Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (A) To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Fri Sep 16 2022 11:09:24 Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2342 for Friday, September 16th, 2022 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2342, with a release date of Friday, September 16th, 2022 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. Some US satellites may face stricter disposal rules soon. Researchers work to make smaller antennas with bigger performance - and German regulators look to add a new class of amateur license. All this and more, as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2342, comes your way right now. ** BILLBOARD CART ** US FCC SEEKS STRICTER DISPOSAL PLAN FOR SATELLITES DON/ANCHOR: The US Federal Communications Commission wants to put domestic satellites on notice - at least, some of them - regarding their eviction from space once the satellites no longer function. Kent Peterson, KC0DGY, explains. KENT: In an effort to clean up space junk in low Earth orbit, the FCC hopes to act this month in setting a deadline that would require dead non- geostationary satellites to be removed from space within five years. The proposal shortens the period established by NASA guidelines setting a 25- year period, which is voluntary, for such satellite disposal. The new regulation, if approved, would not apply to any domestic satellites already in orbit. It would also give some breathing room to organizations whose satellite launches have already been approved so those groups can have a disposal plan in place before the launch date. The FCC is proposing a two-year grandfathering period that would begin on Sept. 29, the day the FCC has scheduled its vote. In response to NASA's concerns about the potential impact on CubeSats, the FCC said it intended to grant waivers on a case-by-case basis. FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a post on Twitter [quote] "Our space economy is moving fast. For it to continue to grow, we need to do more to clean up after ourselves so space innovation can continue to expand." [endquote] This is Kent Peterson, KC0DGY. (ENGADGET, TWITTER) ** SMALLER ANTENNAS, BIGGER PERFORMANCE DON/ANCHOR: Just how small can a small antenna be? Researchers in the US are studying that challenge now, hoping to accomplish an antenna that offers economy in space without compromising performance. Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, gives us the details. NEIL: A United States agency has begun tackling a longstanding challenge that comes with the use of electrically small antennas. While these antennas are space-saving assets that are noticeably shorter than the wavelengths of the signals they handle, the antennas themselves have significant limitations. As they get smaller, they lose bandwidth and radiation efficiency. These antennas have been in use for many decades and can be found, for instance, on satellites. Researchers with the US Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity agency have begun a four-year project to surpass these kinds of limitations. The initiative is called the Effective Quantitative Antenna Limits for Performance program. Program manager Paul Kolb told the IEEE Spectrum magazine that within three years, the teams must show that they have an actual antenna with a 6-dB gain in performance over existing electrically small antennas. The ultimate goal is to establish a 10-decibel gain in antenna performance in the HF and UHF bands. Kolb told the spectrum that in the last year of the project, researchers will be required to produce an antenna with the sought-after 10-db gain. The teams are being required to validate all results with independent labs. Kolb said such antennas aren't likely to become viable for the commercial market. This is Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. (IEEE SPECTRUM) ** REPEATER DEDICATED TO 6 WHO DIED ON 9/11 DON/ANCHOR: While much of the United States marked Sunday, Sept. 11th, in solemn public ceremonies remembering the terror attacks of 2001, the New England Emergency Communications Network dedicated a new digital repeater site in memory of six broadcast engineers who died that day in New York City. Jim Damron, N8TMW, has that story. JIM: The New England Emergency Communications Network, which links 90 amateur radio service repeaters in the northeastern United States, brought a new digital repeater on the air on Sunday, September 11th. The date is not insignificant. As he put the 2-meter repeater into full-time operation on the air, Andrew, N1MYY, read a statement acknowledging the anniversary of the terror attacks. A broadcast engineer himself, Andrew dedicated the repeater to the six broadcast engineers who died that day when the World Trade Center was destroyed. They were Donald DiFranco of WABC-TV; Bob Pattison and Isaias [eye-say-us] Rivera, both of WCBS, and three hams who became Silent Keys that day: Steven Jacobsen, N2SJ, of WPIX-TV; William Steckman, WA2ACW, of WNBC; and Rod Coppola, KA2KET, of WNET-TV. The repeater's full-time operation now adds to the network's strength for public service and emergency preparedness in the region. This is Jim Damron, N8TMW. (ANDREW DENONCOUR N1MYY; NYRADIOWORLD, SOUTHGATE) --- SBBSecho 3.15-Win32 * Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (454:1/33) .