• Vanity Gate 2 opens September 23!
• JAS-2 in orbit!
• ARRL questions NII/SUPERNet plans
• Hams help during Illinois floods
• Solar flux down
• FCC call sign update
• Legal seminars at ARRL conventions
• Eli Nannis, K4JMH, SK
• William J Stevens, W6ZM, SK
• In Brief: New OK SM; WN1I joins HQ staff; new ham astronaut

The FCC has announced that vanity call sign filing Gate 2 will open September 23. Under Gate 2, Amateur Extra class licensees may request a vanity call sign on or after that date. File requests on FCC Form 610V. Legibility is critical! If your application is not legible, you could experience a delay in processing, lose the opportunity to obtain a requested call sign or even obtain a call sign different from what you want.

Under Gate 2, you must hold an unexpired Amateur Extra class operator/primary station license to request a vanity call sign for your primary station. To request a vanity call sign for a club station under Gate 2, you must also hold an unexpired club station license grant listing you as the license trustee. Applicants should refer to the licensee database to verify that a requested call sign is not already assigned. A call sign is normally assignable two years following license expiration, surrender, revocation, set aside, cancellation, void ab initio, or death of the grantee.

Using Form 610V, provide a list of up to 25 call signs in the order of preference. The first assignable call sign on the list will be assigned to your station. Remember: When requesting a call sign under Gate 2 for your primary or club station, the call sign must have been unassigned for at least two years. As an Amateur Extra class operator, you may request a call sign from any group, A, B, C or D.

Any call sign requested must be one designated for the region of your mailing address, as follows:

• One of the contiguous 48 states: Regions 1 to 10.

• Alaska: Regions 1 to 11.

• American Samoa: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 13 having numeral 8.

• Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 13 having numeral 0.

• Guam: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 13 having numeral 2.

• Hawaii: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 13 having numeral 6 or 7.

• Puerto Rico: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 12 having numeral 3 or 4.

• Virgin Islands: Regions 1 to 10, or Region 12 having numeral 2.

For explanations of Groups A, B, C and D and the geographic Regions, see Fact Sheet PR5000 Number 206-S, Amateur Station Sequential Call Sign System (or see The ARRL Letter Electronic Update, August 16, 1996, available on the ARRLWeb at http://www.arrl.org/). For more information on the vanity call sign program, see Fact Sheet PR5000 Number 206-V Amateur Station Vanity Call Sign System.

A $30 fee is required with your FCC Form 610V application. Payment of fees may be made by check (payable to FCC), bank draft, money order or credit card. If paying by credit card, you must also complete and submit FCC Form 159 with your FCC Form 610V. Do not send cash. Send your application package to: Federal Communications Commission, Amateur Vanity Call Sign Request, PO Box 358924, Pittsburgh, PA 15251-5924

If you do not qualify under the above eligibility standards, your application will be dismissed. For further information, contact the Consumer Assistance Branch at 800-322-1117.

Advanced, General, Technician Plus, Technician, and Novice class operators are not yet eligible to request by list. Advanced class operators will be eligible at Gate 3. Others will be eligible at Gate 4.

A separate Public Notice will be released providing guidelines for the implementation of electronic filing procedures for FCC Form 610V.

JAS-2, the first Amateur Radio satellite launched in 1996, is in orbit. Early Saturday morning, August 17, 1996 (UTC), an H-2 rocket blasted off from Japan's Tanegashima Island space center carrying the JAS-2 Amateur Radio satellite. The satellite was successfully deployed in orbit 38 minutes later. JAS-2 is similar to OSCAR 20, although it offers some interesting twists.

Several stations in South America and the eastern US reported hearing JAS-2's CW telemetry beacon soon after it separated from the launch vehicle over Antarctica during its first orbit. One of those stations was manned by AMSAT-NA's Executive Vice President, Keith Baker, KB1SF. "Being one of the very first to hear signals from a brand new Amateur Radio satellite has to be one of the biggest thrills one can have as a ham," Baker said. "I know many of us also shared some really tense moments until we finally heard those first CW beacon signals from the new 'baby' coming through loud and clear in our headphones!"

