*************** The ARRL Letter Vol. 24, No. 29 July 29, 2005 *************** IN THIS EDITION: * + Canada drops Morse code requirement, with conditions * + The NCVEC gathers in Gettysburg * + Educators talk to the ISS via ham radio * + VoIP modes aid WX4NHC mission * + Bioterrorism incident is scenario for Oklahoma exercise * + Ham-volunteers help in ValuJet 592 Memorial cleanup * + WG4Y is Newsline's Young Ham of the Year * + Still time to register for ARRL/TAPR digital confab * Solar Update * IN BRIEF: This weekend on the radio ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration FCC fines amateur licensee for transmitting on government frequency Field Day "logs received" list expected in mid-August On-line registration available for 2005 AMSAT Symposium +Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> =========================================================== ==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!): letter-dlvy@arrl.org ==>Editorial questions or comments: Rick Lindquist, N1RL, n1rl@arrl.org =========================================================== ==>CANADA DROPS MORSE REQUIREMENT AS SOLE ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT FOR HF ACCESS Industry Canada (IC) has adopted elements of the Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) "Proposal on Morse Code and Related Matters" and has essentially removed the requirement for Amateur Radio applicants in that country to obtain a "Morse Qualification" for access to bands below 30 MHz. "Morse code will no longer be the sole additional requirement by which Canadian radio amateurs will gain access to the HF bands, but it will remain as one valid criterion," Industry Canada said in its Notice announcing the regulatory change. Industry Canada said it will continue to include Morse code as a consideration in granting access to the HF bands. "However, this is only one criterion and the measure of HF operator abilities should not be limited to this one facet of operator skills," IC added. Effective immediately, amateurs certified with the Basic Qualification prior to April 2, 2002, and amateurs certified with both Basic and Advanced Qualifications may operate on the HF amateur bands. Licensees holding only the Basic Qualification who were certified after April 1, 2002, and who achieved a passing grade of at least 80 percent also are allowed to operate on HF. Amateurs certified with the Basic Qualification after April 1, 2002, who did not achieve a score of at least an 80 on the examination will either have to attain the Morse Qualification, write the Advanced test or rewrite the Basic examination and obtain at least an 80 percent grade to obtain HF privileges. This last requirement is related to a decision to increase the passing grade for the Basic examination to ensure that candidates have been tested in all areas of the syllabus. Details of the Industry Canada decision are in the Canada Gazette Notice <http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/internet/insmt-gst.nsf/en/sf08435e.html> and on the Latest News page of the RAC Web site <http://www.rac.ca/>. FCC Amateur Service rules in §97.107(b) grant Canadian control operators "the operating terms and conditions of the amateur service license issued by the Government of Canada" but, in any case, not to exceed the control operator privileges of an FCC-licensed Amateur Extra class operator. §97.107 does not apply to US citizens who may hold Canadian amateur licenses, however. ==>NCVEC TAKES NO ACTION IN RESPONSE TO FCC RULE MAKING PROPOSALS Meeting July 22 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) <http://www.ncvec.org/> offered no public reaction to the FCC's recent Notice of Proposed Rule Making and Order (NPRM&O) in WT Docket 05-235. The NCVEC also took no action at the gathering on whether to file formal comments with the FCC in the proceeding. The FCC NPRM&O endorsed eliminating the Morse code requirement for all amateur license classes--something the NCVEC sought in a 2003 Petition for Rule Making--but it turned away a 2004 NCVEC proposal to create a new "Communicator" entry-level license class with expanded HF privileges and upgrade all Novices to that level. Acting on a motion focusing on whether the Conference should get involved in rule makings, the NCVEC voted to dissolve its Rules Committee--the panel that had prepared the Conference's rule making petitions. Outgoing Rules Committee Chairman Fred Maia, W5YI, later encouraged individual VECs to review the FCC document and comment to the Commission on their own. "After we voted to dissolve our Rules Committee, I sensed that the group was not interested in pursuing this matter any time soon," NCVEC Chairman Tom Fuszard, KF9PU, told ARRL this week. "Unless I receive a clear indication from the VECs that they want the Conference to offer a response, I won't proceed further." The NCVEC voted 10-2 to abolish its Rules Committee "until it decides on a clear need and purpose for such a committee," Fuszard explained. "We had neither the time then--nor, I felt, the inclination--to discuss the