DeFOREST
AMATEUR RADIO CLUB - K8GE
PO Box 73 - West Union, OH 45693-0073
SERVING SOUTH CENTRAL OHIO SINCE 1974
APRIL 2001
EDITOR: WB8IOW -Jerry S. Paquette
http://www.qsl.net/k8ge
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NEXT MEETING
TUESDAY - April 10
7:00 PM
ABCAP SENIOR CITIZENS
CENTER, WEST UNION, OH
Across from the Courthouse
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MINUTES OF MEETING
April 10, 2001
Barbara Lock - N8HIA
The meeting was called to order by the vice president, Ed KE8FK.
George KK8J the president could not be at the meeting due to a
previous obligation. There were eleven people present. Ed asked
for the secretary's report. Kim N8YWX made the motion to accept
the minutes as printed in the newsletter. Betty AA8IQ second the
motion and the motion carried.
Marlene KC8JXE the treasurer could not be at the meeting. Ed gave
Roy KE4MZN a certificate for running the net for March. Roy did a
good job of being net controller. Don KC8JXC can not run the April
net due to work. Ed can run the net, but if any one else would
like they can. Kim said that she could run the net one night.
It was decided to be the April 26th net since Ed and Barb N8HIA
have another meeting that evening. Linda KC8JZG will be the net
controller for May.
Ed said that the field day committee would be meeting before the
May 8th meeting and come back to the club with ideas.. Jerry
WB8IOW said the committee can meet at his place and decide what the
field day events will be.
Ed brought his QSL cards for members to look at; they are ones he
received for working the satellites. Also he displayed his antique
radio.
Ed reminded all the Marine race will be held August 18th. The
Marines will want to use the radio club again for communications.
Ed will be setting up at Jerry and Kim's Thursday night for the
space station special event. Anyone who is interested can come by
and they will try to make contact. There will be four to five
times that the station will be close to our location. The times
are 8:05, 12:55, 2:30, 5:28, and 7:05 p.m.
Jerry talked about the weather we maybe having and the procedures
for having a net for the weather bureau. Kim passed out
information for Jerry. We have picked up two more counties for our
weather nets, Bracken and Robertson counties in Kentucky. Jerry
went over the procedures and the report forms the weather bureau
would like us to us. Jerry passed out Emergency Response Guidebook
for 2000. Paul Howelett from the Adams County Emergency Management
Agency gave the books to the club. There is an error in the book
and Jerry will put the correction in the newsletter.
Marie KE4MZP said that she was asked to be on ACC cabinet for the
ARRL representing Kentucky. Congratulations Marie. We know she
will do a good job.
There will be no split the pot tonight. Marie KE4MZP made the
motion for the meeting to adjourn.
73's
Barb N8HIA
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Correction to ERG 2000
A mistake has been found in the English version of the guidebook.
Please correct the entry on page 360, under the ID No.1162 (first
entry on the table). The Guide No. in the guidebook is 151. The
correct Guide No. page should be 155 and not 151. Th is error is
only present in the English version of the guidebook. The on-line
and download version do not have this error. Please correct in
your copy of the guidebook.
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DeForest A.R.C. Birthdays
& SPECIAL EVENTS
05-02 KC8JXD Glenna Blackburn
05-04 N8JSZ Tim Applegate
05-08 KB8SDA Richard D. Swayne
05-08 DeForest meeting 7:00 PM
05-10 WB8SPV Gary B. Trustle
05-17 W8RCB Richard C. Burnes
05-19 KC8LVE Pat Ellis
05-25 KC8JZG Linda Larter
05-26 KK8J George H. Larter
05-26 KC8HZB Thomas O. James
06-04 WB8IOW Jerry S. Paquette
06-06 KB8TQU Dorothy H. Silman
06-10 WX8B Jim R. Newman
06-11 KB8UAO Kelly E. Boone
06-12 DeForest meeting 7:00 PM
06-17 Gladys R. Stultz
06-20 KB8TJT Wanda S. Mangus
06-21 KB8SRU Francis L. Cobb Jr.
