globe. The event attracts amateurs Overlay.
at all levels of proficiency from beginner to world champion Single Operator (all bands or any single band): Only one
and is a rich hunting ground for bagging callsign prefixes in operator finds, makes, and logs all contacts.
pursuit of the coveted CQ WPX Awards Program endorse-
ments. WPX features a diversity of categories for single oper- • High power: Up to 1,500 watts
ator and multi-operator stations, including the newly added • Low power: 100 watts or less
Youth Category for entrants 25 years of age or younger, so • QRP: 5 watts or less
please come and join the fun!
Single Operator Overlay Categories: Entrants in Single
Operator categories may also submit their log for one of the
Contest Basics overlay categories shown below. Overlay entries are
The contest event runs from 0000 UTC Saturday until 2359 grouped into all band, high power, or low power (includes
UTC Sunday on the second full weekend in February. QRP) in the results.
Amateurs worldwide try to contact as many amateurs and Tribander / Single-Element Overlay – Allows the use of a
prefixes as possible during the period of operation. Single multi-band, multi-element antenna with one feedline for the
Operator stations are scored on the first 30 hours of their total 14-, 21-, and 28-MHz bands, plus a single-element antenna
operating time within the 48 hours period and off times must for each of the 3.5- and 7-MHz bands. One example is a 3-
be a minimum of 60 minutes during which no QSO is logged. element tri-band antenna for 14, 21, and 28 MHz plus an
Multi-operator stations are scored for the full 48 hours. inverted-V wire dipole for 3.5 MHz and another one for 7
Contacts are valid on the 3.5-, 7-, 14-, 21-, and 28-MHz MHz. Another example is a single-element, multi-band ver-
bands (no WARC bands). Exchange an RS(T) report plus a tical antenna for all five bands or a fan dipole of single ele-
progressive contact serial number starting with 001 for the ment dipoles for each band using a single feedline.
first contact. Note: Multi-Two, Multi-Unlimited, and Multi- Rookie Overlay – Open to operators who were first licensed
Transmitter Distributed entrants use separate serial number as radio amateurs less than three (3) years before the date
sequences on each band. of the contest. You will be asked to indicate the year you
were first licensed when submitting your log.
Scoring Youth Overlay (New for 2022) – Open to all operators who
The final score is the result of the total QSO points multiplied are 25 years old or younger on the dates of the contest. You
by the number of different prefixes worked. A station may be will be asked to indicate your birthday when submitting your log.
worked once on each band for QSO point credit, prefix mul- Classic Overlay – Allows only one radio, no receiving dur-
tipliers only count once. ing transmitting, QSO finding assistance is NOT allowed and
Contacts between stations on different continents are worth only the first 24 hours of operation count for the Classic
three (3) points on 28, 21, and 14 MHz and six (6) points on Overlay score.
7 and 3.5 MHz. Multi-Operator Categories (All Band only): More than one
Contacts between stations on the same continent, but dif- person can contribute to the final score during the official
ferent countries, are worth two (2) points on 28, 21, and 14 contest period.
MHz and four (4) points on 7 and 3.5 MHz. Single-Transmitter – Only one transmitted signal is per-
Contacts between stations in the same country are worth mitted at any time. The station may change bands up to 10
one (1) point on 28, 21, and 14 MHz and two (2) points on 7 times per hour. This category has specific restrictions on
and 3.5 MHz. band changes so please read the full rules carefully.
The prefix multiplier is the number of valid prefixes worked.
Each prefix is counted only once regardless of the band or • High power: Up to 1,500 watts
number of times the same prefix is worked. Special event, • Low power: 100 watts or less
commemorative, and other unique prefix stations are encour-
aged to participate. A station operating from a DXCC entity Two-Transmitter – Two bands may be transmitted on simul-
different from that indicated by its callsign is required to sign taneously. Each station may change bands up to 8 times an
portable. Prefixes must be issued or permitted by the licens- hour.
ing authority of the country of operation. See the full rules for Multi-Transmitter (Unlimited) – One transmitted signal is
a description of what constitutes a prefix. allowed on each of the six contest bands.

Multi-Transmitter Distributed – A maximum of six trans- plaque awarded to the club making the highest total com-
mitted signals, one per band at any one time, from stations bined score of their members.
in different locations. All equipment (transmitters, receivers,
amplifiers, antennas, etc.) must be located in same DXCC Submitting Your Log
entity and CQ Zone, including remotely controlled equip- Electronic logs should be in the Cabrillo format. Upload your
ment. Six bands may be activated simultaneously. log on the web at <www.cqwpxrtty.com/logcheck>.
Checklog: Entry submitted to assist with the log checking. Uploading logs via the Web is the only approved method for
The entry will not have a score in the results and the log will submitting a log; paper logs are not accepted.
not be made public. All entries must be emailed WITHIN FIVE (5) DAYS after
the end of the contest, no later than 2359 UTC 18 February
Awards 2022. Logs may be resubmitted any number of times and only
Electronic certificates will be made available for download the last log submitted is used in log checking. Resubmitting
for everyone that submits an on-time entry. Plaques are an entry after the deadline will result in it being considered as
awarded to recognize top performance in a number of cate- a late log.
gories. The current list of plaques and sponsors is at <www.
cqwpxrtty.com/plaques.htm>. Full Rules Online
Complete rules are available in several languages at
Club Competition <www.cqwpxrtty.com/rules.htm> and in English only on CQ
Many clubs around the world compete vigorously for the magazine’s website <www.cq-amateur-radio.com>.
Announcing:
2022 Nominations Open for the CQ Amateur Radio,
DX, and Contest Halls of Fame
E
ach year CQ recognizes those who have made Please include your name and contact information as well.
significant contributions to amateur radio in gener- Email to <hall-of-fame@cq-amateur-radio.com> or mail to
al, and to DXing and contesting in particular, cre- CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame, P.O. Box 1206, Sayville,
ating three categories of awards. Nominations for all three NY, 11782. The official nomination form is on the CQ web-
Halls of Fame open on January 1, 2022 and will close on site <www.cq-amateur-radio.com>. Please indicate in your
March 1, 2022. email subject line for which hall of fame the nomination is
being submitted.
CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame
Amateur radio operators have been responsible for many CQ DX and Contest Halls of Fame
advances in communications technology, and entire indus- Nominations for the CQ DX Hall of Fame and the CQ Contest
tries have been built on the foundation of amateur radio exper- Hall of Fame recognize those amateurs who have made
imentation and activity. In an effort to recognize outstanding major contributions to DXing and contesting, respectively.
amateurs and their achievements, and help the public appre- The activities and accomplishments that qualify one for mem-
ciate the far-reaching and longstanding value of amateur bership in these elite groups involve considerable personal
radio in our society, we have established the CQ Amateur sacrifice and can usually be described by the phrase “above
Radio Hall of Fame. Nominations for the 2022 “class” are now and beyond the call of duty.” Nominations for the Contest and
open. Members of the 2021 “class” were announced last May DX Halls of Fame may be made by clubs, organizations, or
and appeared in the July issue of CQ. individuals, and must be submitted by March 1 of each year
The CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame honors those whose to be considered.
technical or other accomplishments have helped propel ama- A maximum of two (2) people may be inducted into each
teur radio forward, or whose achievements in other areas of hall of fame (DX and Contest) each year. Nominations for the
life have helped improve ham radio’s reputation simply CQ Contest and DX Halls of Fame should be directed to CQ
through association. Nominees for the CQ Amateur Radio DX Hall of Fame or CQ Contest Hall of Fame, P.O. Box 1206,
Hall of Fame will be judged on the basis of qualifying in one Sayville, NY 11801; or via email to <hall-of-fame@cq-ama-
of two broad areas: Those individuals — whether licensed teur-radio.com>. Please indicate in your email subject line
amateurs or not — who have made significant contributions for which hall of fame the nomination is being submitted.
to the amateur radio hobby; and those radio amateurs who If you feel someone has earned this recognition, please
have made significant contributions to society in general. submit a nomination. Please don’t assume that someone else
Nominees must have made significant contributions of will nominate the person you may have in mind. Nominations
nationwide or worldwide impact. from past years will not automatically be carried over.
Nominations for the Amateur Radio Hall of Fame may be We plan to announce this year’s selections in May. Please
made by clubs, organizations, or individuals. State your can- help us recognize these “ham radio heroes” whose contri-
didate’s name, where to contact him/her if still living, for which butions have helped shape our hobby, our nation, or our
category you are nominating him/her, and a brief one- to two- world. Remember, the nomination deadline for all three CQ
paragraph description of this person’s accomplishments. Halls of Fame is March 1, 2022.

MATH’S NOTES
BY IRWIN MATH,* WA2NDM
The Future Still Will Not Necessarily Be What We Think It Will!
T
wenty-two years ago, we projected what we thought electrons could be controlled, everything up to and including
the future of our technology would be. Well, 22 years color television was possible. Even basic computers were
later it’s time to take another look! If the problems we manufactured at the time, albeit with a myriad of vacuum
agonized over for the past two years (Covid 19, political tubes but they did “calculate” nevertheless. In 1948, at Bell
unrest, and global warming) have not destroyed our civiliza- Labs in New Jersey, the transistor was developed and the
tion (as we know it) by the time you read this, the new year age of solid-state physics was born. This was another fun-
will be “just around the corner.” Since this is a time when damental discovery of the magnitude of the vacuum tube and
many people consider and predict the future, not to be out- the future shape of electronics would never be the same.
done, I would like to continue to present my point of view of Filament power was eliminated, the size of the amplifying
the technology to come as well as review how our thoughts element was reduced by magnitudes and the eventual out-
have either changed, remained the same or reversed. To growth was the integrated circuit. While the frequency
understand what I base my views on we must first consider response for vacuum tubes did eventually extend into the
where we have come from. GHz range, noise figures and costs were high. Today the
The growth of technology during the start of the 20th cen- transistor has made GHz operation at almost theoretical
tury has certainly been outstanding. In 1900, Marconi was noise figures an everyday occurrence (with devices that cost
first thinking about radio transmissions. The Wright brothers a dollar or so) which brings me to my first prediction. I believe
had not yet flown and horse-drawn vehicles were clogging that solid-state physics as we currently employ it will be
our roads, not the automobile. If you were fortunate enough replaced (or at least supplemented at some point during the
to have a wind-up Victrola, you could listen to recorded music late 21st century) with something else. Once frequencies of
on shellac coated disks and cylinders, but even the simple hundreds of GHz need to be routinely handled to accom-
vacuum tube had not yet been developed. The great Thomas modate our growing need to rapidly transfer vast amounts of
Edison dismissed the one-way flow of electrons from a fila- data, basic physics comes into play and the physical size of
ment to a metal plate in a vacuum as interesting (he dubbed the conventional electronic switch, amplifier or gate (as we
it the “Edison Effect”) but not of much use to help prevent know it) limits the maximum speed that it can operate at. I
blackening of the glass in his new electric lamp. Even basic believe, however, that we will learn how to switch, amplify
electrical service to many homes was rare. During the next and process light inexpensively the way we now do with con-
100 years, however, we would see the development of vac- ventional high frequencies or perhaps something else even
uum tube and then solid-state electronics, television, the air- more remote will suddenly be discovered that will do the job.
craft and space industry, orbiting satellites, nuclear physics, Remember, before 1895 (Marconi’s first transmission) the
the laser, the entire field of opto-electronics, the micro- entire field of wireless was only a mathematical equation on
processor and the computer revolution, both in hardware as James Maxwell’s desk and by 1903 the Atlantic had been
well as software. In 1900, predictions of where we would be spanned! Who knows what other equations or theories exist
in the year 2000 would fall far short of the mark. Even as late on someone’s desk today?
in the century as the 1939 World’s Fair, predictions of where As I said 22 years ago, the shrinking of electronic circuitry
our society would be, technologically, in the 1960s and ’70s has continued and we now have chips containing millions of
were not particularly accurate. transistors (in some cases). A great deal of current design is
Furthermore, only 35 years ago, the mass computer revo- with complete functional blocks as well as microprocessors
lution was just a dream in some minds and four-function cal- and software has become as important as standard elec-
culators were as close as we came to the state of the art. tronic circuit design. Along these same lines, external com-
The slide rule was still the sign of the “true engineer” just like ponents are often so small that in many cases they can only
the typewriter was the author’s best friend. The general pub- be interconnected with machines as human hands are not
lic did not even have a clue of what was to come. As a result steady enough to solder them on tiny circuit boards (even
of developments that we don’t even know of yet (but will sure- under microscopes) and only components limited to those
ly come), any specific prediction of where we will be in 2100 required for direct human interface (speakers, microphones,
by anyone, in my opinion, will also fall far from its mark. If switches, displays, power sources, etc.) remain. Along these
you still doubt this statement, a book previously offered by lines I still believe, as I did then that the use of basic com-
the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art entitled ponents such as resistors capacitors, diodes, etc. will dwin-
“Yesterday’s Tomorrows” is still available you should get or dle even more as the 21st century progresses and that a new
borrow a copy and read it. This book will give you a very good way of implementing electronic designs will come about.
idea of how future predictions (made in the early 20th I am sure that the physical size of power sources such as
Century) may have captured some of the “flavor” of what batteries (both chemical and solar), fuel cells and the like will
eventually would be but not the essence. continue to shrink to match the new products being devel-
Enough said. In the 20th century, there were some funda- oped. The portable devices I spoke about then, such as cel-
mental developments that shaped the current state of our lular-type communications links, have truly become “Dick
technology. The first was, of course the vacuum tube. Once Tracy wrist radios” (or communicators) with full color motion
video to boot. In some cases, some are actually really fully
functioning wrist sized (or at least pocket sized) computers,
*c/o CQ magazine far beyond simple telephones. I also think that revolutionary

new, very rapidly long-lived rechargeable power sources will the frequencies of 100 micrometers and down (way beyond
be developed. After all, the common battery — be it carbon- visible light into the far UV region) will have many surprises
zinc, lead acid, or nickel cadmium — is not much different in in store for us as well and that we will begin to explore these
principle from what was used in the early 1900s. In terms of in the latter part of the 21st century.
watts per pound (the figure of merit for a power source) I do Unfortunately, I still do not have a clear prediction for ama-
not believe that we have come far enough and the need is teur radio. I think, however, that we had better get our act
certainly much more important today. Possibly a safe nuclear together and “swell the ranks” by whatever means makes
device will come about or maybe even something else. sense or we will surely lose many if not all of our privileges.
I also believe that although artificial intelligence in the form Spectrum space is just worth far too much, especially the
of “Alexa”, “Google Assistant” or “Siri” is becoming more and VHF and UHF bands (unless an entirely new propagation
more prevalent and refined, we will certainly begin to really medium emerges). Since so many developments were
communicate with machines verbally and items such as key- made in the past by experimenters (with the knowledge
boards, mice or touch screens will fall by the wayside and base of their time), there is no real reason why the trend
the machines in turn will “talk” back to us in the same way. could not continue. The expression “oh, it’s much harder
Already telephone information services using speech recog- today” means to me that you are not thinking “out of the
nition and synthesis are in common use but not totally reli- box.” Remember that when Hertz set out to prove a math-
able — yet. However, in the next 10 to 20 years I think these ematical equation, what sophisticated equipment or labo-
techniques will become so perfected that we will interface ratory did he have?
with our computers (or whatever they will evolve to) and other There are numerous areas that could be covered when try-
devices as easily as we interface with others. It will also be ing to predict the technological future but as before I have
harder and harder to distinguish a machine from a fellow limited myself to only a few to give you a fleeting glance of
human being for many routine interactions. what may come (in my opinion). I believe that while we can-
As the century progresses, the frequencies used will most not really guess specifically what will come, we can certain-
certainly continue to climb higher and higher. GHz is already ly view the coming century as one in which technological
replacing MHz as a common term just as picoseconds will developments will occur at a much faster rate than in the past
replace microseconds. Already some major semiconductor if we do not destroy ourselves in the process. In 1900 we did
manufacturers have announced that 100-GHz SiGe devices not have much of a real technical base to work from. In 2021
will shortly be available. That’s 200 Gb/s+ logic by the way! we have an infinitely better starting point.
Others will most certainly follow in a short time and push the Season’s Greetings to all of my readers and to paraphrase
speed still higher. Just the way amateurs, given the “useless” my usual end-of-the-year comment, “may the coming year
frequencies from “200 meters and down” discovered the bring you all that your heart desires”.
whole world of shortwave radio propagation, I believe that – 73, Irwin, WA2NDM

THE LISTENING POST
BY GERRY DEXTER
China Radio Gives Stations Genuine Names
The transmitter
room at the Voice
of America’s
Botswana site.
for anyone with just a passing interest Voz Missionaria via Florinapolis on
in the subject. The only hiccup is the 9665 at 2333 with presumed sermon.
price: A budget busting $46.95. The (Brossell, WI)
Kindle edition, however, is a more real- Radio Brazil Central via Goiania on
istic $9.95, which is a very reasonable 11815 at 2321 with talks. (Brossell, WI)
price for a fun, nostalgic read. CHINA—China Radio International on
A QSL from past pirate Radio Merlin 9675 via Shijiazhuang at 1330 in Russian;
International. Cool as long as he on 13630 via Mali with headlines at 2102.
doesn’t trip over his beard hooking up Listener Logs (Brossell, WI) On 9710 and 11660 via
Rudolph. Your shortwave broadcast station logs Kashi at 2210 in French with short talks
are always welcome. But please be and musical segments to close with sta-
~ The mainland Chinese seem to be sure to double or triple space between tion ID at 2227. (D’Angelo, PA) On 11725
moving away from labeling their domes- the items, list each log according to the via Xiangyang at 1750 in German with
tic services numerically. Instead of station’s home country and include your apparent German-to-Chinese lesson.
CNR-1 through 17, they’re being given last name and state abbreviation after (Barton, AZ)
actual names. Thus, CNR-2 has each. Also needed are spare QSLs, sta-
evolved into China Business Radio; tion schedules, brochures, pennants,
CNR-7 becomes Greater Bay Area station photos, and anything else you
Radio; CNR-14 the Voice of Hong think would be of interest. The same
Kong, and so on. Maybe someday a holds for you amateur radio operators
wizard will come along and sort it all out; who also listen to shortwave broadcasts
for now, it won’t be me. ... I know you’re out there! You, too, are
also most welcome to contribute!
~ Now that we’ve reached December, Here are this month’s logs. All times
things seem to have gone quiet in the are in UTC. If no language is mentioned
GLD shack. Except ... comes now English is assumed.
another new book by a longtime SWBC
DXer. Bruce Churchill has authored ASCENSION—BBC North Atlantic
Radio’s Global Voices, A Radio Relay on 11810 at 2153 on domestic vio-
Journey Across 7 Continents, a two- lence. (Brossell, WI)
part story about listening to exotic radio BOTSWANA—Voice of America (VOA)
stations on the shortwave bands. on 7460 via Mopeng Hill at 0420 with man
Essentially a beginner’s guide, it deals and woman speaking in Kinyarwanda /
with the whats, whys, and wherefores Kirundi. (Barton, AZ) On 15460 at 1544 in
of shortwave. In Part Two, Churchill Hausa. (Brossell, WI)
offers examples of the correspondence BRAZIL—(All in Portuguese – GLD)
he’s had with these stations, ranging Radio Clube do Para via Belem on 4885
from QSLs to letters, schedules, sou- at 0315 and 0330 with a conversation
venirs, etc. This should be a fun book between two men and time pips.
(D’Angelo, PA)
Radio Educacao Rural on 4925 via Tefe
at 1026 with a man talking and Brazilian Half of Bruce Churchill’s new book fea-
*c/o CQ magazine tures mouth-watering QSLs.
music. (Taylor, WI)

Voice of Jinling on 6200 via Nanjang at
1225 sign on with lively music and woman
giving station ID. (Taylor, WI)
China Huayi Broadcasting on 6185 via
Fuzhou at 1132 in Mandarin, then con-
temporary music and woman speaking in
Mandarin. (Taylor, WI)
Voice of the Greater Bay on 7345 via
Beijing at 1147 in Cantonese, man with
light music. (Taylor, WI)
China Business Radio on 11740 via
Lingshi at 1500 with guitar music sepa-
rating man and woman talking in Chinese.
(Barton, AZ)
COLOMBIA—La Montana Colombia
via Macao on 4940 at 0332 and woman
giving a religious talk, Spanish station ID
followed by another religious talk.
(D’Angelo, PA) At 1020 with man giving a
Bible lesson. (Taylor, WI) One of the control rooms at the Voice of Nigeria.
ENGLAND—BBC on 7295 via Austria
at 0051 with woman speaking in Dari, man
giving station ID over instrumental music,
woman opened in Pashto at 0100; on
9900 via Sri Lanka Relay in Bangali at
1345. (Brossell, WI & D’Angelo, PA) At
0153. (Taylor, WI) On 11965 at 1830 with
man speaking in Amharic. (Taylor, WI)
FRANCE—R RFI on 11780 1747 in Fulani.
(Brossell, WI)
GUAM—A Adventist World Radio on
11960 at 2200 sign on with man speaking
in Ngaju. (Baton, AZ) On 11990 in Java-
nese at 2239. (Brossell, WI)
INDIA—A All India Radio on 11560 via
Bengaluru at 1348 in Dari at some length.
(Brossell, WI) At 1411. (Taylor, WI)
INDONESIA—V Voice of Indonesia on
3325 via Palangkayara at 1126 with man
speaking in what sounded more like
Japanese or Korean than their normal
Indonesian. (Taylor, WI)
JAPAN—R Radio Japan on 11815 via
Yamata at 1242 in Japanese. (Brossell, WI) Not sure who is interviewing whom at FEBC-Philippines.
Radio Nikkei One on 3925 at 1130 but
not as strong as on 6055. (Barton, AZ)
MADAGASCAR— MW V/African Intl (via France to Ethiopia) on 17750 at in Juba, Arabic and English announce-
Pathways Radio on 11965 via Mahajanga *1600-1658* opening in Tigrinya with ments. (D’Angelo, PA)
at 2047 offering a free Bible study course. news and English clips. (D’Angelo, WI) Denge Welat (via Moldova to Turkey) on
(Brossell, WI) Iran International (via France to Iran) on 9525 at 2034 with a man speaking in
MALI—RTV du Mali via Bamako on 9930 at 0122 with woman speaking in Kurdish and Kurdish vocal group. (Taylor,
5995 with man speaking in French and Farsi, then woman and man talking, and WI)
into an Arabic pop music program, as apparent audio from Iran Intl TV. (Taylor, Radio Dap Loi Song Nui (via Taiwan to
usual the carrier was cut without any WI) Vietnam) on 9670 in Vietnamese at 1234
formal closedown announcement. Furusato No Kaze (Japan to North with man and woman talking and short
(D’Angelo, PA) Korea) on 9705 and 9450 closing at 1430 items, there was a whining Vietnamese
MEXICO—Radio E ducacion on 6185 with woman speaking in Japanese. jammer. (Taylor, WI)
at 0830 with woman speaking in (Barton, AZ) PHILIPPINES—Far East Broadcasting
Spanish and a jazz trio, station ID at the Nippon No Kaze (Japan to North Korea) on 12055 via Bocaue at 0015 with a man
bottom of the hour. (Barton, AZ) on 9685 open with woman speaking in opening in Lahu with pop cut outs; into the
NEW ZEALAND—RNZI Pacific on 6115 Korean over music and a monologue by Wa language at the quarter hour. (Barton,
via Wellington at 1359 with songs by a man. (Barton, AZ) AZ)
Adele. (Brossell, WI) Voice of the People (South Korea to PIRATES—KIPM on 6950 upper side-
NIGERIA—Voice of Nigeria via Abuja North) on 3480 at 1130 and on 9105 at band (u) at 0001 with strange sounds like
on 11770 at 1820 on economic expansion 1152, both were in Korean. (Taylor, WI) the old KIPM, one station ID at 0005 and
there. (Brossell, WI) Echo of Hope (South Korea to North) on gave the old PO Box address. (Hassig, IL)
NORTH KOREA—KCBS on 11710 at 4890 in Korean at 1142, also on 6255. 1W on 6920u at 2346 with program of
1249 with martial music and Korean (Taylor, WI) shortwave signals over music waterfall
announcements. (Brossell, WI) Radio Tamazuj (via France to Sudan) slow-scan TV (SSTV), a few very fast CW
OPPOSITION—Dimtse Woyane Tigray on 15400 at 1547 with a woman speaking station IDs, and a verbal one at 0015. Goat

r e a t H o l i d a y Gift
AG
e S W L i s te n e r!
for th
NEW 10th Edition!
by John Figliozzi
Adventist World Radio’s tall towers overlook the Pacific Ocean on Guam.
Cheese Radio on 6935u at 0013 with Zeeky hosting a program of hard rock music.
Radio Irrational International on 6935u at 0052 faded out or something at 0059, sta-
tion ID and off at 0103. Lode Radio on 6970u at 0152 with rambling talk. WFDR on
6935u at 2038 with an FDR depression era speech, off with station ID at 2058. Black
Flag Radio on 6925u at 2131 with Zeeky rambling on about QRP radio, another song
at 0029 and off. Burry Cookie Hour on 5185 at 2332 with pop music, disco, etc., appar- The new, expanded 10th Edition of
ently transmitted through Radio Illumati. (Taylor, WI) John Figliozzi’s Worldwide Listening
Reported in previous columns: Outhouse Radio, Ballsmacker Radio, WTF Guide includes completely updated
Worldwide, Wolverine Radio, Radio Genix. listings of popular radio programs
ROMANIA—Radio Romania International on 13660 at 1545, (not usually heard here) that can be heard using traditional
with woman speaking in Arabic, IS at 1555, then off; on 15340 at 1340 with pop music
in Romanian. (Barton, AZ) shortwave receivers, as well as
SAO TOME—VOA Relay on 7265 via PInheira at 0530 with man and woman speak- today’s newer listening technologies.
ing in French. (Barton, AZ) Program listings are classified by
SWEDEN—IBRA Media / Radio Sama on 15510 via Woofferton at 1830 with man genre and tell you the time of
and woman speaking in Arabic with references to Afghanistan. (Barton, AZ) day and day of the week they are
UNITED STATES—VOA on 17700 via Vatican at 1505 in Hausa with hoarse-voiced on-the-air, and how to find them on
man reading the news. (Taylor, WI)
VOA/Deewa Radio on 12035 via Thailand with man and woman speaking in Pashto. your shortwave receiver, WiFi
(Taylor, WI) radio, computer, and other listening
Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on 15310 via Woofferton at 1457 in Uzbek with alternating devices.
man and woman talking. (Taylor, WI)
Radio Farda on 12005 via Woofferton at 1700 in Farsi with pops and time pips at This new edition updates and reviews
the bottom of the hour. (Barton, AZ) all of the ways programs can be
Adventist World Radio on 15490 at 1645 with a long monologue in Tigrinya. (Barton, heard– “live,” on-demand, WiFi,
AZ) On 17570 via France at 1632-1659* with man speaking in Somali, vocals, anoth- podcast, satellite, internet, digital and,
er man giving a religious talk. (D’Angelo, PA) of course, analog AM, FM and SW.
Supreme Master TV on 5900 via Okeechobee at 0020 with many station IDs, talk
segments hosted by male and female announcers. (D’Angelo, PA) Spiral-bound to open in a flat, easy-
VATICAN— on 15565 with a choir to sudden close at 1727. (Barton, AZ) to-use format.
Back in the Day
~ Armed Forces Radio / AFRTS on 4319 via Diego Garcia at 2233 on January 9,
AVAILABLE NOW!
DAY!
2006; also on 7811 both in USB mode with AFRS programming. ORDER YOURS TO
Thanks for Your Logs $29.95 + shipping
With immense gratitude, I thank the following reporters: William Hassig, Mt.
Pleasant, IL; Harold Sellers, Vernon, BC; Rick Barton, El Mirage, AZ; Rich The W5YI Group
D’Angelo, Wyomissing, PA; Mark Taylor, Madison, WI; and Bob Brossell, 1-800-669-9594
Pewaukee, WI.
Until next month ... Keep on keepin’ on, and ... Celebrate Shortwave! www.w5yi.org
CQ 1-22

Technology Special:
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
BY STAN BROADWAY,* N8BHL
Using the Technology We Have
I Many emergency personnel will open a drawer

t may be ham radio heresy to say it out loud, but in the
view of many, amateur radio is no longer on the front burn- and hold up a satellite phone as the ultimate
er as a backup resource. There are several reasons for fallback in communication. They are nifty, and to
this, many having to do with improvements to the “regular”
communication systems we depend upon daily. But there
be sure, they offer completely independent
are some specific functions amateur radio technology can communication. Except when they don’t.
contribute before, during and after an emergency.
pate on those playing fields. After years of depending on
Commercial and Public Safety Radio is Far satellite-based communication and highly technical modes
Better Than It Used to Be on frequencies that include “gigahertz” in their names, even
My first exposure to public safety radio came in the late 1960s, the military has rediscovered the efficacy of relatively sim-
when every county sheriff’s office in the entire state was on ple HF communication. ALE and other tricks make it even
one frequency and every cruiser answered back on the same more effective.
frequency. While there was a certain element of “safety in “Back in the day,” making a phone call via our brick-sized,
numbers,” we knew we could usually count on the “FM cap- crystal-controlled handheld amateur radio drew a small
ture effect” to connect our cruiser with the correct county base crowd who’d never seen such a thing. Today with multiple
station. It worked most of the time. By the late 1980s, digital cellphones in their pockets, the general population can’t even
FM was under development and the “public safety” band was remember a time when the phone was bolted to the wall and
nearly full of licensed frequencies. APCO International, the linked via copper wire. Many safety agencies rely on cell cov-
public safety standards organization, began the P-25 digital erage at least as a secondary resource for communicating.
voice protocols around 1988, with phase 2 launching around All of us rely on cellphones to be there when we dial a num-
2012. While some data was able to be transmitted over the ber no matter how many people around us are dialing at the
systems, typically they were limited to voice communication. same time.
Quickly, the VHF and UHF public safety bands filled to capac- Sometimes the magic doesn’t work. When a regular auto-
ity. Frequencies above were considered undesirable, but the mated dispatching system was overwhelmed, I have heard
advent of “big money” highly computerized digitized voice sys- fire companies using cellphones to work around the jammed-
tems (various names like MARCS) opened a new world to up radio system. The potential problems with this should be
safety agencies. Cellular telephone systems were on a par- obvious. Swayed by the sales pitch of absolute dependabili-
allel course with similar frequencies. ty of these new systems, agencies gleefully ripped already-
Using improvements in backup capabilities and general proven VHF/UHF systems out of cruisers, leaving them with
infrastructure, along with the lessons learned from many dis- no functional backup. They discovered that without the com-
asters, manufacturers have created systems that are puter, these systems fall back to short-distance “car-to-car”
dependable and rich in their performance. For example, the contacts on frequencies that most dispatch centers haven’t
ability to take a low-power handheld radio and talk across thought to load into their consoles. No, you can’t hear me now.
your state to another similar radio while being routed through Another potential problem is simply clogging the system
several transparent computerized talk paths is impressive. with too many radio calls at the same time. Current systems,
Recent major hurricanes, wildfires, and other catastrophic much like premise telephone PBX switching systems, are
events have damaged and partially destroyed public safety designed with many more potential talk groups than they
communications but even so, segments have remained on have actual radio frequencies. Under normal and even
the air. We’re no longer looking at days when a destroyed above-normal loads, the design should provide enough
single-tower site takes a county completely out of service — capacity. But inject some kind of disaster-level incident and
something older heads will remember. Cellular service like- the systems can easily overload.
wise has proven to be better hardened against outage. This Many emergency personnel will open a drawer and hold
year, Hurricane Ida knocked out up to 60% of service in up a satellite phone as the ultimate fallback in communica-
southern Louisiana after it marched through, but a lot of ser- tion. They are nifty, and to be sure, they offer completely
vice was restored in a matter of weeks. Some PSAPs (Public independent communication. Except when they don’t. What
Safety Answer Points) were down, but automatic re-routing happens many times is this: In the wake of a hurricane, all
of calls to other centers reduced some of the effects. power and communication is down on a particular island.
Another trend — particularly on state and federal levels Enter emergency agencies, all with sat phones, who begin
— is the new enthusiasm for “government” radio systems. coordinating a response. Enter likewise any number of
SHARES and other state and regional HF/VHF radio sys- responding aid agencies — all carrying their own sat phones
tems, many funded and supplied by various governments, — who expect to coordinate delivery of supplies and
have trended to popularity. They have become a draw for resources. Enter also various government entities and the
trained amateur radio operators who would rather partici- military — carrying their own sat phones — to assist the local
response. You can guess what’s going to happen here: The
* <n8bhl@cq-amateur-radio.com> same issue discussed above, only on an extra-terrestrial