matter further." ARRL VEC Assistant Manager Perry Green, WY1O, says some disappointment with the FCC's failure to endorse the NCVEC's proposal to establish a new entry-level license was apparent among the 12 VECs attending the Gettysburg meeting. The NCVEC's 2004 petition also asked the FCC to upgrade Technician licensees to General and Advanced holders to Extra, but the FCC rejected that idea too. Some members expressed pleasure, however, that the FCC is poised to eliminate the Morse code requirement. In other matters, Green reports that as a result of the recently released FCC proposal, the NCVEC Question Pool Committee (QPC)--the body that formulates Amateur Radio examination questions--is considering surveying individual VECs to review the Technician class question pool out of its usual sequence. The most recent Technician question pool went into effect in 2003, and it normally would not undergo another review until 2007. The NCVEC held up implementing a new Amateur Extra class question pool this year in anticipation of FCC action on various regulatory issues and possible further restructuring. The NCVEC elected Green and Larry Pollock, NB5X, of the W5YI VEC to join QPC Chairman Jim Wiley, KL7CC, of the Anchorage Amateur Radio Club VEC. Others attending from ARRL Headquarters were Interim ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, KB1KJC, and ARRL Affiliated Club/Mentor Program Manager Norm Fusaro, W3IZ. Bill Cross, W3TN, of the FCC's Public Safety and Critical Infrastructure Division within the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau reviewed the July 19 NPRM&O with the NCVEC delegates and answered questions. FCC Special Counsel for Enforcement Riley Hollingsworth also addressed the gathering and reminded the VECs to remain vigilant in spotting apparent problems that crop up during examination sessions and reporting them to the FCC for handling. The NCVEC also elected officers for 2005-2006. They are Chairman Tom Fuszard, KF9PU, of the Milwaukee Radio Amateurs' Club, who chaired the 2005 NCVEC gathering; Vice Chairman: Larry Pollock, NB5X, of the W5YI VEC, who succeeds Wiley; Secretary: Steve Sternitzke, NS5I, of the W5YI VEC, and Treasurer: Ray Adams, W4CPA, of the Western Carolina Amateur Radio Society VEC. ==>EDUCATORS QUERY ISS ASTRONAUT VIA HAM RADIO Some 35 educators attending a NASA Explorer School (NES) program workshop July 20 got the chance to speak via ham radio with astronaut John Phillips, KE5DRY, aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Acting on very short notice, the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program was able to arrange the contact between NN1SS at Maryland's Goddard Space Flight Center, where the workshop was being held, and NA1SS on the space station. ARISS International Team Chairman Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, reports the contact went very well, and the group got in 15 questions asked and answered. "The educators derived a lot of benefit from this activity, which they will bring into the NASA Explorer School program," he said. To accommodate the group's size, the Earth station actually used two locations and two sets of equipment, Bauer explained. "The two-station event was closely choreographed using 70-cm radios, while the two stations could simultaneously hear the full set of questions being asked and the answers from Astronaut John Phillips," Bauer said. Before the QSO, Bauer briefed the educators on the ARISS program. The contact started and finished at the NN1SS ground station in Goddard's Building 11, where about half of the educators were located. Halfway through the contact, however, with the ISS closer to Goddard, another station a few hundred feet outside Building 11 was put on the air to handle questions from the other half of the group. The second station consisted of a hand-held transceiver and an Arrow antenna to successfully ask six questions. AMSAT President Rick Hambly, W2GPS, aimed the dualband antenna at the ISS, while Dave Taylor, W8AAS, took care of the handheld transceiver. "The educators, several with tears in the eyes, said this was one of the best events they have experienced." He noted that the QSO took place on the 36th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. Several educators' questions focused on human physiology issues involved with space travel, while others asked about human exploration of Mars and long-distance space travel. The NN1SS-NA1SS QSO represented a role reversal of sorts. During most ARISS school group contacts, the students--not the teachers--ask the questions. ARISS <http://www.rac.ca/ariss> is an international educational outreach with US participation by ARRL, AMSAT and NASA. ==>VoIP MODES CRITICAL FOR HURRICANE CENTER SUPPORT, WX4NHC SAYS Radio amateurs using voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) modes such as EchoLink <http://www.echolink.org/> and IRLP <http://www.irlp.net/>are doing an outstanding job of supporting forecasters tracking hurricanes. So says WX4NHC Assistant Amateur Radio Coordinator Julio Ripoll, WD4R. The