For many of us currently enjoying the amateur radio hobby, we got our start by doing some Short Wave Listening, or even some Broadcast Band using an old tube type radio, with makeshift antennas. In my case, it was an old console radio salvaged from my Grandmothers house, that was in need of some TLC and a decent antenna. I recall tuning the broadcast band, to see where the farthest station I could pull in, was located. KDKA was like real “DX” for a fledging Short Wave Listener.

Pittsburgh radio station KDKA will celebrate 100 years of radio broadcasting in November, and Pennsylvania radio amateurs will honor that milestone in a multi-station special event. KDKA dates its broadcasting history to the airing of the Harding-Cox presidential results on November 2, 1920, and the station has been on the air ever since. The special event, which will involve the operation of four stations, will run through the entire month of November.

Special event stations K3K, K3D, K3A, and W8XK will set up and operate at several locations in Pennsylvania during November. Stations will determine their own modes and schedules. Visit the W8XK profile on QRZ.com for information on certificates and QSLs.

What became KDKA initially began broadcasting in 1916 as amateur radio station 8XK, licensed by the Federal Radio Commission (FRC), the predecessor to the FCC. At the time, amateurs were not prohibited from broadcasting. The small station was operated by Dr. Frank Conrad, who was Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company assistant chief engineer. The transmitter ran 75 W, and the broadcasts gained some popularity in Pittsburgh. 

During World War I, amateur radio operation was suspended due to national security concerns. After the war, 8XK was reorganized as a commercial AM radio station, KDKA. The first transmissions of KDKA originated in a makeshift studio on the roof of Westinghouse K Building in East Pittsburgh.

Ham radio clubs participating in the centennial special event include the North Hills Amateur Radio Club in Pittsburgh — which is planning to operate from KDKA’s 1930s’ transmitter site, where an original tower pier still stands. A 1920s’ transmitter site, in Forest Hills, will serve as another operating location. In addition to the North Hills ARC and Skyview Radio Society, other clubs taking part include the Panther Amateur Radio Club, Steel City Amateur Radio Club, the Wireless Association of South Hills, the Butler County Amateur Radio Public Service Group, and the Washington Amateur Communications Radio Club.

Take a minute to share any of your experiences or thoughts of Broadcast Band listening, or Shortwave Listening in the Comment section of this post.

Source: ARRL News and Radio World

Kevin – N1KL Website Administrator

Well winter has set in here in Northern Michigan and I have time to get back to work on awards information. Some years ago, all of the Geratol Net records for awards issued were thrown out by a disgruntled Awards Manager and I have been working on putting them back together for several years now as time permits. I have all the Geratol and Directors numbers put back together from old records I and some others had. Now I need to get the dates issued for both Geratol and Directors awards. I have worked on this and have resurrected a lot of dates with much help from those award holders. But I am starting this task again on yet more dates.

It may not seem important to some, however, there are members that for many reasons have lost their certificates and they ask for replacement certificates. There is a date issued on certificates and if have those dates it makes the task easier. With that being said I need dates of issue for Geratol and Director awards issued from Geratol Number 1676 through 1900 this time around. Any and all information you can provide will be extremely helpful. Thanks in advance for any and all help in this matter. Please email numbers and dates issued to kj8v@charter.net

Dave KJ8V Awards Manager

In years gone by, we as HAM operators, relied solely on news about our hobby via magazines, such as QST, CQ, 73, QCWA Journal, etc. Occassionaly, there would be some stories in our local papers, or on local and even national TV news broadcasts, depicting HAMs in action during times of national disasters, such as hurricanes or tornadoes.

In today’s new “digital” world, we can of course, find many interesting stories on line. We can attend “YouTube” university, to find out how to use that new rig, or logging software, or for a more general HAM news update, we can find audio programs via the internet.

Here are a few examples, if you have not already tried, may want to give them a click, to see if they are of interest to you.

HAM NATION

Share in the excitement and importance of Ham radio – from tossing an antenna wire into a tree allowing you to talk to the world, to the importance of ham radio operators in time of disasters with hosts Bob Heil, Gordon West, George Thomas, Don Wilbanks, Valerie Hotzfeld, Amanda Alden, and Dale Puckett.