When systems do fail (and they will), our ability to safety systems are voice communications. Save the “chat
quickly establish working communication networks function” or specific run-card information being transmitted
to field units, their general ability is still very local, and very
is unrivaled. voice centered. This is one area where amateur radio’s tech-
nologies can shine.
level. An overloaded system on any level demonstrates the
same result: A busy signal. What We Have to Offer
As it turns out, amateur radio offers a robust system capa-
ble of transmitting and confirming many critical forms and
Where Does Amateur Radio Fit These Days? messages at (albeit slow) computer speed and accuracy.
Amateur radio’s first reason for being in Part 97 is public ser- We’ll take a look at the specifics, but that’s a technical dis-
vice communications. Have we been left behind by techno- cussion for us within the radio sport. To our responding part-
logical developments? What do we have to offer our partner ners it only matters that, “Yes, we can send that IS-213 with
agencies? Have we allowed amateur radio to fade too far into a small spreadsheet attachment.” We can send that locally,
the background? at the state level, and we can even find a location which can
still access the internet and send an email anywhere in the
It Still Works world. If our local ECs are doing their job maintaining a rela-
Don’t overlook our most basic technology — a one-size-fits- tionship with their partner agencies, this shouldn’t come as
all solution that has been in use since the development of a surprise to them.
radio: Transmission of the human voice. While these occa-
sions may be less frequent, they still crop up during times The Technology
when absolutely nothing is heard from a stricken area after For some time, the software suite called fldigi has provided
a major disaster. It is still typically the voice of an amateur a rich array of ways to communicate and send messages.
operator that is the first heard from such an area. When sys- This free software has emergency communicating and
tems do fail (and they will), our ability to quickly establish dependability built in. Fairly easy to configure to your HF /
working communication networks is unrivaled. VHF / UHF radio, fldigi takes control of the radio to function
What goes into this? The first technology isn’t so much in a seemingly endless array of mode choices ranging in
technical as it is geographic. We’re already there! Despite speed, accuracy, and bandwidth. Anything from a general
the “we don’t self-deploy” mantra, we already are deployed! conversation to running a net can be handled easily and
One of the best things going for amateur radio is that we recorded on the PC for historic confirmation. Along with cen-
are embedded in any area. No matter where something hap- tral control by fldigi are a few other software routines that sig-
pens, you can figure there will be several ham operators nificantly enhance the operation. Various computer control
living in the area. Our job is to be able to quickly report our (CAT) files are available to match the program with your radio.
situation. Situational awareness is absolutely critical to Flmsg is a package of preconstructed forms that are used by
responding agencies that need to know the size and nature any number of agencies — FEMA forms, Red Cross forms,
of need so that they can scale up a proper response. These some military forms, even ham radio’s National Traffic
agencies can’t have too much information in that regard. System (NTS) messages. Since the forms are on your local
Since our operators are already there, we need to have our PC, only the data needs transmitted so time is reduced, and
personal plans and abilities at the ready to step into that accuracy enhanced. The receiving station can easily print the
function. And we need to have the knowledge and skill to message and respond to the original. An often-overlooked
resurrect our systems so that we can communicate. We software addition is flamp, which significantly increases the
hams need to practice and develop skill in understanding ability to handle messages in many network configurations.
antennas, so that when they are all blown down, we can put It not only can re-transmit only missed segment to a station
together enough of a system to get on the air. Soldering but can even be programmed to anticipate a typical repeater
antenna connectors, deploying temporary systems, and of reset time, by halting the transmission, allowing for a repeater
course, deploying backup power systems are all skills we reset, then resuming. Even a small (256 x 256) picture can
need to keep ready. Our radios need to work, and we need be transmitted via fldigi.
to know how to operate them. Perhaps the best thing about all this technology is it’s sim-
Given all that, we also need to have the ability to success- ple to operate. For instance, many county ARES units plan
fully pass messages. Our most basic function is simply to get on using “air coupling,” by merely holding a laptop so it can
a message from one point to another. Amateur radio’s capac- hear the output of a radio speaker. Transmitting is accom-
ity to do that from the local level to worldwide scale is still plished by holding the radio’s microphone close to the PC’s
unmatched by any other field. speakers. This completely eliminates the need for wired inter-
faces and all the mismatches that you can imagine in a tem-
Enter the Computer porary situation. This program can function while a conver-
Our agencies are completely dependent on computerized sation is held right near the speakers, and it can copy data
forms, systems, and communication. While, like amateur when the signal is too weak to even show on the waterfall.
radio emergency services, all agencies plan and practice for Other aspects of the suite include flnet, assisting net control
that “everything is down” scenario, the truth is in all likelihood operators; flog, flwrap, providing a drag-and-drop interface
there will be some kind of computer resource available. EOCs to send files, flwkey for Winkey, and even more. Fldigi will
will have backup power. Hospitals and other critical agencies allow external programs such as D-Rats (ICOM’s D-Star dig-
are ready. But their ability to communicate with each other, ital data arm) PSKmail, and others. Overall, this technology
with the outside world, may be severely compromised or even is a must-have for amateur operators!
curtailed completely. How can these agencies interact in Another technology we have to offer isn’t unique to ama-
especially critical times? Unfortunately, most of the public teur radio but has come to be a favorite. Winlink is an email

Another technology that can be a valuable tool in status and situational awareness gained from those local
emergencies is our own amateur radio digital nets and from operators around the state for the affected
county EMA as well as the state. It has worked well, is not
voice modes — D-Star, DMR, and Fusion. overused, and has engrained amateur radio with the alerting
side of the Ohio EMA.
system that uses RF connections to provide access to send-
ing email and attachments, position reporting, and message Do YOU Use This Technology?
relay among other functions. Winlink has become the stan- Discussion with leaders around the country in amateur radio
dard for communicating in disasters and emergencies emergency response confirms they are very familiar with
worldwide. Winlink uses packet communications to accom- these technologies. When you drill down to many county lev-
plish this. It operates completely independently of the inter- els, that might not be the case. Application of this technolo-
net if necessary. There is a strictly controlled hierarchy to gy can be spotty. Consider the lesser-populated county with
the network, and a good amount of flexibility available to only a handful of ham operators. They may not see an oppor-
the individual station. Winlink is used by government sta- tunity to apply this technology where they live, and they may
tions on their frequencies (typically using Pactor4) but the not have that initial motivation to jump, or even step cau-
primary application is amateur radio. Winlink stations can tiously, into the sometimes-confusing world of digital radio
chat peer-to-peer, and they can send message forms and apps. To further complicate things, these are not one-and-
text along with attachments just the same as any email sys- done software applications. We simply must use these fre-
tem. It first gained popularity among sailing users because quently and repeatedly in order to stay current in our ability
of its ability to report positions and to allow vessels to to make them work. These come across as just another
retrieve their email while at sea. The emergency applica- avenue of amateur radio which some people really like, and
tions were obvious, and Winlink quickly because the most- others don’t. But since the primary purpose of amateur radio
used system to communicate from a disaster area. All of is to provide a public service and emergency communica-
this has actually reduced the overhead of sending amateur tion, it is on us to use the technology that we have. Here’s
radio messages — since Winlink allows users to directly an idea: Have a meeting at which someone who’s fluent in
connect to an email resource (such as a stateside station fldigi can present the software, and then help each other try
that still has access to internet email) there is no need to it out. After the initial hesitation, it can be a fun and reward-
burden traffic nets with relaying messages. Likewise, return ing time. Then, try some stuff on the air. Maybe a weekly net
emails can be accessed by the initiating station directly. to try different modes and coach operators in how to adjust
Winlink is a little more complex to configure, but it’s not a their setups. There is a sense of accomplishment when one
deal breaker. Once operating on either HF or VHF/UHF, it’s finally gets it to work. If there are only a few of you, reach out
a quick and dependable system. to neighboring counties, and join together for even more
learning. When your group gets comfortable with sending
Digital Voice Modes forms and messages, make sure that gets covered in a con-
Another technology that can be a valuable tool in emergen- versation with your emergency directors. What is it they would
cies is our own amateur radio digital voice modes — D-Star, like us to do? They are in the driver’s seat and should tell us
DMR, and Fusion. Yes, they are internet-based with the their requirements (rather than the other way around!) If we
option of becoming a local repeater but it is not axiomatic that can demonstrate the programs and how they can help, all
all internet simply dies at the first snowflake or drop of rain. the better.
As mentioned earlier, these services have been hardened
and built out with redundancy. While planning, we have to Baby Steps
work toward the lowest common denominator — there’s no Start out simple. Program your station and test until you can
form of communication at all — but if the system is up and dependably connect to your group. Send some text. Learn
running, let’s use it. But how? about the features of the programs and give them a try. I rec-
There are several advantages that digital voice has over ommend fldigi first to build a comfort level with linking your
analog FM. Obvious is the ability to communicate anywhere PC to your radio and operating digital modes. Then, move to
in the world on a simple handheld. But in emergency situ- Winlink and work until you can dependably transmit emails.
ations there are some distinct advantages. In the case of You don’t need a massive hospital network, a statewide mes-
severe weather, digital systems don’t care at all about sta- sage system, or a major disaster to justify any of this. You
tic or storm-related de-sense that garbles a voice. Chief do need an interest in learning, expanding your operating
among the benefits is the ability to link a region or an entire capability, and your capacity for serving your neighbors.
state. Consider the Ohio “Watch Desk Project” where the You’ll be rewarded with a good sense of accomplishment in
Watch Desk is the state EMA’s 24-hour alerting room. They technology you can expand and use in emergencies. And,
are well aware of amateur radio’s Skywarn programs, and side note, you’ll have developed the computer interface that
asked if there was a way they could take advantage of the will also allow you to run FT8 and get in on the new world-
intel those produced. What came from that was the ability wide digital modes!
to bridge the Ohio statewide talk group on DMR with the If you don’t have local access, consider building up your
Ohio Link talk path on the Fusion system. Initial (approved) own gateway. A knowledgeable Elmer brought me a sys-
trials showed no latency, no problems with audio levels or tem that went on one of my towers and linked to my resi-
controls. When a subsequent statewide tornado outbreak dential internet (overhead is minimal). It’s a good local link
took place, over 225 digital repeaters were linked together, into the worldwide Winlink email system. It’s all part of OUR
giving handheld coverage to most locations in order to gath- technology in amateur radio. I suggest you make it per-
er information on storm direction, strikes, and damage. This sonal, and develop the skills then apply the systems to your
was not another Skywarn net, but one aimed at providing community.

KIT BUILDING
BY JOE EISENBERG,* K0NEB
A Trip West...and Building Sputnik
A
s things begin to open up, it is
good to see our in-person ama-
teur radio events also resuming.
Pacificon is one of those annual events,
and I’ll have more on it in a future col-
umn. This month’s kit was one sold by
the CalQRP group to promote interest
in the Friday and Saturday evening
QRP gatherings at Pacificon. Those
wanting to participate in the QRP
events were given an opportunity to
purchase a low cost 40-meter regener-
ative receiver kit to be assembled at
home and brought to the convention
where a companion QRP CW trans-
mitter would be built in a group setting.
The Sputnik 40 is a simple, yet
very sensitive receiver originated in
Romania by Ciprian Popica and modi-
fied by KI6DS for use at Pacificon.
When I first saw my kit, I wondered if it
would have enough sensitivity to allow
for QRP-to-QRP QSOs. My test results
showed it could easily hear signals at The Sputnik 40 PC board ready to begin assembly.
as low as 1 μV of signal. The circuit
revolves around the use of a three-sec-
tion toroidal transformer which includes
both coupling and the “tickler” that
allows for regeneration. As in all regen-
erative receivers, this one can receive
CW, SSB, and AM.
A few weeks before the gathering in
California, the kits were sent out. The
tuning is controlled by a 10-turn poten-
tiometer varying voltage to one or two
varicap diodes. There are also trimmer
capacitors to help in centering the tun-
ing range to cover the 40-meter band.
There are a few modifications written
that are incorporated into the latest ver-
sion of the instructions, and most have
to do with the speed and range of the
tuning circuit. My kit came with a small-
er version of the voltage regulator. The
holes for it are rather close together, so
I had to be very careful mounting it.
Later, I realized I could have spread the
leads out and used the larger set of
holes meant for the larger regulator.
There are no surface-mount parts, but
the toroid takes some time to wind and
must be done exactly as shown and
described in order for the regenerative
circuit to work. As mentioned in the
*7133 Yosemite Drive, Lincoln, NE 68507

email: <k0neb@cq-amateur-radio.com>
Hamfest Hotline #5855 The parts are sorted and ready to assemble.

instructions, the number of turns in the largest winding on the
toroid might have to be reduced to bring the 40-meter band
coverage into the range of the tuning circuit. In my case, that
32-turn winding had to be reduced by 4 turns to bring the 40-
meter band into range. There are places for resistors to be
added to change how fast the tuning control tunes through
the band. I will be changing those after I build the compan-
ion transmitter.
There are features such as an amplified output to feed a fre-
quency counter for digital display as well as a switchable CW
filter. The power supply requires 9- to 12-volt DC input. I had
The three legs of the voltage regulator are very close togeth-
er on this PC board. Be sure to check for shorts between
close leads like these before powering a kit for the first time.
WHAT’S NEW
PreppComm Introduces New S2X Stand
PreppComm, a new U.S.-based manufacturer of the DMX-40,
a combination CW decoder and transceiver, has introduced a
stand that makes it easier to see and touch the LCD screen on
its flagship product.
The S2X Stand, which is composed of two separate legs,
each with two rubber feet, snaps onto your DMX-40 case bot-
tom, and holds the DMX-40 at a 45° angle. PreppComm said
that the new stand for the DMX-40 is available now and and
has a suggested retail price of $4.95.
PreppComm has also debuted its new online store <http:// A transistor is in place and ready to solder. The extra hole
preppcomm.com>, which has moved from a WordPress web- was incorporated into the PC board design in case a metal
site using Shopify for e-commerce entirely to Shopify, with a can type of the 2N3904 transistor was used instead of the
new look. PreppComm said the new website will help it add plastic case version.
more accessory products in the future.
The three leads of the transistor are soldered and ready to

trim. Always check when soldering transistors for solder
bridges between the leads.

no problems running it from my 13.8-volt and do not require a lot of amplifier extracting them from otherwise defunct
DC bench supply. There are places to power. They often have odd sizes and laptops.
wire in an 8-ohm speaker as well as to shapes, but are a great source of no-cost I followed the “resistors first” system
be able to plug in a headset. I used a tiny small speakers for use with kit radios. of assembly as in the manual, followed
speaker salvaged from inside an old lap- Many are made by companies like by the capacitors and so on. After care-
top scrapped at work. I have found these Harmon-Kardon, JBL, and others in the ful assembly, I quickly discovered it was
tiny speakers to be of high quality, high-fidelity world for use in laptops and not in the 40-meter band, but was
putting out a surprising amount of audio are worth the time spent carefully receiving at about 6.3 MHz. I first
removed two turns from the 32-turn
winding and found it only moved it up to
about 6.6 MHz. Removing another two
turns brought the 40-meter band into
the range of the kit along with adjusting
the two trimmer capacitors that are in
parallel with the varicap. I used a sim-
ple benchtop RF signal generator to test
the tuning adjustments and used an
Elecraft XG-3 to determine exactly
where it was receiving and how sensi-
tive it was. I discovered that a 1-mv sig-
nal was too strong and required me to
use the RF gain control to bring it down
to a level at which it could be heard with-
out distortion. Setting the Elecraft sig-
nal generator to 50 μV (S9) resulted in
a clear signal. Trying 1 μV, which is
around S3, brought a weaker but still
easily copied signal.
The RF gain control in the case of
most simple regenerative receivers is
usually just a variable resistor on the
input to attenuate stronger signals. I
was able to copy many CW QSOs in
progress on 40 meters and packed the
completed receiver for the trip to
Pacificon and to be compared with the
others. At this time, the CalQRP ver-
The Sputnik 40 board is ready for the addition of the toroid and the external parts, sion of the Sputnik 40 is not available
such as the power switch, speaker, etc. for sale and this run of kits was pro-
duced solely for Pacificon attendees
who were planning on bringing their
completed receivers. There are You-
Tube videos featuring the Sputnik 40
as it was developed and the CalQRP
version added more features to the
original circuit. The CalQRP group on
Groups.io has the detailed schematic
and parts list used in this project. In
addition, there are many posts from the
builders about their solutions to prob-
lems they encountered.
After Pacificon, I’ll show what the
other builders did and feature the CW
transmitter kit as well as the CW train-
er kit that are to be assembled there. I’ll
be on the lookout for new kits and will
bring them to these pages when they
are released. Be sure to take advantage
of the cold days ahead to assemble
some kits and be sure to follow proper
ESD (electrostatic discharge) proce-
dures as static electricity is a real prob-
lem during the cold winter months.
– Until next time, 73 de KØNEB
The completed Sputnik 40 ready for its journey to Pacificon. Hamshack Hotline #5855

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QRP: Low-Power Communications
BY R. SCOTT ROUGHT,* KA8SMA
QRP is Contagious!
I
am pleased to share with my fellow hams that the QRP
bug has struck again. Andy Ruggiero, WD8BWW, owner
of Mid-America Technology, Inc. (a radio design / repair
and electronics technology company), recently discovered
the power of QRP while troubleshooting transmitting issues
on my Yaesu FT-817 QRP transceiver. Regular readers of
this column know that I have a sweet spot for my FT-817. I
purchased this radio as soon as Yaesu introduced it over 20
years ago and until spring 2020, the FT-817 was my prima-
ry transceiver both in the shack and on the trail until I began
having intermittent issues with the transmitter. I concluded
that after many years of contacts, the finals (original MOS-
FET transistors) were going kaput. I had too many other radio
projects going at the time, so I shelved the radio until I had
time to make the needed repair.
Nearly a year and a half later, I decided to repair the FT-
817; however, rather than do the work myself, I sent it to
Andy who had done an excellent job making repairs to this
radio a few years ago and I knew that installing new finals
would be a simple task for him. Besides, I learned not too
long ago, after installing a bhi DSP noise cancelling module Photo A. My “suitcase-style” Bayou Jumper spy radio littered
(NEDSP1061-KBD) inside this radio, that fat fingers, poor with vintage travel stickers.
eyesight, and a small working area generate a lot of stress
for me, so I decided to send the FT-817 to a professional.
Andy contacted me the same day he received the trans- FT-817 at 5 watts output (rubbing a little salt into my wound
ceiver and — to my surprise — informed me he could not – HI). He was excited as could be and noted to the other ham
find anything wrong. He said the transmitter checked out at that this was his first QRP DX contact. I think everyone in the
5 watts on full power with no reduction in power after keying QRP community can remember the thrill of their first contact
down the transmitter for several seconds, the power ampli- with only a few watts, but I admit the thrill of watching some-
fier board appeared fine, and no issues were identified with one else making their first QRP DX contact is greater.
the components, solder joints, etc. In other words, the trans- Unbeknownst to Andy, this was also a first for my FT-817.
mitter was fine. Although I had made thousands of DX contacts with this radio
I was dumbfounded. over the years, this was the first time a DX contact (SSB or
I always practice short tune-ups when using an antenna CW) was made using its power set at 5 watts. I always run
tuner for non-resonant antennas and do the same when the radio at 2.5 watts. I contacted Andy after reviewing the
checking SWR on resonant antennas. While chatting, I men- video and congratulated him on the QRP contact and asked
tioned that the FT-817 had never been connected to a 13.8- him how much I owe him for the bench fee and further check-
volt power supply and that I have historically used a gel cell ing the radio. Andy told me “no charge for my time — the
battery (12-volt 7-amp hour) to power the radio. As soon as thrill of working Rome with 5 watts on an end-fed wire anten-
he heard me say I used an external battery to power the na was more than enough.” This was a double-win for me
radio, he zeroed in on whether my intermittent transmitting since I may have lured another ham into the world of QRP
issues could be related to the battery, not the radio. My jaw and as embarrassing as it is, I learned (the hard way) that
dropped when he asked about the battery as I had not test- my FT-817 never had an issue. I will call the latter a win since
ed it before shelving the radio. Unfortunately, this gel cell bat- it did not cost me anything – HI. Lesson learned — always
tery went to the recycling center after I upgraded to lithium- check your power supply before jumping to conclusions and
iron phosphate batteries last year, so I had no way to check troubleshooting radio gear.
if the issue stemmed from the battery. Since we were unsure
of the problem, I told Andy I’d pay for his time to further trou- Bayou Jumper – Finished!
bleshoot and play with the radio to determine if he could repli- In the October column, we heated up the soldering iron and
cate my findings. assembled the Four State QRP Group’s Bayou Jumper, a 40-
Later that evening, I received an email from Andy indicat- meter QRP CW transceiver kit that pays homage to World War
ing he could not identify any issues with the transceiver and II-era Paraset spy radios. As promised in the last column, I
that the problem was likely related to my battery. He also have included two photos of the finished product. I stained the
asked me to watch a video he had attached to the email. case light maple and purchased stickers from an online store
When I opened the video I saw that Andy had filmed himself to decorate (with a little help from my XYL) the exterior of the
making a SSB contact with a ham in Rome, Italy using my case (Photo A). Photo B shows the interior of the case with a
military intelligence logo on the inside cover. I laser printed the
*<ka8sma@cq-amateur-radio.com> logo onto water-transfer decal paper (available online and in

craft stores) and then transferred it to I owe the idea of placing a spy agency on the PC board. This item is currently
the interior of the case. This is not a dif- logo inside the cover to Jim Giammanco, sold out and has been for the last few
ficult process and, if done carefully, N5IB, who has a few photographs of his months. I will be one of the first to order
gives great results. The trick with water- spy radio (with a British intelligence this add-on kit as I find a sidetone when
transfer decals is to take your time and emblem) on the Four State QRP Group sending CW to be very useful.
slowly peel the paper backing from the website <4sqrp.com>. As soon as I saw
decal when making the transfer. I had photographs of Jim’s finished radio, I Lab 599 Discovery TX-500
a difficult time deciding if wanted to be reached out to him to find out how he did Update
a British or American spy. As you can it. Fortunately for all of us, he shared his
I received feedback from a few hams
see, I signed up to serve Her Majesty in secret of using water-transfer decal
regarding the Lab 599 Discovery TX-
the Royal Secret Intelligence Service. paper. Jim is also one of the club’s kit
500, the new Russian QRP transceiver
After applying the stickers and logo, I designers (receiver, panel layout, parts
featured in the August 2021 column.
finished the case with Mod Podge sourcing, etc.) for this radio.
Most were interested if I had any addi-
(available at craft stores) to give it a As indicated in the October column,
tional thoughts on this radio after using
hard, glossy finish. I also used Velcro® one accessory that I want to add is Four
it for a few more months (I received my
to attach a handful of FT-243 crystals to State QRP Group’s Soup’er Up’er
TX-500 in April 2021) and how it com-
the inside of the cover that I had from which will add a sidetone, audio filter,
pared to the ICOM-705. To date I have
when I was licensed as a Novice run- and fine-tuning control. Since this add-
made over 1,000 contacts [mostly
ning a Knight T-50, a 50-watt crystal- on is designed and kitted by club mem-
Parks on the Air (POTA) activations]
controlled transmitter (I did not know bers, provisions for adding the Soup’er
with the TX-500 and I have not had a
about QRP back then). Up’er have already been incorporated
single issue. I continue to receive good
audio reports on SSB and have made
several CW contacts with it from my
QTH. Stay tuned as I provide addition-
al thoughts on the TX-500 and IC-705
and compare both transceivers in a “put
it all on the table” discussion in an
upcoming column.
As many are aware, there is a wait list
for this transceiver at Ham Radio Outlet
(Lab 599’s authorized North America
dealer). My sources at Lab 599 have
informed me they are commissioning
more equipment to increase produc-
tion; however, they are hampered by
the availability and shortage of electri-
cal components. I have also been
informed that the external battery pack
for the TX-500 is being readied to
launch into full production and should
be available for purchase near the end
of 2021 (barring any COVID issues).
Speaking of POTA, I am writing this
column on a Saturday afternoon while
also hunting POTA parks. POTA activ-
ity seems to be on the rise (in my opin-
ion) and this afternoon I am counting
nearly 50 activations (several of which
are QRP) spotted on the POTA website
<parksontheair.com>. This afternoon I
hurdled a mark I have been trying to sur-
pass for the last few months, 200 con-
tacts with different parks / reference
areas, which earns POTA’s Enrubio
Award. I am happy to say I completed
these last contacts today with my FT-
817 and yes, just as Andy, WD8BWW,
filmed in his video, the transceiver is
working fine.
I feel that my world is a little bit more
complete knowing that my FT-817 is
back in action, POTA activity is high, and
the QRP bug is still luring hams into the
exciting world of low power operation.
Photo B. Interior of the suitcase. Four State QRP Group hit a home run on the
panel layout and idea of fitting this radio into a wooden case. – Until February, 73

Technology Special:
LEARNING CURVE
BY RON OCHU, KOØZ
Inductors: A Brief Primer
L
ast month, we looked at capacitors
and capacitance as part of my
“junk box” article series (Photo A).
This month, let’s look at inductors and
inductance. According to the website
Electronics Tutorials <https://tinyurl.
com/2sra88us>, “an Inductor is a pas-
sive electrical component consisting of a
coil of wire which is designed to take
advantage of the relationship between
magnetism and electricity as a result of
an electric current passing through the
coil.”
Readers may recall that whenever
electrical current flows along a conduc-
tor, a magnetic field is generated. This
is a very useful electrical phenomenon
because this physical property is a pri-
mary reason electronics exists. Res-
onant circuits, power supplies, tuned cir-
cuits, transmitters, receivers, antennas,
Photo A. A varied assortment of inductors found in a junk box. (Illustrations cour-
phones, televisions, just about anything
tesy of Wikimedia Commons, except as noted)
electronic depends on inductors.
Inductance Microwave inductors, on the other electromagnetic induction in the 19th

For our discussion, it’s important to reit- hand, use traces on a board. The century. Many inductors found in ham
erate that as electrical current, either strength of the magnetic field that is radio circuits have values in the micro-
AC (alternating current) or DC (direct generated depends on the number of henry (μH) range (0.000001 H).
current) flows along a wire, a magnetic coils, spacing between coils and current
field is generated. Turn off the current (Figure 2). A coil’s ability to create and
store electrical energy in a magnetic Transformers
and the magnetic field collapses.
Introduce turns (coils) into the wire and field is referred to as inductance. The schematic symbol for an inductor
you now have an inductor (Figure 1). Inductor values are measured in units looks remarkably like a coiled wire
called Henrys and designated by the (Figure 3). The symbol in Figure 3 indi-
capital letter H after Joseph Henry, an cates an “air-core” inductor. Inductors
*Email: <ko0z@cq-amateur-radio.com American scientist who discovered are also wound around ferric materials
Figure 1. An RF (radio frequency) coil.
Figure 2. Whenever electricity flows through a coil, a mag-

netic field is generated around the coil.

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through the energized one will create a 13.8 volts DC.
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transformer is two separate electrical ful to contain a magnetic field so mutu- VWDU ϭ
circuits that don’t have to be physically al coupling is reduced or eliminated. A VWDU ϭ
connected. An induced magnetic field toroid coil is used for just that purpose ĞƐƚƐƚƵĚǇŵĞƚŚŽĚ͕ƐƚƵĚǇŵĂƚĞƌŝĂůƐ͕ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌ
will join the two circuits. Reduction in (Photo C). Toroid coils have the distinct ƐƵƉƉŽƌƚ͕ĂŶĚŐƵĂƌĂŶƚĞĞŝŶƚŚĞŝŶĚƵƐƚƌǇ͊
audio hum, voltage levels, and physical shape of a donut, which increases www.hamtestonline.com
isolation are just a few benefits offered inductance and contains the generated
by transformers. magnetic field. The donut-shaped iron
Transformers can also be used to core is the form used to wrap a wire in
step-up or to step-down voltage (Fig- and out of the “donut hole.” The advan-
tages of this configuration are that it
takes up less space than other forms,
the coil’s inductance increases, and its
magnetic field is contained mostly with-
in the toroid. Toroid coils can be made
into transformers by winding a second
wire over the existing wire. Were you first licensed
Inductor Values 25 years ago and
Many ham radio circuits contain RF licensed today?
coils in the μH range. Coils generally are
not clearly marked, if at all. However, Then you should join the
some inductors may have markings.
You can try searching for inductor val-
Quarter Century
ues and identification using internet Wireless Association, Inc.
search engines like Google. Better yet,
To Join or Renew, Visit:
http://www.qcwa.org/join-renew.php
\For more information please contact
om@qcwa.org
Photo B. A typical transformer.
Figure 5. Schematic symbol for a trans-

Figure 3. Schematic symbol for an in- former. In essence, a transformer is
ductor. Remarkably, it looks like a coil. two coils placed side by side.
Figure 4. Schematic symbol for an iron

core inductor. An iron core increases Figure 6. Schematic symbol for an air-
inductance. core, step-up transformer.

