Bill S.3690 to Eliminate Private Land Use Restrictions on Amateur Radio

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Bill S.3690 to Eliminate Private Land Use Restrictions on Amateur Radio

On 30th January 2024, US Senators Roger Wicker (MS) and Richard Blumenthal (CT) introduced S.3690, the Senate companion bill to H.R.4006, introduced last June. Both bills reflect the Congressional campaign efforts by ARRL to eliminate homeowner association land use restrictions that prohibit, restrict, or impair the ability of an Amateur Radio Operator to install and operate amateur station antennas on residential properties they own.

Amateur Radio Operators repeatedly are relied upon to provide essential communications when disaster strikes, but their ability to do so is being impaired by the exponential growth of residential private land use restrictions that hinder their ability to establish stations in their homes with which to train and provide emergency communications when called upon.

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You Must be Joking - Amateur Radio Gets Downright Silly

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The multi-mode digital network known as the QuadNet Array doesn't just unite fans of D-STAR, DMR and C4FM Fusion. Starting next month, a new mode will be added to the mix once a week: Pun Mode. Pun Mode is neither digital nor analogue and it's not the exclusive practice of ham radio operators.

Hams who have a reputation for groan-inducing wordplay now have a refuge in which to practise their craft. The Pun in Life Net is starting up on the QuadNet array beginning on Saturday the 2nd March 2024 at 4 p.m. Eastern Time, 1 p.m. Pacific Time. The net control and punster-in-chief is Daryl Stout, N5VLZ, a past participant in the World Championship Pun-Off held every May at the O. Henry Museum in Austin Texas.

Humour must conform to on-the-air standards of decency -- and because this is a digital mode, the only QRM you are likely to hear are the loud groans from everyone else.

Daryl is hoping for a big enough crowd to make this a pun-in-a-million experience.

OpenQuad - https://openquad.net/

California Girl Scouts Get Spaced out

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California Girl Scouts Get Spaced out

On 22nd February 2024, Girls in a Sacramento, California Girl Scout troop are scheduled for a contact with the ISS and the selected astronaut is Jasmin Moghbeli, KI5WSL. This 10-minute contact is being made as yet another direct contact, which distinguishes this from the many, many, many contacts that happen often in the ARISS programme and often utilise Telebridge and a patch. This is not only a direct contact but the girls were involved from the start.

The collaboration between the River City Amateur Radio Communications Society and the Girl Scouts led to the development of a six-session educational program focusing on Space, the International Space Station (ISS), and Amateur Radios. This initiative included hands-on activities such as building and using radios and viewing the sky with telescopes. They did NOT build the radios used in this contact but were involved heavily in the station’s planning.

To participate in the ARISS program, the Girl Scouts and RCARCS designed and submitted an equipment plan, showcasing their capability to execute the Ham radio contact. Jen Garland, the RCARCS club coordinator, emphasized the significance of this opportunity for young women to explore practical applications of radio frequency technologies.

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