06-23 KC8NHU Maxwell J. Moore
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AMATEUR RADIO SATELLITES
K8YMI - Bob Halley
Amateur radio news about space this month has been excellent. Some
exciting happenings will not be reported here due to newsletter
space limitations. You can stay current by watching the AMSAT.org
website. Amsat News Service updates the news weekly with extensive
data and reports from around the world.
Efforts to reduce the spin rate of AO-40 using the onboard
magnetorquers are succeeding. Magnetorquers (solenoid coils) use
the Earth's magnetic field to control the spacecraft's spin and
orientation. From a spin rate of about 17 rpm on orbit 157, a
report from DH2VA said the rate was down to 9.1 rpm on 3/13.
The desired rate is about 5 rpm and was reached in early April.
The next step is to change the attitude orientation (sun angle) to
improve communications with Earth. Several independent analyses
(including the French Space Agency CNES) have confirmed that the
current orbit will be stable for many years, more than the
anticipated lifetime of the satellite. In summary, the spacecraft
seems to be in good order, with no additional damage or other
problems detected. The power budget is fine, even when it is in
poor Sun illumination.
Shuttle Discovery flew to the International Space station on a 12
day mission delivering a new crew (Expedition -2) and carrying an
additional 10,000 pounds of supplies. Two hams, Sally Helms KC7NHZ
and Commander Yuri Usachev, UA9AD/R3MIR will stay t here for about
4 months. The third new ISS crewmember, Jerry Voss, is not
licensed so his assignment is to do the lesser important things
like the science work etc. Actually all three will participate in
the Ham station contacts with schools on a worldwide down link of
145.800 MHz and will listen for voice uplink in Regions 2/3 on
145.490 MHz. Packet uplink will be 145.990. They will use the US
call sign NA1SS, the Russian call sign R0ISS or the German call
sign DL0ISS. Sally Helms has been quo ted as saying she will be
making some random QSO's. Orbital elements are listed regularly on
the AMSAT and the NASA websites. Oh yes, the crew of Expedition-1
got home safely. You can learn more at: http://ariss.gsfc.nasa.gov
Last month, I reported that the NEAR spacecraft Shoemaker touched
down on the surface of the asteroid Eros for the first landing on
an asteroid. This craft, about the size of an automobile, perched
on the tiny asteroid about 200 million miles away. It was not
designed for a landing but withstood the impact and continued radio
and video contact with the tracking stations. It has gone quiet
now.
The MIR space station was scheduled for de-orbit in mid-March and
began its fiery journey into Earth's atmosphere. Some of the
massive station plunged into the Pacific Ocean between Australia
and Chile in an area described as 120 miles deep and 3600 miles
across.
I was able to record some video of four large pieces as they sailed
over Fiji. There had been additional efforts to raise money to keep
MIR in orbit but to no avail. MIR was a major player in the space
adventure and history will record many of its' achievements.
Speaking of the Russian space program, April 12th will be the 40th
anniversary of the first space flight by Yuri Gagarin in the
Vostok-1.
On the lighter side, word by one of the news services was the
Russian Space Agency was out shopping for an insurance policy to
cover any damage caused by the de-orbiting MIR. Do you suppose
they were looking for Collision, Comprehensive or uninsured 'naut
coverage?
I just re-read a book published last year titled "The Dream of
Spaceflight" written by Wyn Wachhorst. In essays, the author
covers many of the dreamers of space including American Robert
Goddard, German Hans Oberth, Russian Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and the
young man, Wernher von Braun. During the 1930's they all worked
separately on the same ideas of space travel and spaceship
propulsion. It is not a technical recount, but rather a more
philosophical description of their work written in prose that is
astounding and yet understandable. It is probably available in the
Public Libraries.
-73- K8YMI
Restructuring
Is Solidified For Now
By Joe Phillips, K8QOE
Ohio Section Manager, ARRL
Just 40 hours before Y2K, the Friendly Candy Company (our pet name
for the FCC) made massive rule changes (three license classes, one
code test) which we called restructuring. Since then, they have had
numerous rule revision proposals and this April 6th, the FCC said
"no" to each and every one of them.
Obviously the FCC wants the rule changing mechanism to SLOW down
and have us breathe with the new system before making even the
simplest changes.