A series resonant circuit with an inductor and a capacitor
A parallel resonant circuit

Photo C. A toroid coil. Note the donut
Figure 7. Schematic drawings of a series and parallel circuit. (Illustration by KOØZ) shaped iron core.
find a multimeter that measures inductance. Simply insert the

inductor between the meter’s probes and you’ll have your
WHAT’S NEW value. An additional bonus of having a meter will allow you
to adjust the coil’s inductance by simply changing the spac-
bhi New In-line Module ing between turns of the coil.
bhi’s latest prod- Increasing the distance between a coil’s individual loops will
uct is a new DSP decrease the inductance. Conversely, decreasing the distance
noise-cancelling In- between a coil’s individual loops will increase its inductance.
Line Module that Sometimes, I’ve found whenever I don’t have an exact value
cleans up noisy sig- coil, my junk box may contain a coil that I can stretch or com-
nals and is compat- press that will get me close to the needed inductance value.
ible with most radios
and receivers. It Resonance
comes with the lat- Inductance is a valuable electrical property. So is capaci-
est bhi DSP noise- tance. Combining inductance with capacitance is what makes
cancelling technolo- radio communications possible. Oscillators through anten-
gy that offers eight noise cancelling levels from 8-40 dB as well nas require a combination of inductance and capacitance.
as tone reduction of up to 65 dB. Those numbers bring improved Combining an inductor with a capacitor can set up the right
audio quality to the listener when operating in noisy conditions conditions for resonance. Resonance can be defined as the
across all radio bands. condition that exists in an electrical circuit when the induc-
The In-Line Module is constructed into a compact unit mea-
tive reactance and the capacitive reactance are of equal mag-
suring 5.3- x 2.6- 1.8-inches and weighs 10.6 ounces and con-
nitude, causing electrical energy to oscillate between the
nects between your radio and loudspeaker. Stuffed into the case
is a 5-watt audio amplifier that mutes the loudspeaker audio magnetic field of the inductor and the electric field of the
when headphones are connected, and when the unit is switched capacitor, according to <https://tinyurl.com/27a6rbdr>. In
off, the audio bypass feature routes the signal directly through other words, when a capacitor’s capacitance and an induc-
to the loudspeaker The speaker and headphones are con- tor’s inductance cancel out, the circuit allows for maximum
nected via their own 3.5-millimeter mono jack socket. energy transfer. Resonance is used in transmitters for fre-
The In-Line Module is powered from a suitable 10- to16-volt quency generation, antennas for radio wave transmission,
(500-mA) DC power supply and has a three-position switch that and receivers for tuning in signals, just to give a few exam-
turns the unit on and switches the noise cancellation on and off. ples. A very good, animated video depicting the properties
The “Status” LED illuminates red when power is applied and of inductors, capacitors, and oscillation can be found on this
changes to green when the noise cancellation is active. The YouTube video: <https://tinyurl.com/sbj8y3jj>. Most reso-
unit has an audio input overload circuit and LED indicator, an nant circuits are either series or parallel configurations of a
audio output level adjust control knob, and is supplied with a capacitor and an inductor (Figure 7).
fused DC power lead, user manual, and four small rubber feet
to keep it stable on smooth surfaces.
bhi’s new In-Line Module is available now, however there was
Good Collecting
no pricing information as of presstime. For more information, Hopefully, after reading this article, you have a deeper or
contact bhi Limited at <www.bhi-ltd.com> or visit DX renewed appreciation for inductors. Admittedly, my person-
Engineering at <www.dxengineering.com>. al “junk box” doesn’t contain a “boat load” of inductors, but
there are a few that I’ve experimented with from time to time.
– Thank you for reading CQ and 73, Ron KOØZ

NEWS BYTES BEHIND THE BYLINES...
(from page 7)
… a little bit about some of the authors whose articles
appear in this issue
Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA (“The Centennial of DXing,” p. 8), is an expert on prop-
agation — particularly the low frequencies — and lead author of the 4th edition of the
CQ Shortwave Propagation Handbook. Carl is retired from a career as an RF design
engineer, specializing in RF power amplifiers, and has been a ham since 1961. He
is currently ARRL Director for the Central Division. Carl lives with his wife, Vicky,
AE9YL, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He maintains a very informative propagation-focused
website at <http://k9la.us>.
Steve Werner, AG4W (“A Journey to the Moon and Back,” p. 11) of Huntsville,
Alabama, is a DXer and contester who was looking for new challenges after he pret-
ty much “worked them all,” so he set his sights on the ultimate DX — Earth-Moon-
Earth, or EME DXing, in which every contact covers a distance of roughly half a mil-
lion miles. He tells us how he tried to start small.
Dennis Lazar, W4DNN (“Satellite Rag Chewing on a Shoestring,” p. 18), is a fre-

quent contributor to CQ and a former QRP Editor. Like many of us, Dennis has a
wide range of interests and is currently focusing on amateur satellite communica-
tion. He lives in Port Charlotte, Florida, with his wife, Ruthie, K4KLQ, but they’re often
on the road in their RV!
Alan Davidson is President Biden’s Charles E. Scharlau, NZØI (co-author “Arducon,” p. 22), was first licensed in 1974
nominee to head up the FCC-equiva- as WN5MIY, and currently serves as USA ARDF Co-coordinator. He has been active
lent for federal government spectrum in Amateur Radio Direction Finding since 2000. He represented the USA at the ARDF
users, the NTIA. (U.S. Commerce World Championships in 2004, 2006, 2008, and 2010. Professionally, Charles spent
Department photo) 26 years working in both hardware and software positions in aviation, maritime, and
cellular communications industries. He holds a BS Physics degree from the University
of Arkansas at Fayetteville, and an MSEE degree from the University of Colorado at
The President also nominated attor- Boulder. Charles can be reached at <nz0i@openardf.org>.
ney Gigi Sohn to fill a vacant seat on the Co-author Gerald Boyd, WB8WFK, was first licensed in 1975, and currently serves
FCC. She is currently a Distinguished as USA ARDF Co-coordinator. Jerry has been active in the development of Radio
Fellow at the Georgetown Law Institute Direction Finding (RDF) equipment and techniques since the early 1990s. Jerry rep-
for Technology Law and Policy and pre- resented the USA at the 2004, 2006, and 2010 ARDF World Championships. He has
viously served as a counselor to former designed custom RDF receivers, directional antennas, and transmitters for use in
FCC Chair Tom Wheeler. Much of her ARDF competitions and receivers for search-and-rescue for locating downed aircraft
work has been in advocacy for Emergency Locator Transmitters (ELTs). Jerry currently holds an Extra Class license
widescale broadband access. The and has worked professionally in the aerospace industry for over 41 years. Jerry can
White House notes that, if confirmed, be reached at <wb8wfk@icloud.com>.
Sohn would be the FCC’s first-ever
Martin Butera, PT2ZDX/LU9EFO (“PY2GN: Brazil’s First Public WebSDR Station,”
openly LGBTQ+ commissioner.
p. 26), is from Argentina but currently living in Brazil, where he has been visiting and
Mr. Biden also nominated Alan David- writing about some of the country’s premier ham radio installations. This is his sec-
son to head up the Communications and ond article for CQ.
Information division of the National
Telecommunications and Information
Administration. NTIA is the FCC’s coun-
terpart in terms of spectrum manage- The Shortwave
ment for federal agencies, including the
military. This is significant to hams
because many of our bands are shared
Propagation Handbook
with federal government users. Davidson 4th Edition
was the first Director of Digital Economy
at the Commerce Department, which is 208-page Paperback—Only $42.95
NTIA’s parent agency. He is currently Book on CD—$32.95
Senior Advisor to the Mozilla Foundation,
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of Global Policy, Trust and Security. Plus applicable shipping!
Before that, he worked for Google, where
he was the company’s chief lobbyist in CQ Communications, Inc.
Washington between 2005 and 2012. All Phone: 516-681-2922
three nominations are subject to Senate http://store.cq-amateur-radio.com
confirmation.

ANALOG ADVENTURES
BY ERIC P. NICHOLS,* KL7AJ
Haywire State
A
nyone who’s been around the analog business more
than a few weeks is (hopefully) familiar with the late,
legendary Bob Pease <https://tinyurl.com/fcvzt8x4>.
Bob was one of my mentors from afar, and just about every-
thing I know about solid-state anything, I learned from read-
ing his countless Pease Porridge columns in Electronic
Design magazine. The fact that he looked like Moses only
enhanced his authoritativeness.
Perhaps one of the most famous photos from Bob’s
archives was on the cover of his book, Troubleshooting
Analog Circuits1 (Photo A). That’s an actual functioning cir-
cuit in front of him (an operational amplifier, I believe).
Although I have not achieved this level of … whatever it is
… I am well on my way. Photo B shows my workbench in its
current state. At least I think this puts me in good company
with Mr. Pease. I am also reminded of that most informative
passage from the ancient book of Proverbs: “Where no oxen
are, the crib is clean: But much increase is by the strength
of the ox.” (Proverbs 14:4).
If the state of one’s crib is any indicator, as suggested
above, my bench should be a powerhouse of productivity.
Oh, to be sure, I occasionally neaten things up between
active projects, (though my attempts at inventing a self-
cleaning bench have all failed miserably), but I find much
more inspiration from such works in progress than from a
sterile, organized workbench, as do many others of my ilk.
Speaking of ilks, I’ve discovered that non-creative, non-
inventive types just don’t understand unfinished products.
Whether you’re a painter, a potter, or a programmer, there’s
going to be a stage (or even an era), where the thing you’re
working on is going to be in a haywire state, not even rec-
ognizable for what it is … or likely to become.
Wilbur and Orville Wright were not in the least encumbered
by any pre-conceived notions of what an airplane should look
like. They did everything backwards. The elevator was in the
front, and the props were in the back. Though they did every- Photo A. The cover of the late Bob Pease’s book, Trouble-
thing “wrong,” the thing flew. shooting Analog Circuits, published by Elsevier, shows him
Actually, they didn’t get everything wrong. The super high- checking out a “haywire” circuit on his bench. (Photo of auto-
tech military Gray Eagle drone has a pusher prop … it keeps graphed cover courtesy of Kirt Blattenberger, KB3UON, of
the prop wash away from the flying surfaces, giving it a much RF Café <www.rfcafe.com>)
better aerodynamic efficiency and longer range. Maybe the
Wright Brothers knew about this … or maybe they didn’t. No
matter; they forged ahead the best they could, and the rest
is history. Now, while every great creative enterprise has to pass
One of Bob Pease’s great quotes is, “My favorite pro- through the haywire state, it doesn’t have to stay there.
gramming language is solder.” There is so much truth in this Mr. Pease’s famous breadboard eventually ended up in
statement. You can do all the circuit modelling you like, but the form of a commercial op-amp chip (I forgot which one).
sometimes the only viable solution is to solder it together and One of my great joys is to see one of my creations even-
see what smokes. This is especially apropos when working tually packaged in a non-Frankensteinian form that won’t
with analog circuitry, particularly at higher frequencies. scare visitors right out of the shack. I always appreciated
Digital circuits, as a general rule, either work or they don’t. Heathkit’s “fit and finish” and use it as sort of a benchmark
Analog circuits can have continuous states of performance for my projects’ final forms. Their cabinets were works of
ranging from “sort of works” all the way up to “exceeds all art, and immediately recognizable three-quarters of a cen-
performance specifications.” tury after the fact. But even better, the builder of a Heathkit
got to see the product in a haywire state, up to the time it
*3763 Lyle Avenue was lovingly inserted into its final Heath green cabinet.
North Pole, AK 99705 (Johnson also offered many of their transmitters in kit form,
email: <kl7aj@cq-amateur-radio.com> a slightly less known fact; I have a kit-built Johnson Ranger

Photo B. KL7AJ’s workbench. He’s a finalist in the Bob Pease Haywire Award competition!
II sitting a few feet from me). There

aren’t any present-day rigs that I know We stock the rugged 1KW transistor
RF TRANSFORMERS
and parts for the 2M and 88-108MHz
of that would be recognizable at all 75
years from now. Although I would be
amplifier designs. We also stock the 2-54MHz
NXP MRF101 LDMOS transistors.
delighted if I knew one of my AlasKit
widgets would achieve that status. COAX WIRE
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Technology Special:
ANTENNAS
BY KENT BRITAIN, WA5VJB
A Deep Dive into End-Fed Half-Wave Antennas

BY BOB GLORIOSO,* W1IS AND BOB ROSE,# KC1DSQ (GUEST COLUMNISTS)
WA5VJB was unable to complete his column for this issue, so we once again asked W1IS and
KC1DSQ to fill in. This time, Bob and Bob were trying to optimize an end-fed half-wave antenna
for multiband use when they realized that the antenna's basic design assumptions had not
been closely examined in decades. Here are the results of their research. - W2VU
V
irtually all hams know dipole
antennas for their simplicity and
the fact that the impedance of a
dipole, about 70 ohms, is a good match
to our commonly used 50-ohm feed-
lines. A dipole is most likely the first HF
antenna that most of us still use. Over
time, we learn about other configura-
tions like the Off-Center-Fed, or OCF1,
multiband dipole whose impedance of
around 200 ohms doesn’t match our
coax and needs a balun to provide a
match. If you can feed a dipole from a
point off-center, why can’t you feed the Figure 1. Single-band end-fed antenna.
antenna from the end?
You can, of course, but we need to
start with some basics about antennas.
1) The end of an antenna has a dan-

gerously high voltage so we have to put
insulators at the ends to isolate them.
2) The large electric field from the end
of an antenna will couple to surround-
ing objects, especially the ground, mak-
ing the tuning of the dipole sensitive to
height. The lower the antenna the lower
the resonant frequency and its proxy,
the frequency of lowest SWR. This tells
us that the impedance at the end of an
antenna (voltage / current) is high, any-
where from 450-4,000 ohms depending Figure 2. Conventional configuration of a multiband end-fed antenna with a 49:1
on the length of the radiator, requiring transformer.
a transformer to match our 50-ohm
feedlines and radios.
All electrical devices, including anten- To use the feedline, one side of the
3) An OCF dipole is unbalanced be-
nas, must have two poles for current to transformer is connected to the coax
cause the lengths of the two legs of the
flow, so what constitutes the other pole shield. A 1:1 balun is then necessary to
antenna are not equal. The unbalanced
for an antenna fed from only one end? suppress the RF before it enters the
current intended to go out the antenna
The solution here comes from the high shack. The good news here is the coun-
easily finds its way down the feedline to
impedance at the end, giving us two terpoise only has to be about 5% of the
ground through our rig, causing all kinds
alternatives: wavelength at the lowest frequency of
of havoc. An end-fed antenna also has
the antenna. Therefore, for an 80-meter
this problem.
1) provide a separate wire connected end-fed antenna, the counterpoise has
to one side of the transformer sec- to be approximately 0.05 x 80 = 4
Email: <wa5vjb@cq-amateur-radio.com> ondary, or meters = 13.12 feet.
* Email: <rglorioso@me.com> 2) Use the outer surface of the shield One of the advantages of an end-fed
# Email: <b.rose@comcast.net> on the coax feedline. antenna is that it can be mounted near

work on any frequency. A resonant have two elements to make a complete
length isn’t a requirement for an effec- circuit, so the coax is in fact part of the
tive antenna. The downside — it only antenna, acting as the counterpoise
works on a single band without retuning. forcing current to flow on the outside of
Through the years, as the need for the coax. It is our experience that this
multiband antennas connected to 50- can cause serious problems with end-
ohm radios became a requirement, two fed antennas. Techniques like tying the
contenders have become popular: Off- coax to ground along the run and / or
center-fed and end-fed harmonic putting a choke/balun2,3 at the entrance
antennas. These antennas start with a to the building, a good practice, can mit-
half-wave antenna on the lowest fre- igate the problem but don’t always elim-
quency, usually 160, 80, or 40 meters, inate RF feedback. Our goal was to
and depend on resonance at the har- avoid this hit or miss method of elimi-
monics to work on multiples of the low- nating stray RF currents and radiation.
est frequency.
Most current end-fed designs for both Typical End-Fed Designs
single and multiband antennas use trans- Multiband antennas using harmonics
former ratios between 9:1 and 64:1. They for the high bands require some com-
all work because the impedance of a half- promises because the harmonics do not
wavelength wire approaches infinity line up with the bands very well. As dis-
asymptotically. Table 1 shows the length cussed in our off-center-fed dipole arti-
required for a min SWR on 3.75 MHz with cle in the June 2020 issue of CQ mag-
a 13-foot, 2-inch counterpoise at differ- azine,1 the harmonics occur at slightly
Photo A. Conventional matching trans- ent transformer ratios. As the impedance
former for multiband end-fed antenna. higher frequencies than integer multi-
increases, the length approaches one- ples of the fundamental. This aggra-
half wavelength. vates the alignment problem. Typically,
or on the side of the building closest to The length of a multiband wire for low the length of the antenna is cut for reso-
the shack with the other end on a pole SWR on the harmonics constrains the nance at the bottom of the fundamental
or in a tree. It can easily be configured impedance at the end of the antenna to band. Then the higher band resonances
as an inverted-V, sloper, or inverted-L. 1,800-4,000 ohms. Knowing that, the occur above the top of their respective
Flexibility erecting end feds was recog- impedance ratios needed to match an bands. Many designs use a small coil
nized in the 1930s, when some articles end-fed wire to our 50-ohm feeds near the end of the antenna to electri-
first described single-band end-feds should be in the range of 36:1 to 64:1. cally lengthen the antenna for the 20-,
(see Figure 1). These antennas used This match is usually provided by a 15-, 12-, and 10-meter bands to improve
tuned air-coupled transformers, two broadband transformer built using fer- the placement of the resonances for
coils near each other, with a variable rite toroids. Conventional wisdom says those bands. Although some designs
capacitor to tune the antenna. The coils to wind the primary, 50-ohm, side twist- offer a choice of using a separate wire
had a few turns on the coax side and ed together with the first few turns of the counterpoise or using the coax outer
many turns on the secondary, antenna secondary as illustrated schematically shield as the counterpoise, current
side, to provide the step-up from 50- in Figure 2. Photo A shows a typical designs and commercial versions use
ohms to several thousand ohms and matching transformer with the primary the feedline no matter the length as a
used a short wire as a counterpoise. and secondary windings twisted togeth- counterpoise, leaving it up to the user to
Because the voltage on the secondary er at one end of the secondary. keep RF from finding its way to the rig.
can be several thousand volts, the The 100-pF capacitor compensates
capacitor must be capable of with- for the leakage inductance of the pri-
standing that voltage. mary, improving the high frequency
Our Design for an 80-Meter
The lengths of both the long wire and response of the transformer. The ends Half-Wave End-Fed Antenna
counterpoise varied depending on the of the primary and secondary are tied Load Cap vs. Load Coil
band and matching network. With the together, exposing one end of the We simulated the design with the small
right tuning parameters, any length radi- capacitor to the high voltage on the sec- loading coil to aid placement of the high
ator and counterpoise can be made to ondary. We know that all antennas must bands and found that we got better band
2' 6'' Load Cap

44' 8'' 91'
36:1
10' 8''
1:1
Coax
Figure 3. Wire counterpoise 80-meter half-wave end-fed antenna.

Transformer Impedance Length Length
Ratio (ohms) (feet) λ
9:1 450 109 0.417
16:1 800 110.13 0.420
25:1 1250 113.36 0.432
36:1 1800 117.29 0.447
49:1 2950 120.42 0.460
64:1 3200 122.36 0.467
Table 1. Length of end-fed radiator for minimum SWR on 3.75

MHz at different transformer ratios.
Power (Watts) Voltage (Volts) Current (Amps)

150 240 0.80
800 560 1.85
1,200 680 2.25
Table 2. Voltage and current required for load capacitor at

different power levels.
alignment by cutting the length for good placement on the

high bands and adding a loading capacitor to electrically
shorten the antenna for the low bands. Placing the 80-meter
resonance in the middle of the band is a priority because of
its relatively wide bandwidth. We found that placing a 150-
pF capacitor at 32% of the length puts 80-meter resonances
near the middle of the band. The capacitor has less effect on
the higher bands because its reactance decreases with fre-
quency, so those resonances move a little but remain well
placed. With careful tuning, we achieved low SWRs for 80,
40, 20, 15, 12, and 10 meters, and 3:1 or less on 30 meters.
36:1 Transformer Ratio

Steve Yates, AA5TB2, published a chart showing that a 36:1
transformer ratio and a 0.05-wavelength counterpoise pro-
vides an operating point where the load is resistive, result-
ing in the lowest SWR. Because he was building a single-
band antenna, he could use other ratios and tune out the
reactance using his tuned secondary. However, a multi-band
antenna requires a broadband matching network. Using a
broadband transformer, we found that the 36:1 ratio and 0.05-
wavelength counterpoise works well. Interestingly, the 0.05-
wavelength counterpoise on an 80-meter end-fed causes a
resonance around 32 MHz which helps lower the SWR at the
top of the 10-meter band.
Counterpoise & Feedline Radiation

Both the separate wire and coax counterpoise methods were
implemented and evaluated. A 1:1 balun with sufficient isola-
tion effectively mitigates RF feedback and feedline radiation.
For the wire counterpoise case, the 1:1 it is placed at the feed-
point, right after the transformer. For the coax case, it is moved
down the feedline to the desired counterpoise length.
Wire Counterpoise
The antenna with wire counterpoise is shown in Figure 3. Photo B. (1) PC board with load; (2) Silicone-potted load;
The lengths shown are for #14 Flexweave from RF Davis or (3) Load mounted on an insulator.

Photo C. Transformer and balun isolated in same box.
#14 THHN wire from the local home improvement store. The
total length of the radiator is 136 feet 6 inches. The distance
from the feedpoiint to the load capacitor is 43 feet 8 inches.
The load capacitor is 150 pf. Its voltage and current require- Photo D. Isolation of the transformer from the 1:1 balun in
ments depend on the design power as shown in Table 2. separate boxes coupled together with a dual PL-259 con-
Because the capacitor is out in the elements and is likely nector to avoid unwanted coupling to the feedline.
to experience high-voltage static build up, we protect it by
placing a resistor across it to drain built-up static charge while C or use two separate boxes coupled with a dual PL-259 cou-
handling the voltage and power it experiences in operation. pler, Photo D.
For less than 500 watts, a 1-megohm, 1-watt, non-inductive
resistor works well. For higher power levels, a 2-watt, 2.7- Coax Counterpoise
megohm non-inductive resistor is needed.
Mounting the capacitor and resistor on a 1- x 1-inch PC The coax counterpoise is shown in Figure 4. This is basical-
board makes assembly and potting easier, especially for the ly the same antenna as the wire counterpoise version with
high-power surface-mount parts. These are large surface- the wire removed and the 1:1 balun in a separate box placed
mount parts that are easily soldered to a 1x1 PC board with 13 feet, 2 inches down the feedline. The outer surface of the
a slot cut out of the middle with a Dremel tool, as shown in coax shield serves the counterpoise and the 1:1 balun / choke
Photo B(1). Further, though not absolutely necessary, we like constrains RF from flowing on the rest of the feed line. Thus,
to protect our capacitor and resistor with a layer of modeling the 1:1 position defines the length of the counterpoise and
silicone or a non-conductive epoxy coating, as shown in prevents feedline radiation below it. We were able to achieve
Photos B(2) and B(3). comparable performance with both counterpoises.
The wire counterpoise is 13 feet 2 inches long and will inter-
act with the feedline if it gets too close, so we ran it horizon- The Matching Transformer
tally for 30 inches before allowing it to droop towards the The matching transformer is fundamental to building a truly
ground. The wire should be stabilized to maintain a constant multi-band end-fed antenna. It determines the match on all
distance between it and the feedline and other objects, mak- bands and limits the amount of power the antenna can safe-
ing isolated coax a more desirable configuration. The match- ly handle. The design of the matching transformer starts with
ing network is a 36:1 transformer followed by a 1:1 balun4 the parameters of the core material to determine:
with at least 30-dB isolation to suppress common mode cur-
rents. In order to reduce the interaction between the match- 1. Impedance of the primary at the lowest frequency. Too
ing transformer, the two coils should be separated as in Photo low and there will be a mismatch and high SWR. The imped-

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Figure 4. Coax counterpoise 80-meter half-wave end-fed antenna.
ance is determined by the type of core material, number of ty. An 80-meter test antenna was launched to validate our
cores, and the number of turns. modeling and learn the peccadillos of the high-impedance
2. Losses are determined by the resistance of the wire feed. We placed temperature-sensitive strips on the cores to
and core losses. Core losses are a function of the materi- measure the highest temperature reached under continuous
al and the flux density. Flux density is proportional to the power for 1 minute at powers proportional to the power-han-
number of turns and the current in the wires, making fewer dling capability of each of the transformers, calculated from
turns desirable. the loss tests. We also used each of the transformers on-
3. Heat. Losses show up as heat in the core/s, limiting the
power that the transformer can handle. Also, if you overheat
the core beyond its Curie Point (a temperature at which a Low Medium High
material’s magnetic properties change sharply), it will fail and
Digital 50 250 400
recover as the temperature decreases.
CW 100 500 800
We built and tested several transformers to find the most
effective match with the widest bandwidth by testing them SSB 150 750 1,200
with resistive loads. We then measured the losses in each
of the transformers to determine their power-handling abili- Table 3. Power ratings for three transformer configurations.

Photo E. Transformer for low power (150 watts): One 140-
43 core, wire counterpoise.
Parts List Photo F. Transformer for medium power (750 watts): Two
240-43 cores, wire counterpoise.
175 ft, #14 stranded wire, Davis RF or THHN from home
improvement store
1 – End insulator for coax counterpoise
2 – End insulators for wire counterpoise
1 – Insulator to hold the R-C load PC board
1 – 1- x1-inch PC board
1 – 1-watt, 2.7-megohm non-inductive resistor (high power);
1-watt, 1-megohm non-inductive resistor (low power)
1 – (<750 watts) mica capacitor, 150 pF, CDV16FF151J03F,
Mouser 598-CDV16FF151JO3F
1 – (1.2-kilowatt) ceramic capacitor, 150 pf, 3 kilovolt,
Knowles-Syfer 222523K00151GQTAF9LM, Digi-key 1608-
1588-1-ND
1 – 56 pF 3 kilovolt capacitor, CC45SL3FD560JYNNA, Digi-
Key 445-15996-ND
Cores:
1 – (<150 watts) 140-43 core, FairRite, 5943002701, Mouser
623-5943002701
2 – (<750 watts) 240-43 cores, FairRite, 5943003801,
Mouser 623-5943003801
3 – (<1200 watts) 236-52 cores, FairRite, 5952003801,
Photo G. Transformer for high power (1,200 watts): Three
Mouser 623-5952003801
236-52 cores, coax counterpoise.
1:1 Balun choke (see Balun Basics3):
#18 Polyamideimid solid copper wire, Remington Industries, the-air for ragchews, DX chasing, and CQ contests in both
18H200P.12, <remingtonindustries.com> CW and SSB.
Potting - Silicone – see text, or MG Chemicals, 834FX, black, The 1-minute test is a good proxy for digital operation. The
flexible, thermally-conductive potting compound, Amazon.com losses show up as heat that can make the box housing the
Box vent, Amphenol, VENT-PS1YBK-N8001, Mouser 523- transformer get quite hot5. For example, a transformer with
VENT-PS1YBKN8001 a loss of 0.5 dB with 100 watts applied dissipates 12 watts,
Transformer box, Thomas & Betts E989NNJ PVC molded and driven with 1 kilowatt dissipates 120 watts, a lot of power
screw cover junction box, 4-inch x 4-inch x 2-inch, Carlon or to get out of a small box. So we use Amphenol Vents to
Awclub 4.52-inch x 3.54-inch x 2.16-inch both on Amazon improve the heat dissipation from the boxes (see parts list).
8 – 10-24 stainless steel hex nuts (local HW store) Recognizing that the goal of the transformer is to provide
8 – #10 stainless steel flat washers (local HW store)
a high voltage to match the high impedance at the end of the
8 – #10 stainless steel lock washers (local HW store)
2 – #10 ring terminals (local HW store)
antenna, it seemed odd that most transformers were wound
Scotch® outdoor double-sided mounting tape, (local HW with the low impedance primary wires wrapped tightly around
store) a high impedance side of the secondary. Winding wires tight-
ly around each other capacitively couples them, much like a
Kits with pre-mounted and potted capacitors and resistors “gimmick capacitor,” putting an unneeded load on the sec-
are available on the authors’ website, <www.ocfmasters.com> ondary and likely limiting the high frequency response of the
transformer. That is exactly what it does because winding the

primary in the middle of the secondary requires a smaller 180° around the core, and the 2-turn primary windings are
capacitor while delivering a better match above 20 MHz. close spaced on the middle of the secondary with a 56-pF
Many articles and ads claim the use of large diameter wire capacitor across the primary to compensate for leakage
on both the primary and secondary of the transformer, but a inductance as shown in the photos.
simple calculation shows that the maximum current in the The transformer is mounted in a waterproof plastic box that
secondary is less than one amp at 1,200 watts, so difficult- has the SO-239 coax connector and eye rings mounted, as
to-wind wire was abandoned for #18 solid copper wire with seen in the photos. The core is held to the box bottom with
a Polyamideimide coating (see parts list). On the other hand, double sided mounting tape (see parts list). To test the trans-
the primary must handle more current, 4.9 amps at 1,200 former, put an 1,800-ohm non-inductive low-power resistor
watts, requiring a larger diameter wire. We found wire across the secondary and use an antenna analyzer to mea-
stripped from 14-2 Romex from a recent home project proved sure the SWR from 3.5 to 30 MHz. Do not short the primary
adequate for high power and #18 wire for both primary and and secondary. If it is not less than 2:1 up to 30 MHz, adjust
secondary on the low-power transformer. the spacing of the secondary windings.
The broadband transformers are wound on one or more
ferrite cores: one 140-43 core for low power, two 240-43 cores Installation, Tuning and Operating
for medium power, and three 236-52 cores for high power When installing the antenna, ensure that the end of the coun-
(see Photos E, F and G). For two or more cores, tape or ty- terpoise, wire or coax / balun, cannot contact people or pets.
wrap them together. Power ratings for the three transform- Tuning the antenna with a 13-foot 2-inch coax / balun coun-
ers for different modes are in Table 3. terpoise only requires adjusting the far end so the lowest
The 12-turn secondary windings are wide-spaced about SWR on 20 meters is above the middle of the band and the
Figure 5. A typical set of SWR curves measured with 100 feet of RG-8x on each HF band between 80 and 10 meters (except
60 meters).