HamNation can be found at: https://twit.tv/shows/ham-nation

Amateur Radio Newsline™

ARN is a free service to the amateur radio community.  We produce a weekly audio news bulletin called a “QST” or “bulletin of interest to radio amateurs” that is delivered by a downloadable MP3 audio file from our website or through a podcast subscription.  Operations are supported primarily by voluntary donations from individual amateurs and amateur radio clubs.  We are a 501(c)(3) Federal tax-exempt corporation and most contributions made to us are tax deductible. (Please check with your tax advisor if you have any questions regarding such donations.)

Amateur Radio Newline may be found at: https://www.arnewsline.org/

You may also listen to Amateur Radio Newline broadcasts via EchoLink. Download the EchoLink app on your phone, and not only can you work the world via VOIP, but you can also listen to ARN regularly.

About ARRL Audio News

ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week’s top news stories in the world of Amateur Radio, along with interviews and other features. Enjoy ARRL Audio News anywhere: on your smart phone or tablet, your local repeater, or stream it on the go!

ARRL Audio News is distributed through the podcast host Blubrry.com. You can subscribe to the podcast via your IOS or Android mobile device using your favorite podcast app, or listen and download episodes direct from the Audio News page at Blubrry.

ARRL Audio News details can be found at: http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news

If you already take advantage of these outlets, feel free to leave a “Comment” and tell us how you like/dislike them, and for those not using them already, just a few suggestions to expand your Ham fun.

All the best, Kevin N1KL Website Admin

Here is the latest GLIST file from Frosty….enjoy

Hara Arena, the former venue for Dayton Hamvention® and myriad sports, entertainment, and other presentations over the years, will soon be history. In the wake of a failed attempt to revitalize the tornado-damaged complex, officials in the city of Trotwood, Ohio — where Hara Arena is actually located — announced plans last week to raze the complex and rezone the property from commercial recreation to light industrial.

Many GERATOL Net regulars visited the Hara Arena site of the Hamvention over the years, making sure to take time out from gazing at the new products and forums, to have dinner and an eyeball QSO with follow GERATOLers.

“The complex suffered extensive damage during the 2019 Memorial Day tornado outbreak,” the city said in a news release on September 25, taking note of hopes to salvage the complex. “However, redeveloping the property would be a challenge due to the extent of the damage, so the decision was made, and a contract has been secured to demolish the legendary venue.”

Hara Arena had served as the venue for Dayton Hamvention from 1964 until 2016. Hamvention announced in July 2016 that Hara Arena would be closing and that Hamvention would continue. The show is now held at the Greene County Fairgrounds and Expo Center.

Myself and N9SC ventured to the new Hamvention site at the Greene County Fairgrounds. The site was certainly adequate, and the Hamvention team did a nice job working out the “bugs” as they launched their first season at that venue in 2017. While the parking was a bit tricky in the muddy fields, the shuttles taking folks to and from the main venue site worked well on day two.

Over its six-decade history, Hara Arena hosted concerts by performers that included the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead; it was also where hockey legend Wayne Gretzky played his first professional hockey game.

If anyone has any pictures from their previous eyeball QSO’s with follow GERATOLers from the Hara Arena site, feel free to send them to me, and I will post them on the GERATOL Website.

Kevin N1KL

Source: QRZ NOW.COM

The GERATOL net is looking for someone to volunteer as our Net Control Coordinator. At this writing, Bruce, N0HD has decided to retire from the position.

Please take a moment to reply to this post or fire off an email and thank Bruce for his efforts over the last few years, as our NCC. Without volunteers like Bruce, and of course, all of our amazing Net Control Stations, we would have no net at all.

For the time being, Dave, KJ8V has agreed to volunteer as the “ACTING” NCC, until someone volunteers to assume that role.

If you are interested in helping insure the GERATOL Net tradition continues, and would like to volunteer for the position of NCC, please contact either Dave, KJ8V or Frosty, W0FP.

Dave, KJ8V can be reached via e-mail:
Dave Ertel, KJ8V #523/2595
kj8v@charter.net

Frosty, W0FP can be reached via e-mail:
Frosty Phillips WØFP #2026
frostyw0fp@gmail.com

In case you have not already heard, the FCC is looking to re-instate fees for Amateur radio licensees. The HAMS would pay a $50 fee for each amateur radio license application if the FCC adopts rules it proposed this week. Included in the FCC’s fee proposal are applications for new licenses, renewal and upgrades to existing licenses, and vanity call sign requests. Excluded are applications for administrative updates, such as changes of address, and annual regulatory fees.

