HEMA Award Scheme Updates

The HEMA Summit award scheme is slowly expanding with Cyprus, East Malaysia and West Malaysia being added to it and the first activations occurring from these regions in the last few months.

There's been the first World HEMA Day on 1st and 2nd September 2023. There was a good response and all certificates have been sent out. Congratulations to Bill M0DXT and David M0YDH as joint top scorers. It looks like it will be run again around the same time next year.

A Smartphone App for Android smartphones "HEMA Assistant" is in the testing phase and spotting and listing spots with the app are working. Other features are still under development.

If you want to learn more about this amateur radio portable operating scheme and to check if there is a qualifying summit (or summits) visit http://www.hema.org.uk.

YOTA Month 2023

December is Youngsters on the Air, or YOTA, month and is an exciting opportunity for you, your club, school, or social group to host an amateur radio station with the aim of getting youngsters active on the amateur bands.

Once approval from Ofcom is received, the RSGB will provide access to the special callsign GB23YOTA and a full list of operating slots will be made available on QRZ.com.

These slots will be first-come, first-served, so check your calendars and reserve your place as soon as possible. If you’d like to register your interest for YOTA month, or simply ask for further information, you can email Jamie, M0SDV at yota.month@rsgb.org.uk

US Military Explores Wideband Above 100 GHZ

Despite their potential for use in communications, radio frequencies in the terahertz and sub-terahertz ranges - that is, those above 100 GHz - are considered underutilized. The United States Air Force is about to share its plans for a radio they are hoping could change all that.

A project in the works in the US Air Force Research Laboratory is exploring the potential that radio frequencies above 100 GHZ have for secure wideband communications. The military is looking to develop an ultra-broadband radio that can adjust output power, data rate and even carrier frequency and are hoping to find defense contractors in the industry who can assist with the project.

Although frequencies in those ranges, which can be used for 6G communications, have a high level of atmospheric absorption that can restrict how far the transmissions travel, the military is hoping to capitalize on the frequencies' ability to accommodate secure channels. The Air Force is hosting an informational day for the industry next month and will be looking for defense contractors who are US citizens to get on board the project.

Early experiments have already proven successful, according to a report on the Inside Towers website. Last December, communication was achieved at frequencies higher than 300 GHZ during flight experiments by the Air Force, which has been exploring these options for almost a decade.