latest example was during WX4NHC activations--in cooperation with the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) <http://www.hwn.org/> --for Hurricane Emily. Ripoll, says VoIP-mode users have supported WX4NHC in collecting ground-level weather data as well as relaying hurricane advisories to residents and agencies in affected areas. "The EchoLink and IRLP partnership created for hurricanes and severe weather is unique," Ripoll told ARRL, adding that he's seen upward of 100 VoIP connections during storm emergencies, many of which represent repeaters and conference rooms "with untold numbers listening." Ripoll said VoIP modes also have served to connect Red Cross headquarters stations, state emergency operations centers (EOCs), National Weather Service offices and other agencies. "The VoIP-WX Net <http://www.voipwx.net/> has also added a large number of Technician class operators who were not able to report on HF in the past," he noted. Although it has a defined and trained cadre of regular member-operators, the HWN operates on 14.325 MHz--beyond reach of operators lacking at least a General ticket. Ripoll said those connecting via VoIP modes often do so using low-power VHF/UHF radios running on battery power via an IRLP or EchoLink-equipped repeater. Ripoll spotlighted WX-Talk Conference Net Manager Kevin Anderson, KD5WX, of Texas, IRLP Reflector 9219 Net Manager Danny Musten, KD4RAA, of North Carolina, and ARRL Eastern Massachusetts Section Emergency Coordinator and SKYWARN Director Rob Macedo, KD1CY, for being "very supportive" of WX4NHC. Ripoll reports that the VoIP Hurricane Net most recently generated "some of the most important surface reports" as Hurricane Emily tracked over Grenada, St Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago. He cited specific information during Emily that arrived via VoIP modes including a report from J73CI, relaying for J39JQ, of a roof being blown from a hospital and damage to homes on Grenada caused by strong winds. Other VoIP reports came via Julien Dedier, 9Z4FZ, in Trinidad, of power outages. Reports relayed by the Trinidad EOC from Tobago at one point indicated heavy rainfall and sustained winds of 60 MPH. Reports such as these, Ripoll said, were "especially vital during the very late evening hours, when there was a lack of HF propagation into the affected area." For additional information, visit the WX4NHC Web site <http://www.wx4nhc.org/>. ==>OKLAHOMA HAMS PARTICIPATE IN BIOTERRORISM EXERCISE "QST, QST, QST! This is only a exercise!" That was the call July 13 over Amateur Radio systems in three Oklahoma counties--Comanche, Oklahoma and Tulsa. More than two dozen ham radio volunteers took part in the ambitious and complex "Operation Firework Fanfare," a large-scale effort to test emergency response systems in a catastrophic public health event. The scenario in this case was a bioterrorist release of contagious pneumonic plague. Oklahoma is in the heart of tornado alley, and Amateur Radio and the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) have long been a part of most emergency management responses and exercises. In Tulsa, Oklahoma City and Lawton, hams were deployed to various response locations, emergency operations centers (EOCs), incident triage, staging and transportation areas and the vaccination center. Tulsa County ARES Emergency Coordinator Pete Mann, KF5RD, reported to the EOC, deep in the basement of the Tulsa City-County Health Department, equipped with high-tech, flat-screen monitors and TVs to display the latest incident information plus "an Amateur Radio system to dream of," he said, with HF, VHF and UHF capabilities. "We're right here in the heart of the operations center, ready to respond when all else fails," Mann announced. Although ARES was not called upon to handle a lot of traffic, Bob Sims, W5KCB--stationed at the Lawton Unified Command Post--said ARES operators provided communication support "wherever and whenever needed"--all of it on VHF. Sims later learned that responders had told exercise evaluators they'd been trained to rely on Amateur Radio if traditional lines of communication went down. "This satisfied the evaluators, and they did not shut down their communications," Sims said. "It was a very successful operation, and amateurs were showered with accolades. Evaluators were obviously looking for ARES operators and pleased to see our participation."