220 pf Cap
34' 33'
36:1
7' RG8X
1:1
Figure 6. Dimensions of 40-meter end-fed antenna with coax counterpoise, tunable for higher-frequency bands as well.
SWR on 15 is less than 2:1 across the band. Tuning a wire RF feedback. It is our practice to use another 1:1 balun at
counterpoise is similar, but if the SWR on 10 meters is not the entrance to the shack to suppress any RF picked up by
below 2.5:1 between 28 and 28.5 MHz, adjust the length of the feedline.
the counterpoise. The high impedance affects the tuning We found that we could achieve good positioning of the
because the frequency is more susceptible to surroundings resonances by cutting the length for the high bands and rais-
and environmental conditions such as moisture. The coming the lower bands’ resonant frequencies with a capacitive
bined effect means resonances may not be exactly where load of 150 pf at 32% of the length. This worked better than
they are expected, but the bandwidth is wide enough to cover the common practice of cutting the length for the low bands
the variation. A typical set of SWR curves measured with 100 and using a small coil near the end of the antenna to lower
feet of RG-8x is in Figure 5. Note that the low-power version the resonant frequency for the high bands.
works well at two-thirds power on 6 meters while the core We achieved the lowest SWRs by using a 36:1 transformer
loss of the higher-power versions precludes 6-meter opera- and a counterpoise length of 5% of the wavelength at the
tion. Also, any end-fed antenna with a native SWR above lowest frequency. The transformer is the most crucial aspect
2.5:1 should be run at two-thirds power. of the design. The common practice of building the trans-
former with the primary twisted with the first few secondary
How About 40-Meter Multiband or a 60-Meter windings is not the best design. Instead, a transformer with
Single-Band Antennas? the primary centered on the secondary has better high fre-
quency performance. We found that one or two type-43 cores
A broadband matching transformer makes these antennas
worked well for low- and medium-power designs, and that
possible. A 40-meter end-fed (Figure 6) is a simple modifi-
three type-52 cores worked well for high power designs.
cation of the 80-meter antenna made by changing the lengths
The flexibility of using a broadband transformer was
of the wires. The resulting configuration is:
demonstrated by the simplicity of making a 40-meter multi-
band version or a 60-meter single-band version with the
• Total Length: 67 feet
same transformer.
• Distance to 150-pF load: 21.6 feet
All these antennas performed well on the air with no
• Counterpoise Length: 6.6 feet
detectable RF in the shack. We consider the results and per-
• Tuning is similar to the 80-meter version as verified in
formance to be similar to our OCF designs1 with more flexi-
our tests.
bility in deployment while sacrificing only the 60-meter band.
For 60 meters or any single band end-fed half-wave anten-
na, you don’t need a capacitor. Acknowledgements
1. Calculate the length of the counterpoise, wire or coax / We thank our spouses Dee Glorioso, W1MGA, and Barbara
balun, as 0.05% of the wavelength. For 60 meters, it is 3 Rose for their support throughout this long project, along with
meters or 9.84 feet. Colin Brench, W1DJR, and Allison Parent, KB1GMX, for
2. Calculate the length of a half-wave wire, L=468/F; for 60 sharing their experiences with end-feds.
meters, 5.36 MHz, the length is 87.5 feet, but with a 36:1
transformer, the length will be slightly shorter so 87.5 feet is
a good place to start. Adjust the length for minimum SWR at References
5.36 MHz to cover the 60-meter band. 1. “Multiband Off-Center-Fed Dipoles for 160 & 80 Meters,”
Bob Rose, KC1DSQ and Bob Glorioso, W1IS, CQ magazine,
June 2020
Summary 2. “The End-Fed Half Wave Antenna,” Steve Yates, AA5TB,
We found that the wire counterpoise and the coax coun- <www.aa5tb.com/efha.html>
terpoise have essentially the same performance. We pre- 3. Understanding, Building & Using Baluns, Jerry Sevick,
fer the coax counterpoise because it is less fussy mechan- W2FMI, CQ Communications, <https://tinyurl.com/ubw5e9p>
ically and less likely to get tangled in tree branches. For the 4. “Balun Basics: What’s a Balun? Why a Balun? How Do I
wire counterpoise, a 1:1 balun should be used following the Make a Balun?” By Bob Glorioso, W1IS and Bob Rose,
transformer. For the coax counterpoise, the 1:1 balun is put KC1DSQ, CQ magazine, January 2021
in a separate box and positioned on the feedline to define 5. “The End-Fed Half Wave Antenna,” Steve Dick, K1RF,
the length of the counterpoise. This effectively eliminates <https://tinyurl.com/3cdm9jr2>

Technology Special:
MF/LF OPERATING: Life Below the AM Broadcast Band
BY JOHN LANGRIDGE, * KB5NJD
A New Theory of Propagation for Long-Haul DX on 2200 Meters

BY ROGER CROFTS,# VK4YB
Editor’s note: We are rearranging our column schedule a K3RWR; James Davey, K8RZ; Bob Johnson, K9KFR;
bit to accommodate a few changes in the lineup. As a result, Steven Franke, K9AN; Andy Bell, KU4XR; Eric Tichansky,
the MF/LF column will now run in March, June, September, NO3M; Paul Kelly, N1BUG; Bill De Carle, VE3IQB; Jay
and December. To give KB5NJD a little breathing room, we Rusgrove, W1VD; and Mike Sapp, WA3TTS.
are pleased to have VK4YB as a guest columnist in this Only on the occasional day were reports missing and that
issue. John will be back in March. – W2VU was probably due to lightning activity in the receiving zone.
Note that all the reports were on the eastern end of the paths.
Repeated efforts to get reports in the opposite direction failed.
F
rom the earliest experiments on 2200 meters, it has Is this a case of one-way propagation? I do not think so.
been known that extremely long-haul DX signals have There is a much simpler explanation. The successful receiv-
been detected from radio amateur stations by other ing stations are operating in the few hours before dawn. This
amateurs. is the quietest time. VK signals making the return trip are
On April 11, 2005, Mike McAlevey, ZL4OL, was able to arriving in the early to mid-evening when conditions in Europe
detect on charts sufficient dots and dashes in the correct are very noisy. This is the same situation with the VK to east-
places to positively identify the source as signals from Laurie ern U.S. path.
Mayhead, G3AQC (SK 2009), at a distance of 19,187.2 kilo-
meters (11,922 miles), a remarkable achievement, which is Can Conventional Multi-Hop Propagation
still the world one-way distance record today. The mode used Explain These Signals?
was DFCW180, which is dual-frequency very slow speed
I do not believe it can. Low-band propagation guru Jim
CW. It takes 3 minutes to send one dot. Nowadays, we let
Hollander, W5EST, has studied these long paths and, even
computers do all the hard work and send signals that are
invoking equatorial anomalies and the like, cannot get the
best decoded by other computers. The best known of these
losses low enough to explain the long-haul signals.
are WSPR (Weak Signal Propagation Reporter) signals. This
Independently, Carl Luetzelscwab, K9LA, has studied these
is a system designed by Joe Taylor, K1JT, and first released
paths and came to a similar conclusion. The signals should
in 2008. In 2021, a new version of the system was released
peter out well before 16,000 kilometers.
by Joe and teammates Bill Somerville, G4WJS, and Steven
Let’s have a look at the actual paths involved. Figure 1
Franke, K9AN, which included FST4 variations which were
shows the great circle route from DL7NN to VK4YB, and
designed with 2200 meters in mind. Whereas WSPR typi-
Figure 2 shows the path from VK4YB to N1BUG.
cally decoded signals down to 33 dB below the noise in a
The paths are very similar as you would expect, given the
2500-Hz SSB channel, the longest version of FST4 could
similar latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere stations, but one
extend the threshold as low as -45 dB.
is the mirror image of the other. The takeoff angle from
Germany is slightly to the north of east and the receive sig-
New Discoveries nal in Maine appears to come from the west-northwest. There
This turned out to be a game changer. European stations is, however, one big difference in the paths. Can you see
sending FST4W-1800 (aka FW30) started to be detected in what it is?
Australia, and Australian stations were detected on the East The big difference is the EU-to-VK path is largely across
Coast of the United States, both over distances of 16,000 land, while the VK-eastern U.S. path is largely across sea.
kilometers (10,000 miles). By December 2020, these reports It is well-known that sea paths have less attenuation than
were becoming a daily feature. Groups of stations were land paths. The sea reflections are relatively low loss com-
involved. Here are some of the participants: pared to the land reflections. Yet the signal strengths as
Europe: Club Station DLØHOT; Al Mugler, DL7NN; Victor observed by multiple stations are nearly identical on both
Sadchikov, UA4AAV; Alex Lesnichy, R7NT. paths. My startling conclusion is that this mode of propaga-
Australia: Edgar Twinning, EJTSWL (an unofficial short- tion does not include any ground reflections.
wave listener ID); Peter Elekessy, VK2AN; Roger Crofts, Is this possible? Well, it is possible if either ducting or
VK4YB; Steph Spirat, VK5FQ; Brian Barrow, VK5ALZ. chordal hop propagation is involved. These have both been
North America: Wayde Bartholomew, K3MF; Rob Renoud, suggested on multiple occasions before, but maybe it is time
to look at them again.
*827 Middle Run Ct.
Duncanville, TX 75137 Ducting
<kb5njd@cq-amateur-radio.com> In order for ducting to occur, there needs to be a kink in the
electron density below the E-layer which would send the
# Email: <roger@monitorsensors.com> 2200-meter signal back upward and prevent the signal from

Figure 1. Likely propagation path between VK4YB and DL7NN.
Figure 2. Likely propagation path between VK4YB and N1BUG. Can you see the main difference between this path and
the one to DL7NN?

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Figure 3. Simplified illustration of a conventional chordal hop. The nighttime hop

does not return to the Earth’s surface until reaching its destination.
reaching the ground. These kinks do Have we now come to the end of the
indeed exist but the problem is they road? Not quite, there is still another
would need to exist almost every night possibility.
of the northern winter and stretch In Figure 3, the vertical distances are,
almost halfway around the world. I just of course, exaggerated for clarity. We
cannot see that happening. tend to think of the world as an orange
with the peel representing the area
Chordal Hop between layers within which the signal
Is chordal hop a possibility? Let’s take can move. To be more realistic on 2200
a look at conventional HF chordal hop, meters, we need to think of the world as
shown in Figure 3. In this scenario, both an apple with the skin being the only
stations are near the terminator. The place the signal can go. The height of
terminator causes a tilt in the reflecting the R-layer at night is only 60 to 80 kilo-
layer which enables the signal to enter meters, compared with the world cir-
the chordal hop mode. A similar tilt at cumference of 40,000 kilometers.
the other station enables the signal to There is not much room to work with.
return to ground. Is something like this Let’s take a look in Figure 4 at what a
happening at 2200 meters? The answer single chordal hop might look like.
is no. When European stations are
heard in Australia, the terminator is A Typical Grazing Chordal Hop ANTENNAS: Delta Loop HF,
already some thousands of kilometers The horizon distance from a height of HGSW Beam, Multiband
Antennas, Cage Dipole,
to the west of the transmitting site. 80 kilometers is near enough to 1,000 Emergency Communications
There is no tilting occurring at that time kilometers. The distance from the trans- Stealth Antennas, Single
at the transmit end. The terminator does mitter on the left to the receiver on the Band Half-Wave HF Dipoles
get near the receiving stations in the late right is 4,000 kilometers. From the
BALUNS & A NTENNA ACCESSORIES:
session and, in fact, it is not uncommon refraction point on the E-layer to the Antenna Accessories, Rope, Ends, EZ Hang;
to see a small lift in receive signal next refraction point is 2,000 kilometers. Baluns & Line Isolators: Tower Accessories
strength of 2 or 3 dB at this time. The signal comes very close to the ACCESSORIES: Radios, Capacitors, Solar
However, we can rule out tilting as a Earth’s surface in the center of the path
major factor. but does not touch or reflect from the 3861 Mount Olive Church Road
Moravian Falls, NC 28654
(828) 738-6445 website: www.ni4l.com

Figure 4. A grazing chordal hop, or GCH. Takeoff and receive angles shown here are not realistic in real-life settings.
Figure 5. A more realistic illustration of a grazing chordal hop. See text for details.
surface, which is why I call it “grazing chordal hop” or GCH FST4 software provides data on the Doppler shift of the
from now on. So, is the above scenario possible? The answer arriving signal. The Doppler shifts are much lower than
is no, for two good reasons. would be expected for such a long path. This indicates a
No earth-bound transmitting antenna can ever produce any stable path and is consistent with GCH. In the case of the
radiation at 0°. Nor can an earth-bound receiving antenna EU-to-VK path, there are, unfortunately, no intermediate
receive a signal at 0° as required by the above diagram. We receiving stations whose reports could provide additional
still have the problem of how to get a signal into and out of information. The many Japanese stations are far to the north
the GCH mode. of the Great Circle path and rarely decode the EU stations.
Now consider the modified diagram in Figure 5. There is There are active receiving stations in central and western
nothing clever about this. The transmitter illuminates the sky U.S. Ray, SWLEM3 and Paul Johnson, KILOMETERS5SW
above the transmitting site and hopefully for some distance come to mind (These are both unofficial SWL identifiers for
in the direction of the receiver. It is a brute force method. A use on internet reporting. – ed.). These stations only occa-
very small part of the signal will be propagated at the correct sionally decode the VK FW30 signals and when they do,
angle to enter the GCH, but a heavy price in dB has to be the reports are at about the same levels as the East Coast
paid to get a signal there; likewise at the receiving site. We stations. The situation in North America is more complex.
now have to do a little bit of math to see if a 16,000-kilome- Because of the Pacific Ocean pipeline, conventional multi-
ter path is feasible. hop signals are also present and will give rise to reports on
the West Coast and the Midwest.
Total loss = 2x + ny dB At the time of writing this article, September 2021, the new
season is just starting. Already European signals are being
Where x = loss to get into or out of GCH decoded in Australia and VK signals are being decoded at
n = number of GCHs the super receiving station, operated by Eric Tichansky,
y = average loss per GCH NO3M, in Pennsylvania. From last year’s experience, we
know that even modest receiving stations using just short
We know the number of hops, so “n” is 8. We know the whip antennas can decode long haul DX. Most of the trans-
transmitted power is +30 dBm. From measurement, using a mitting stations are using 20- to 30-meter verticals with base
Siemens D2008 selective level meter, we know the typical or top loading. These are big antennas by amateur standards
band noise at the VK4YB receiving site is -95 dBm, correct- but tiny in terms of wavelength. Just to get 1-watt EIRP, sev-
ed for a 2.5-kHz bandwidth. The decoder tells us the signal eral hundred watts of RF power is usually needed. The
is 43 dB below this noise level. Our total budget for the path ground systems are important.
is thus 168 dB. This is the actual measured path loss. We do We need more stations to participate to provide more data.
not know the exact values of x or y, but for every estimate of The GCH mode is pure speculation at this point. Perhaps you
x, there is a corresponding value of y. Here are some possi- can think of a better explanation. The FST4 modes have both
ble contenders: x=36, y=12; x=40, y=11; x=44, y=10. beacon modes, indicated by the letter W, and QSO modes.
The rays diverge on leaving the transmitter but start to So a QSO is a real possibility at these distances. The paths
reconverge when approaching the antipodal point. The are stable enough, for long enough, to allow a QSO, proba-
combined signal can be enhanced if the rays are in phase bly using F15, rather than F30. Exciting times are ahead. Will
and they will be in phase if the path lengths are the same. you join us on 2200 meters?
This is aided by the long wavelength of 2.2 kilometers. The – 73 and good luck from Roger, VK4YB

HAM RADIO EXPLORER
BY ANTHONY A. LUSCRE*, K8ZT
Simply Simplex
Welcome! tant to call CQ regularly so there will be

someone out there for others to con-
T tact.1 You might even discuss with your

his month I begin a new column
at CQ Amateur Radio. “Ham local club setting up a weekly simplex
Radio Explorer” will be a quarter- net to increase local activity and, in the
ly column focusing on you trying out process, increase your members’
new aspects of amateur radio. I will be EmComm capabilities (what will you do
writing the column (Photo A), but I will in an emergency if the repeater is
depend on you to explore with me by down?), so without further ado …
trying the new modes, bands, activities,
etc., that I focus on. Sometimes it might Simplex Frequencies
be helpful to have a ham friend work
Just as with repeaters, simplex opera-
with you on the activities; or even bet-
tion should be limited to specifically
ter, incorporate the activity into a pro-
designated frequencies to avoid inter-
ject with your local radio club.
ference to other 2-meter or 440-MHz
This year marks the 40th anniversary
operations, including satellites, weak-
of my first amateur radio license. One Photo A. Join columnist Anthony
signal CW and SSB, EME (Earth-Moon-
of the things that has kept me active Luscre, K8ZT, in exploring the different
Earth or moonbounce), repeaters, etc.
over this time has been discovering new nooks and crannies of ham radio.
You can see band plan information on
bands, modes, and activities. I hope we (Photo by Scott Yonally, N8SY)
the ARRL website <www.arrl.org/band-
can explore these and more in future
plan> and in Table 1. Remember, band
columns. If you have already tried each
plans are suggestions of frequency and Canada based on channel spacing.
column’s topic, consider mentoring
usage for various modes and may vary The map in Figure 1 shows that 15-kHz
other hams who have not yet tried this
from state to state. The 2-meter band spacing is predominant in the eastern
facet of ham radio.
plan chart is a nationally suggested and central states plus California. In the
plan. Individual frequencies for 2-meter rest of the west and southwest, 20 kHz
Simply Simplex simplex operation within the designat- is the standard separation between
For my first Ham Radio Explorer col- ed band segments vary around the U.S. repeater frequencies. There are some
umn, I thought I would start out with
something relatively simple: Operating
VHF/UHF FM simplex. Many hams —
especially newer hams — limit their
VHF/UHF operations to repeaters, but
there is a whole world of simplex activ-
ity for you to explore. Simplex operation
means direct station-to-station contact
without using a repeater to help facili-
tate the contact. The range for hand-
held radios is limited without repeaters,
so it may be very helpful to use an exter-
nal and/or gain antenna in place of your
HT’s “rubber duck.” A higher-power
mobile or base radio with a mobile or
external antenna may even be better.
Random simplex contacts are not
easy to come by, so hams have desig-
nated calling frequencies to increase
the odds of finding someone to talk to.
If your ham shack, mobile, or handheld
radio has dual-receive coverage (able
to monitor two frequencies at the same
time) or scanning, add a couple of sim-
plex calling frequencies to its memo-
ries. In addition to listening, it is impor-
*Email: <k8zt@arrl.net>, Table 1. FM simplex frequencies band plan for VHF and UHF amateur bands in
website <www.k8zt.com> the United States. (Figures by the author)

common frequencies, and both plans could be assigned to repeaters in your are between 51.50 and 52.59 MHz (see
use the same national simplex calling area, so check your local band plan. Table 3 for specific frequencies on 6
frequency, 146.52 MHz (see Table 2). meters and 70 centimeters), but please
Simplex activity is not as common on It’s Not Just 2 and 440! be aware these frequencies could be
440 MHz and there is a great variation During times of increased F-layer ion- assigned to repeaters in your area.
in different areas of the country. ization or Sporadic-E (Es) skip, 6-meter Check your local band plan or a
Channel spacing is 25 kHz and the simplex can provide contacts of greater repeater directory.
national calling frequency is 446.000 distances, including regional, national, Although space is not available here
MHz. In most areas, some or all of the and even DX. Many of today’s multi- to discuss them fully, be aware that both
following frequencies are also used for mode HF transceivers include 6 meters. 1.2 GHz and 222 MHz are other areas
simplex: 445.925, 445.950, 445.975, The national simplex calling frequency to consider exploring with FM simplex.
446.025, 446.050, and 446.075 MHz. is 52.525 MHz. In most areas, some or
Please be aware these frequencies all of the frequencies used for simplex Simplex Activities
Simplex activities can include casual
contacts, contest contacts, emergency
communications or training, organized
nets, SOTA (Summits On The Air) and
POTA (Parks On The Air) activations.
Although most VHF/UHF contesting
takes place on SSB, CW, and digital
(FT8/FT4), FM simplex is a valid mode
for most of these contests. See the indi-
vidual contest’s rules for details. One
type of contest is an FM simplex-only
contest. These are often held by local
clubs and use six-digit grid square iden-
tifiers as multipliers (find your grid
square at <tiny.cc/find-grid>). Simplex
nets can be a great training tool for
emergency communications support.
Increasing Your Coverage on

VHF/UHF FM Simplex
Several factors can influence your abil-
ity to make VHF/UHF contacts:
• Signal Strength
Figure 1. Map of 2-meter channel spacing (in kHz) in U.S. and Canada. ™ Output power
Photo B. Base antennas for VHF/UHF FM are available as single-, dual-, tri-, and multi-band verticals. Some examples,
from left to right, are Comet GP-15 (52/146/446MHz), Comet GP-98 (146/446/1200 MHz), Diamond V2000A (52/146/446
MHz), Diamond D3000N Super Discone Antenna(50-1200 MHz transmit), and MFJ’s MFJ-1536 (6M/2M/440MHz). (Photos
from manufacturers’ websites <https://cometantenna.com>, <www.diamondantenna.net> and <www.mfjenterprises.com>)

™ Antenna Gain
™ Antenna Height
• Propagation
™ Local Terrain
™ Line of Sight
™ Enhanced Propagation
¢ Tropospheric enhancements
¢ Es (most commonly on 6 meters)
Antennas
Better antennas are a great way to increase both your trans-
mitted signal strength and your ability to receive other sta-
tions. Better antennas can be very useful for simplex opera-
tion but can also increase both the number of available
repeaters and the quality of your signal into repeaters.
Antenna options to enhance your VHF/UHF radio’s signal
can be broken down into seven categories:
• Extended length, flexible rubber duck type for HTs
• Retractable whip antennas that can extend for HTs
• Improved ground plane for your HT with use a “tiger-tail”
<w3atb.com/tiger-tail-antenna>
• Mobile-style vertical antennas
• Fixed, base, vertical antennas
• Portable flexible antennas (twin-lead J-poles)
• Beam antennas
I have put together a short guide for portable and tempo- Table 2. 2-meter simplex frequencies with 15- or 20-kHz
rary antennas that includes VHF/UHF antennas at spacing
<tiny.cc/portant>.
Extended length, flexible and retractable whip antennas Vertical single or dual-band mobile antennas can be used
attach directly to the HT in place of the rubber duck. Their on your automobile or with a suitable metal ground plane and
longer length usually results in increased gain over the orig- mount at home, either indoors or outdoors. You will need a
inal equipment antennas. length of coax to connect these antennas to your HT or mobile

radio. If connecting to an HT, you will Beam antennas, whether used on a UHF FM can be accomplished in four
probably also need an adapter to con- fixed tower or mast or handheld in the ways:
nect the coax to your HT’s antenna jack. field, have the maximum gain and direc-
Fixed base verticals are similar but usu- tivity of all the antennas for VHF/UHF • Add an amplifier to your HT or other
ally longer with more gain and are simplex. When used in fixed installa- radio
designed to install outside your house. tions, beams for FM operation should • Use a higher-powered mobile FM
There are two basic types: Single fiber- be configured in a vertical orientation radio (in your vehicle or in your shack)
glass pole with antenna element(s) (with elements perpendicular to the • Use a higher-powered base radio
inside or metal J-pole style with two ver- ground), unlike SSB, where beams are capable of VHF/UHF FM
tical elements. Portable, flexible anten- configured for horizontal polarization. • Use a high-quality, low-loss feedline
nas can be twin-lead-based J-poles, with your radio and antenna to avoid
wire dipoles and other antennas that Amplifiers and Higher Power power loss
can be rolled up for transport. Increasing your output power on VHF/ Adding an RF amplifier can make your
HT into a radio that can mimic many
VHF/UHF mobile radios in range.
Modern solid-state VHF/UHF amplifiers,
often called “bricks,” are simple and
silent to operate. With 2- to 5-watts input
from your HT, these amplifiers can out-
put 35 to 160 watts, depending on the
model selected. You will need to decide
between an FM-only amp that will work
with your HT or an all-mode amp that will
also work on SSB and CW if you want to
use them with other radios. The Mirage
B-34 VHF amplifier is an example of an
FM-only HT solid-state amp that covers
144-148 MHz with 2 watts in and 35 watts
out. This amplifier could be used at home
or in your vehicle. Mobile radios with up
to 80 watts of FM output are an inex-
pensive way to increase the range of
your simplex signal. If you are interest-
Table 3. 6-meter and 70-centimeter simplex frequencies ed in SSB/CW operations in addition to
FM, you may want to consider a base
radio with these capabilities. For exam-
ple (see Photo C), the ICOM IC-9700 can
provide SSB / CW / RTTY / AM / FM /
DV / DD coverage of 144, 430/440, and
1200 MHz with 100 / 75 / 10 watts. The
Yaesu FT-991A provides multimode
coverage for 50, 144, 430/440 in addi-
tion to its HF bands. A power output of
100 watts on 6 meters and 50 watts on
2 meters and 70 centimeters is available.
That’s it for this month. If you are inter-
ested in some of my recent ham radio
presentations to radio clubs via Zoom,
visit <tiny.cc/k8zt-p>. I am always look-
ing for information on your new activi-
ties, ideas for future columns, and feed-
back from this column, so please email
me at <k8zt@arrl.net>.
Notes:
1. In many areas, it is not considered stan-
dard practice to call CQ on a repeater, rather
saying “<callsign> listening,” and in some
places it is actively discouraged. This conven-
tion does not apply to simplex frequencies and
calling CQ there is perfectly acceptable.
However, we encourage operators to keep CQ
calls on FM very brief (e.g., “This is <callsign>
calling CQ and listening,” then unkeying the mic
Photo C. The Yaesu FT-991A and Icom IC-9700 are two examples of current rigs to listen), as conditions are not as changeable
as on other modes and a station listening on
with multimode VHF/UHF capabilities. (Photos from manufacturers’ websites the frequency will either hear you the first time
<www.yaesu.com> and <www.icomamerica.com>) or not at all. – Ed.

VHF PLUS
BY TRENT FLEMING,* N4DTF
In Praise of FM Simplex Activity
T
his month I want to focus on FM simplex activity. This
is not complicated ... but it is different from using
repeaters. Simplex requires line of sight (unless, of
course, you get some enhanced propagation — more on that
later) and thus will challenge you to implement the best setup
you can from home, car, or portable locations.
Repeaters have their place, but all require power supplies
and most digital activity will require internet access as well.
Depending on the situation, repeaters may or may not be a
suitable platform for communications in an emergency. Many
nets that are regularly held on repeaters feature a “simplex
night” once a month or so, to help their members assess their
readiness for point-to-point communications on the band in
question. While most nets are on the higher VHF and above
frequencies, you will also find local nets on 6 meters and 10
meters. Our focus is on the use of FM on bands including 2
meters, 70 centimeters, and 1.25 meters. Table 1 shows the
simplex allocation suggestions from ARRL.
Note: that virtually all FM activity uses vertically-polarized
antennas. This is important when communicating point to
point, as cross-polarization losses are significant.
Here are two simplex nets seeking to promote this
activity:
Barefoot Bullfrog Simplex Net

In the Memphis, Tennessee area, the “Barefoot Bullfrog Net”
has been in operation since the early 1990s, meeting every
evening at 7:30 p.m. local time on 146.535 MHz to “promote
the hobby of amateur radio, fellowship, and the use of sim-
plex frequencies.” This net has a great track record of con-
tinuity, and you will not find a friendlier or more welcoming
group of hams. Photo A shows one of the flyers originally Photo A. An early flyer for the Barefoot Bullfrog Net. This net
used to promote the net in the early days. One unusual thing was set up by Memphis-area hams who like working sim-
about this net is that there’s no organization behind it. It’s plex on 2 meters. (Courtesy of Barefoot Bullfrog Net)
comprised of a group of friends who moved over to ham radio
from CB and began a regular roundtable each evening. Over
the years, other hams have found them and expanded their to be aware of signals that only they can hear and learn to
circle of check-ins to a regular group of 20 or more each assist net controllers with this activity. Again, in a situation in
evening. Many of the regulars monitor the frequency through- which normal communication methods aren’t reliable, hams
out the day, and there’s an informal net very early most morn- using simplex net techniques can do important work by ensur-
ings, sometimes as early as 4:30 or 5 a.m. local time. ing that anyone with emergency traffic can be heard. In many
ways, FM simplex echoes the typical HF net, allowing both
Central Alabama Simplex Net point-to-point and relayed stations to participate. Photo B
Although younger than the Bullfrog net, the Central Alabama shows the promotional page for this net.
Simplex net <https://tinyurl.com/s7r2xmcy> has an impres-
sive track record, operating once a week on Sunday, with a Establishing a Simplex Net
pre-net around 7:30 p.m. and the formal net at 8 p.m. local There are many reasons to start a simplex net. If local hams
time (U.S. Central Time). These folks have a well-organized rely on selected repeaters for emergency communications,
net, set up to relay stations from a wide area, and frequently rag-chewing, or conducting messages (traffic nets), they
see check-ins in the low hundreds of operators. Leveraging should properly prepare for the loss of the repeater whether
the elevation around Birmingham, and many experienced from weather, power loss, mechanical failure, or some com-
operators with well-built stations, they reach a wide area, bination thereof. A good starting point is your existing net.
through both direct and relay QSOs. There’s an important les- Likely some of the regulars would have an interest in start-
son here. Simplex is not as routine as using a repeater, and ing a simplex net. If the club or group responsible for the net
to reach as many stations as possible, all participants will need is willing, perhaps you can try simplex once a month at the
regular net time. If that doesn’t happen right away, simply
recruit a few locals who also like the simplex idea and begin
* <n4dtf@cq-amateur-radio.com> working on your abilities. As mentioned in a previous col-

Height of antenna is important as well,
the higher the better. Once you have a
good antenna system in place, and by
that I mean one that has low signal loss
and the best gain possible, you can
consider the proper radio. You will find
three basic radio types: FM only,
meaning essentially a mobile unit used
as a base; single-band, all-mode
radios, many older units are available
for 2 meters and above, for example,
with FM included; or multi-band, all-
mode radios. Several modern rigs from
different manufacturers feature 160
meters through 2 meters and even
higher. The more modern rigs will often
offer power levels of 100 watts on 2
meters, reducing the need for an ampli-
fier that might benefit a lower power
unit from. In my case, I have an all-
band, all-mode rig to have the higher
power on VHF as well as a backup for
my main HF rig. There are plenty of
options here, I won’t mention brands or
models so as to avoid stepping on toes.
Feel free to contact me directly if you
have specific questions, I have bought,
sold, and traded many VHF rigs, a sort
of RF wanderlust affliction.
Photo B. The promotional page from the Central Alabama Simplex Net website.
DX Opportunities
(Courtesy of the Central Alabama Simplex Net) DX on FM simplex ... as I alluded to early
on, propagation is still an opportunity on
FM simplex. Most of the time, simplex
umn, starting a new endeavor is much find stations with beams, but these will frequencies are higher in the band than
easier with one or more like-minded of course need to be vertically polarized so-called weak-signal frequencies, so
folks. Find some friends and begin as well. Because much of your work the MUF (maximum usable frequency)
assembling your stations to try simplex will actually be point-to-point, this is a sometimes doesn’t reach them. But on
work. By trial and error, you will learn a case in which polarization is important. certain days, you will find amazing prop-
lot, and improve your station and your
skills. If you can make the commitment
to meet regularly, you will find that your
Low Power and Remote Stations
I include this as a sidebar because one goal of every ham activity should be
little group will grow, and perhaps you
to increase participation and thus introduce more folks to that particular side of
end up leading your club or organiza-
the hobby. When building an FM simplex net, remember that there will be those
tion to a monthly simplex practice net.
who hear you but can’t be heard. Perhaps they are too far and don’t have good
Either way, you will have an improved
propagation, or simply don’t have the antenna system or power out to make
FM setup, and will have explored one
contact. Unless you provide for, and acknowledge those stations, they may give
more facet of our hobby.
up out of frustration. Your net control methods should include a time for listen-
ing for “low power” and “DX” stations, as well as periodically giving out contact
Working Conditions – Station information (phone, email, social media account) for someone on the net who
Requirements for Effective will attempt to “elmer” (hamspeak for mentor) newcomers. In this way, you are
Simplex advancing the cause of amateur radio, and the spirit of helpfulness and coop-
One of the beneficial things about work- eration that marks our ranks.
ing simplex is that it forces you to ensure
Band Recommended Frequencies Calling Frequencies
your station is as finely tuned as possi-
ble. While RF power is important, you 10 meters 29.600 MHz -
will find that your antenna system real- 6 meters 51.5 – 51.6 MHz 52.525
ly makes the most impact. Most simplex 2 meters 146.40 – 146.58 MHz 146.520
work is done with vertical antennas, and 1.25 meters 223.40 – 223.52 MHz 223.500
there are many such antennas available
that offer excellent gain (increased sig- 70 centimeters 445 – 447 MHz (shared) 446.000
nal strength). You will also benefit from 33 centimeters 927.075 – 927.125 MHz 927.500
upgraded feed line (coax); strive for 23 centimeters 1294 – 1295 MHz 1294.500
LMR 400 or better to reduce signal loss
at VHF and higher frequencies. You will Table 1. Simplex frequencies for VHF and above

AWARDS
BY STEVE MOLO,* KI4KWR
YL Awards
CQ USA-CA Award Update
500 County Level
JA3UCO – Award number 3812 dated July 17, 2021
K9EGS – Award number 3813 dated August 10, 2021
IK6OIN – Award number 3814 dated August 21, 2021
N7WFK – Award number 3815 dated September 24, 2021
SV1AER – Award number 3816 dated September 30, 2021
IT9ODQ – Award number 3817 dated October 10, 2021
1000 County Level

WA2ONG – Award number 1938 dated July 17, 2021
KB7ZTI – Award number 1939 dated September 3, 2021
1500 County Level

