Below are some interesting ham related items taken from the latest issue of the CGC Communicator (newsletter for southern California broadcast engineering professionals). For past issues, see http://www.bext.com/_CGC/contents.htm. A complete issue will give you more information on the e-newsletter.

HNY…Fried(^.^)

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A TOWER CLIMBER'S SAFETY HARNESS CAN KILL AFTER IT SAVES

This authoritative government web site will open your eyes

to an unimaginable problem with riggers' safety harnesses. The

very devices designed to arrest a fall can kill a climber in a

matter of minutes due to a curious phenomenon called "suspension

trauma" that has nothing to do with the jerk force exerted by

the arrest itself. Discover the details at:

http://www.cdc.gov/elcosh/docs/d0500/d000568/d000568.html

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FCC OPENS SMART RADIO PROCEEDING

In light of the ever increasing demand for wireless

transmitters, the FCC has adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

and Order that sets forth proposals and seeks comments on the

uses and applications for "smart" radio systems.

Smart radios have the ability to adapt their use of spectrum

to their environments. For example, a smart radio system could

use geolocation and table lookups to determine whether certain

frequencies are candidates for use in a particular area. Then,

those frequencies could be scanned, idle spectrum identified,

and the best frequencies and power levels selected for a

particular link.

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-242312A1.doc

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-03-322A1.doc

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RULES FOR 5.9 GHZ INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION ADOPTED

The FCC has adopted service and licensing rules for the

5.9 GHz Band (5.850-5.925 GHz) for Dedicated Short-Range

Communications (DSRC) in the Intelligent Transportation Systems

(ITS) Radio Service. DSRC systems will provide a limited-range,

wireless link to transfer information between vehicles traveling

at high speeds and roadside units or other vehicles.

Some examples of short-range ITS applications include

intersection collision avoidance, work zone warnings, road

condition warnings, electronic toll collections, and electronic

payment for gas, fast food, or parking.

http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-242309A1.doc

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FCC'S POWELL PROMOTES A FREE MARKET TELECOM REVOLUTION

The chairman of the FCC is sending out a message that the

migration to digital telecommunications will not falter, and

entrenched service providers such as telephone companies and

cable television providers can either join the party or suffer

the consequences. In an interview with reporters and editors

from the San Jose Mercury News, Michael Powell shared a number

of personal views including this gem: "I have no problem if a

big and venerable company no longer exists tomorrow, as long

as that value is transferred somewhere else in the economy."

http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/7591252.htm

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WILL THIS VARIATION ON BPL ALLEVIATE INTERFERENCE CONCERNS?

This interesting article from the "TV Technology" web site

suggests that a new, higher speed transmission system using the

microwave spectrum rather than HF, could indeed be an appropriate

response to worries about anticipated interference to HF from

Broadband over Power Line ("BPL") operations. And, if you think

that microwaves cannot be transmitted over power lines, you might

be surprised. Check out the story at:

http://www.tvtechnology.com/dlrf/one.php?id=259

[Thanks to John Webber at KTVQ for the link.]

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NEW TV SCREENS CAUSE INTERFERENCE TO AM RECEPTION (CGC #607)

Emails on plasma and LCD TV screens suggest that there

could indeed be a serious radio frequency interference [RFI]

problem caused by these screens, as shown below:

-----

"I can confirm the [RFI] issue. My wife and I bought a 42-

inch plasma and I have to shut it off completely to hear AM in my

home. The monitor is great and the reception of the signals over

the air of KPBS-DT is worth the price of admission. But when I

come home, I can "hear" that the set [is] on while in the driveway

and listening to the car radio."

Christopher Carmichael, mailto:me@ChristopherCarmichael.net

-----

"If plasma TVs give AM listeners problems, what will they

do to the HF ham bands?"

Neil McKie, mailto:n.mckie@bendcable.com

-----

"I have an LCD rear-screen projection HDTV at the house.

When I turn it on, it wipes out a perfectly good AM receiver in

an adjacent room!"

Ron Russ, mailto:russ@ktwv.cbs.com

-----

[If you acquired a plasma or LCD TV from Santa this

year and your AM reception has been affected, email us with

your report. Are LCD monitors equally problematic?

Mailto:steve@earthsignals.com. -SB]

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SATELLITE HISTORY: SYNCOM I, II, & III - I WAS THERE (CGC #607)

I was one of the US Navy folks at Kingsport during the entire

series of Syncom 1, 2 & 3 launches and tests. I have audio tapes

of the launches and phone calls between the Prime Minister of

Nigeria and President Kennedy, who were both assassinated not long

thereafter.

Syncom 1 worked during its initial launch, but when they fired

the apogee rocket for geosynchronous orbit it exploded. During

Syncom 2's launch, there was no equatorial correction, so it had

a 22 degree north-south ellipse in a 24-hour period. With the

corrections, Syncom 3 achieved near geosynchronous orbit. My job

was range and range rate, parameters that are important for

maintaining geosynchronsity; too close [to the earth and the

satellite] would go faster than the earth's rotation; too high

and it would lag the earth's rotation.

During the project, I met my wife in Florence, Italy and

courted her over Syncom II, probably the first time such a thing

was ever done.

Larry Bloomfield, KA6UTC, mailto:Larry@Tech-Notes.TV

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SOME LINKS OF INTEREST TO RADIO HISTORY BUFFS

First, here's a listing of Internet links to historical

sites, thanks to a tip from Johnny Morris:

http://www.adams.net/~jfs/links.htm

Then there is this link for updated WLW and VOA Bethany

web pages thanks to Barry Mishkind:

http://www.oldradio.com/archives/stations/cinc.htm

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AMATEUR RADIO DISTANCE RECORD SET AT 241 GHZ

Ham radio operators have a keen tradition of pushing

technology to its limits and setting new records of all sorts.

Now, another Extremely High Frequency ("EHF") distance record

has been set by the Virginia-based team of Brian Justin, WA1ZMS,

and Pete Lascell, W4WWQ. The duo has stretched the 241 GHz record

to 38.4 miles (61.8 km) where severe atmospheric signal absorption

makes normal R-squared losses look trivial by comparison. The new

distance record was set on Wednesday, December 3, 2003.

[Base story from Amateur Radio Newsline, as edited by CGC.

Also see <http://www.mgef.org/>.]

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