--Mark Conklin N7XYO ==>RADIO AMATEURS AMONG VALUJET FLIGHT 592 MEMORIAL CLEANUP VOLUNTEERS Some two dozen radio amateurs, boy scouts, firefighters, rescue squad members, Florida Power and Light employees, Miccosukee Tribe Police and local residents recently collaborated in doing a good turn for the families of ValuJet Flight 592 victims. The ValuJet DC-9 airliner crashed in Florida's Everglades on May 11, 1996, following an onboard fire, killing 110 passengers and crew members. Unfortunately, vandals recently defaced the ValuJet Flight 592 Memorial, located near the crash site off the Tamiami Trail. Volunteers from area Amateur Radio clubs and Boy Scout troops have been routinely maintaining the site for a few years now, and they were among those who turned out to erase spray-painted graffiti from the defaced stones and give the memorial an overall sprucing up. "We can be proud of the dedication of the citizens of Miami-Dade County to this memorial," remarked ARRL Southern Florida Section Manager Sherri Brower, W4STB, on the ARRL Southern Florida Section page <http://www.arrl.org/sections/SFL.html>. "Thanks to all in the amateur community who have been--and continue to be--part of the caretaking team of the memorial. This truly shows that Amateur Radio operators give to their communities in many ways." Matt Ginn, KG4LGO, a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue radio installer, is credited with getting the ball rolling on the graffiti cleanup effort. He approached his department about borrowing a fire truck. A Coral Gables police officer supplied a pressure washer. Word got around, others learned of the effort and more got involved. "That's people's family that died out there," Ginn explained to the Associated Press. "They don't have a gravestone except for that monument." As it turned out, solvents and three power washers made quick work of the graffiti on July 16, so the volunteers proceeded to clean all 110 of the memorial's stones. There's one for each victim, configured so they form an arrow that points to the spot where the plane went down. They also washed and polished the memorial's stone plaque listing the victims' names. As volunteer Robert Cruz, KE4MCL, explained, it could be painstaking work. "The granite tablet was cleaned by using a sock worn like a glove sprayed with graffiti remover and lightly patting the tablet surface to dampen the graffiti," he recounted on the South Florida FM Association (SFFMA) Web site <http://sffma.net/graffitiremoval.htm>. "After giving it a few seconds to work, then you carefully wipe the paint away, working around the edges of the letters so as to avoid getting inside the black outlines." In 2001, the Dade County Amateur Radio Public Service Corps organized a group of active South Florida hams to spruce up the neglected Flight 592 Memorial for the first time. Many of the hams involved in that cleanup had helped provide communication in the aftermath of the 1996 tragedy. As the Amateur Radio volunteers did in 2001, the recent refurbishing went beyond cleaning up the vandalism to weeding, killing ant colonies, cutting grass, sweeping, refilling missing sand, re-leveling brick walkways and piling up the debris--mostly natural overgrowth. As one volunteer noted afterward, not only was the spray paint gone, but so were mold spots and accumulated grime. About 10 hams were among those who helped out during the July 16 community work day. The project also attracted nationwide media coverage, from local and regional newspapers and broadcast outlets to the Associated Press and dozens of newspapers and TV stations from coast to coast. ==>REBEKAH DORFF, WG4Y, IS AMATEUR RADIO NEWSLINE'S YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR Twelve-year-old Rebekah Dorff, WG4Y, of Hoover, Alabama, has been named the 2005 Amateur Radio Newsline <http://www.arnewsline.org/> Young Ham of the Year (YHOTY). Cited among her numerous accomplishments was her involvement in a toy drive for Alabama victims of Hurricane Ivan. An ARRL Assistant Section Manager for Youth, Rebekah not only took in donations of toys but raised more than $1100 to purchase winter clothing and additional toys. She also serves as net control for the Birmingham Amateur Radio Club (BARC) weekly BARC Kids Net, which she originated in 2002. In addition, she helps teach the club's ham radio classes and assists at examination sessions. She's also worked to recruit newcomers to Amateur Radio. "A born communicator, Rebekah has used her skills to influence other youngsters to enter the hobby through presentations she has made at three of the largest hamfests in Alabama and at Carole Perry's 'Youth in Amateur Radio' forum at Dayton Hamvention," said a news release announcing the award. At this year's Hamventon, Rebekah also was among those helping out at the "ARRL Youth Activities" concession at ARRL EXPO 2005. Rebekah also has sponsored Kid's Day events the past two years at the BARC club station, W4CUE. ARRL Alabama Section Manager Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, called Rebekah "a very active amateur radio operator who deserves this award." An ARRL Full Family Life Member, Rebekah got her license when she was eight, upgrading to Amateur Extra a year later. An avid DXer, Rebekah achieved DXCC by age 10. She also enjoys contesting. Rebekah comes from a ham radio family. Her parents are Truman and Angela Williams, NN4C and WN4C. Her older sister Christal is KG4WYN. She also has two brothers, Jeffrey and Joey. She is a rising seventh grader at Homeland Christian School, where she's on the honor roll and has received many citizenship awards. The Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award will be presented to Rebekah Dorff Saturday, August 20, at the