JE7JDL – Award number 1598 dated September 3, 2021
Certificate images from YLRL website
U
pon looking for awards offered for YLs (“young ladies,”
a term used for any female ham) or for contacts with
YLs, I was initially working with a couple of ladies in Worked All Zones – DX YL (WAZ-YL)
the Huntsville area and discussed the matter at the W4DXCC 1. Available to any licensed amateur in the world.
convention this past September. I discovered that the Young 2. Work YLs in 10 different CQ Zones to qualify for certifi-
Ladies Radio League (YLRL) has an active award program, cate with 10-Zone sticker.
so we will feature those awards this time around. 3. Any and all authorized amateur radio bands may be used.
The YLRL was founded more than 80 years ago as an orga- 4. Cross-band contacts are permitted.
nization made up of, run by and promoting women in ama- 5. Contacts may have been made over any period of time.
teur radio. Its founders included some of the most prominent 6. Submit a list of claimed contacts alphabetically arranged
women in amateur radio at the time. The following is from by continent.
the group’s website at <ylrl.org/wp>: 7. For each additional 10 Zones a sticker can be added.
YLRL was founded by Ethel Smith, W7FWB/K4LMB; Lida 8. A plaque is available when all 40 CQ Zones are confirmed.
King, W1GQT; Jean Doss, W5HYF; Genevieve Capstaff,
W6RGX; Marjorie Frazier, W7GXI; Mary Bamberg, W8SBB; Worked All States YL (WAS-YL)
Anita Bien, W8TAY/W4JCR; Lenore Kingston Jensen, 1. Available to any licensed amateur in the world.
W9CHD/W6NAZ; Enid Carter Aldwell, W9NXB / W6UXF / 2. Contact must be made with a duly-licensed YL in each
KH6IHW; Jean Burkhead, W9NLW; Loretta Ensor, of the 50 states in the U.S.
W9UA/WØUA; Carol Keating, W9WWP/W6WSV; and Ethel 3. The District of Columbia may be counted for Maryland.
Pick, VE2HI, in 1939. It is the longest and oldest YL organi- 4. There are no time or band limitations.
zation. These ladies made it possible for us to continue to 5. In qualifying for this certificate, it is possible to work the
make amateur radio a way of communicating with other YLs. SAME YL in each of the 50 states.
Don’t think even these ladies ever thought that 80 years later 6. The list of contacts must be arranged alphabetically by
we would be a worldwide organization. state.
2019 was the 80th year of the YLRL organization, the
longest running YL club in the world. Five hundred (500+)
YLs cannot be wrong.
YLRL is an organization for women with amateur radio
licenses and like radio itself, extends to women all over the
world. On this website you can learn about the organization,
acknowledge our fore-mothers, purchase items to show your
pride and connection, find out the latest information about
contests and special events, and stay updated on happen-
ings with our members.
The YLRL offers a variety of award certificates, a few for
YLs only but most for anyone working a specified number of
YL hams in the locations / modes / bands specified for each
award. The most popular are described below, again taken
from the YLRL website.
*Email: <KI4KWR@cq-amateur-radio.com>

operated by additional YLs may be submitted for credit each
time 50 additional confirmations are available. Endorsements
will be made to the original certificate when application is
approved.
8. Gold stickers will be awarded to applicants who have
worked their additional contacts from the same country; oth-
erwise, silver stickers will be awarded. Please indicate
whether you are applying for a gold or silver sticker when
submitting your application.
DX YL
1. Available to licensed YL operators only, for working 10
different licensed women operators outside your own coun-
try, on or after April 1, 1958.
2. USA and possessions are counted as separate coun-
tries, as well as Alaska and Hawaii.
3. Any and all amateur bands may be used.
4. Contacts do not have to be with 10 different countries,
just 10 different DX YLs.
5. Use approved DX country list. Worked All Continents YL (WAC-YL)
6. The log must be arranged alphabetically by callsign. 1. Available to any licensed amateur in the world.
7. Endorsements: Stickers will be awarded for each 10 addi- 2. Two-way communications must be established on the
tional DX YLs, subject to the same confirmation as above. amateur radio bands with YLs on the six continents: North
When 100 DX YL contacts have been confirmed, you may apply America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Oceania
for either a special paper certificate or an engraved plaque. (which includes Australia and New Zealand).
3. Any and all authorized amateur radio bands may be used.
4. Cross-band contacts are permitted.
5. Contacts may have been made over any period of time.
6. Contacts with all six continents must be made with duly
licensed women operators.
7. It is not necessary for each contact to be a different YL.
8. Submit a list of claimed contacts alphabetically arranged
by continent.
YL-DXCCL
1. Available to any licensed amateur in the world.
2. Two-way communications must be established on autho-
rized amateur bands with stations (fixed or mobile), operat-
ed by licensed YLs from 100 countries on the current ARRL
list of countries.
YL Century Club (YLCC)

rized amateur bands, with stations, mobile or fixed, operat-
ed by 100 different licensed women amateurs.
3. The same YL using different call letters will NOT count.
4. Any and all amateur bands may be used.
5. Contacts with YLs anywhere in the world are recognized,
provided that confirmations clearly indicate the stations were
operated by duly licensed women amateur radio operators.
6. List of claimed contacts must be arranged alphabetical-
ly by callsign.
7. Endorsements: Confirmations of contacts accompanied
by an alphabetical list, as described above, from stations

3. Any band or mode (except cross-band contacts) maybe
used.
4. The log must be arranged alphabetically by country.
5. Endorsements: After receiving the certificate, a silver
sticker will be awarded for contacts with YLs in 25 addition-
AlasKit Educational & Scientific Resources al DX countries. List requirements are the same as for the
original application.
We have a large inventory of new
and surplus genuine radio components,
from QRP to QRO. If you can’t find it,
we probably have it!
AlasKit has a well-equipped RF design
lab. If you have a need for a custom-
designed RF accessory, we can design
and produce these in single lot, or
small production quantities. We have
a strong relationship with a world-class
PCB manufacturer, as well.
We also produce a wide range of training materials and
technical documentation. If you need a technical manual
written in clear, concise English, we can do that too.
Check out our website for more exciting projects in progress
at AlasKit Educational and Scientific Resources
Potpourri o' Parts Mystery Box. For a mere $25, AlasKit is
offering nearly a pound (13 oz) of electronics components.
We will include at least one rare/hard-to-find radio part, worth YL-Digital Mode
the entire price of the box. What have you got to lose? First
Class postage anywhere in the U.S. is included in the price.
AlasKit Educational and Scientific Resources wishes you
a grand 2021! rized amateur bands with stations (fixed or mobile), operat-
ed by licensed YLs using digital modes only.
www.alaskit.net • 907-371-7120 3. Contact must be made with 25 YLs using a digital mode
P.O. Box 56325 • North Pole, AK 99705 (PSK31, RTTY, CW, SSTV, etc.) All contacts must be made
using the same mode.
4. The log must be arranged alphabetically by callsign.
5. Endorsements: After receiving the first certificate, a stick-
Young Ladies’ Radio League, er may be awarded for each additional digital mode with
Inc. Since 1939 which 25 YL contacts are made. (i.e., If the first 25 contacts
were made using PSK31, an endorsement may be earned
For 75 years the Young Ladies’ for making 25 contacts with YLs using RTTY. An additional
Radio League, Inc. (YLRL) has endorsement after that may be earned for CW contacts,
helped women find their voice in SSTV contacts, Hellschreiber contacts, etc.)
Submission of awards applications is quite simple and done
Amateur Radio with members of via an online form at <https://tinyurl.com/yjtzdmc8>. A log
all ages and interests. upload is required. Also available at the same location are
The YLRL sponsors a number log files for YL Digital Mode and YL-WAS log.
of certificates for both YLs and OMs. Members Are you a YL and not a member? Join YLRL via <https://
can earn special YL Certificates. ylrl.org/wp/join/> and support the organization and the future
YL-Harmonics is our bi-monthly publication of YLs in amateur radio. YLRL also has a weekly YL net on
20 meters — 14.288 MHz — every Wednesday at 0100 UTC
highlighting what women are doing in in summer and 0200 UTC in the winter, as well as the YL-OP
Amateur Radio. Net on Echolink ALARA Conference Node 286905.
YLRL gives out scholarships to YLs each year.
For more information on the YLRL, the current The Future of Awards in Amateur Radio (Part 3
dues amounts, weekly YL Net locations or how and Final)
to join please go to our website at www.ylrl.org Though our past Award Editors have mentioned hundreds
or contact the Publicity Chairwoman, Cheryl of available awards in this hobby, it is getting harder to find
Muhr, NØWBV at n0wbv@earthlink.net. All valid information and status of awards still available.
Spending several months requesting status and any changes
Officer information is also listed both on the to awards has not been too successful, to be honest, and
website and in each edition of the with the feedback given in the last few months, it could be a
magazine and you may contact challenge I truly face, which is certainly okay too.
any Officer as well. Do you have an award from the past that was fun to achieve
With thanks to the OMs who and no longer available? If so, why not share with our read-
encourage and support us. ers and highlight the achievement? If interested, please con-
tact me and maybe we can resurrect an award from the past
to work in Solar Cycle 25, which is proving to be good so far.
Visit us at www.ylrl.org
DX
BY BOB SCHENCK, N2OO
Get On the Air DX Challenge Awards
W
e all get wrapped up in chasing the usual awards, Here are the challenges we had in the ensuing months.
but for many of us that can become hit or miss as APRIL: 15-DAY PHONE CHALLENGE: Same rules as
you climb the award ladders to WAS, WAC, DXCC, March except all QSOs had to be made on phone.
WAZ, and so on. Personally, having worked them all, I have (Interesting side note, the phone challenge was the least pop-
found it fun to fill in holes with band and mode QSOs. But I ular, who would have thought that?)
can remember occasional past “club activity awards” that May: 15-DAY DIGITAL CHALLENGE: Same rules as
really caught my attention. DXing in the pandemic present- March except all QSOs had to be made on a digital mode.
ed us all with a high and low of activity. The high represent- FT8 was the most popular by far.
ed the extra time many of us had staying at home, turning
on the radio and making QSOs. The low was having all of
that extra time, but with the pandemic, DXpeditions were
pretty much on hold. So, we were all left with working other
people who were staying home all over the world, but usu-
ally in the less rare DXCC entities, and virtually none to unin-
habited ones. Overall, this was a blessing in disguise for
general ham radio activity. There were many non-hams out
there resorting to watching the news on TV far more than
was healthy (IMHO), or focusing all of their attention to
“online social media.” Meanwhile, many ham radio opera-
tors who had access to a radio were getting on the air a lot
more frequently than before. A sidebar to all this was also
increased activity on FT8, which was something new for
many hams to experience. After sitting around for 2020 with
little coordinated activity, with most Field Days cancelled
and moved to home stations to be safe, and nearly all
meetings moved to Zoom, all that was left were the regular
contests. But even those, without the normally abundant
contest DXpedition stations to add to the excitement, just
weren’t quite the same. It was time to come up with a club Photo A. Sample certificate for South Jersey DX Asso-
membership challenge! ciation’s 15-DX-Challenge last February. Members could
So, in January 2021, I decided to try something locally by earn it by working at least one DX station a day on at least
having “pandemic challenges” for our South Jersey DX 15 days of the month.
Association (SJDXA) membership. Certificates were issued
to everyone who accomplished a challenge. At first, these
were monthly challenges. But we switched over to a couple
of seasonal challenges more recently.
The first challenge would be a “15 DAY DX CHALLENGE”
for the month of February (Photo A). The rules were pretty
simple. You had to work at least ONE DX station per day for
15 days in February. This sounded pretty simple, but my
intention was to encourage members to turn on their radios.
Giving them a reason to get on the air and make at least ONE
QSO outside the U.S. each day! I had no idea how much
interest there would be in this challenge. But to my surprise
we had 14 members meet the challenge. Keep in mind that
we have 39 members with a fair number not that active on
the air. I would take a guess at perhaps 25 actively “on the
air,” which is probably fairly normal for a club our size. So,
getting 14 members to actually track and submit for the chal-
lenge was pretty awesome.
Along came March … what to do next and step things up
a bit? This time we went for a 15-DAY WARC/60 CHAL-
LENGE. Same rules as the February challenge except all
QSOs had to be made on the WARC bands (30, 17, and 12
meters) or 60 meters. Ten members accomplished this one. Photo B. SJDXA’s June challenge was to work DX stations
on two different modes. The goal of the challenge program
was to encourage club members to get and stay active on
*email: <n2oo@comcast.net> the air during the Covid pandemic.

July-August-September: Since summertime can be a bit dif-
ficult to be home for these 15-day challenges, we decided to
go with a season long SUMMERTIME DXCC CHALLENGE
(Photo C) that ran from June 22 through September 21. The
goal was to work 100 DXCC entities with no date / time / band
/ mode constraints except that it had to be during the summer
of 2021. This one was a bit more of a difficult challenge for our
membership, especially with so few DXpeditions on the air.
However, we still had six make the accomplishment! We even
sweetened the pot with a $100 Gigaparts gift certificate raf-
fled to one of the finalists. Congratulations to NY3B and TNX
to Gigaparts for their assist.
We are now into the fall of 2021, and the current challenge
is a FALL SCAVENGER HUNT. We have 30 items on our
scavenger hunt list. QSOs can be made with any station if it
fits the criteria, DX or U.S. To name a few just to give you an
idea, here are 10 from our list. If you decide to try this for your
club, be creative! As on any scavenger hunt, usually some
are pretty easy, and some are NOT so easy.
Photo C. Since people spend less time at home during the
summer, SJDXA came up with a season-long operating chal- 1. Any 1x1 special event station
lenge — to work at least 100 DX entities between June 22nd 2. Any station with at least 4 letters after the number.
and September 21st. 3. Any maritime mobile station (/MM)
4. Any station signing mobile (/M)
5. Any station with a triple letter suffix (same letter)
June: A little different. We called this the “JUNE DOUBLE 6. Any station that has 2 numbers in the call
PLAY CHALLENGE” (Photo B). The June challenge was to 7. Any station that has 3 or 4 numbers in the call
work 16 DX stations on 16 different days using two modes 8. Any station in Antarctica
of your choice, 8 QSOs per mode. For example, this could 9. Any station in your home COUNTY
be 8 CW and 8 Digital … or 8 SSB and 8 CW … whatever 10. Any station whose 3-letter suffix spells out a word, but
floated your boat for a total of 16 different days. not a name.
5 Band WAZ
As of October 15, 2021 Callsign Zones Zones Callsign Zones Zones
2327 stations have attained at least the 150 Zone level, and Needed Needed
1086 stations have attained the 200 Zone level. RZ3EC 199 1 on 40M W6RW 198 2 & 22 on 10M
S58Q 199 31 W9RN 198 26, 19 on 40M
As of October 15, 2021 SM7BIP 199 31 WC5N 198 22, 26
The top contenders for 5 Band WAZ (Zones needed on 80 USØSY 199 1 on 15M WL7E 198 34, 37
or other if indicated): VO1FB 199 19 Z31RQ 198 1, & 2 on 10M
CHANGES shown in BOLD W1FJ 199 24 ZL2AL 198 36, 37
W1FZ 199 26
W3LL 199 18 on 10M The following have qualified for the basic 5 Band WAZ
Callsign Zones Zones
W3NO 199 26 Award:
Needed
AK8A 199 17 W4LI 199 26
W6DN 199 17 Callsign 5BWAZ # Date # Zones
DM5EE 199 1 NT9F 2320 2021-09-16 151
EA5RM 199 1 W6RKC 199 21
W6TMD 199 34 DL6JZ 2321 2021-09-23 193
EA7GF 199 1 OH2BEN 2322 2021-10-03 199
H44MS 199 34 W9OO 199 18 on 10M
W9XY 199 22 DK1WU 2323 2021-10-03 182
HAØHW 199 1 USØSY 2324 2021-10-03 199
HA5AGS 199 1 9A5I 198 1, 16
EA5BCX 198 27, 39 OH1JP 2325 2021-10-04 162
I5REA 199 31
F5NBU 198 19, 31 K3FRK 2326 2021-10-05 172
IKØXBX 199 19 on 10M
F6DAY 198 2 on 10M & 15M JH9AUB 2327 2021-01-07 187
IK1AOD 199 1
IK8BQE 199 31 G3KDG 198 1, 12
G3KMQ 198 1, 27 Updates to the 5BWAZ list of stations:
IZ3ZNR 199 1
HB9FMN 198 1 on 80M & 10M
JA1CMD 199 2 Callsign 5BWAZ # Date # Zones
I1EIS 198 1 & 19 on 10M
JA5IU 199 2 RC2A 2217 2021-09-15 180
JA1DM 198 2, 40
JA7XBG 199 2
JA3GN 198 2 on 80M & 40M
JH7CFX 199 2
JA7MSQ 198 2 on 80M & 10M New recipients of 5 Band WAZ with all 200 Zones con-
JI4POR 199 2 JH1EEB 198 2, 33 firmed:
JK1AJX 199 2 on 10M KØDEQ 198 22, 26
JK1BSM 199 2 K1BD 198 23, 26 5BWAZ # Callsign Date All 200 #
JK1EXO 199 2 K2EP 198 23, 24 NONE
K1LI 199 24 K2TK 198 23, 24
K4HB 199 26 K3JGJ 198 24, 26 Rules and applications for the WAZ program may be obtained
K5TR 199 22 K3LR 198 22, 23 by sending a large SAE with two units of postage or an address
K7UR 199 34 K3WA 198 23,26
K9KU 199 22 on 15M label and $1.00 to: WAZ Award Manager, John Bergman,
K4JLD 198 18, 24 KC5LK, 125 Deer Trail, Brandon, MS 39042-9409. The pro-
KZ4V 199 26 K9MM 198 22, 26
N3UN 199 18 cessing fee for the 5BWAZ award is $10.00 for subscribers
KI1G 198 24, 23 on 10M (please include your most recent CQ mailing label or a copy)
N4NX 199 26 KZ2I 198 24, 26
N4WW 199 26 and $15.00 for nonsubscribers. An endorsement fee of $2.00
N4GG 198 18, 24
N4XR 199 27 N6PF 198 18, & 23 on 10M for subscribers and $5.00 for nonsubscribers is charged for
N8AA 199 23 NXØI 198 18, 23 each additional 10 zones confirmed. Please make all checks
N8DX 199 23 ON4CAS 198 1,19 payable to John Bergman. Applicants sending QSL cards to a
N8TR 199 23 on 10M OZ4VW 198 1, 2 CQ checkpoint or the Award Manager must include return
OH2BEN 199 1 on 10M UA4LY 198 6 & 2 on 10M postage. KC5LK may also be reaced via email: <kc5lk@cq-
RA6AX 199 6 on 10M UN5J 198 2, 7 amateur-radio.com>.
RU3DX 199 6 US7MM 198 2, 6
RWØLT 199 2 on 40M VK3GA 198 12 & 13 on 10M *Please note: Cost of the 5 Band WAZ Plaque is $100 shipped
RX4HZ 199 13 W5CWQ 198 17, 18 within the U.S.; $120 all foreign (sent airmail).

We will be issuing a certificate to every SJDXA member plate with the club logo and a certificate border. The rest
who accomplishes 20 of the 30 on the scavenger hunt list. is plug and play as you go. I search for appropriate free
We are issuing a special endorsement for any member who images and clipart online as appropriate for the award.
works all 30 on the list. When saving the file, it can be saved as a publisher file,
and you can also select save as a PDF. I change the name
Making Your Certificates? / call and make one PDF for each awardee and send to
I use Microsoft Publisher which, for me, is pretty easy to them via email. They can print it out if they desire. Once I
maneuver through. I started with a basic certificate tem- set this all up, I found it pretty easy to create a new certifi-
The WPX Program CQ DX Awards Program

CW 4324..............................................JJ2NWI
Endorsements – SSB
4036 ............................................SV1AER 4325 ..............................................N7RGF
KM2P ..............................................................................................................................338
4037...............................................AA5AD 4326 ............................................YO3HJV
4038 ............................................JH7CUO 4327............................................HB9FNO
4039 ..............................................W4SSF 4328 ..................................................N8IK Endorsements – CW
4329..............................................W4TYD K9VKY ............................................................................................................................331
SSB 4330 ................................................NØNV
4389 ............................................SV1AER 4331...............................................K3FRK
4390...............................................OH1JP 4332 ...........................................WA3EEC The basic award fee for subscribers to CQ is $6. For non-subscribers, it is $12. In order to
4391.............................................JA2VSU 4333 ................................................WF8R qualify for the reduced subscriber rate, please enclose your latest CQ mailing label with your
4392 ............................................JH7CUO 4334 ............................................IW7DVM application. Endorsement stickers are $1.00 each plus SASE. Updates not involving the is-
4393 ..............................................W4SSF suance of a sticker are free. All updates and correspondence must include an SASE. Rules
4394 ............................................HB9VAB Digital and application forms for the CQ DX Awards may be found on the <www.cq-amateur-
4395 .................................................N6VF 1617 .................................................SV1A radio.com> website, or may be obtained by sending a business-size, self-addressed, stamped
4396 ............................................YO3HJV ER envelope to CQ DX Awards Manager, Please make checks payable to the Award Manager,
1618 .............................................WA1DD Keith Gilbertson. Mail all updates to Keith Gilbertson, KØKG, 21688 Sandy Beach Lane,
Mixed 1619...............................................HF1RF Rochert, MN 56578-9604 USA. We recognize 341 active countries. Please make all checks
4311.............................................JP7WJA 1620............................................KO4HXC payable to the award manager. Photocopies of documentation issued by recognized nation-
4312 ............................................SV1AER 1621...............................................OH1JP al Amateur Radio associations that sponsor international awards may be acceptable for CQ
4313...............................................IK6OIN 1622.............................................WP4JLZ DX award credit in lieu of having QSL cards checked. Documentation must list (itemize) coun-
4314 .............................................WA1DD 1623 ..............................................W4SSF tries that have been credited to an applicant. Screen printouts from eQSL.cc that list coun-
4315...............................................VK3SN 1624 ..............................................WR7FT tries confirmed through their system are also acceptable. Screen printouts listing countries
4316.............................................KG5ZNJ 1626 .............................................JP2XSP credited to an applicant through an electronic logging system offered by a national Amateur
4317...............................................OH1JP 1627...............................................DH3PL Radio organization also may be acceptable. Contact the CQ DX Award Manager for
4318 ............................................JH7CUO 1628 ..............................................VE6MB specific details.
4319 ..............................................W4SSF 1629 .................................................N6VF
4320 ..............................................WR7FT 1630............................................HB9FNO
4321 ..............................................N3AML 1631................................................N6YIH
4322 ..............................................JS2IYY 1632 ...........................................WA3EEC
4323 .................................................N6VF 1633 ................................................WF8R
The WAZ Program
CW: 450: W4SSF. 550: N8IK. 650: IN3FCK. 800: JA7FVA. 1050: JH7CUO.
SSB: 350: YO3HJV, KB2QQZ. 400: W4SSF. 450: N8IK. 500: SV1AER. 650: JH7CUO. 900: SINGLE BAND WAZ 293.................................................OH1JP
JK7QJK. 294..................................................JA4IXI
6 Meter 295..............................................IKØWRB
Mixed: 450: YO3HJV, KB2QQZ. 500: KG5ZNJ, JJ2NWI, WA3EEC. 550: JS2IYY, HB9FNO. 181..............................KØWYN, 26 Zones 296 ...............................................JH7IQQ
600: JP7WJA, WA1DD. 650: NØNV. 700: WF8R, N7TBR. 750: N2TC. 800: N2YU, N1AH, 182 .............................JA9KRO, 25 Zones 297...............................................JH9AUB
KE5WCT. 850: IN3FCK, N6VF, K3FRK. 950: K2KJ. 1000: N8IK, KO8V. 1050: KA5WSS, 298 ...............................................JG3IWL
W4SSF. 1100: OH1JP. 1350: WR7X. 1400: IK6OIN. 1450: SV1AER, LA7EIA, JH7CUO. 6 Meter Updates
1550: HB9VAB. 1800: JA7VFA. 2200: JR3UIC. Mixed
141...............................DK1FW, 30 Zones
146.............................HB9BGV, 30 Zones 10096 ...........................................JH9VLZ
Digital: 350: WR7FT, DH3PL, N7RGF, N6YIH. 400: IN3FCK, N3AML. 450: VK2EY,
10097 ............................................KD3HN
HB9FNO. 500: KG5ZNJ, WA3EEC. 550: WA1DD, JS2IYY. 600: JHØEYA. 650: N2YU. 700:
40 Meter Digital 10098 ...............................................NT9F
W4SSF, WF8R, N7TBR. 750: K2KJ, KA5WSS, N6VF. 800: IU1HGN, N1AH, KE5WCT.
850: OH1JP. 900: AB1NS. 1000: KO8V. 1050: SV1AER. 1200: LA7EIA. 1250: WR7X. 1450: 18.....................................................N1NK 10099 ...........................................DJ2WW
HB9VAB. 1500: JA7FVA. 1850: JR3UIC. 19 .................................................JA7CVL 10100..............................................ES1LL
10101 ............................................RN3BC
160 Meters: HB9VAB 80 Meter CW 10102 ...............................................N7NT
80 Meters: HB9VAB, KO8V 111..............................................OH2BEN 10103...............................................K7GA
60 Meters: AB1NS, HB9VAB 10104.............................................IK6OIN
40 Meters: JH7CUO, W4SSF, HB9VAB, N6VF, N8IK 160 Meter 10105 ............................................N6DNU
30 Meters: K2KJ, HB9VAB, WF8R 10106 ...............................................N3PS
681.............................OH2BEN, 40 Zones
20 Meters: JP7WJA, IK6OIN, WA1DD, KA5WSS, KG5ZNJ, JH7CUO, W4SSF, VK2EY, 10107 ............................................KØSRL
682............................RAØSMA, 30 Zones
WR7FT, JS2IYY, N6VF, JJ2NWI, WF8R 10108...............................................WF7T
17 Meters: SV1AER, KA5WSS, HB9VAB
10109................................................W7IY
15 Meters: JH7CUO, HB9VAB
12 Meters: K7PT ALL BAND WAZ 10110 ............................................W5AAJ
10 Meters: NA5WH 10111 ...............................................NF7D
6 Meters: VE6MB CW
1162...............................................BA5AD SSB
Africa: IN3FCK 1163.................................................WF7T 5519.............................................GM7NZI
Asia: JP7WJA, VK3SN, IN3FCK, OH1JP, JH7CUO, JP2XSP, JS2IYY, WF8R 5520 ...........................................DL2AWG
Europe: JP7WJA, WA1DD, HF1RF, VK3SN, OH1JP, JH7CUO, W4SSF, DH3PL, HB9VAB, 5521 .............................................YO3IPR
JJ2NWI, YO3HJV, HB9FNO, WF8R, IW7DVM. KB2QQZ. Digital
Oceania: VK3SN, LA7EIA, JH7CUO, VK2EY, JS2IYY, HB9VAB, WF8R RTTY
288................................................JH7IMX
North America: WA1DD, KG5ZNJ, KO4HXC, OH1JP, WP4JLZ, JH7CUO, W4SSF, 309 ................................................KSØAA
289...................................................K7GA
WR7FT, N3AML, VE6MB, N6VF, N7RGF, N6YIH, N8IK, W4TYD, WA3EEC, WF8R
South America: HB9VAB 290...............................................JH1GZE
291...............................................JA5GOJ Satellite
6M Bar: LU9DO 292 ................................................W5AAJ 33...............................DL6GBM, 25 Zones
Rules and applications for the WAZ program may be obtained by sending a large SAE with
Complete rules and application forms may be obtained by sending a business-size, self- two units of postage or an address label and $1.00 to: WAZ Award Manager, John Bergman,
addressed, stamped envelope (foreign stations send extra postage for airmail) to "CQ WPX KC5LK, 125 Deer Trail, Brandon, MS 39042-9409. The processing fee for all CQ awards
Awards," P.O. Box 355, New Carlisle, OH 45344 USA. Note: WPX will now accept prefix- is $6.00 for subscribers (please include your most recent CQ mailing label or a copy) and
es/calls which have been confirmed by eQSL.cc. and the ARRL Logbook of The World (LoTW). $12.00 for nonsubscribers. Please make all checks payable to John Bergman. Applicants
sending QSL cards to a CQ checkpoint or the Award Manager must include return postage.
*Please Note: The price of the 160, 30, 17, 12, 6, and Digital bars for the Award of Excellence KC5LK may also be reached via e-mail: <kc5lk@cq-amateur-radio.com>.
are $6.50 each.

The whole point is to get on the INDEXA Changing Mailing Address
air and HAVE FUN!
After many years of devoted service to INDEXA and
cate for the next challenge award by the DX community, Dick Williams, W3OA, is retir-
making appropriate changes. ing as the organization’s secretary / treasurer. Dick
So, how about creating a little more will continue his service as a director. The newly
excitement for your club membership? elected secretary / treasurer is Hal Turley, W8HC.
This does not have to be for a DX club As such, INDEXA is transitioning its mailing address
… a version of these challenges could to Hal in Saint Albans, West Virginia. Any mail sent
be created for just about any amateur to Dick at the Mooresville, North Carolina address
radio club out there. Just because the will be transferred over to Hal during this transition.
pandemic was the driving force behind
creating these challenges doesn’t Here is the new address:
mean that they won’t work once we get International DX Association
fully out of it! The whole point is to get 2309 Lincoln Avenue
on the air and HAVE FUN! Saint Albans, WV 25177
– See ya’ in the Pileups! De Bob USA
Schenck, N2OO
CQ DX Honor Roll
The CQ DX Honor Roll recognizes those DXers who have submitted proof of confirmation with 275 or more ACTIVE countries. With few exceptions, the
ARRL DXCC Countries List is used as the country standard. The CQ DX Award currently recognizes 340 countries. Honor Roll listing is automatic when
an application is received and approved for 275 or more active countries. Deleted countries do not count and all totals are adjusted as deletions occur. To
remain on the CQ DX Honor Roll, annual updates are required. All updates must be accompanied by an SASE if confirmation of total is required. The fee
for endorsement stickers is $1.00 each plus SASE. (Stickers for the 340 level and Honor Roll are available.) Please make checks payable to the Award
Manager, Keith Gilbertson. Mail all updates to Keith Gilbertson, KØKG, 21688 Sandy Beach Lane, Rochert, MN 56578-9604 USA.
CW
DL3DXX ....339 K4CN ........339 N7RO ........339 K8SIX........338 K9OW ......334 K6YK.........329 YT1VM ......322 WA4DOU ..312 4XIVF ........286
HB9DDZ....339 K4JLD .......339 NØFW ......339 KA7T .........338 PY2YP ......334 W9IL..........329 4Z5SG.......321 YO9HP......312 K6YR.........284
K4IQJ ........339 K4MQG .....339 OK1MP .....339 WA5VGI ....338 WG5G/ IKØADY ....328 N2LM ........321 W6WF .......309 PP7LL ......282
K9MM........339 K5RT.........339 W3GH .......339 W9RPM.....338 QRPp ....334 OZ5UR......328 ON4CAS ...321 KT2C........ 307 WR7Q .......282
N4MM .......339 K7LAY.......339 W4OEL .....339 G3KMQ .....337 WD9DZV...334 AB4IQ ......327 W2OR .......320 K4DGJ ......307 N2VW........280
WB4UBD...339 K7VV.........339 W5BOS .....339 KØKG........337 K2OWE .....333 K6CU ........326 HB9DAX/ W4ABW ....306 K4EQ ........280
WS9V........339 K8LJG .......339 W7CNL .....339 W7IIT ........337 K5UO ........333 KE3A.........326 QRPp .....319 K7ZM ........305 W8BLA......280
EA2IA........339 N4AH ........339 W7OM.......339 K8ME ........336 N6AW........333 EA5BY ......325 W6YQ ......319 HA5LQ ......301 WB5STV ...277
F3TH .........339 N4CH ........339 W8XD........339 W1DF........336 W4MPY.....333 KA3S.........325 HA1ZH ......318 RN3AKK....300 YO6HSU ...275
K2FL ........ 339 N4JF .........339 WK3N........339 W6OUL .....336 K6LEB.......331 K7CU ........324 N6PEQ......318 WA9PIE ....298
K2TQC ......339 N4NX ........339 WØJLC .....339 JA7XBG ....335 K9VKY ......331 N3RC ........324 CT1YH ......316 K4IE ..........295
K3JGJ .......339 N5ZM ........339 WØVTT .....339 F6HMJ ......334 N7WO .......331 N7WO .......324 EA3ALV ....315 YU1YO......295
K3UA.........339 N7FU.........339 YU1AB ......339 K1FK .........334 OK1DWC ..331 KEØA ........322 RA1AOB ...313 WA2VQV...292
SSB
AB4IQ .......340 K6YRA ......340 VE3MRS ...340 W4UNP .....339 F6HMJ ......335 AA1VX ......332 N2LM ........328 N7YB.........315 4X6DK.......298
DJ9ZB .......340 K7VV.........340 VE3XN ......340 W9RPM.....339 HB9DQD ...335 KE3A.........332 AE9DX ......327 IV3GOW....312 K2HJB.......295
DL3DXX ....340 K8LJG .......340 VK2HV ......340 EA3EQT....338 IKØAZG ....335 N2VW........332 K7HG ........327 N8SHZ ......312 F5MSB ......293
DU9RG .....340 K8SIX........340 W3AZD .....340 K3UA.........338 IW3YGW ...335 N5YY.........332 K6GFJ.......326 K7CU ........311 W9ACE .....291
EA2IA .......340 K9MM........340 W3GH .......340 K7LAY.......338 OE2EGL....335 K5UO ........331 KE4SCY....326 OK1DWC ..311 N3KV.........289
EA4DO......340 KE5K.........340 W4ABW ....340 K9HQM .....338 VK2HV ......335 KC2Q ........331 KF4NEF ....325 KU4BP ......310 W6MAC.....289
HB9DDZ....340 KZ2P .........340 W5BOS .....340 KM2P ........338 W4WX.......335 SV3AQR ...331 W6WF .......325 W6NW.......310 N5KAE ......283
I8KCI .........340 N4CH ........340 W6BCQ.....340 N4NX ........338 WB3D........335 WØROB ....331 W9GD .......325 I3ZSX ........309 IZ1JLG ......282
IK1GPG.....340 N4JF .........340 W6DPD .....340 YU1AB ......338 AA4S.........334 W6OUL .....331 VE7EDZ ....324 G3KMQ .....308 WA9PIE ....282
IN3DEI ......340 N4MM .......340 W7BJN......340 4Z4DX.......338 EA5BY ......334 XE1MEX ...331 WA5UA .....324 KA1LMR....308 WD8EOL...281
K2FL .........340 N5ZM ........340 W7OM.......340 K1UO ........338 K9OW .......334 KD5ZD ......330 F6BFI ........323 RA1AOB ...308 IWØHOU...277
K2TQC ......340 N7BK.........340 W8ILC .......340 N7WR .......338 PY2YP ......334 WA4WTG..330 ON4CAS ...323 XE1MEX ...308 AKØMR.....276
K3JGJ .......340 N7RO .......340 W9SS........340 WA5VGI ....338 VK4LC.......334 W1DF........330 VE6MRT ...323 IK5ZUK .....307 NØAZZ......275
K4CN ........340 NØFW .......340 WB4UBD...340 W2CC .......338 W8AXI.......334 WØYDB ....330 W5GT........323 IØYKN.......306 SQ7B ........275
K4IQJ ........340 OK1MP .....340 WK3N........340 W7FP ........338 XE1J .........334 ZL1BOQ....330 N6PEQ......322 XE1MW.....305
K4JLD .......340 OZ3SK ......340 WS9V........340 W9IL..........338 CT3BM......333 AD7J .........329 W4MPY.....322 K4IE ..........304
K4MQG .....340 OZ5EV ......340 XE1AE ......340 N4FN.........337 IK8CNT .....333 N3RC .......329 K8IHQ .......321 K4ZZR.......304
K4MZU......340 VE1YX ......340 YU3AA ......340 IØZV..........336 K8LJG .....333 VE7SMP ...329 KW3W.......320 K7ZM .......303
K5OVC......340 VE2GHZ....340 JA7XBG ....339 K3LC .........336 N6AW........333 WØULU.....329 TI8II...........320 4Z5FL/M....302
K5RT.........340 VE2PJ .......340 KØKG........339 K8ME ........336 OE3WWB..333 CT1AHU....328 YO9HP......320 K7SAM......301
K5TVC ......340 VE3MR......340 W2FKF......339 EA3BMT....335 WD9DZV...333 N1ALR ......328 XE1RBV....317 KA8YYZ ....301
RTTY
NI4H . . . . . 338 WK3N . . . . 338 OK1MP . . . 337 K8SIX . . . . 334 W3GH . . . . 333 AB4IQ . . . . 323 N4MM . . . . 302 K8ME . . . . 278
WB4UBD . 338 N5ZM . . . . 338 K4CN . . . . 334 W9RPM . . 334 K3UA . . . . 332 K4WW . . . 323 K4IQJ . . . . 300 IN3YGW . . 275