The FCC proposal is contained in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in MD Docket 20-270, which was adopted to implement portions of the “Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services Act” of 2018 — the so-called “Ray Baum’s Act.”

“[A]pplications for personal licenses are mostly automated and do not have individualized staff costs for data input or review,” the FCC said in its NPRM. “For these automated processes — new/major modifications, renewal, and minor modifications — we propose a nominal application fee of $50 due to automating the processes, routine ULS maintenance, and limited instances where staff input is required.”

The same $50 fee would apply to all Amateur Service applications, including those for vanity call signs. “Although there is currently no fee for vanity call signs in the Amateur Radio Service, we find that such applications impose similar costs in aggregate on Commission resources as new applications and therefore propose a $50 fee,” the FCC said.

The FCC is not proposing to charge for administrative updates, such as mailing address changes for amateur applications, and amateur radio will remain exempt from annual regulatory fees. “For administrative updates [and] modifications, which also are highly automated, we find that it is in the public interest to encourage licensees to update their [own] information without a charge,” the FCC said.

The FCC also proposes to assess a $50 fee for individuals who want a printed copy of their license. “The Commission has proposed to eliminate these services — but to the extent the Commission does not do so, we propose a fee of $50 to cover the costs of these services,” the FCC said.

Deadlines for comments and reply comments will be determined once the NPRM appears in the Federal Register. Interested parties may file comments by using the FCC’s Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS), posting to MD Docket No. 20-270. This docket is already open to accept comments, even though deadlines have not yet been set.

If you ain’t crazy about forking over $50 to renew your license, feel free to submit your input to the NPRM, or if you are an ARRL member, fire off a note to your Section Manager and let him/her know you don’t like it. Or, maybe even if you do like it.

Kevin N1KL

Sources: FCC Website, ARRL News bulletin

Jamboree-on-the-Air, or JOTA, is the largest Scouting event in the world. It is held annually the third full weekend in October. JOTA uses amateur radio to link Scouts and hams around the world, around the nation, and in your own community.

Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) and Jamboree on the Internet (JOTI) will be held this year on October 16, 17, and 18. Register online as an individual or as a group.

JOTA details are available on the K2BSA website. The website menu will direct users to additional supporting information. K2BSA’s Jim Wilson, K5ND, says many locations are already offering virtual radio merit badge classes “and no doubt will be using similar approaches for Jamboree on the Air.” 

This year’s event will of course, need to follow all locally required COVID19 precautions. As a former Pack and Troop Committee Chairman, I recall conducting several JOTA events from remote Scout Camp locations as well as from my own ham shack. The boys were thrilled when they heard stations from all over the country, and world reply to our CQ. So if you have time that weekend, feel free to tune around and make a few JOTA participants happy.

Kevin N1KL

Radio Amateur Takes Part in Historic First Commercial Human Spaceflight to ISS

Bob Behnken, KE5GGX, was one of two NASA astronauts who recently made spaceflight history. Behnken and Doug Hurley were the first astronauts since the 1970s to make a water landing, after their Crew Dragon capsule splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico. On May 30, the pair made history as the first live crew to be launched into space in a commercial vehicle, for a stay on the International Space Station (ISS), marking the return of human spaceflight to US soil for the first time in nearly a decade.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine proclaimed that the US was entering a new era of human spaceflight, noting that NASA was no longer the only option for US space travel. “We are going to be a customer,” he said. NASA has contracted with two companies — SpaceX and Boeing — to ferry astronaut crews to and from the ISS.

While part of the space station crew for 2 months, Behnken and Astronaut Chris Cassidy, KF5KDR, the sole American on board when their Endeavour capsule docked, carried out four spacewalks to install new batteries on the ISS.

The SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicle was designed for short-term missions, and Behnken and Hurley’s mission had only been expected to last a week. As a result, Behnken did not receive Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) training on the radio gear in the Russian sector. NASA subsequently decided to monitor the mission and make a decision on how long the Crew Dragon would stay. Cassidy fielded all ARISS school contacts.

Source: ARRL News