Almost 300 lighthouses in more than 40 countries and territories -- from Argentina to Wales -- will be on the air for 2010 International Lighthouse/Lightship Weekend (ILLW), organized by Scotland’s Ayr Amateur Radio Group (AARG). The event, held for the 12th year in a row, takes place Saturday, August 21 0001 UTC through Sunday, August 22 2359 UTC. While not a contest, the ILLW is more of a QSO...

When the Dayton Hamvention® opens May 20, 2011 for its 60th consecutive year, its theme -- Global Friendship -- will reflect an important part of ham radio, said 2011 Hamvention General Chairman Michael Kalter, W8CI: “The theme emphasizes how the technology continues to bond Amateur Radio operators from all over the world.”

The first official meeting of the 2011 Hamvention committee chairmen is ...

On July 13, the ARRL filed its comments in response to the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in ET Docket No. 10-98. The NPRM was issued in response to an ARRL Petition for Rule Making -- RM-11353 -- filed in October 2006. In its 2006 Petition, the ARRL had sought modest improvements in operating privileges in the so-called “60 meter” band, which presently consists of five channels on ...

Acting on behalf of an ARRL member in Midwest City, Oklahoma -- who had been sent a notice by the town asserting that he was in violation of a town ordinance regarding radio frequency interference (RFI) -- the ARRL notified Midwest City officials that only the FCC is empowered to regulate such matters. Two weeks after ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, sent the letter to town officials, Mi...

The last time the annual Perseid meteor shower happened during a run of moonless nights -- known by astronomers as “dark time” -- was in 2007; there is a new moon on August 10, so this is a prime time to view a spectacular sky show. Not only are the meteors fascinating to watch, they also leave short-lived streams of ionized gas in their wake. As hams have known for years, these meteor trails a...