Huntsville Hamfest. As the 2005 YHOTY winner, Vertex-Standard (Yaesu) will cover Rebekah's hamfest stay and present her with a piece of Yaesu ham gear. CQ magazine will treat her to a week at Space Camp Huntsville and will present her with a variety of CQ products. She'll also receive a plaque. Now celebrating its 20th year, the Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year Award goes each year to a radio amateur 18 years old or younger who has provided outstanding service to the nation or community or for the betterment of the state of the art in communication through Amateur Radio. ==>DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS CONFERENCE SET FOR SEPTEMBER There's still time to register for the 24th annual ARRL and TAPR Digital Communications Conference, September 23-25 in Santa Ana, California. Conference topics include--but are not limited to--software-defined radio (SDR), digital voice, digital satellite communication, GPS, APRS, digital signal processing (DSP), HF digital modes, Internet interoperability with Amateur Radio networks, Linux in Amateur Radio and more. The three-day event also will host the ninth annual APRS National Symposium. The conference itself will include introductory sessions, a variety of technical sessions for both beginners and experts, an in-depth Sunday Seminar and a demonstration room for participants to show off their latest projects. The deadline to submit technical papers for presentation at the conference and for publication in the conference Proceedings is August 9. Presentation at the conference is not required for publication. Submit papers to Maty Weinberg, KB1EIB, ARRL 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111 or via e-mail to maty@arrl.org. Additional information on the 2005 ARRL/TAPR Digital Communications Conference is on the DCC Web site <http://www.tapr.org/dcc/>. ==>SOLAR UPDATE Solar sage Tad "Sun King" Cook, K7RA, Seattle, Washington, reports: We're coming to the end of a month of large contrasts in terms of solar activity. Around July 4 there was a huge increase in sunspot numbers, followed by a very quiet period in which no sunspots were seen. Although five days following mid-July were devoid of any sunspots, our sun rotates relative to Earth--so in a little less than four weeks that very active area of sunspots is back again in the same position. The popular figure of 27.5 days is regarded as the period of the sun's rotation relative to our planet, but the actual figure varies according to which latitude of the sun we are observing. If Earth were stationary and our observations of the sun were from a fixed point, the rotation near the sun's equator would be about 25.6 days, and 30.9 days at 60 degrees latitude. We are most concerned with sunspots near the sun's equator, because they are in the most "geoeffective" or Earth-affecting position compared to those at higher latitudes. Watch for sunspot and solar flux numbers to rise over the next few days, peaking from August 1 until August 6 as the previous month's spotted region returns to view. Geomagnetic indices should drop and stay low. Predicted planetary A index for July 29 through August 2 is 15, 12, 10, 5 and 5. Over the long term, the general direction of the cycle is down, although variations such as the increased activity around July 4 are occasionally observed. Sunspots are predicted to rise again to the current level around December 2007. Sunspot numbers for July 21 through 27 were 0, 0, 20, 18, 23, 29 and 19, with a mean of 15.6. The 10.7 cm flux was 72.8, 73.6, 80.1, 80.2, 83.9, 86.5 and 90.6, with a mean of 81.1. Estimated planetary A indices were 29, 13, 5, 5, 6, 6 and 17, with a mean of 11.6. Estimated mid-latitude A indices were 19, 8, 2, 3, 3, 4 and 15, with a mean of 7.7. __________________________________ ==>IN BRIEF: * This weekend on the radio: The RSGB IOTA Contest and the ARS Flight of the Bumblebees are the weekend of July 30-31. JUST AHEAD: The North America QSO Party, (CW), the ARRL UHF Contest, the TARA Grid Dip Shindig, the 10-10 International Summer Contest (SSB), the National Lighthouse Weekend QSO Contest, the European HF Championship, the RSGB RoPoCo 2 and the SARL HF Phone Contest are the weekend of August 6-7. See the ARRL Contest Branch page <http://www.arrl.org/contests/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar <http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info. * ARRL Certification and Continuing Education course registration: Registration for the ARRL RFI (EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009) and Analog Electronics (EC-013) courses remains open through Sunday, July 31. Classes begin Friday, August 12. Antenna Design and Construction students will, among other things, learn about basic dipoles and ground planes, and how to assemble combinations of these into more complex antennas. Students also learn about transmission lines, standing wave ratio, phased arrays and Yagis. Analog Electronics students will learn about the use of instrumentation, Kirchhoff's Laws, diodes, rectifier circuits, bipolar and