Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (B) To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Thu Jul 30 2020 22:15:58 AMSAT SYMPOSIUM SEEKS PRESENTERS ON SATELLITE TOPICS JIM/ANCHOR: Another amateur radio event going virtual later this year, is on the lookout for hams who have something to say about satellites. Neil Rapp, WB9VPG, has the details. NEIL: The stage will be virtual, but the topics will be very real, at the 2020 AMSAT Annual Meeting and Space Symposium. It's being held on October 17th, and organizers are looking for presentations on a variety of topics relevant to amateur satellite use. So, start thinking about whether you have something to share. Any papers' tentative titles, along with abstracts, should be sent to Dan Schultz, N8FGV, via email at n8fgv at amsat dot org. Final copies of all papers should be submitted no later than the 5th of October. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG. (AMSAT) ** NEW ZEALAND HAMS GET 3-MONTH EXTENSION FOR 60M BAND JIM/ANCHOR: Hams in New Zealand just got more time to enjoy 60 meters. Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF, has the details. JIM: July 24th has come and gone, but 60 metres is still alive and well in New Zealand, for some amateurs. The band was accessible as part of a trial period, that was to have ended on the 24th. Hams in ZL-land now have a three-month extension, meaning they are able to continue using the band until the 24th of October. Radio operators need to have a sub-licence obtained from the New Zealand Amateur Radio Transmitters Society, which extends the station's primary licence to include 60 metres operation. Hams who wish to participate in the trial, and would like a sub-licence, can download an application form at nzart dot org dot nz (nzart.org.nz) The trial period has been put in place so NZART, Radio Spectrum Management, and the band's primary users, can explore the feasibility of permitting amateur use there on a secondary basis, without creating interference for primary users. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF. (NZART) ** SILENT KEY: GRADY FERGUSON W5FU JIM/ANCHOR: The amateur radio community has lost a respected contester. Kevin Trotman, N5PRE, tells us about him. KEVIN: Hams in the contesting world will remember Grady Ferguson, W5FU, most of all perhaps, for the world-class multi-operator contest station he and friend, Tom Taormina, K5RC, built just south of Houston, Texas in the late 1970s. The pair were to collaborate again some years later on the creation of the Comstock Memorial Station, W7RN, in Virginia City in northern Nevada. They believed the effort to be necessary, after their multi-op station in Texas was damaged in 1983 by Hurricane Alicia, and eventually dismantled. Grady, who formerly held the call sign NA5R, became a Silent Key on July 14th. His cause of death was listed as COVID-19. Prolific and polished, Grady was also the author of an article in the National Contest Journal in 2010, headlined "Some Solutions for Sharing Resources in Multi-operator Stations." According to a tribute posted by Tom on the W7RN station website, Grady fell in love with contesting, after attending a Texas DX Society Field Day in the late 1970s, and that set his ham radio career on course from then on. Grady Ferguson was 76. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Kevin Trotman, N5PRE. (W7RN WEBSITE) ** IN INDIA, A REUNION AMID A PANDEMIC JIM/ANCHOR: A group of hams in West Bengal, India, have reunited an elderly man with his family after two years -- in spite of the present pandemic. Graham Kemp, VK4BB, gives us the details. GRAHAM: It took time, patience and yes, even a pandemic, before an elderly resident of Uttar Pradesh in India, could be returned home safely to his family, after an absence of more than two years. According to Ambarish Nag Biswas, VU2JFA, of the West Bengal Radio Club, the man had gone missing from his home two years ago. When he was spotted on the street in West Bengal in late March, by the secretary of a local business association, attempts got under way to assist him. The COVID-19 lockdown, however, had just begun, and the businessman grew concerned for the older man's well-being. After obtaining a health checkup for him, the businessman assisted with food and clothing, and reached out to the West Bengal Radio Club. The club sent members to ask the man about his family, and the location of his home village. Although his recollection was not clear, he eventually provided enough details, so that club members could track down the village chief, and the man's family. The man's sons made the drive to West Bengal. Their father was tested for coronavirus, and when the report came back negative, on July 24th, they were able to bring their father home. For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB. (AMBARISH NAG BISWAS VU2JFA) --- * Synchronet * The Thunderbolt BBS - tbolt.synchro.net * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (618:250/1) .