ARRL Teachers Institute Grad Prepares Students for Ham Radio Contact with Astronaut 

 ARRL celebrates the success of an ARRL Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology graduate. The skills learned in the Teachers Institute (TI) have led to a school having an amazing opportunity using amateur radio.

On Monday, December 11, 2023, students at Harbor Creek Senior High School in Harborcreek, Pennsylvania, will host an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact. A...

IARU and ARRL Attending WRC-23 in Dubai, UAE 

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) World Radiocommunication Conference 2023 (WRC-23) began November 20 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and will continue through December 15, 2023. During WRC-23, the ITU's 193 sovereign Member States, each with one equal vote, will address items on a formal agenda in an effort to reach consensus on revisions to the ITU Radio Regulations, the interna...

Bandwidth Limits Replace Symbol Rates on the HF Bands, Other Bands Open for Comment 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published new rules adopted last month that replace the symbol rate restrictions on the HF bands with a bandwidth limit of 2.8 kHz. The new rules go into effect January 8, 2024.

The bands and band segments affected by the rules change are those authorized for data transmission between 160 and 10 meters, exclusive of 60 meters (where no change was made)...

New Amateur Extra-Class Question Pool Released Effective July 1, 2024 

The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) Question Pool Committee (QPC) has released the 2024 - 2028 Extra-Class FCC Element 4 Question Pool and Syllabus to the public. The new Extra-Class Question Pool is effective from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2028.

The 2024 - 2028 pool is available as a Microsoft Word document and as a PDF. The 10 graphics required for the new ...

NCVEC Question Pool Committee Removes Two General-Class License Questions 

The National Conference of Volunteer Examiner Coordinators (NCVEC) Question Pool Committee (QPC) has removed two General-class license questions. 

Pursuant to the November 13, 2023, FCC rule change to remove symbol rate restrictions on amateur radio digital emissions (http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-hails-fcc-action-to-remove-symbol-rate-restrictions), the QPC of the NCVEC has deleted two question...

ARRL Advocacy Win: FCC Approves Request for Pearl Harbor Day Crossband Operations 

ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio® sought a waiver on behalf of the activators, and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has granted it. The waiver allows amateur radio operators to participate in a special event commemorating the 82nd annual National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

The Battleship Iowa Amateur Radio Association (BIARA), with authority from the US Navy and Sou...

The K7RA Solar Update 

"GEOMAGNETIC DISTURBANCE WARNING 23/74 ISSUED AT 2321UT/29 NOVEMBER 2023 BY THE AUSTRALIAN SPACE WEATHER FORECASTING CENTRE.

"Several CMEs are expected to impact Earth over 30 Nov and 01 Dec. Two CMEs were observed on 27 Nov that were expected to arrive on 30 Nov, followed shortly by a very mild glancing blow from a third.

"One or possibly two halo CMEs were observed on 29 Nov which are Earth d...

ARRL RF Safety Committee Develops New Guidelines to Communicate RF Safety 

Radio amateurs now have a new tool from ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio® to help answer questions about their stations. Neighbors of amateur radio operators are sometimes concerned about transmissions and radio frequency exposure from amateur stations. The ARRL RF Safety Committee, with their international counterparts at the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB), the Irish Rad...

The K7RA Solar Update 

Geomagnetic conditions were very quiet last weekend, good conditions
for the ARRL Phone Sweepstakes. But there was much more geomagnetic
activity toward the end of the reporting week, when the planetary A
index jumped to 30 and Alaska's College A index reached 60, a very
high value.

This past weekend was the CW portion of the CQ World Wide DX
Contest.

Solar activity really picked up in the past few da...

2023 Fall Section Manager Election Results 

Two balloted Section Manager elections were conducted this fall. Ballots were counted on Tuesday, November 21, at ARRL Headquarters. All two-year terms of office will begin on January 1, 2024.

For Section Manager of the ARRL Alaska Section:

• David Stevens, KL7EB (incumbent), received 105 votes

• Jeffrey Wolf, N8EX, received 72 votes

David Stevens, KL7EB, of Anchorage, Alaska, has been declared re-el...

ARRL Headquarters to Be Closed for Thanksgiving Holiday 

ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio® Headquarters in Newington, Connecticut, will be closed in observance of Thanksgiving on Thursday, November 23, 2023, and Friday, November 24, 2023. There will be no W1AW bulletins, code practice, or visitor operations during that time.

ARRL Headquarters will reopen at 8:00 AM Eastern Time on Monday, November 27, 2023. We wish you and yours a hap...