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CONTESTING
BY TIM SHOPPA,* N3QE
Getting an Assist
Figure 1. Percentage of CQWW Single-Op entrants entering assisted from 1989-2020.
S
ingle-op entrants in the six 2022 gory? Part of it reflects the “boy and his Assisted
North American QSO Parties radio” mindset of old-school contesters Contest CW SSB
have, for the first time, the choice who aren’t fans of assisted contesting.
of entering the Assisted category. In I also note that both the NAQP and CQ WW 2020 51% 37%
previous years, assisted NAQP single ARRL RTTY contests have large ARRL DX 2021 48% 40%
ops had their scores listed with the domestic components, and domestic ARRL Sweepstakes 2020 36% 29%
multi-operator M/2 entrants. The 100- contests have been slow to adopt a sep-
watt power limit and friendly exchange arate category for assisted single-ops.
of name and state make the NAQPs Contrast this with the large DX contests Table 1. Percentage of operators
popular with beginning contesters. which emphasize working other coun- choosing the assisted category in six
Advanced contesters looking for high tries for points and multipliers, and large contests.
rates and an opportunity to exercise which were the early adopters of assist-
their SO2R skills compete hard in the ed categories. Let’s look at the enthu- tor arrangements involving assistance
NAQPs as well. With the addition of a siastic early adoption of assisted cate- through DX-alerting nets, etc.) is not
separate assisted category, the NAQP gories in the biggest DX contests. permitted.”
now becomes a prime training ground DX spotting networks — in the form By the late 1980s, Dick Newell, AK1A,
for learning how to use spots to chase of landline phone calls between hams had combined the nascent technolo-
both multipliers and QSOs. interested in DXing or local VHF an= gies of amateur VHF packet data with
In every respect, the NAQP contests nouncements — have existed since the the traditions of HF DXing and contest-
were late in adding an official assisted 1950s. Especially in DX contests, ing. No longer were phone trees or
category. In the January 2021 NAQP enthusiastic contesters had been using voice VHF nets the only way to distrib-
CW results, 168 stations are listed in the DXers phone and VHF networks to ute spots — contesters and DXers
the M/2 scores. Only 18 of them are true help them work new multipliers, and for could post the stations they heard and
multi-ops, the other 150 are assisted decades this assistance, in the form of worked to a digital VHF network for dis-
single operators. The ARRL RTTY knowing the frequency and callsign of tribution throughout a region or across
Roundup was also late in adding the rare DX, wasn’t explicitly mentioned in the country. Dick was inducted into the
assisted category, back in 2014. In any contesting rules. The first contest CQ Amateur Radio Hall of Fame in 2002
2013, the last year when single-op rules related to “assistance” appear in for his contributions to both DXing and
assisted entrants were listed under the the 1977 CQ World Wide DX Contests. contesting. A contest station with a VHF
multi-operator scores in the ARRL There, the definition of the Single packet node nearby, a TNC to interface
RTTY Roundup, 373 of the 460 multi- Operator category notes that “The use the radio to the computer, and AK1A’s
op scores were assisted single-ops. of DX spotting nets or any other form of PacketCluster software would scroll the
Why were these two contests so slow DX alerting assistance places the sta- spots past on the PC’s screen running
in adopting an assisted single-op cate- tion in the Multi-Operator category.” In the DOS-based software. A few years
1980, the ARRL DX Contest included a later, assisted contesters on the lead-
similar rule in the definition of Single ing edge of technology began incorpo-
email: <n3qe@cq-amateur-radio.com> Operator: “Use of spotting nets (opera- rating computer-distributed spots into

their contest logging programs that highlighted the frequen- channel decoders put you in the assisted category. So sin-
cy and call of new multipliers. gle-channel CW decoders do not count as assistance. But
In response to the rapidly evolving Packet Cluster technol- any use of FT4 or FT8 modes in the ARRL RTTY Roundup
ogy, the 1989 CQ World-Wide contests created a new cate- constitutes use of a multi-channel decoder, because these
gory, Single Operator Unlimited, where “the use of DX spot- popular WSJT modes are always decoded in multi-channel
ting nets or any other form of DX alerting assistance is software.
allowed” (Italics verbatim). About 5% of single operators In contrast, the CQWW rules say that any use of a CW
chose this category the first year it was offered, then about decoder — even single-channel decoders — puts the entrant
10% in 1990. in the assisted category.
A few months after the 1989 CQWW rules were announced, Carefully read the new 2022 NAQP rules, no matter what
the ARRL DX Contest published its 1990 rules with a new category you plan to enter, to be sure you aren’t making any
category, “Single Operator Assisted,” allowing the use of assumption based on the CQWW or ARRL DX rules for assist-
spotting nets and “other alerting systems not physically located contesting. The NAQP rules are online at <https://
ed at the station.” In the 1990 CQ World Wide rules, the name tinyurl.com/y7un6fyk>. The NAQP Assisted rules explicitly call
of the category was changed from “Unlimited” to “Assisted.” out that if spotting information is provided by “social media” or
To this day, hams use both “Single Operator Assisted” and “watching live streaming,” the entrant goes into the assisted
“Single Operator Unlimited” largely interchangeably, category. With many ops on Facebook or Twitter with feeds
although the exact rules about what constitutes assistance from other ham friends, the safe thing to do is to turn off all
are worded differently. social media notifications if you are entering unassisted.
In Figure 1, I show the percentage of CQWW single-oper- There are many reasons hams choose to enter contests in
ator entrants who chose the Assisted category from its intro- an assisted category. I got into contesting over a decade ago
duction to 2020. Assisted entries are a rather flat 10% of in part because I was chasing countries for the ARRL’s DXCC
entries from 1991 through 2003. Throughout this era, the program or working all 50 states for my ARRL Worked All
dominant way of distributing spots was still VHF packet clus- States effort. By entering just a few domestic and DX con-
ters. Around 2005, some contesters began using a modem tests in the assisted category I was able to qualify for the
and phone connection to the internet to get their spots through base level of the DXCC and WAS awards. After I worked all
“Telnet clusters,” and by 2010 high-bandwidth dedicated the common countries and had my Worked All States, I found
internet connections were being adopted. By 2015, the frac- that that I could repeat the thrill of the original chase each
tion of assisted contesters begins to level off, as broadband and every weekend, and that entering assisted always kept
internet became widely available. that weekend’s goal at the top of my mind. Some part-time
Up through 2005 or so, the adoption of Assisted contest- contesters choose the assisted category to maximize their
ing by CW and SSB contesters was similar. In the 2005-2008 multiplier count and run up their score in their limited time.
era, the revolutionary technology of CW Skimmers that Several online resources can help you choose a Telnet
decode the callsigns of CQing stations was incorporated cluster for assisted contesting. NG3K’s list at <https://tinyurl.
locally in some contest stations, and just a few months later com/247c6b46> has several columns to help you identify a
the Reverse Beacon Network began distributing aggregated location geographically close to you with various feature sets.
skimmer spots through DX clusters. The result is visible in The N1MM+ logger added an online dynamic resource that
Figure 1 as an increasing adoption of assistance by CW con- reports the availability and performance of cluster nodes; you
testers as compared to SSB contesters. can find an extensive writeup of this resource at <https://
Table 1 shows the percentage of single-ops entering the tinyurl.com/8x5vp6aj>.
assisted category in the most recently published results of con- The web-based DX clusters such as DXSummit
tests that dedicate separate weekends to CW and SSB. Both <https://dxsummit.fi> and DXHeat <https://dxheat.com> are
the 2020 CQWW and 2021 ARRL DX contests had about half not easily integrated with contesting programs for automatic
of all CW single-op entrants choosing the assisted category. A spot processing by the contest logger. They are useful tools
smaller fraction of SSB contesters chose assistance. for tracking down the patterns of activity of rare multipliers or
Of all the ARRL contests that have an assisted category, DXpeditions. I also find myself frequently using the Reverse
the choice of entering assisted is least popular in ARRL Beacon Network <https://reversebeacon.net> to do
Sweepstakes SSB, where only 29% of 2020 entrants chose advanced searches and check for band openings during both
this category. Adoption by CW Sweepstakes entrants also CW and RTTY contests. Because all these web resources
lags behind the big DX contests. It’s certainly my experience display both callsigns and frequencies of spots, any use of
that assistance is most exciting when it’s part of an endless them during the contest will put you in the assisted catego-
multiplier chase, and the limited number of multipliers (84) ry, even if you are just looking up your own callsign and not
available in Sweepstakes may limit the thrill of using spots. incorporating the spots into your logger.
Many computer logger aids do not count as assistance. For If operating RTTY or CW assisted, be sure to use skimmer
example, your logger alerting you to dupes as you type in spots from a node that is connected to the Reverse Beacon
callsigns, flagging entered callsigns as new multipliers, or Network. Not all DX clusters offer skimmer spots. Look for
showing matching and near-matching calls loaded into your the keyword “CW Skimmer” in the NG3K listings. On VE7CC-
Super Check Partial database will not put you in an assisted based clusters, use the SET/SKIMMER command to enable
category. Other advanced band-awareness technologies, skimmer spots. On AR6-based clusters, use “SET DX FIL-
like spectrum scopes which show activity and frequency, do TER SKIMMER.” Some contesters disable skimmer spots
not put users in the assisted category because they do not during phone contests but I generally just leave skimmer
show a callsign. spots on all the time.
CW, RTTY, and WSJT decoders are an interesting corner The N1MM+ logger has several useful ways to examine
case. The ARRL HF contest rules include a provision that spots, and in the course of a long contest I’ll use a variety of
“software that displays multiple decoded signals at the same displays. The “Bandmap” window shows spots. In crowded
time is considered to be a multi-channel decoder,” and multi- contest conditions, empty spots on the bandmap may have

Calendar of Events
All year CQ DX Marathon http://bit.ly/vEKMWD
Dec. 1 VHF-UHF FT8 Activity www.ft8activity.eu/index.php/en
Dec. 2 QRP ARCI Top Band Sprint www.qrparci.org/contests
Dec. 3-5 ARRL 160-Meter Contest www.arrl.org/160-meter
Dec. 4-5 PRO CW Contest www.procontestclub.ro/PCC%20Rules.html
Dec. 4-5 FT Roundup www.rttycontesting.com/ft-roundup/rules
Dec. 4-5 UFT Contest www.uft.net/les-rencontres-uft
Dec. 8 VHF-UHF FT8 Activity www.ft8activity.eu/index.php/en
Dec. 12 QRP ARCI Holiday Spirits Homebrew Sprint www.qrparci.org/contests
Dec. 11-12 ARRL 10M Contest www.arrl.org/10-meter
Dec. 11-12 Vernon 28 MHz SWL Contest http://bit.ly/2L9eT1L
Dec. 11-12 TRC Digi Contest https://trcdx.org/rules-trc-digi
Dec. 11-13 PODXS070 Club Triple Play Low Band Sprint http://bit.ly/2Cq2yUA
Dec. 12 CQC Great Colorado Snowshoe Run www.coloradoqrpclub.org/contests/snow.htm
Dec. 17 AGB Party Contest https://tinyurl.com/6fke5yb6
Dec. 17 Russian 160-Meter Contest www.qrz.ru/contest/detail/90.html
Dec. 18 RAC Winter Contest www.rac.ca/contesting-results
Dec. 18-19 ARRL EME Contest www.arrl.org/eme-contest
Dec. 18-19 Croatian CW Contest www.9acw.org/index.php/rules/english
Dec. 18-19 OK DX RTTY Contest www.crk.cz/ENG/DXCONTE
Dec. 18-19 Stew Perry Topband Challenge www.kkn.net/stew
Dec. 19 ARRL Rookie Roundup, CW www.arrl.org/rookie-roundup
Dec. 26 DARC Xmas Contest www.darc.de/?id=820
Dec. 26 RAEM Contest https://raem.srr.ru/rules
Dec. 30 YOTA Contest www.ham-yota.com/contest
Dec. 31-Jan. 1 Bogor Old and New Contest https://contest.orari-bogor.org
Jan. 1 AGB New Year Snowball Contest https://tinyurl.com/6fke5yb6

Jan. 1 QRP ARCI New Year’s Day Sprint http://qrpcontest.com
Jan. 1 AGCW Happy New Year Contest https://bit.ly/35nBqSR
Jan. 1 AGCW VHF/UHF Contest https://bit.ly/3lw91PK
Jan. 1 ARRL Kids Day http://www.arrl.org/kids-day
Jan. 1 ARRL Straight Key Night http://www.arrl.org/straight-key-night
Jan. 1-2 Original QRP Contest www.qrpcc.de/contestrules/index.html
Jan. 1-2 WW PMC Contest http://bit.ly/2y2QWCc
Jan. 2 Veron SWL New Year Contest http://bit.ly/2L9eT1L
Jan. 5 UKEICC 80 Meter Contest SSB https://ukeicc.com/80m-rules.php
Jan. 5 VHF-UHF FT8 Activity www.ft8activity.eu/index.php/en
Jan. 8 PODSX PSKFest http://bit.ly/2Qv3wkA
Jan. 8-9 ARRL RTTY Roundup www.arrl.org/rtty-roundup
Jan. 8-9 EUCW 160m Contest www.eucw.org/eu160.html
Jan. 8-9 YB DX Contest SSB https://ybdxcontest.com
Jan. 9 DARC 10-Meter Contest http://bit.ly/2pCiRo1
Jan. 9 NRAU – Baltic SSB Contest www.nraubaltic.eu
Jan. 9 NRAU – Baltic CW Contest www.nraubaltic.eu
Jan. 12 VHF-UHF FT8 Activity www.ft8activity.eu/index.php/en
Jan. 15-16 Hungarian DX Contest www.ha-dx.com/en/contest-rules
Jan. 15-16 North American CW QSO Party http://ncjweb.com/naqp
Jan. 15-16 UBA PSK63 Prefix Contest http://bit.ly/2Oi8fsa
Jan. 15-17 ARRL January VHF Contest www.arrl.org/january-vhf
Jan. 15-16 Feld Hell “Low Down” Sprint https://bit.ly/3eKxi2f
Jan. 22-23 BARTG RTTY Sprint http://bartg.org.uk/wp/contests
Jan. 22-23 North American SSB QSO Party http://ncjweb.com/naqp
Jan. 26 UKEICC 80 Meter Contest CW https://ukeicc.com/80m-rules.php
Jan. 26-27 AWA Linc Cundall Memorial Contest https://bit.ly/3iDUm34
Jan. 28-30 CQWW 160M CW Contest http://cq160.com/rules.htm
Jan. 29-30 AWA Linc Cundall Memorial Contest https://bit.ly/3iDUm34
Jan. 29-30 REF CW Contest https://tinyurl.com/78z37kdj
Jan. 29-30 UBA SSB Contest http://bit.ly/W0gZiE
Jan. 29-30 Veron SLP Contest http://bit.ly/2L9eT1L
Jan. 29-30 Winter Field Day www.winterfieldday.com
Feb. 12-13 CQWW WPX RTTY Contest www.cqwpxrtty.com
Feb. 25-27 CQWW 160M SSB Contest http://cq160.com/rules.htm

stations that haven’t yet been spotted or may even represent
unoccupied frequencies that you could set up on for a run
frequency.
If you’re making a search-and-pounce pass across a band,
having a methodical pattern to your spot selection is wise.
The most conventional choice is to tune up the band work-
ing each spot; N1MM allows you to use the Ctrl+Down Arrow
key combination to work through the spots in ascending fre-
quency. To avoid repeatedly running into the same search-
and-pounce hams, a slightly less conventional and often
more productive choice is to tune down the band. The Ctrl+Up
Arrow will do this for you.
The “Available Mults and Qs” window offers an even more
productive way to work the most recent spots. Click on the
“Time” column to sort with the most recent spots at the top
of the list. If you’re busy calling CQ and want to be kept aware
of new mults that are spotted, you would select “Mults only”
as the display mode and only new multipliers will be shown.
If you are operating assisted or at a multi-operator station
in a SSB contest, do a good turn for all the other assisted
hams and make a conscious effort to spot CQing stations Figure 2. The N1MM+ score display does the math to help
that have not been recently spotted. In N1MM+ this is as easy you weigh how much effort you should expend working a
as doing a Ctrl+P after working a new station. If you hear a multiplier as compared to a non-multiplier QSO.
station CQing that you’ve already worked, type his call into
the N1MM Entry window and hit Ctrl+P. His call goes on your
bandmap as a workstation, and the call and frequency go to that you can make use of while operating a big DX contest
other assisted hams. assisted. While you are running, keep an eye on the
In DX contests in which the country is a multiplier, your log- “Available Mults and Qs” window to spot a newly spotted mul-
ger knows the country of each spot through the “Country File.” tiplier. During a break in the run, when you had no respons-
Before each big DX contest, be sure to update to the latest es to your CQ, click on the multiplier and take a listen.
country file which has announced DXpeditions mapped cor- Does it sound like a thick pileup of callers for the new mul-
rectly. N1MM+ makes it easy to update your country file; use tiplier? Welcome to the world of the “packet pileup,” where
“Tools->Download and install latest country file.” If you are you join the hundreds of other contesters who saw a need-
using other loggers, you can go to <https://country-files.com> ed multiplier pop up at nearly the same time. You don’t want
to download the file, then install according to your logger’s to lose your run frequency while competing in a thick pileup.
documentation. You can quickly QSY back to your run frequency with the
But what about contests like the NAQPs in which states, handy Alt+Q key combination, and continue CQing.
not countries, are the multiplier? If you have loaded a histo- Eventually you’ll find the right combination of a slow run fre-
ry file for the current contest, the state information will be used quency and a lonely CQing multiplier, and then you can work
to highlight new multipliers based on what state was logged your new multiplier.
in a previous running of the contest. After building up these skills with a single multiplier you are
What about calls of new contesters calling CQ, who are not chasing, you can then expand to clicking through a larger
in a call history file? Their state can be filled in by the telnet pool of new multipliers while your CQs are not getting many
cluster you are connected to. In VE7CC-based clusters, issue responses. You may also choose to interleave non-multipli-
the cluster command “SET/USSTATE” in the logger’s Telnet er search-and-pounce QSOs after you’ve built up a high level
window. The cluster will append the state (as found in the of confidence.
FCC license database or other sources) to each spot, and
your logger will parse this to highlight new multipliers.
Several prolific contesters are known for traveling away December and January Contest Highlights
from their home stations to be guest operators at even bet- Two large single-band contests, the ARRL 160 Meter and
ter-equipped stations. When they travel across state lines, ARRL 10 Meter contests, are December 3-5 and December
information from the history file and cluster state database 11-12, 2021, respectively. Both DX and domestic contacts
may be incorrect. So always use your ears and brain to ver- count as points and multipliers, and more points are award-
ify the prefilled state information is current. ed for working DX. I am expecting good 10-meter DX open-
How much effort should you expend trying to work a multi- ings this year as the sun emerges from solar minimum.
plier? The lower left corner of N1MM+’s “Score” window will The first Saturday of January 2022 falls on New Year’s Day,
guide you. Figure 2 shows the score window from my August and contest sponsors have responded by shifting three impor-
2021 effort in NAQP CW. At this point, I have 857 QSOs and tant events a week later than their usual January weekends.
238 multipliers. Each QSO is worth one point, so each addi- The ARRL RTTY Roundup is January 8th and 9th, the NAQP
tional QSO I make will net 238 points. Adding a new multipli- CW is January 15th, and the NAQP SSB is January 22nd.
er, will net 857 points above and beyond that of a non-multi-
plier QSO. At the rate of 1 Mult = 3.6 Qs, and a typical run or The Periodic Table is Back!
search-and-pounce rate of 80 QSOs per hour, I wouldn’t want We are pleased to once again offer a handy year-long guide
to spend more than a few minutes trying to work a rare mult. to major contests in 2022, set up just like the periodic table
Interleaving search-and-pounce multipliers while running is of elements you (hopefully) remember from high school! You
a valuable skill to learn while operating assisted in NAQPs, can find this year’s version on pages 56 and 57.

PROPAGATION
BY TOMAS HOOD,* NW7US
Solar Cycle Progression and Forecast

Quick Look at Current Cycle 25 Conditions: ONE YEAR AGO:
(Data rounded to nearest whole number) (Data rounded to nearest whole number)
Sunspots: Sunspots:
Observed Monthly, September 2021: 52 Observed Monthly, September 2020: 1
12-month smoothed, March 2021: 21 12-month smoothed, March 2020: 3
10.7-cm Flux: 10.7 cm Flux:
Observed Monthly, September 2021: 87 Observed Monthly, September 2020: 71
12-month smoothed, March 2021: 79 12-month smoothed, March 2020: 70
A
s this column goes to press, it is safe to say that the regular record keeping of sunspot counts began. Cycle 24
Sun’s sunspot activity is increasing. Space weather was also the weakest in 100 years. Solar maximum occurred
scientists are making an assessment of Sunspot Cycle in April 2014 with sunspots peaking at 114 for the solar cycle,
25 and they say it appears to be moving more quickly toward well below average, which is 179.
a solar cycle maximum, as the numbers reveal that the activ- While Solar Cycle 24 was average in length, the progres-
ity level is moving higher than the current forecast. sion of activity was unusual. The Sun’s Northern Hemi-
The current solar prediction is now updated each month sphere led the sunspot cycle, peaking over two years ahead
using historical data as well as the latest month’s observed of the Southern Hemisphere. This resulted in solar maximum
solar indices to provide estimates for the rest of the current having fewer sunspots than if the two hemispheres were in
solar cycle and the next. These predictions are made by the phase.
Space Environments Team in the Natural Environments
Branch of the Engineering Directorate at Marshall Space Solar Cycle 25
Flight Center (MSFC). Their forecast provides solar cycle For the past year, sunspot activity on our local star has steadi-
predictions for NASA engineering programs and the aero- ly increased, indicating that the Sun transitioned to Cycle 25.
space community. This current cycle is forecast to be weak, the same strength
The updated forecast provides future statistical estimates
of sunspot number, solar radio 10.7-cm flux (F10.7), and the
geomagnetic planetary index, Ap, for many groups that have LAST-MINUTE FORECAST
use of this space weather data. Some use these numbers Day-to-Day Conditions Expected for December 2021
for input to various space environment models. HF radio com- Expected Signal Quality
municators — including the amateur radio community — use Propagation Index (4) (3) (2) (1)
the sunspot count, the F10.7, and the Ap as inputs to VOA- Above Normal:
1-3, 16-23, 26, 28-30
A A B C
CAP computer models used for planning and analyzing the High Normal: A B C C-D
radio propagation paths that use the ionosphere for DXing. 4, 7-10, 14-15, 25,
27, 31
The forecasted solar indices represent the 13-month Low Normal: B C-B C-D D-E
smoothed values consisting of a best estimate value stated 5, 11-13, 24
Below Normal: C C-D D-E E
as a 50-percentile value along with the 95- and 5-percentile 6
statistical values. The F10.7 prediction also includes a 75- Disturbed:
n/a
C-D D E E
percentile value. The estimation technique is used to predict

the remainder of the current cycle, but it is not able to pre- Where expected signal quality is:
A--Excellent opening, exceptionally strong, steady signals greater than S9
dict the next solar cycle at this time. B--Good opening, moderately strong signals varying between S6 and S9, with little fading or
The period when the Sun is least active (in terms of sunspot noise.
C--Fair opening, signals between moderately strong and weak, varying between S3 and S6,
activity) is known as the solar minimum. The most recent with some fading and noise.
D--Poor opening, with weak signals varying between S1 and S3, with considerable fading and
solar minimum was between the last solar cycle, numbered noise.
24th since these cycles have been recorded, and the current E--No opening expected.
Solar Cycle 25. The last solar minimum period happened in
December 2019, when the 13-month smoothed sunspot HOW TO USE THIS FORECAST
1. Using the Propagation Charts appearing in “The CQ Shortwave Propagation Handbook,
number fell to 1.8, according to the Solar Cycle 25 Prediction 4th Edition,” by Carl Luetzelschwab, George Jacobs, Theodore J. Cohen, and R. B. Rose.
Panel, co-chaired by NOAA and NASA. The panel now a. Find the Propagation Index associated with the particular path opening from the
Propagation Charts.
expects peak sunspot activity in 2025. b. With the Propagation Index, use the above table to find the expected signal quality asso-
Solar Cycle 24 was an average cycle of 11 years in dura- ciated with the path opening for any given day of the month. For example, an opening shown
in the Propagation Charts with a Propagation Index of 2 will be fair to poor on September 1,
tion, and had the fourth-smallest intensity since 1755, when fair from October 2 through 5, and good on October 6, and so forth.
2. Alternatively, you may use the Last-Minute Forecast as a general guide to space weath-
er and geomagnetic conditions throughout the month. When conditions are Above Normal, for
* P.O. Box 110 example, the geomagnetic field should be quiet, and space weather should be mild. On the
Fayetteville, OH 45118 other hand, days marked as Disturbed will be riddled with geomagnetic storms. Propagation of
radio signals in the HF spectrum will be affected by these geomagnetic conditions. In general,
Email: <nw7us@nw7us.us> when conditions are High Normal to Above Normal, signals will be more reliable on a given
@NW7US (https://Twitter.com/NW7US) path, when the ionosphere supports the path that is in consideration. This chart is updated daily
at <http://SunSpotWatch.com> provided by NW7US.
@hfradiospacewx (https://Twitter.com/HFRadioSpaceWX)

as Cycle 24. Solar maximum — the
month when we observe the greatest
number of sunspots — is expected in
July 2025, with a peak of 115 sunspots.
“How quickly solar activity rises is an
indicator of how strong the solar cycle
will be,” said Doug Biesecker, Ph.D.,
panel co-chair and a solar physicist at
NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction
Center. Biesecker observes, “although
we’ve seen a steady increase in sun-
spot activity this year, it is slow.”
The panel prognosticates that Solar
Cycle 25 will break the trend of weak-
ening solar activity seen over the past
four cycles. “We predict the decline in
solar cycle amplitude, seen from cycles
21 through 24, has come to an end,”
said Lisa Upton, Ph.D., panel co-chair
and solar physicist with Space Systems
Research Corp. “There is no indication
we are approaching a Maunder-type
minimum in solar activity.”
“While we are not predicting a partic-
ularly active Solar Cycle 25, violent
eruptions from the Sun can occur at any
time,” Biesecker added. This has
already been witnessed during October
Figure 1. The new solar cycle (Cycle 25) is represented in several ways. In this 2021.
chart we track the sunspot number. The black line represents the monthly aver-
aged data and the purple line represents a 13-month smoothed version of the
monthly averaged data. For the sunspot number, the forecast for the rest of the Second X-Class X-ray Flare of
solar cycle is given by the red line. (Courtesy of NOAA/SWPC) Cycle 25
During the latter part of October, sev-
eral sunspot regions were magnetical-
ly complex enough to erupt with X-ray
flares, some moderately strong, mea-
suring in the M-class category. One
even reached the X-class category —
on October 28, 2021 (see the movie:
<https://youtu.be/fg6blJJHs10>). This
is the second X-class flare of the cur-
rent solar cycle; the first was measured
at X1.59 and occurred on July 3, 2021.
Sunspot eruptions — flares — are
classified according to their strength
(see Table 1). The smallest ones are A-
class (near background levels), fol-
lowed by B, C, M, and X. Like the Richter
scale for earthquakes, each letter in the
solar flare classification represents a
10-fold increase in energy output. A
flare measured in the X range is 10
times an M-class flare and 100 times a
C. Within each letter class there is a
finer scale from 1 to 9.
The X1 solar flare on October 28th
caused a temporary, but strong, radio
blackout across the sunlit side of Earth
centered on South America. This solar
eruption was a “significant solar flare,”
but the plasma that was exploded away
Figure 2. Cycle 25 is represented in this plot by the F10.7cm Radio Flux. The
was not Earth-directed. The explosion
black line represents the monthly averaged data and the purple line represents
caused a coronal mass ejection, and we
a 13-month smoothed version of the monthly averaged data. For the F10.7-cm
were able to see the flare and then the
Radio Flux, the forecast for the rest of the solar cycle is given by the red line.
coronal mass ejection (CME), as this
(Courtesy of NOAA/SWPC)

X-ray Flare Intensity Categories
where I = observed intensity of the X-ray flare
Class Strength - Peak (W/m2) between Impacts
1 and 8 Angstroms
B I < 10-6 Too small to harm Earth.
C 10-6 < = I < 10-5 Small with few noticeable consequences on Earth.
M 10-5 < = I < 10-4 Can cause brief radio blackouts that affect Earth’s polar
regions and minor radiation storms.
X I > = 10-4 Can trigger planet-wide radio blackouts and long-lasting
radiation storms
Table 1. Solar flares are classified by intensity. Each class represents a ten-fold increase in intensity.
event was captured in real-time by the space agency’s Solar Solar cycle prediction gives a rough idea of the frequency
Dynamics Observatory (SDO). of space weather storms of all types, from radio blackouts to
It is hard to tell to where the exact trajectory of the CME geomagnetic storms and solar radiation storms. Such pre-
passes. Solar event observers speculated that the CME from dictions and observations are used by amateur radio com-
this flare — a huge eruption of charged particles — would municators who employ modeling tools like VOACAP.
reach Earth by October 30th or 31st. If the CME directly
impacted Earth, it might have triggered Earth’s Northern and New Satellites Will Provide Enhanced
Southern lights and potentially interfered with satellite-based Observations of the Sun
communications (not to mention HF propagation). The CME In 2024, NOAA is expected to launch a new spacecraft ded-
missed Earth, and we just observed a slight glancing blow, icated to operational space weather forecasting. NOAA’s
that resulted in a Planetary-K Geomagnetic rise to a minor Space Weather Follow-On L-1 Observatory will be equipped
geomagnetic storm level. with instruments that sample the solar wind, provide imagery
Figure 3. Ten years ago, in November 2011, there was a Figure 4. Solar flares are massive eruptions of radiation from
period with a number of sunspot regions rotating across the the Sun that send charged particles streaming outward from
visible solar disc. A lot of sunspots peppered the Sun over the star (see text for more details). They can also be accom-
a magnetically active 23-day period (November 4-30), which panied by massive eruptions of solar particles, called coro-
is one complete solar rotation. During this month, most of nal mass ejections (CMEs). Such eruptions send charged
the sunspots appeared in the Sun’s northern hemisphere. particles out from the Sun at about one million miles per hour
This was the peak month thus far into that solar cycle (Cycle (1.6 million kph) or more, and typically take a few days to
24). The images were taken by SDO’s HMI instrument in reach Earth. On October 28, 2021, a flare caused a coro-
what we call intensitygrams, which is how the Sun appears nal mass ejection that appeared to be Earth-directed, but
in filtered light. The video shows how spots can change over later resulted in only a minor brush with our geomagnetic
hours and days. The movie consists of over 1,000 frames field. This X-class flare, measuring X1.0, originated from a
— Watch the video at <https://youtu.be/JfmezCNYtIo>. sunspot called AR2887 (Active Region 12887). (Courtesy
(Courtesy of The Solar Dynamics Observatory [SDO]) of SDO)