There were proposals to adjust the spectrum, reinstate the 20WPM CW
test, or to grandfather old license proposals. And seven others as
well.
One, which seemed to have wide support, was the case for old techs
with a CSCE (code credit) certificate. It sought a provision so the
CSCE would show up on the current FCC Database which does not
happen now. This made the most sense for adjusting the rules. Yet,
even THAT was turned down.
The decision to have "no" rule changes at this time was as much a
political document as it is an FCC Ruling. In plain English the FCC
said, "You amateur radio operators live with the old restructuring
changes for a while and work with it." Even the simplest changes
now, no matter how impressive, would send the wrong signal - it
might open floodgates the FCC does not want opened now.
This message is encouraging to some. For example Advanced Class
hams who will breathe easy for now. The reluctance of the FCC to
make even the smallest changes in the rules means the promise of
giving Advanced Class Hams life long privileges seems a bit more
secure.
Also this is also good news for our long suffering Volunteer
Examiners (VECs) since it stabilizes rule changes after ham radio
went for two years, 1997-1999, in some kind of license rules limbo.
It was tough for those who tested and those who taught classes
until the rules were solidified. The current FCC policy is a relief
for them as for anyone.
Joe Phillips, K8QOE
Ohio Section Manager
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Visit the DeForest ARC web site at:
http://www.qsl.net/k8ge
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Announced April 24, 2001
Whose new slogan is
"Remember, only you can prevent wildfires?"
Answer on ad-sheet
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WEEKLY NET
The DeForest A.R.C. weekly net is held Thursday evening, 9:00 PM,
all year, on the 147.00 MHz+ repeater. All check-ins welcome.
Traffic, club news, information.
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PLEASE REVIEW OUR NEWSLETTER SPONSORS ADS, BELOW
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PRATHER'S IGA
FOODLINER
107 Walnut Street
West Union, Ohio
544-2643 or 544-5488
Chase Prather - Owner
Russ Grooms - Manager
Connie Bradford - Assistant Manager
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McDONALD'S
FAMILY OWNED
AND OPERATED
BREAKFAST
LUNCH - DINNER
WEST UNION
RIPLEY
PEEBLES
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Blake Pharmacy
Radio Shack
"On the town square,
in West Union, Oh"
(937) 544-2451
For special pricing, tell
Joey Traylor, you're a
member of the
DeForest Amateur Radio Club
& give him your callsign.
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Answer: SMOKEY the Bear
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C&D ELECTRONICS, Inc - Radio Shack Dealer
Satellite - Cellular - Computer
Maysville Market Square - AA Highway
MAYSVILLE, KY
canddelectronics.com
(606) 759-5027
or
toll free (888) 759-5027
MANAGER
KC4UXD
CHUCK DOUGHMAN
11 YEARS YOUNG AND STILL GROWING !
THANKS FOR ALL THE SUPPORT
HAM DISCOUNT
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SOUTHERN HILLS
EYE CARE
DR. HOWARD L. COVERT
125 S. MANCHESTER STREET
WEST UNION, OH
(937) 544-3325
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CUSTOM ELECTRONICS
PEEBLES, OH
937 587-5122
OWNED AND OPERATED BY W8ZFO
SALES AND INSTALLATION
OF
DISH NETWORK SATELLITE SYSTEMS
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J.D.'s AUTO REPAIR
NAPA AUTO CARE CENTER - ASE CERTIFIED MECHANIC
4685 CHAPPARAL ROAD - WEST UNION
(937) 544-8586
MONDAY - FRIDAY 8AM - 5 PM, CLOSED NOON HOUR
CLOSED SATURDAY & SUNDAY
OWNERS: JD - KB8VLF & DEE - KB8VBH
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SOUTHERN OHIO DRIVING SCHOOL
PEEBLES, OHIO
(937) 587-3194 or
(937) 587-3837
First-Time Drivers
Adults and Students
Remedial for Adults and Students
Owners:
Lyle Lambert (KC8DDY)
Jayne Lambert (KC8LUH)
and
Karen Lambert (KC8LIA)
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EDITOR E-MAIL: wb8iow@arrl.net
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