field effect transistors, various amplifier configurations, filters, timers, op-amps, and voltage regulators. Students participating in the RFI course will learn to identify various interference sources. To learn more, visit the ARRL Certification and Continuing Education (C-CE) Web page <http://www.arrl.org/cce> or contact the ARRL Certification and Continuing Education Program Department cce@arrl.org. * Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course registration: Registration for the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level I on-line course (EC-001) opens Monday, August 1, at 1201 AM EDT and will remain open until all available seats have been filled or through the August 6-7 weekend--whichever comes first. Class begins Friday, August 19. Thanks to the United Technologies Corporation (UTC), the $45 registration fee paid upon enrollment will be reimbursed to students who complete the course requirements and are upgraded by their mentor to "Passed" within the 8-week course period. During this registration period, seats are being offered to ARRL members on a first-come, first-served basis. To learn more, visit the ARRL Certification and Continuing Education Web page <http://www.arrl.org/cce>. For more information, contact Emergency Communications Course Manager Dan Miller, K3UFG, cce@arrl.org; 860-594-0340. * FCC fines amateur licensee for transmitting on government frequency: The FCC has affirmed a $500 forfeiture against Raimundo P. Silva, KD6SXG, of Brentwood, California, for "willful and repeated violations" involving unauthorized operation on an unspecified US government frequency. In a Forfeiture Order (NOF) <http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-05-2064A1.pdf> released July 27, the FCC said its San Francisco Field Office had received a complaint in April 2004 of harmful interference to a US government user. The interference "obstructed and interfered with satellite communications," the NOF said. Over the course of the next few months, FCC agents were able to trace and document "numerous instances" of fixed and mobile operation by Silva on the US government frequency. Last October, the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability (NAL) to Silva in the amount of $20,000. Subsequently Silva voluntarily agreed to relinquish all of his radio equipment and surrender his General class Amateur Radio license. Responding to the NAL, Silva did not contest the FCC's findings, but he sought a cancellation or reduction of the fine because he'd given up his equipment and ham ticket. He also supplied tax records to support his assertion of inability to pay. Given the record in the case, the FCC said in the NOF, a reduction of the fine to $500 was warranted. * Field Day "logs received" list expected in mid-August: Contrary to a notice in the July 26 edition of The Contester's Rate Sheet, the complete list of logs received for Field Day 2005 has not yet been posted. The deadline to submit Field Day entries was July 26. ARRL Contest Branch Manager Dan Henderson, N1ND, says processing of Field Day submissions continues, and he anticipates that the final list of logs received for Field Day will be posted on the ARRL Web site around August 12. * On-line registration available for 2005 AMSAT Symposium: Registration for the 2005 AMSAT Space Symposium <http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/symposium/> is now available via the AMSAT Web site. The Symposium will be held October 7-9 at the Holiday Inn Holidome in downtown Lafayette, Louisiana. In addition to being able to download the registration form, those planning to attend for the first time can register online through the AMSAT store <http://www.amsat-na.com/SymposiumReg.php>. Registration forms also will accompany the annual ballots for AMSAT Board of Directors candidates that will be mailed to AMSAT members. While you're signing up for the Symposium, you can also register for the banquet, the Friday night "Shrimp Boil" and the Sunday "Swamp Tour." The Symposium fee, which includes a copy of the Symposium Proceedings, is $45 for those registering before September 15. =========================================================== The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the American Radio Relay League--The National Association For Amateur Radio--225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259; <http://www.arrl.org/>. Jim Haynie, W5JBP, President. The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential news of interest to active amateurs. The ARRL Letter strives to be timely, accurate, concise, and readable. Visit ARRLWeb <http://www.arrl.org/> for the latest news, updated as it happens. The ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/> offers access to news, informative features and columns. ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> is a weekly "ham radio newscast" compiled from The ARRL Letter. Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or in part in any form without additional permission. 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