THE SPARK
GAP
November 1996-December 1996
Club Information
President:
Vice Pres:
Secretary: Bill KB5ASR
Treasurer: John W5DEJ
Secretary Report:
Don't forget to check into the Tuesday evening 2-meter
net at 7 P.M. each week on 146.700. Any announcements, emergency
traffic, or a simple hello and 73 can be passed along to others.
Let us know how you are doing.
Treasurer
Report: Many,
Many, Thanks to all who made the
sacrifices and contributions necessary to enable the club to have
a new repeater. A special thanks to all who gave many hours of
their time to install, make adjustments, and necessary repairs to
enable all of us to enjoy our hobby. Please remember dues for 1997
will be due in January. You may mail your dues to Mr. John Davis,
2215 28th Ave, Meridian, MS 39301.
Oldest LW transmitter
The world's only working Alexanderson alternator broadcast this
past month from Sweden on 17.2 kHz. A nostalgic Morse code
transmission at 0900 UTC on October 23 from station SAQ in
Grimeton on Sweden's west coast will commemorate the declaration
of the radio station as an historic building. The RCA Alexanderson
alternator was built in 1924. The SAQ site, complete with six
antenna towers and the 200 kW transmitter, are under the care and
management of Telia Mobitel, a Swedish mobile telephone company,
and the radio museum of the Radio Historical Society of West
Sweden, which operates club station SK6RM. Ulf Sjoden, SM6CVE, has
helped to organize the event. SAQ also transmitted a test on
October 21, at approximately 1100 UTC. The Alexanderson alternator
was developed during the early years of wireless by Ernst
Alexanderson, a Swedish-American. The device is essentially a
large, electromechanical high-frequency alternator with a
high-speed rotor that's connected directly to an antenna system. A
similar station once operated on Long Island. The circuit was used
to transmit telegrams and messages between Europe and the US.
Last fall, Amateur Radio station 7S6SAQ operated from the SAQ site
to celebrate 100 years of radio and the 70th anniversary of the
radio station. During September 1995, SAQ itself transmitted a
message to
England which was relayed via land line from a BBC monitoring
station to those attending a ''100 Years of Radio'' conference in
London.
WARNING
•Yaesu warns about NiMH batteries: Yaesu is advising
customers not to use nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries in any
of its Amateur Radio hand-held transceivers, and warns that such
use could invalidate the warranty. Yaesu says the NiMH
batteries--while they look the same as NiCd batteries on the
outside--are "completely different" internally. Yaesu says the
NiMH batteries "cannot be charged by any Yaesu wall or desk
chargers, since these chargers do not prevent overcharging, and
nickel-metal hydride batteries become very unstable." Yaesu also
says NiMH batteries do not perform well when they are repeatedly
discharged at high current rates.
Food for thought
•The ARRL/VEC--the largest VEC--has nearly 24,000
accredited VEs--18, 500 Extra class and 4700 Advanced class
operators.
•The FCC will dismiss applications for vanity call sign
program Gate 2 if it was unable to grant one of the call sign
choices. Applicants who did not get one of their choices will have
to apply in writing for a refund of the 30 dollar filing fee. The
FCC has not announced opening dates for vanity Gates 3 and 4.
•LITTLE LEOs BATTLE CONTINUES QUIETLY BUT FIRMLY.....
Following the initial furor, the "Little LEOs" threat to 2 meters
and 70 cm has slipped from the headlines, but efforts continue to
thwart the inclusion of their commercial activities in our popular
VHF and UHF bands.
•Youngest Extra?: Thomas Coffee, AC6XC ("alfa charlie six
xtra class"), of Torrance, California, could be the youngest Extra
Class operator in the US, according to his dad, Peter, AC6EN.
Young Thomas, born in September 1985, passed his code and written
tests "between piano camp and soccer camp" this summer to receive
his Extra a few weeks before his eleventh birthday. His dad
reports that, in addition to VHF contesting and family activity
coordination, Thomas has used his license as a starting point for
science fair projects on antenna gain and directivity at UHF
wavelengths. Thomas' 6-year-old brother Daniel is already working
on Ohm's Law problems so he can get his own license, while
4-year-old sibling Brian has been heard to ask, "Do you copy?"
during playground games.
"THE PHANTOM" PULLS JAIL TIME IN
INTERFERENCE CASE
In the August addition of our newsletter, there was an article on the "Phantom
Jammer".
This is a follow up to that article. JUSTICE SERVED.
Interfering with police radios has resulted in a four-month jail term
for Bobby Lee Aguero, KE6VNU--a Sacramento, California, area ham who now lists
a Mead, Washington, address. Aguero, who is said to have identified himself
as "The Phantom" while interfering with police calls, was convicted of jamming
and interfering with Roseville, California,
police communications. He was ordered to serve 120 days in jail and pay more
than $1400 in fines. In April, Roseville Police said they caught Aguero, 18,
"essentially red-handed" while interfering with police calls there. Similar
charges were pending against Aguero as a result of another incident in June
in Seaside, Oregon on June 2nd.
As a result of a plea bargain, Aguero pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor
counts: Interfering with communications, delaying a police officer, and destroying
evidence. A witness at the sentencing said Aguero--who showed no remorse--was
additionally ordered to stay away
from radio equipment. His sentence was reduced by the 52 days he'd already
served, and Aguero is reported to have left the courtroom in tears. He'll
be on probation after he's released from jail.
Local hams present at the sentencing had presented the judge with background
information regarding the defendant's behavior within the Amateur Radio community.
Several hams said they were gratified that Aguero got a stiff sentence and
expressed hopes that the case would set an example in efforts to crack down
in other cases of malicious interference. Aguero began his 68 continuous days
of jail time on November 1.