Figure 5. The X1.0-class X-ray flare is seen in this sequence (frames 1 through 8), through a filter for 304 Angstroms. As
the flare erupted, you can see the huge cloud of plasma exploding away from the sunspot region. The plasma that was
erupted out into space, a coronal mass ejection (CME), barely missed Earth. (Courtesy of SDO)
of CMEs, and monitor other extreme Stay tuned to this column for a play- pheric noise levels will be at seasonally
activity from the Sun in finer detail than by-play of the action. low values during the month. Reason-
before. NOAA’s next Geostationary ably strong signal levels are expected on
Operational Environmental Satellite December Propagation most of the open bands. The higher
(GOES-U) is also scheduled to launch in During December, expect a moderate to bands will carry world-wide DX propa-
2024. GOES-U will carry three solar low level of solar activity, with 10.7-cm gation more often, as we are seeing a
monitoring instruments, including the first flux levels peaking in the low 100s. In the steady rise in sunspot activity.
compact coronagraph, which will help Northern Hemisphere, expect the sea- For this month, 10- and 12-meter DX
detect CMEs. Enhanced observations of sonal increase of ionospheric density to openings will be sporadic and only dur-
the Sun from these satellites will help build more rapidly after sunrise than during daylight hours if existent, especially
improve space weather forecasting. ing other seasons. Static and atmos- where the propagation paths cross the
sunlit regions. If they develop, they will
be rather short but strong, with a lot of
fading.
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The 30-meter band will be a strong
player for DXing, as well, following the
pattern of 20 meters. Expect this band
to remain open toward the south and
west from early evening until about
midnight, mostly for DXers in the lower
latitudes.
On 40 meters, regional daytime open-
ings will remain strong for most of the
day, while great DX will open early in
the afternoon. From midnight to sunrise,
40 meters promises some of the hottest
nighttime DX during December. The
first DX openings should be toward
Europe and the east during the late
afternoon, then move across the south
through the hours of darkness, while
remaining open into most parts of the
world. Just after sunrise, openings will
be more in a westerly direction. Low

seasonal noise will make DXing a plea- tions for meteor-scatter openings on trails, the range of a meteor scatter con-
surable endeavor. the VHF bands for distances up to tact is between 500 and 1,300 miles.
Expect conditions on 60 meters to about 1,000 miles. The frequencies that are best refracted
resemble a mix of what we see on the Meteor-scatter propagation is a mode are between 30 and 100 MHz. How-
40- and 75-meter bands. This is an in which radio signals are refracted off ever, with the development of new soft-
excellent band to explore! of the ionized plasma trails left by dust ware and techniques, frequencies up to
DX openings on 160 and 80 meters and small particles that have entered 440 MHz have been used to make suc-
during the hours of darkness and into into our atmosphere at thousands of cessful radio contacts off of these
the sunrise period, with considerably miles per hour. The ionized trail is pro- meteor trails. On the lower frequencies,
decreased static levels, are a sure bet duced by vaporization of the meteor. like on 6 meters, contacts may last from
during the longer hours of darkness in Meteors no larger than a pea can pro- mere seconds to well over a minute.
the northern latitudes. Look for open- duce ionized trails up to 12 miles long The lower the frequency, the longer the
ings toward Europe and the south from in the E-layer of the Ionosphere. Be- specific opening made by a single
the eastern half of the U.S. and toward cause of the height of these plasma meteor trail. A meteor trail that supports
the south, the Far East, Australasia, and
the South Pacific from the western half
of the country. Eighty meters becomes
a reliable long-distance band through-
out the entire period of darkness during
December. Openings on 80 should
peak toward Europe and in a generally
easterly direction around midnight, and
then open in a generally western direc-
tion with a peak just after sunrise. The
band should remain open towards the
south throughout most of the night.
For short-skip openings during
December, try 80 and 40 meters dur-
ing the day for paths less than 250
miles, and 80 or 160 meters at night for
these distances. For openings between
250 and 750 miles, try 40 meters dur-
ing the day, and both 80 and 160 at
night. For distances between 750 and Last Year, our members worked thousands of hours for
1,300 miles, 20 and 30 should provide
daytime openings, while 40 and 80 will
be open for these distances from sun-
set to midnight. After midnight, 80
meters will remain open out to 1,300
NO PAY
miles until sunrise. Try 30 and 40 And this year are well on their way to doing
EVEN MORE!
meters again for about an hour or so
after sunrise. For openings between
1,300 and 2,300 miles, openings will
occur on 20, 17, and 15 meters, with
fewer on 12 and 10 meters, during the
daylight hours. From sundown to mid- WHY?
night, check 20, 30, and 40 meters for
these long-distance openings, and Because they are giving back to their communities! They are
then check 40 and 80 meters after mid-
night until sunrise. Try 40 meters again helping with civic events, motorist assistance AND MORE,
for an hour or so after sunrise. yes even emergencies and disasters, if needed!
VHF Conditions
Aurora is not expected to occur this CONTACT
month, with perhaps one or two excep-
tions. If there were any chance at all,
REACT INTERNATIONAL
you’ll want to look for days with condi- 301-316-2900
tions at Disturbed or Below Normal, when
there is a possibility for Field Aligned Or write to
Irregularities (FAI) and Auroral-E propa- REACT INTERNATIONAL
gation. Check the last-minute forecast for P.O. Box 21064, Dept CQ100
those days during December that are Glendale, CA 91221
expected to be in these categories.
Look for some decent meteor show- RI.HQ@REACT Intl.org
er activity this month, providing condi-

a 60-second refraction on 6 meters might only support a 1-
second refraction for a 2-meter signal. Special high-speed
methods are used on these higher frequencies to take
advantage of the limited available time.
The annual Geminids meteor shower will peak on the night
of December 14th. This is one of the better showers since as
many as 120 visual meteors per hour may occur. However,
some are saying that this year, we might only see a maxi-
mum of 20 visuals per hour. This is a great shower for those
trying the meteor-scatter mode of propagation since one
doesn’t have to wait until after midnight to catch this show-
er. The radiant rises early, but the best viewing and operat-
ing time will be after midnight local time. This shower also
boasts a broad maximum, lasting nearly one whole day, so
no matter where you live, you stand a decent chance of catch-
ing sight of some Geminids.
There is considerably less likelihood for 6-meter trans-
equatorial (TE) openings during December but look for a pos-
sible opening between the southern states and locations
deep in South America. The best time to look for these is
between about 8 and 11 p.m. local time.
For a detailed list of meteor showers, check out <https://
tinyurl.com/cw7f5bcr> for a complete calendar of meteor
Figure 6. Another view of the X1.0 X-ray flare that erupted
showers in 2021.
on October 28, 2021 from AR2887. The flare peaked at 15:35
If you use Twitter.com, you can follow <@hfradiospacewx>
UTC, and in this filtered view at 171 Angstroms, the complex
for hourly updates that include the K-index numbers. You
magnetic fields can be seen. The flare caused a temporary,
can also check the numbers at <http://SunSpotWatch.
but strong, shortwave (HF) radio blackout across the sunlit
com>, where this columnist provides a wealth of current
side of Earth. This was the second X-class flare of Solar
space weather details as well as links. Please report your
Cycle 25. The first occurred on July 3, 2021, and measured
observations of any notable propagation conditions, by writ-
X1.59. It, too, caused an HF radio blackout. These blackouts
ing this columnist via Twitter, or via the Space Weather and
will occur more often as the cycle activity increases, because
Radio Propagation Facebook page at <https://fb.me/
the higher sunspot activity leads to many more flares, and
spacewx.hfradio>.
thus causes geomagnetic storms if a CME collides with
Earth’s magnetosphere. (Courtesy of SDO)
Current Solar Cycle Progress
The Royal Observatory of Belgium reports that the monthly
mean observed sunspot number for September 2021 was
51.93, up considerably from 22.77 for August. The 12-month
running smoothed sunspot number centered on March 2021
is 21.30, also considerably up from 18.6 in February. A
smoothed sunspot count of 32, give or take about 8 points is
expected for December 2021.
The Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory at
Penticton, BC, Canada, reports a 10.7-cm observed month-
ly mean solar flux of 87.4 for September 2021, up from
August’s 77.93. The 12-month smoothed 10.7-cm flux cen-
tered on March 2021 is 79.0, one point up from February’s
78.0. The predicted smoothed 10.7-cm solar flux for
December 2021 is 82, give or take 8 points.
Geomagnetic activity level this month is expected to range
from quiet to disturbed, resulting in occasional degraded
propagation. Remember that you can get an up-to-the-day
Last-Minute Forecast at <http://SunSpotWatch.com> on the
main page.
I welcome your thoughts, questions, and experiences
regarding this fascinating science of propagation. You may
email me, write me a letter, or catch me on the HF amateur
bands. If you are on Facebook, check out <https://fb.me/
spacewx.hfradio> and <https://fb.me/NW7US> — speaking
of Facebook — check out the CQ Amateur Radio magazine
Figure 7. As October 2021 ended, the Sun had a number of fan page at <https://fb.me/CQMag>. Also, please check out
active regions, with a moderate number of sunspots and the new alternative social networking ham radio group at
flares. The 10.7-cm Radio Flux rose just above 100, waking <https://amateurhamradio.locals.com> and please share
even the 10-meter band with worldwide DX opportunities. this with your amateur radio friends and clubs.
Active Regions 12893 and 12887 were the source of the
M- and X-class flares. (Courtesy of SDO) – 73, Tomas, NW7US

2021 Annual CQ Index
ANTENNAS Learning Curve: Up to the Challenge, Ochu (KOØZ), Mar,
3-Band Trap End-Fed Half Wave (EFHW) Antenna for QRP p. 60
Portable Operation, DePrimo (K1JD), Jun, p. 46 Learning Curve: Weather Nets, Ochu (KOØZ), Apr, p. 44
Antennas: A Deep Dive into End-Fed Half-Wave Antennas,
Glorioso (W1IS) & Rose (KC1DSQ), Dec, p. 66 BROADCASTING (AM/FM/TV)
Antennas: A New Look at the Windom Antenna, Ortega Communications Horizons: AM Radio Still Lives – For Now,
(CP6CL), Oct, p. 78 De Santos (K8RKD), Jun, p. 87
Antennas: Antenna Temperature, Britain (WA5VJB), Apr, Communications Horizons: The Golden Age of Audio, De
p. 68 Santos (K8RKD), Apr, p. 53
Antennas: Frequency Selective Surface, Britain
(WA5VJB), Jun, p. 84 CLASSIC RADIO GEAR & NOSTALGIA
Antennas: My Dipole Has Gain! Glorioso (W1IS) and Rose Analog Adventures: Analog Archaeology, Nichols (KL7AJ),
(KC1DSQ), Aug, p. 69 Feb, p. 76
Antennas: Yagi Mounting – Is Your Mast an Extra Element? Centennial of DXing, The, Luetzelschwab (K9LA), Dec,
Britain (WA5VJB), Feb, p. 88 p. 8
Automatic Antenna Relay for Lightning Protection, Persons Converting a Heathkit SB-200 Amplifier to 6 Meters.
(WØMH), Oct, p. 51 Werner (AG4W), Aug, p. 24
Balun Basics, Glorioso (W1IS) and Rose (KC1DSQ), Jan, CQ Classic: Two-Tube Walkie-Talkie Pack Set, Youmans
p. 30 (W2OHE) 6/1945 reprint, Jun, p.43
CQ Classic: A Two-Band Antenna With Low-Impedance CQ Classic: When “Classic” Heathkits Were New, “Novice
Feed, Black (W2ESO/W1NVO) (SK), (May 1946 reprint), Shack” column reprint 4/1954, Brier (W9EGQ), Aug, p. 30
May, p. 26 Magic in the Sky: Firsts, Reinhardt (AA6JR), Jul, p. 49
CQ Classic: Multiband Quads, Moxon (G6XN) (Nov1962 Refurbishing a Collins R-390-A/URR Series Receiver,
reprint), Nov, p. 30 Charteris (VK4QS), Jan, p. 14
CQ Reviews: The VHQ HEX Beam – A New England Restoring a Heathkit DX-60 Transmitter, Thompson
Survivor, Steiner (K1GUY) & Hinkle (K5PA), Nov, p. 24 (K3MD), Jul, p. 24
DC-Over-Coax Three-Way Antenna Switch, Clouatre Restoring the Original Heathkit – the K-1 AM “All-Wave”
(AG5AY), Jun, p. 54 Receiver, Grimes (N8RG), Jul, p. 20
Learning Curve: Loops Anyone? Ochu (KOØZ), Jun, p. 80 Three “Gifts” From Heathkit, Stark (K9ARZ), Jul, p. 16
Learning Curve: QRP and Antennas, Ochu (KOØZ), Feb,
p. 73 COMPUTERS & INTERNET
Mobiling: Skyhook! Reinhardt (AA6JR), Feb, p. 85 An FLdigi Computer Interface From Spare Parts, Karras
New Design of a 40-6-Meter Off-Center-Fed Dipole, A, (KE3FL), Dec, p. 31
Glorioso (W1IS) and Rose (KC1DSQ), May, p. 30 Marconi Meets the 21st Century, Hillier (VO1IDX/K1IDX)
QRP: The Sabretooth Antenna Revisited, Rought and Millner (VO1REM/WB2REM), Aug, p. 10
(KA8SMA), Apr, p. 56 Microcontrollers in Amateur Radio: Going From RDC to
The Squirrel Zapper, Kato (AH6CY), Feb, p. 22 PGC, Purdum (W8TEE), Jun, p. 77
XQ/KPJ Hammock Yagi, The, Job (VU2KPJ) and Nooman Microcontrollers in Amateur Radio: I’m Out of Pins! Purdum
(VU2XQ), May, p. 36 (W8TEE), Nov, p. 55
Microcontrollers in Amateur Radio: Online Tunable SDR
BEGINNERS/NEWCOMERS (Software Defined Radio) Receivers, Luscre (K8ZT), Mar,
Learning Curve: Capacitors – A Brief Primer, Ochu p. 65
(KOØZ), Nov, p. 61 PY2GN: Brazil’s First Public WebSDR Station, Butera
Learning Curve: CQ Reviews – Ham Radio for Dummies, (PT2ZDX / LU9EFO), Dec, p. 26
4th edition, Ochu (KOØZ), Jul, p. 52 stayPRS and FOXmtr – Build an APRS/Foxhunt Beacon
Learning Curve: EmComm – An Important Facet of Ham with an HT and an Arduino, Irons (N4RLI), Jun, p. 36
Radio, Ochu (KOØZ), Oct, p. 16 Streaming Video Over Internet Protocol (SVOIP) for
Learning Curve: Ham Shack Origin, Ochu (KOØZ), Jan, Amateur Radio, Green (K3BEQ), Feb, p. 52
p. 75 Tracking and Analyzing Digital Transmissions of Aircraft,
Learning Curve: Inductors: A Brief Primer, Ochu (KOØZ), Green (K3BEQ) & Butler (GDNFN), Dec, p. 34
Dec, p. 60
Learning Curve: Inspiring Reader Feedback, Ochu CONSTRUCTION
(KOØZ), May, p. 70 Antennas: A Deep Dive into End-Fed Half-Wave Antennas,
Learning Curve: Loops Anyone? Ochu (KOØZ), Jun, p. 80 Glorioso (W1IS) & Rose (KC1DSQ), Dec, p. 66
Learning Curve: Misinformation/Disinformation Threat, An FLdigi Computer Interface From Spare Parts, Karras
Ochu (KOØZ), Aug, p. 40 (KE3FL), Dec, p. 31
Learning Curve: QRP and Antennas, Ochu (KOØZ), Feb, Arducon: An Arduino-Based Foxhunt Transmitter Con-
p. 73 troller, Scharlau (NZØI) & Boyd (WB8WFK), Dec, p. 22
Learning Curve: Resistance is Futile, Ochu (KOØZ), Sep, Automatic Antenna Relay for Lightning Protection, Persons
p. 62 (WØMH), Oct, p. 51

Build a Dual-Band Low-Noise Amplifier for 2 Meters and 70 Announcing: The 2022 CQ DX Marathon, Nov, p. 40
Centimeters, Kocsis (WA9PYH), Feb, p. 46 Announcing: The 2022 CQ World Wide 160-Meter Contest,
Build Your Own Solid-State Linear Amplifier – CQ Reviews: Nov, p. 38
KM3KM Electronics Mercury IIIS Amplifier Kit, Jensen Announcing: The 2022 CQ World Wide WPX RTTY
(W7DGJ), Sep, p. 40 Contest, Dec, p. 42
Digital to Analog Hardware Converter, Reynolds Announcing: The 20th Annual CQ World Wide Foxhunting
(WA3EOQ), Jan, p. 38 Weekend, Apr, p. 25
Converting a Heathkit SB-200 Amplifier to 6 Meters. Werner Awards: ARRL November Sweepstakes, Molo (KI4KWR),
(AG4W), Aug, p. 24 Mar, p. 80
Ham Notebook: Gonculators, Imagination and the New Awards: Bogota Amateur Radio League’s LRB 2021
Ham Conundrum, Yoshida (KH6WZ), Jul, p. 55 Special Event, Molo (KI4KWR), Jun, p. 97
Ham Notebook: So Many Projects – So Little Time! Yoshida Awards: Chasing FT-8 Awards, Molo (KI4KWR), Feb, p. 96
(KH6WZ), Sep, p. 54 Awards: CQ DX Marathon - A Ham Radio Centaur, CQ
Kit-Building: “The Gang’s All Here” – The Benefits of Group Staff, Jan, p. 87
Kit-Building, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Oct, p. 69 Awards: LoTW May Now Be Used for RAC Awards, Molo
Kit-Building: A “Key” Project, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Sep, (KI4KWR), Aug, p. 82
p. 59 Awards: Starting an Awards Journey, Molo (KI4KWR), Apr,
Kit-Building: A Baker’s Dozen – Plus, Solving the Coax p. 76
Conundrum, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Nov, p. 52 Awards: The Fred Fish Memorial Award, Molo (KI4KWR),
Kit-Building: A Chip Off the Old Block, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Sep, p. 74
Mar, p. 56 Awards: The Future of Awards in Amateur Radio – Part I,
Kit Building: A Trip West … and Building Sputnik, Eisenberg Molo (KI4KWR), Oct, p. 95
(KØNEB), Dec, p. 53 Awards: The Future of Awards in Amateur Radio – Part II,
Kit-Building: Creating Some Sawdust, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Molo (KI4KWR), Nov, p. 77
Feb, p. 78 Awards: The WUST Award for Working U.S. Territories,
Kit-Building: Finding Hidden Treasure, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Molo (KI4KWR), May, p. 76
Jul, p. 46 Awards: YBDXPI – A Passion for DXing, YB-Style, Molo
Kit-Building: Getting it Up (Kits and Logistics for Installing (KI4KWR), Jul, p. 76
New Antennas and Accessories), Eisenberg (KØNEB), Jan, Awards: YL Awards, Molo (KI4KWR), Dec, p. 86
p. 64 Contesting: 2020 Contesting Spike Analyzed by Mode,
Kit-Building: Look Ma, Two Bands! - The Penntek TR-25 Shoppa (N3QE), Mar, p. 89
CW Transceiver, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Aug, p. 56 Contesting: 7QP Roving Fun and All About the NAQP,
Kit-Building: QRP Labs QCX Mini, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Shoppa (N3QE), Jul, p. 84
Jun, p. 70 Contesting: A Deep Dive on Topband … and a Visit With
Kit-Building: Salute the Flag, Eisenberg (KØNEB), May, N4CW/K1IMI, Shoppa (N3QE), Nov, p. 88
p. 58 Contesting: An Innovative Cable Tray Declutters the
Kit-Building: Spotting a Rock, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Apr, Contest Station, Shoppa (N3QE), Oct, p. 101
p. 50 Contesting: Comparing the CQWW RTTY DX and WW Digi
QRP: Four-State QRP Group’s Bayou Jumper – A QRP Contests, Shoppa (N3QE), Aug, p. 89
Spy Radio, Rought (KA8SMA), Oct, p. 72 Contesting: Fall Contest Season Begins with Record Levels
QRP: QRP is Contagious, Rought (KA8SMA), Dec, p. 58 of Activity, Shoppa (N3QE), Jan, p. 95
Refurbishing a Collins R-390-A/URR Series Receiver, Contesting: Getting an Assist, Shoppa (N3QE), Dec, p. 94
Charteris (VK4QS), Jan, p. 14 Contesting: Mapping 2020 ARRL Sweepstakes Activity,
Restoring a Heathkit DX-60 Transmitter, Thompson Shoppa (N3QE), Sep, p. 82
(K3MD), Jul, p. 24 Contesting: More Entries But Fewer Countries in 2020 CQ
Restoring the Original Heathkit – the K-1 AM “All-Wave” World Wide DX Contests, Shoppa (N3QE), Feb, p. 102
Receiver, Grimes (N8RG), Jul, p. 20 Contesting: Multi-Distributed Debut and Weekday
stayPRS and FOXmtr – Build an APRS/Foxhunt Beacon Contests, Shoppa (N3QE), May, p. 84
with an HT and an Arduino, Irons (N4RLI), Jun, p. 36 Contesting: Operating Multi-Distributed and Picking RTTY
Tracking and Analyzing Digital Transmissions of Aircraft, Frequencies, Shoppa (N3QE), Jun, p. 98
Green (K3BEQ) & Butler (GDNFN), Dec, p. 34 Contesting: The Balance Between QSOs and Multipliers,
Untether Your Memories, Hinkle (K5PA) and Millner Shoppa (N3QE), Apr, p. 84
(WB2REM), Jan, p. 42 Corrections to the Results of the 2020 CQ World Wide VHF
Contest, Kalenowsky (K9JK), May, p. 75
CQ Classic: The First Annual CQ World-Wide RTTY DX
CONTESTS & AWARDS Contest, Gould (KT1N) (April 1987 & June 1988 issue
All-Time Records: CQ World Wide DX Contest, Capossela reprints), Mar, p. 29
(K6SSS), Oct, p. 54 DX: Get on the Air DX Challenge Awards, Schenck (N2OO),
Announcing: The 2021 CQ World Wide DX Contest, Sep, Dec, p. 89
p. 32 Homing In: ARDF Makes a Comeback in 2021, Moell
Announcing: The 2021 CQ World Wide DX RTTY Contest, (KØOV), May, p. 53
Jul, p. 34 Homing In: International ARDF Event Update and a New
Announcing: The 2021 CQ World Wide VHF Contest, May, 80-Meter Set, Moell (KØOV), Aug, p. 64
p. 34 Homing In: Rules for Foxhunting and a Recap of the 2021
Announcing: The 2021 CQ World Wide WPX Contest, Jan, CQ World Wide Foxhunting Weekend, Moell (KØOV), Nov,
p. 28 p. 64

Results of the 2020 CQ DX Marathon, Sweeney (K9EL), DX: Serrana Bank and Rondador Cay – A Look Back,
Jun, p. 27 Schenck (N2OO), Apr, p. 80
Results of the 2020 CQ World Wide DX CW Contest, Dorr FP/W1UF – Setting a New DXpedition “Record,” Shapiro
(K1AR), May, p. 12 (W1UF), Jan, p. 10
Results of the 2020 CQ World Wide DX SSB Contest, Dorr Gordo’s Short Circuits: Hand-Program a Handheld? West
(K1AR), Apr, p. 14 (WB6NOA), Mar, p. 68
Results of the 2020 CQ World Wide RTTY DX Contest, Hams on Hog Island – A QRPxpedition, Lazar (W4DNN),
Tate (N6WM) and Muns (WØYK), Mar, p. 20 Jun, p. 23
Results of the 2020 CQ World Wide VHF Contest, Ham Radio Explorer: Simply Simplex, Luscre (K8ZT), Dec,
Kalenowsky (K9JK), Jan, p. 20 p. 79
Results of the 2021 CQ WPX CW Contest, Trench (AA3B), How to Make Working Special Event Stations Even More
Nov, p. 15 Special, Joyner (W4YBV), Mar, p. 38
Results of the 2021 CQ WPX RTTY Contest, Muns Marconi Meets the 21st Century, Hillier (VO1IDX/K1IDX)
(WØYK), Jul, p. 10 and Millner (VO1REM/WB2REM), Aug, p. 10
Results of the 2021 CQ WPX SSB Contest, Trench (AA3B), My Way to DX From the Early Days, Laine (OH2BH), Sep,
Sep, p. 25 p. 34
Results of the 2021 CQ WW 160-Meter Contest, Blank Optimizing On-the-Air Practices in FT8, Goetz (N2SQW),
(N2NT), Aug, p. 14 Apr, p. 10
UCØB: Winning the World from Zone 18. Lishnev Satellite Rag Chewing on a Shoestring, Lazar (W4DNN),
(RAØAM), Nov, p. 8 Dec, p. 18
Winter Field Day at WAØPCC, Blocksome (KØDAS) et. al., SOTA Adventures in New Mexico, USA, Jurrens (N2GJ),
June, p. 18 Yoakum (WB5USB), Keene (K5DEZ), Mar, p. 10
Tracking and Analyzing Digital Transmissions of Aircraft,
DIGITAL/PACKET Green (K3BEQ) & Butler (GDNFN), Dec, p. 34
CQ Classic: Packet Radio – How to Work It (Not How it VHF Plus: In Praise of FM Simplex Activity, Fleming
Works), Moseson (N2BFG) 6-7/1986 issue reprint, Jan, p. 46 (N4DTF), Dec, p. 83
Digital Connection: Back to Basics – PSK-31 and DigiPan,
Rotolo (N2IRZ), Jan, p. 68 HUMOR
Digital Connection: Bright Lights, Not-so-Big City, Rotolo Magic in the Sky: “Dear Hammy” Returns, Reinhardt
(N2IRZ), Nov, p. 70 (AA6JR), Apr, p. 48
Digital Connection: HamWAN - A High-Speed Network Math’s Notes: On the Beam – A Non-Metallic Amateur
Grows in Seattle, Rotolo (N2IRZ), Mar, p. 74 Antenna, Apr, p. 31
Digital Connection: Packet Not Packet, Rotolo (N2IRZ), Jul, Mosquito Aerial Denial (MAD) System, Heisseluft, Apr,
p. 59 p. 26
Digital Connection: The Long and Winding Road to the
Network, Rotolo (N2IRZ), Sep, p. 66 KEYS & KEYERS, CW
Optimizing On-the-Air Practices in FT8, Goetz (N2SQW), Kit-Building: A “Key” Project, Eisenberg (KØNEB), Sep,
Apr, p. 10 p. 59
DX & OPERATING LEGAL & REGULATORY

3YØJ Bouvet DXpedition Cancelled … But Might Be
CQ Classic: Washington Readout – FCC Updates RF
Revived, Schenck (N2OO), Aug, p. 87
Safety Guidelines (11/1996 Reprint), Maia (W5YI), Sep,
A Journey to the Moon and Back, Werner (AG4W), Dec,
p. 21
p.11
Follow-Up: Amateur Radio Engineering 401, Reinhardt
Centennial of DXing, The, Luetzelschwab (K9LA), Dec, p.
(AA6JR), Feb, p. 87
8
Magic in the Sky: Amateur Radio Engineering 401,
DX: 7H9H – IOTA Expedition to Habe Island, Indonesia,
Reinhardt (AA6JR), Jan, p. 72
Schenck (N2OO) and Santoso (YE1AR), Jan, p. 88
Newsbytes: Breaking the Glass Ceiling at the FCC, Dec,
DX: Announcing the 3YØJ DXpedition to Bouvet Island,
p. 7
Schenck (N2OO), Jun, p. 92
Understanding and Complying With the FCC’s New Rules
DX: Bouvet … Try, Try, Again, Schenck (N2OO) and
on Analyzing RF Exposure, DeSoto (KO4JXB) et. al., Sep,
Opskar (LA7GIA), Nov, p. 81
p. 14
DX: Chasing DX in Cycle 25, Schenck (N2OO), May, p. 78
Using a Downloadable Program or RF Power Density Meter
DX: ET3AA Revisited, Schenck (N2OO) and Claerbout
to Comply with the FCC’s New RF Exposure Evaluation
(K4ZW), Mar, p. 82
Requirements, Overbeck (N6NB), Oct, p. 56
DX: Get on the Air DX Challenge Awards, Schenck (N2OO),
Dec, p. 89
DX: GMDX Group – Scotland’s DX Association, Schenck LOW/MEDIUM FREQUENCY
(N2OO), Oct, p. 96 MF/LF Operating: A New Theory of Propagation for Long-
DX: QSL! – A Look at QSLing in Today’s World of DXing, Haul DX on 2200 Meters, Crofts (VK4YB), Dec, p. 75
Schenck (N2OO), Jul, p. 78 MF/LF Operating: Does Anyone Experiment on 630 or 2200
DX: QSLing in Cycle 25, Schenck (N2OO), Aug, p. 84 Meters Anymore? Langridge (KB5NJD), Jan, p. 81
DX: Remembering Halim Dani Hidayat (Dani), MF/LF Operating: KL7L/KH6 Returns to Air from Maui While
YB2CW/YB2TJV, SK, Schenck (N2OO), Feb, p. 98 W7XU Activates Arkansas and Louisiana on 630 Meters,
DX: Remote DX and DXing, Schenck (N2OO), Sep, p. 76 Langridge (KB5NJD), Jul, p. 63

