April 2007
Articles from the
April 2007 issue of CQ posted on our
website include:
Special Features for New HF Operators
- "Beginner's Corner" - A primer on building HF antennas
- "Washington Readout" - The importance of using Universal Time (UTC or GMT) for international contacts
- "Propagation" - HF propagation primer for newcomers to the bands below 30 MHz
On Ham Diplomacy
and Fake QSLs
On the Cover:
The 2-meter
moonbounce array of Lance Collister, W7GJ, of Frenchtown, Montana. (Cover
photo by Larry Mulvehill, WB2ZPI)
The April issue of CQ opens with some commentary from "the Bard" himself on the end of the code testing era, as Mark Antony's eulogy for his fallen friend from William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is skillfully rewritten by "Magic in the Sky" editor Jeff Reinhardt, AA6JR ("I come not to bury code, but to praise it…") To download Jeff's complete column in Morse code, click here for a .wav file (133 MB) or click here for an .mp3 file (12 MB) . "VHF-Plus" editor Joe Lynch, N6CL, has a somewhat different perspective in his column later in the magazine.
Our features for this issue lead off with a report from Fabrizio Vedovelli, IN3ZNR, about last April's DXpedition to Western Sahara, where a group of European hams operated S01R and made some 30,000 contacts. The images that remain most clearly in the author's mind, though, are from the refugee camp they visited along the way. More than 200,000 "Saharawis" have been displaced from this desert land that has been fought over for the past 30 years, and whose political status remains uncertain.
Next, we have the results of the 2006 CQ World Wide VHF Contest, in which Contest Director John Lindholm, W1XX, reports that all previous North American VHF contest records were broken! Huge band openings on both 6 and 2 meters led to record levels of participation and record-high scores in virtually all categories.
If it's April, then we are visited (of course) by Professor Emil Heisseluft of the Lauton Institute. This year, the good professor shares with us "Communications in the Infrared Band Using a Digital Music Playback Device, a Griffin Sound-to-IR Converter, and Today's Top Ham Radio Songs." (The title is practically as long as the article!)
Next comes our announcement of the 2007 CQ World Wide Foxhunting Weekend (renamed from the CQ National Foxhunting Weekend due to increasing international participation), scheduled for May 12 and 13. Foxhunting Weekend Moderator Joe Moell, K0OV, provides the details, along with hints and tips for newcomers to Amateur Radio Direction-Finding (ARDF), which is the formal name for foxhunting.
Leading off this month's columns is "Public Service," in which column editor Bob Josuweit, WA3PZO, reports on the decision by the American Red Cross to significantly scale back its newly-imposed background check requirement for staff and volunteers. Many volunteers and hams working with the Red Cross through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service had objected strongly to being required to authorize credit and "mode of living" checks as well as criminal background checks. Results of our January reader survey, reported this month, indicate that CQ readers shared those concerns and felt that the original requirements would significantly shrink the pool of potential Red Cross volunteers. More than 40% of our respondents said they would not agree to those original requirements, even if it meant not helping at a disaster. WA3PZO also reports this month on the recommendations of the ARRL's National Emergency Response Planning Committee for keeping ham radio emergency communications relevant in today's disaster response environment.
"Math's Notes" editor Irwin Math, WA2NDM, looks at a possible new frontier of communications; "World of Ideas" editor Dave Ingram, K4TWJ, continues his look at alternative energy sources; and "Washington Readout" editor Fred Maia, W5YI, digs into "Timekeeping for the Radio Amateur," looking at the origins of GMT and UTC, and reminding us that starting this year, Daylight Savings Time in the U.S. begins on the second Sunday in March (Mar. 11, 2007), and ends on the first Sunday in November (Nov. 4, 2007). The schedule is different in Europe (25 March to 28 October), making it more important than ever for hams to use UTC in international communications.
Next, Beginner's Editor Wayne Yoshida, KH6WZ, offers "A Practical Primer on HF Antenna Building," particularly for the benefit of Technician Class hams who want to try out their brand-new HF operating privileges. "Weekender" editor Phil Salas, AD5X, also has an antenna-related column this month, although focused on the more experienced ham who wants to build a "Precision Mismatch for Checking Your SWR Meter and Antenna Analyzer."
K4TWJ puts on his QRP Editor hat and reports on the "Sudden Storm," the companion receiver for the updated tuna tin transmitter kit from W1REX that he reported on last December. Plus - how's this for small? - a complete 80-meter transceiver in a shoe polish can!!! Digital Editor Don Rotolo hands the keys to this month's column to Doug Hilton, AG4FL, who was inspired by last year's discussion on the legality of some encryption in amateur communications to develop a simple encryption program that can be used either with or without a computer. His program, used for the purposes he describes, would not be legal for amateur use as its intent is to obscure the meaning of the communication. However, Doug is using this in connection with emergency communications work for MARS -- the Military Affiliate Radio System -- off of amateur frequencies.
New Products Editor Karl Thurber, W8FX, shines his "What's New" spotlight this month on a new HF/6-meter linear amplifier from Tokyo Hy-Power Labs, a USB rig controller from Timewave Technology, a variety of new products from MFJ and more. Awards Editor Ted Melinosky, K1BV, highlights awards for working British "GB" special event stations and contacting the seven major islands that make up the Canary Islands (EA8); and DX Editor Carl Smith, N4AA, reports the exciting news that Scarborough Reef - long among the most-wanted entities - will be activated in late April by a group of 17 hams from seven countries. The reef has not been on the air in a decade.
Contesting Editor John Dorr, K1AR, looks ahead to what various contesters believe their sport will look like ten years in the future; "VHF-Plus" editor Joe Lynch, N6CL, reports that the huge dish antenna of the Jamesburg Earth Station in California will be reactivated for ham radio use while details of its future are worked out, and as noted earlier, Joe shares his thoughts about the responsibilities of experienced HF operators to help guide newcomers to the "low bands" as new operating privileges come into effect. Finally, along the same theme, Propagation Editor Tomas Hood, NW7US, offers a propagation primer for newcomers to the HF bands. There's good stuff here for old-timers, too, as Tomas explains some of the mechanics behind you know happen but might not be certain of how or why.
That's a brief look at what's coming up in the April issue of CQ magazine, which should be on newsstands and in subscribers' mailboxes by late March. For information on becoming a CQ subscriber, click the "Click Here to Subscribe" button at the top of this page.