CQ Amateur Radio March 2022

MARCH BRAZIL, INDIANA — The Wabash Valley Amateur Radio Association will hold its Spring 2022 Hamfest & Computer Expo from 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, March 12 at the Clay County 4-H Fairgrounds, 6550 North State Road 59. Email: <hamfest@w9uuu.org>. Website: <http://w9uuu.org>. Talk-in 146.685-(PL 151.4). DXCC/VUCC/WAS card checking. CONCORD, NORTH CAROLINA — The Mecklenburg Amateur Radio Society will hold the Charlotte Hamfest from 3-7 p.m., Friday, March 11 and from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, March 12 at the Cabarrus Arena & Events Center, 4551 Old Airport Road. Phone: (704) 948-7373. EMAIL:-<info@charlottehamfest.org>. Website: <www.charlottehamfest.org>. Talkin 146.655 or 146.940 (PL 118.8). PUYALLUP, WASHINGTON — The Mike & Key Amateur Radio Club will hold its 40 th Annual Mike and Key Electronics Show & Swap Meet from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, March…

Ham Radio in Ukraine Shut Down in Face of Russian Invasion An emergency declaration by the government of Ukraine enacted as Russian forces began their invasion in late February included “a ban on the operation of amateur radio transmitters for personal and collective use,” according to the ARRL Letter. The initial emergency order was issued for a 30-day period on February 24th and could be extended as circumstances require. Nonetheless, CQ has heard reports of amateurs sending out information via Echolink and of Polish hams sending messages to relatives on behalf of Ukrainian refugees who sought shelter in Poland. DX Summit Blocking Cluster Spots From Warring European Nations/Regions DX Summit has announced that it is blocking posts from all countries and regions involved in the current war in Ukraine, partially at the request…

More and more hams are building stuff again, and that’s wonderful. Many kits are easy for the less-experienced builder to construct, with excellent instructions, pre-mounted surface-mount components and, in some cases, pre-wound toroids. Plus, the state of microprocessor technology today is such that, once completed, these are extremely capable transceivers with many features previously found only on much more expensive, commercially built radios. And that’s wonderful. But here’s a problem, as any experienced builder will tell you (and it’s not so wonderful): When you build something from a kit (or from scratch), it doesn’t always work! Most often, it’s due to a construction error rather than a defect in a component, so there is rarely a one-size-fits-all fix for a given problem. And if, like me, you’re better at soldering than…

Having a Blast on the Sun! A huge solar flare extending millions of miles into space was photographed by the NASA/European Space Agency (ESA) Solar Orbiter spacecraft on February 15th. According to ESA, the photo represents the largest solar flare ever observed in a single image together with the full disc of the sun. A flare consists of a dense concentration of solar plasma that is released into space by the breakdown of a “solar prominence,” which ESA describes as a large structure “made of tangled magnetic field lines that keep dense concentrations of solar plasma suspended above the Sun’s surface and often take the form of arching loops.” If directed toward Earth, the plasma blast can disrupt radio communications and — if strong enough — damage satellites and even damage electrical…

It started with an on-air friendship … At the beginning of 2020, I got to know Geoffrey Chege, 5Z4BU, via the airwaves. We got on well and then exchanged many messages via WhatsApp. One day, a bit out of curiosity, I asked him if it was possible for a Swiss operator to be active from Kenya. Geoffrey inquired and a few days later I received a positive response and a PDF with the procedure to follow and the documents to provide to the Kenyan authorities. The steps seemed simple, so I decided to organize a ‘‘holiday style DXpedition’’ for the end of 2021. A first for me! Obtaining the License The Communication Authority of Kenya requests a license in the form of an international document called HAREC (Harmonized Amateur Radio Examination Certificate).…

CQ Interviews: Diego Lizarraga, LU9MZO Today, I will tell you the story of Diego Lizarraga, LU9MZO, after his Summits on the Air (SOTA) activation of Aconcagua, a colossus rising 6,961 meters (22,838 feet) above sea level and the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere. It is very important for me to write this article as an Argentine now living in Brazil, and to get in touch with a colleague from my country, who achieved an incredible feat. Diego Lizarraga is a 38-year-old physical education teacher, mountaineer, and radio amateur who has set the SOTA world record for high-altitude transmission on HF. The key date was January 10, 2022, when Lizarraga managed to transmit “El Aconcagua” from the highest peak in the Americas on 40 meters. (Aconcagua was first activated for SOTA in…