MF/LF Operating: Some Thoughts on Utilizing and Zero Bias: Flipping a Switch, Moseson (W2VU), May, p. 8
Protecting a Receive Antenna Port on a Modern Transceiver, Zero Bias: Get Your Game On, Moseson (W2VU), Jan,
Langridge (KB5NJD), Apr, p. 63 p. 8
MF/LF Very Late Season Operation to North Dakota and Zero Bias: Is the FCC Killing Amateur Radio for
Wyoming by WØSD, Langridge (KB5NJD), Oct, p. 85 Bureaucratic Convenience? Moseson (W2VU), Sep, p. 6
Zero Bias: QRP-for-All, Moseson (W2VU), Feb, p. 8
MISCELLANEOUS Zero Bias: Reimagining the Radio Club, Moseson (W2VU),
Analog Adventures: A Pressing Matter, Nichols (KL7AJ), Nov, p. 6
Jun, p. 57 Zero Bias: Restorative Medicine, Moseson (W2VU), Jul,
Analog Adventures: Haywire State, Nichols (KL7AJ), DEC, p. 8
p. 64 Zero Bias: Serendipitous Synergy, Moseson (W2VU), Apr,
Announcing: 2021 Inductees to the CQ Amateur Radio, p. 8
Contest and DX Halls of Fame, Jul, p. 32
Announcing: 2022 Nominations Open for the CQ Amateur POWER SUPPLIES & BATTERIES
Radio Dx, and Contest Halls of Fame, Dec, p. 43 Digital Connection: Playing with the Solar System –
Centennial of DXing, The, Luetzelschwab (K9LA), Dec, Alternative Power on a Hobby Scale (and Budget), Rotolo
p. 8 (N2IRZ), May, p. 62
Gordo’s Short Circuits: Tracking (and Treating) Local Noise Dummy Load for Power Supplies, A, Swenson (KBØVKS),
Sources, West (WB6NOA), Jul, p. 69 Jul, p. 30
Ham Notebook: A Look at Greeblies, Yoshida (KH6WZ), Uninterruptible Power Supplies For the Radio Amateur,
Jan, p. 78 Tortorella (W2IY), Dec, p. 38
Ham Notebook: Makers, Youth and Ham Radio, Yoshida
(KH6WZ), May, p. 66 PRODUCT REVIEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Ham Notebook: Retired but Not Dead – Ham Radio’s Role Build Your Own Solid-State Linear Amplifier – CQ Reviews:
in Retirement, Yoshida (KH6WZ), Nov, p. 74 KM3KM Electronics Mercury IIIS Amplifier Kit, Jensen
Ham Radio Hogwarts: A Report on YOTA Camp 2021, (W7DGJ), Sep, p. 40
McGrane (KD9POK) and Laub (KE8KWZ), Oct, p. 8 CQ Book Review: “Marvelous Magnetic Machines” by H.P.
Hand-Grinding a Quartz Crystal, Roberts (AL6Y), Apr, Friedrichs, AC7ZL, Yoshida (KH6WZ), May, p. 68
p. 28 CQ Book Review: “The Paraset Radio” by Hiroki Kato,
Homing In: Navy Scientists Learn RF Technology by AH6CY, Rought (KA8SMA), Feb, p. 69
Foxhunting, Moell (KØOV), Feb, p. 80 CQ Reviews: The VHQ HEX Beam – A New England
Is Cuba Jamming Radio Amateurs? Butera (LU9EFO/ Survivor, Steiner (K1GUY) & Hinkle (K5PA), Nov, p. 24
PT2ZDX), Sep, p. 8 Learning Curve: CQ Reviews “Ham Radio for Dummies,
Let’s Eyeball and Chip Awhile! Carr (W5KBH), Feb, p. 56 4th Edition,” Ochu (KOØZ), Jul, p. 52
Many New Additions Planned for the March 2021 QSO QRP: CQ Reviews – Laboratory 599’s Discovery TX-500 –
Today Virtual Ham Expo, Grob, Mar, p. 36 Worth the Wait? Rought (KA8SMA), Aug, p. 52
Math Notes: The Future Still Will Not Necessarily Be What What’s New? AOR DA1500 Discone Antenna, Feldman
We Think It Will!, Math (WA2NDM), Dec, p. 44 (KD2IWM), Sep, p. 69
News Bytes: Faith Hannah Lea, KD3Z, Named Newsline What’s New? AOR Pro Trunk-Tracking Firmware, Feldman
Young Ham of the Year, Sep, p. 7 (KD2IWM), Apr, p. 70
Periodic Tanle of Select Amateur Radio Contests, Dec, What’s New? bhi ATT2 Attenuator Pad, SSB Electronic
p. 56 LNA 30 Wideband Preamplifier, Feldman (KD2IWM), Jul, p.
WPX CX 2021 (Crossword puzzle), Luscre (K8ZT), Feb, 58, 82
p. 44 What’s New? bhi DESKTOP MKII Table-Top Speaker,
Feldman (KD2IWM), Jan, p. 83
MOBILE What’s New? bhi HP-1 Stereo Headphones, Feldman
Mobiling: Mobiling Hodgepodge, Reinhardt (AA6JR), Nov, (KD2IWM), Mar, p. 100
p. 68 What’s New? bhi New Inline Module, Feldman (KD2IWM),
Mobiling: Portomobile? Motoble? Or “Shack In The Box”? Dec, p. 62
Reinhardt (AA6JR), Aug, p. 48 What’s New? bhi LLC1 Line Level Converter; Yaesu
Mobiling: Skyhook! Reinhardt (AA6JR), Feb, p. 85 FTDX10 Transceiver, Feldman (KD2IWM), Feb, p. 33, 37
Mobiling: Torn From Today’s Headlines, Reinhardt What’s New? bhi Noise Cancelling Headphones, Feldman
(AA6JR), May, p. 50 (KD2IWM), Jun, p. 56
What’s New? ICOM Compact Antenna Tuner, bhi Dual In-
OPINION/COMMENTARY Line DSP Module, N3FJP Amateur Contact Log 7.0, Feldman
Math’s Notes: Is Homebrewing Dead? Math (WA2NDM), (KD2IWM), Aug, p. 22, 60, 95
Jan, p. 55 What’s New? Polyphaser VHF/UHF 4.3-10 RF Surge
Zero Bias: Back in the Field and Bands at Risk, Moseson Protector, Feldman (KD2IWM), Jul, p. 28
(W2VU), Jun, p. 8 What’s New? PreciseRF HG3 QRO model mag loop anten-
Zero Bias: Because We Are a Community, Moseson na, SteppIR Celebrates 20th Anniversary, Feldman
(W2VU), Oct, p. 6 (KD2IWM), May, p. 69, 83
Zero Bias: Become a Beginner Again, Moseson (W2VU), What’s New: PreppComm Introduced New S2X Stand,
Mar, p. 8 Feldman (KD2IWM), Dec, p. 54
Zero Bias: Communications (In)Security, Moseson
(W2VU), Aug, p. 8 PROPAGATION
Zero Bias: The Final Frontier, Moseson (W2VU), Dec, p. 6 Emergency Communications: The Opposite of DX – NVIS

and How It’s Being Used in Emergencies Today, Broadway Emergency Communications: The Zoom Files, Broadway
(N8BHL), Jun, p. 65 (N8BHL), Feb, p. 67
MF/LF Operating: A New Theory of Propagation for Long- Gordo’s Short Circuits: DFing Emergency Beacons, West
Haul DX on 2200 Meters, Crofts (VK4YB), Dec, p. 75 (WB6NOA), Oct, p. 40
Propagation: August Propagation, Hood (NW7US), Aug, p. Ham Radio Hunger Games, The, Millner (WB2REM), May,
98 p. 10
Propagation: Autumn is a Time of Change, Hood (NW7US), Ham Radio in the Year of COVID, Scipione (AA2AV), Oct,
Sep, p. 88 p. 28
Propagation: Burning Up the Clouds With NVIS, Hood Learning Curve: EmComm – An Important Facet of Ham
(NW7US), Jul, p. 89 Radio, Ochu (KOØZ), Oct, p. 16
Propagation: First-Ever Complete Observation of a Learning Curve: Weather Nets, Ochu (KOØZ), Apr, p. 44
Nanoflare, Hood (NW7US), Feb, p. 108 Magic in the Sky: The Ten Commandments of EmComm,
Propagation: Huge Waves in the Sun Discovered With Reinhardt (AA6JR), Oct, p. 38
NASA Mission, Hood (NW7US), Oct, p. 107 SATERN and the Patriot North 2021 Exercise: Planning IS
Propagation: It’s a New Year, and a New Solar Cycle, Hood Required! Ruesch (W9JU), Oct, p. 20
(NW7US), Jan, p. 101 Split-Level VHF/UHF Go-Box Plus Base Station, A, Taft
Propagation: June and Field Day, Hood (NW7US), Jun, p. (K1EHZ), June, p. 10 + Update July, p. 80
103 Tracking and Analyzing Digital Transmissions of Aircraft,
Propagation: May Brings Sporadic-E Propagation to HF, Green (K3BEQ) & Butler (GDNFN), Dec, p. 34
Hood (NW7US), May, p. 90 Was New Orleans Ready for Another Strong Hurricane?
Propagation: Solar Cycle Progression and Forecast, Hood Dabdoub (KB5AVY), Oct, p. 18
(NW7US), Dec, p. 98
Propagation: Sunspot Cycle 25 is Official, Hood (NW7US), QRP (LOW POWER)
Apr, p. 89 3-Band Trap End-Fed Half Wave (EFHW) Antenna for QRP
Propagation: The Rise of a Solar Cycle, Hood (NW7US), Portable Operation, DePrimo (K1JD), Jun, p. 46
Nov, p. 93 CQ Classic: Converting the Globe “Pocketphone” to Ten
Propagation: The Terminator, Hood (NW7US), Mar, p. 94 Meters, September 1961 reprint, Stoner (W6TNS), Feb,
VHF Plus: April TEP and an Early Start for Sporadic-E, p. 34
Fleming (N4DTF), Jun, p. 88 CQ Classic: When Solid-State Meant QRP, Semi
VHF Plus: Tropospheric Ducting Propagation on the Rise conductors column reprint July 1961, Stoner (W6TNS), Feb,
in July, Fleming (N4DTF), Jul, p. 73 p. 30
Four Decades of QRP in CQ (QRP article index), Feb,
PUBLIC SERVICE & EMERGENCY p. 38
CQ Classic: Public Service – Remembering 9-11 (11/2001 Hams on Hog Island – A QRPxpedition, Lazar (W4DNN),
reprint), Josuweit (WA3PZO), Oct, p. 47 Jun, p. 23
CQ Classic: Zero Bias - “Too Few Volunteers, Too Much How a Burned-Out Transistor Launched Me into the World
Emergency” (11/2001 reprint), Moseson (W2VU), Oct, p. 44 of QRP, Lazar (W4DNN), Feb, p. 16
Decoding NOAA Weather Satellites, Kubis (KDØWUQ), Kit-Building: QRP Labs QCX Mini, Eisenberg (KØNEB),
Oct, p. 30 Jun, p. 70
Emergency Communications: Amateur Radio in Learning Curve: QRP and Antennas, Ochu (KOØZ), Feb,
Emergencies – Are We Still Involved? Broadway (N8BHL), p. 73
May, p. 46 Portable QRP Satellite Operation, Herr (WA6ARA), Feb,
Emergency Communications: Amateur Radio in p. 26
Emergencies Put to the Test in 2020 Storms, Broadway QRP Quickies: Adventures With My FT-818, Tenev
(N8BHL), Mar, p. 53 (K2QFA), Feb, p. 12
Emergency Communications: ARRL and EmComm – A QRP Quickies: The Bayou Jumper – A Modern-Day Version
New Commitment, Broadway (N8BHL), Oct, p. 11 of the Paraset Radio, Leonardelli (VE3IPS), Feb, p. 14
Emergency Communications: Can We Really? (Yes, We QRP Quickies: What Two Watts Can Do, Cahill (AC2YD),
Can), Broadway (N8BHL), Jul, p. 42 Feb, p. 10
Emergency Communications: Handling a Public Service QRP: A Hodgepodge of QRP Updates, Rought (KA8SMA),
Event – the Basics, Broadway (N8BHL), Aug, p. 44 Jun, p. 74
Emergency Communications: How to Avoid the Torture of QRP: CQ Reviews – Laboratory 599’s Discovery TX-500
Digital Net Check-ins, Broadway (N8BHL), Jan, p. 62 – Worth the Wait? Rought (KA8SMA), Aug, p. 52
Emergency Communications: How to Perform When QRP: Four-State QRP Group’s Bayou Jumper – A QRP
Called in an Emergency – Practice Now, Broadway (N8BHL), Spy Radio, Rought (KA8SMA), Oct, p. 72
Sep, p. 52 QRP: QRP Contesting – Lessons Learned… and No
Emergency Communications: Hurricane Ida – What Have Contact For You! Rought (KA8SMA), Feb, p. 68
We Learned? Broadway (N8BHL), Nov, p. 48 QRP: QRP is Contagious, Rought (KA8SMA), Dec, p. 58
Emergency Communications: Snapshot – The State of QRP: The Sabretooth Antenna Revisited, Rought
EmComm Today, Broadway (N8BHL), Apr, p. 37 (KA8SMA), Apr, p. 56
Emergency Communications: The Opposite of DX – NVIS The Pure Magic of QRP CW DXing, Charteris (VK4QS),
and How It’s Being Used in Emergencies Today, Broadway Feb, p. 20
(N8BHL), Jun, p. 65 The Squirrel Zapper, Kato (AH6CY), Feb, p. 22
Emergency Communications: Using the Technology We When QRP Just Won’t Do, Minikiewicz (W4FSZ), Mar,
Have, Broadway (N8BHL), Dec, p. 50 p. 18

SHORTWAVE LISTENING TECHNICAL DATA
Listening Post: “Brother” Stair Succumbs to Heart Attack, Analog Adventures: Antiresonance – or More Fun with Your
Dexter, Jun, p. 60 VNA, Nichols (KL7AJ), Oct, p. 76
Listening Post: Bob (Big Signal) Brown, KW3F (SK), Dexter, Analog Adventures: O Silly Scope, Nichols (KL7AJ), Apr,
May, p. 41 p. 54
Listening Post: China Radio Gives Stations Genuine Analog Adventures: VNA (Very Nice Application), Nichols
Names, Dexter, Dec, p. 46 (KL7AJ), Aug, p. 62
Listening Post: Computer Goblins and Reader Logs, Gordo’s Short Circuits: Tracking (and Treating) Local Noise
Dexter, Apr, p. 32 Sources, West (WB6NOA), Jul, p. 69
Listening Post: Mysterious South American Stations How to Accurately Measure Surface-Mount Resistors,
Perplex SWLers, Dexter, Jul, p. 38 Clark (K2AOP), Apr, p. 13
Listening Post: Opposition Broadcasters Keep Sprouting Learning Curve: Inductors: A Brief Primer, Ochu (KOØZ),
Up, Dexter, Aug, p. 35 Dec, p. 60
Listening Post: Radio Congo Finally Heard … in North Math’s Notes: A 1-Kilowatt Optical Transmitter, Math
America, Dexter, Mar, p. 48 (WA2NDM), Feb, p. 60
Listening Post: Radio Onda Corta Venezuela Returns to Math’s Notes: A Simple Wide-Range Amplifier, Math
the Air, Dexter, Oct, p. 64 (WA2NDM), Sep, p. 46
Listening Post: Shortwave Stations Around the World Math’s Notes: Is Homebrewing Dead? Math (WA2NDM),
Come Back, Dexter, Sep, p. 48 Jan, p. 55
Listening Post: South Pacific Stations On the Move, Dexter, Math’s Notes: Magnetic Communications Experimentation,
Jan, p. 57 Math (WA2NDM), Nov, p. 42
Listening Post: The Voice of Mongolia Off the Air, Dexter, Math’s Notes: Polarity Protection Plus, Math (WA2NDM),
Feb, p. 62 Mar, p. 46
Listening Post: Want to Hear Afghanistan? Look for it at Math’s Notes: Simple Homebrew Test Equipment
7600 kHz, Dexter, Nov, p. 44 Revisited, Math (WA2NDM), Oct, p. 62
Math’s Notes: Simple Test Equipment for Experimenters,
SPACE/SATELLITES Math (WA2NDM), May, p. 38
A Journey to the Moon and Back, Werner (AG4W), Dec, Math’s Notes: Wire-less Communications (Maybe)???
p.11 Math (WA2NDM), Aug, p. 39
Decoding NOAA Weather Satellites, Kubis (KDØWUQ), Math’s Notes: Working with Supercapacitors (Part I), Math
Oct, p. 30 (WA2NDM), Jun, p. 58
Ham Notebook, The: Twenty Years of Ham Radio Aboard Math’s Notes: Working with Supercapacitors (Part II), Math
the International Space Station, Yoshida (KH6WZ), Mar, (WA2NDM), Jul, p. 36
p. 70 VHF
Portable QRP Satellite Operation, Herr (WA6ARA), Feb, Build a Dual-Band Low-Noise Amplifier for 2 Meters and 70
p. 26 Centimeters, Kocsis (WA9PYH), Feb, p. 46
Satellite Rag Chewing on a Shoestring, Lazar (W4DNN), Converting a Heathkit SB-200 Amplifier to 6 Meters. Werner
Dec, p. 18 (AG4W), Aug, p. 24
Ham Radio Explorer: Simply Simplex, Luscre (K8ZT), Dec,
p. 79
Looking Ahead In CQ Split-Level VHF/UHF Go-Box Plus Base Station, A, Taft
(K1EHZ), June, p. 10 + Update July, p. 80
Here are some of the articles we’re working on for VHF Plus: 1.2 GHz … the “Gateway Drug” to a World of
upcoming issues of CQ: Microwave Action, Fleming (N4DTF), Sep, p. 70
VHF Plus: A Report From My Station, Fleming (N4DTF),
• SOTA in Chile: NOT Just a Hike in the Park Oct, p. 92
• One Ham’s Journey in Portable Operations VHF Plus: An In-Depth Look at the 1.25-Meter Band,
• Love Island DXpedition Fleming (N4DTF), Aug, p. 76
VHF Plus: April TEP and an Early Start for Sporadic-E,
Plus… Fleming (N4DTF), Jun, p. 88
• Results: 2021 CQWW VHF Contest VHF Plus: Beacons of Hope, Moseson (W2VU) and Gasant
• EMP and Lightning Surge Protection (ZR1DEE), Mar, p. 78
VHF Plus: Hello from N4DTF; Plus, a Beacon Grows on St.
Helena, Fleming (N4DTF), Apr, p. 72
Upcoming Speciial Issuees:: VHF Plus: In Praise of FM Simplex Activity, Fleming
February: QRP (Looking for stories now!) (N4DTF), Dec, p. 83
June: Take it to the Field VHF Plus: International VHF Activity Adds Flavor and
October: Emergency Communications Challenges, Fleming (N4DTF), Nov, p. 78
December: Technology VHF Plus: Making the Most of Your Technician Class
License, Fleming (N4DTF), May, p. 72
Do you have a hobby radio story to tell? Something for VHF Plus: Six Meters – The Magic and Tragic Band, Wilson
one of our specials? CQ covers the entire radio hobby. (K5ND), Feb, p. 92
See our writers’ guidelines on the CQ website at VHF Plus: Start Spreading the Word, Moseson (W2VU),
<http://bit.ly/2qBFOdU>. Jan, p. 80
VHF Plus: Tropospheric Ducting Propagation on the Rise
in July, Fleming (N4DTF), Jul, p. 73

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CQ Mechandise...............................41,93,Cov III 516-681-2922.........http://store.cq-amateur-radio.com
CW Easy/Success Easy ...................................102 561-302-7731.........www.success-is-easy.com
Communications Concepts, Inc. ....................65 937-426-8600.........www.communication-concepts.com
Electric Radio Magazine..................................77 720-924-0171.........www.ermag.com
Ham Radio Prep................................................99 ...............................www.HamRadioPrep.com
HamTestOnline ..................................................61 888-857-6164.........www.hamtestonline.com
Icom America Inc. ............................Cov II,56,57 ...............................www.icomamerica.com
Impulse Electronics ...........................................33 866-747-5277.........www.impulseelectronics.com
International DX Association ...........................36 ...............................www.indexa.org
LDG Electronics ....................................1,15,35,81 410-586-2177.........www.ldgelectronics.com
Ni4L Antennas..................................................77 828-738-6445 .......www.ni4l.com
Pacific Antenna ................................................77 ...............................www.qrpkits.com
preciseRF............................................................67 503-915-2490.........www.preciserf.com
PreppComm ....................................................61 ..............................www.PreppComm.com
QCWA ................................................................61 352-425-1097.........www.qcwa.org
RF Parts ...............................................................37 800-921-4834.........www.rfparts.com
RT Systems .......................................................7,45 800-921-4834.........www.rtsystemsinc.com
REACT Int’l........................................................103 301-316-2900.........www.REACTintl.org
VHQ HexBeam.................................................85 603-731-7935 ........www.VHQHEX.com
W2IHY Technologies .........................................65 845-889-4253.........www.w2ihy.com
W5SWL .................................................................85 ................................www.W5SWL.com
W5YI Group .........................................................49 ................................www.w5yi.org
W7DXX Remote ..................................................36 ................................www.w7dxx.com
West Mountain Radio.......................................17 262-522-6503.........www.westmountainradio.com/holiday21
YLRL.....................................................................88 ...............................www.ylrl.org
Yaesu ..........................................................Cov IV 714-827-7600.........www.yaesu.com
Let CQ help you get the most for your advertising dollar!
Contact Dottie K, CQ’s Advertising Director
at 516-681-2922 x 106 or via email at ads@cq-amateur-radio.com
HAMSHOP
Advertising Rates: Non-commercial ads are 20 cents per word including abbreviations and addresses. Commercial and organization ads are $1.00 per word. Boldface
words are $1.50 each (specify which words). Minimum charge $2.00. No ad will be printed unless accompanied by full remittance. All ads must be typewritten
double-spaced.
Closing Date: The 10th day in the third month preceding date of publication (example: Jan. 10th for the March issue). Because the advertisers and equipment con-
tained in Ham Shop have not been investigated, the Publisher of CQ cannot vouch for the merchandise listed therein. The publisher reserves the right to reject any
advertisement. Direct all correspondence and ad copy to: CQ Ham Shop, P.O. Box 1206, Sayville, NY, 11782 (e-mail: <hamshop@cq-amateur-radio.com>).
WWW.CABLEHELP.COM 160M antennas for small spaces. TWO NEW NOVELS involving ham radio: Full Circle, and NEED ROPE? All kinds, types, including: antenna rope,
(662) 332-8454. Frozen in Time, by N4XX. Visit <http://www.theodore-cohen- hauling, gin. FREE, free consultation, Go to <http://www.
novels.com/>. davisropeandcable.com/>. Veteran owned, K1PEK, 978-
For Sale: HF RADIO ICOM IC-78 TRANSCEIVER. New, 369-1738.
unused, perfect condition. Includes power supply. Make offer. QSLing SUPPLIES. e-mail: <plumdx@msn.com>.
chuck_kaptain@wycliffe.org FUTURE TIMES: Dreams and visions of Disasters. Great
CASH FOR COLLINS, HALLICRAFTERS SX-88, & DRAKE guide book for Hams. www.xlibris.com/futuretimes.html
WANNA START A RAG-CHEW WITH THE GENERAL PUB- TR-6. Buy any Collins equipment. Leo, KJ6HI, phone/fax 310-
LIC ABOUT THE VALUE OF AMATEUR RADIO? Introduce 418-9269, e-mail: <radioleo73@gmail.com>. HAWAII DX VACATION: SteppIR an tennas, amp lifiers, private.
them to Harold, a ham who is trying to keep his day job post- KH6RC, <www.leil anibedandbreakfast.com>.
Pandemic, and his wife, Sabrina, who is hoping to keep her MicroLog by WAØ ØH
yarn shop alive. SIDEWALK SALE ACROSS AMERICA, Easy to use logging program. HAM TRAVELERS Discount travel, tours, cruises, more.
available Amazon Kindle, paperback. Peg Nichols, Free download . . . www.wa0h.com www.GreatExpectationTravel.com
KD0VQO@arrl.net.
www.oldqslcards.com www.peidxlodge.com
FLASH CARDS for ALL FCC exams, Amateur and Com-
mercial. VIS Study Guides <www.visradio.com> 800-655- OVERSEAS AIRMAIL POSTAGE plus complete line of airmail NEAT STUFF! DWM Communications: <http://qth.com/dwm>
4267. Available direct or from Amazon Marketplace. envelopes. Order directly from our website. James E. Mackey,
proprietor. website: <www.airmailpostage. com> PROMOTIONAL VIDEO: 15-minute DVD describes amateur
FOR S ALE Rare Collins KW-1, serial number 96. Only radio’s fun and public service. Details: <www.neoham.org>.
150 made and it still works! $16,000 firm. Pictures upon TOWER ACCESSORIES Gin Pole Kits – stand off brackets –
request. Contact Teressa: <Trjtwo@gmail.com> or via antenna mounts – vehicle radio mounts – for 30 years. IIX HAM RADIO GIFTS: < www.mainestore.com>
telephone 805-878-1691. Equipment Ltd., 708-337-8172, <http://www.w9iix.com/>.
WANTED: OLD QSL CARD COLLECTIONS. Collector seeks
Wanted: Original set of knobs for my Heathkit HW-8. HOMEBREW ! “Recollections of a Radio Receiver” a 565 page US & DX cards. W2VRK, 5 Mohawk Trail, Branchburg, NJ
Paul, WBØMPG, 538 North Walnut, Wichita, KS 67203. book on HBR homebrew receivers. $10 delivered (eBook on 08876; e-mail: <tpllrs@comcast.net>.
(316) 351-7717. CD-ROM). Details <www.w6hht.com>
Wanted: Old slide rules for personal collection. Send TELEGRAPH KEY INFORMATION AND HISTORY MUSE-
DXPEDITION DVD VIDEOS: For full description and how to UM: <http://w1tp.com>
info to db_cunningham@hotmail.com order . . . <www.k4uee.com/dvd/>.
Morse Code on a CD. Just want A to Z and Zero to 9 in FT243 AND HC6U CRYSTALS: www.af4k.com
ARMS – Amateur Radio Missionary Net. Christian Fellowship
code only. Contact Ronald (KD7FWC) (775) 962-5437. Net, Everyone Welcome. 14.3075 Daily except Sunday OLD QSLs Available. 50’s and 60’s, DX and USA. Specify call,
1500–1700Z, –1 Hr DST. Website: www.qsl.net/arms send SASE. W5SQA@arrl.net
AMECO A C-1 DIY K its: w ww.thenewameco.com
VORTEX ANTENNA SYSTEMS specialist in HF and VHF high RFI Filters <www.RFchoke.com>
Affordable Custom Antenna Design www.ant-build.com performance antennas. Yagis and Delta Loops. Linear Loaded
30 and 40m Arrays. OWA Arrays, bespoke individual design CRANK-A-WATT Power & More via KE5NYS. Visit <www.
Recognize the signature CW sounds of over 4000 words!
solutions. Antenna related hardware. We ship worldwide FactorReady.com>
Start to read whole words sent in fast Morse code!
including North America. <www.vortexantennas.co.uk/>. or by
https://www.hearcwwords.com
e-mail to <enquiries@vortexantennas.co.uk>. QRP KITS: <www.breadboardradio.com>
Yaesu FT-100D (HF-VHF-UHF). Great mobile rig with
“World of Keys – Keys III” book features highly detailed views FMTV ARTICLES: Comprehensive transmitter and receiver
manual, internal keyer and mike. $300. (281) 934-8783.
and photos of keys, bugs, and paddles like few people have deviation calibration, standards, intermodulation, power ampli-
RF CONNECTORS & G ADGETS - P arts - P roducts ever seen ($18)!. Also still available, “Keys II” ($16) and “QRP
fier calculations. WB9OQM, http://mathison.freeshell.org
Romps!” ($18), plus “Your Guide to HF Fun” ($16). Available
and M ore! w ww.W5SWL.com
from dealers nationwide.
www.SecondHandRadio.com
Keychain QRP: Worlds Smallest HF Transmitter. Handmade
in the USA. <www.bit.ly/KeychainQRP> PACKET RADIO AND MORE! Join TAPR, connect with the
HF Mobile or Fixed V irtual X Antenna Patent: For Sale or
largest amateur radio digital group in the U.S. Creators of the
TNC-2 standard, working on Software Defined Radio technol- License. Request Free Power Point Presentation file. Shows
GET THE F.C.C. “COMMERCIAL” RADIOTELEPHONE design details, pictures, prototype tests. Design applies to a
LICENSE! Fast, inexpensive home study course. Command ogy. Benefits: newsletter, software, discounts on kits and pub-
lications. For membership prices see the TAPR website: broad frequency range for mant antenna arrays/beams/verti-
Productions. www.LicenseTraining.com. Free info: (800) 932- cals. <lgslay@sbcglobal.net>. Larry Slay, K5WUL
4268. <http://www.tapr.org>).
HONDURAS DX VACATION: K3, Alpha 86, SteppIR, Meals, FOR SALE: Samlex Power Supply Model SEC 1223, 13.8V @
NEVER have another fauly patch cable! 15-page, photo-illus- 25 amps. Not working. Includes operating manual and
trated manual details a revolutionary procedure for assembling Private Facilities. HR2J, (206) 259-9688.
schematic. Price $50 or best offer. Contact Harry, W9HRQ, at
failure-proof coaxial cable patches. $10 postpaid U.S., <harrygraziano@gmail.com> or phone 1-773-334-4492.
$15 forgeign. R.W. Parker, 1205 Sleepy Hollow Road, HY POWER ANTENNA COMPANY <http://www. freewebs.
Pennsuburg, PA 18073. com/hypower> Multiband dipoles, delta loops, half squares
and QRP antennas. ANTENNA & TOWER HARDWARE: Aluminum plates: Boom
to elements, boom to mast, GP/ Vertical antennaground plates,
CallSign Stuff www.hamQRU.com KTØMMY
NEW AMATEUR RADIO MAP with DXCC list updates. Full Rohn 25/45 to cross arms plates, Hexabeam / spiderbeam
WANTED: 500-Kc Ships Transmitter. IE: MACKAY MARINE color 22 x 34" – $10. Free shipping on club orders. Hubs, Moxon hubs, U bolts with sadles. All info at: e78WW@
http://www.hamradiomap.qth.com/ yahoo.com or at e-bay store: stores.ebay.com/yz4izØ Ø
2017A. w8wz@aol.com
NO NONSENSE LICENSE STUDY GUIDES: kb6nu.com/cq Wanna ham in the CAYMAN ISLANDS?” Go to <www. WWW.ISO OTRONANTENN AS.COM FOR HF. CHECK IT OUT!
martykaiser.com/24a.htm>. Call: 719-687-0650; <wd0e ja@i so tron antennas. com>
Wanted: Channel Master model 110 Quantum Antennas 1 or
more in box good condition! W.J. Gibbs, Jr. 601 Howard Street.
Columbia, NC 27925
QRP J-36: 1/2-Scale Microkey. Full-Functional “BUG” Made

in the USA by KA6IRL. <QRPJ36.com>
Premium RF Connectors, A ntennas, Coax, Parts, and

Accessories. W5SWL’s Ham S tore — www.DavesHobby
Shop.com
WANTED: IBM Model M, Space Saving Keyboard, Call KØKG,

(218) 850-1500 or email: <keith.gilbertson@q.com>.
AMATEUR RADIO ELECTRONICS: Home Study Software,

Apps, and eBooks $2.99. <www.eptsoft.com/HomeStudy
POLYESTER ROPE: excellent for antenna support and

guying. Go to <www.audiotronics.us>.
REAL HAMS DO CODE: Move up to CW with CW Mental Block

Buster III. Succeed with hypnosis and NLP. Includes two (2)
CDs and Manual. Only $29.95 plus $7.00 s/h US. FL add $2.14
tax. Success Easy, 568 SE Maple Terrace, Port St. Lucie, FL
34983, phone 561-302-7731, <www.success-is-easy.com>.

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TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL

COMMU C A T I ON S & TE C HNO L OG Y

Baluns and Ununs for Everyday Use

AT-100ProII RU-1:1 RU-4:1 RU-9:1

Remote Autotuner RBA-1:1 RBA-4:1

www.ldgelectronics.com • 410-586-2177 • support@ldgelectronics.com

2• CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 3

This month’s cover comes with 11

High-performance DSP noise cancelling..

The Final Frontier …

6• CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 7

The Centennial of DXing

ecember 2021 is the 100th anni-

D versary of the December 1921

8 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

Figure 3. Duct mode from 9ZJ to Ardrossan.

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 9

10 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

A Journey to the Moon and Back

*236 Hambrick Drive

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 11

Starting With Minimal

12 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 13

14 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 15

16 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 17

Satellite Rag Chewing on a

18 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

State of the Hobby in the 21st

Finding the Rigs

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 19

20 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 21

Arducon: An Arduino-Based Foxhunt

* USA ARDF Co-coordinator

22 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

• Decoding Dual-Tone Multi-Fre-

FM signals are not readily converted

Photo C. Photograph of all components that constitute the Arducon kit.

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 23

Want more? The project’s software

24 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

Classic 80m 80m / CW (A1A) / 3W 5 5-9 km Conclusion

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 25

PY2GN: Brazil’s First Public

26 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

WebSDR Server Configuration

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 27

In addition, the WebSDR can receive

28 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

Photo G. A general view of the antenna farm.

www.cq-amateur-radio.com December 2021 • CQ • 29

Enter the World of PY2GN’s WebSDR

Photo I. The solar panels that feed power to the station.

30 • CQ • December 2021 Visit Our Web Site

An FLdigi Computer Interface from