On behalf of AMSAT-NA President Bill Tynan, W3XO, Baker congratulated JARL for "providing the amateurs of the world with yet another highly advanced Amateur Radio satellite." He also thanked JAMSAT President Tak Okamoto, JA2PKI, and his team for their very strong support of the JARL in this effort and also for their minute-by-minute reports via AMSAT-BB on the developments leading up to JAS-2's successful launch.

JARL has named the new satellite FUJI-3 as a successor to FUJI-OSCAR-2 (FO-20). All of its systems are functioning normally and the satellite is open for general use. But JARL says there may be some unannounced shutdowns during the 2 to 3-week testing and attitude control period.

The satellite provides access to an easy-to-use packet BBS. Unlike most digital satellites, which function as file servers and require specialized ground station software, JAS-2 provides a BBS that operates much like a terrestrial system. The only software required is a terminal program to "talk" to your TNC. Connecting to the BBS is as simple as sending a connect request to 8J1JCS. Hams who own PSK TNCs can connect to JAS-2 at 1200 baud. But unlike OSCAR 20, JAS-2 can handle 9600-baud FM FSK as well. A digital voice-storage unit (called the "Digitalker") will be used to transmit announcements, bulletins on the condition of the satellite and so on. It's similar to the unit presently being heard from the Mir space station. JAS-2 also features a linear transponder for SSB and CW communication.

The frequency plan of Fuji-3 is similar to that of FUJI-OSCAR-20, but with some interesting additions:

Analog (linear) transponder for phone and CW:

• Uplink 145.90 to 146.00 MHz, 100-kHz passband

• Downlink 435.80 to 435.90 MHz, 100-kHz passband (inverted)

• Beacon signal at 435.795 MHz, modulated by CW telemetry data

• Total transmitting power is 1 W; beacon is 100 mW.

Digital transponder (store-and-forward packet processor)

• Uplink: 145.85, 145.87, 145.89 or 145.91 MHz

• Downlink: 435.91 MHz

• 1200 or 9600 bps: for 1200 bps, uplink in Manchester-coded FM and downlink in bi-phase PSK; for 9600 bps, FSK using G3RUH protocol, uplink and downlink.

• Total transmitting power is 1 W.

Digitalker transmits information by FM voice, 25 seconds maximum, audible with a hand-held transceiver. Source information data in PCM is sent to Fuji-3 from the control station.

The Fuji-3 command team has asked all stations to continue to copy CW telemetry frames on the new satellite's 435.795-MHz beacon downlink and to forward those reports to jamsat-bb@iijnet.or.jp.

A World Wide Web home page has been established by JARL to provide information on the new satellite. Set your browser to http://www.jarl.or.jp/jarl/jas-2/ to take a look. For more information, For further information, contact the JARL Technical Laboratory, e-mail lab@jarl.or.jp.

In comments filed with the FCC on a proposal to make available 350 MHz of spectrum at 5.15-5.35 GHz and 5.725-5.875 GHz for use by so-called NII/SUPERNet devices The ARRL (and other commenters) suggested that allocating 350 MHz for the devices is excessive and premature, "in view of other opportunities for high-speed data communication." The spectrum includes part of the shared Amateur Radio allocation at 5.65-5.925 GHz. The unlicensed, Part 15 devices would provide short-range, high-speed wireless digital information transfer and could support new wireless local area networks (LANs) and facilitate access to the Internet or other facets of the National Information Infrastructure. The proposal responds to Petitions for Rule Making from Wireless Information Networks Forum (WINForum) and Apple Computer Inc. ARRL also suggested the Commission's proposal for short-range Part 15 facilities is "as far as the Commission can or should go with unlicensed devices" and that anything designed for a longer range should be licensed.

In its filing, the ARRL said it's not clear just how much spectrum the applicants actually need to support initial deployment of NII/SUPERNet devices and that there is "significant evidence in the record that allocation of 350 MHz is currently not supportable." In proposing the allocation, the League said, the Commission did not rely on "any evidence of market demand."

ARRL cited comments by Pacific Telesis Group recommending that the 350 MHz of spectrum not be committed to "a service with unproven technology and untested market acceptance." Another commenter, Altstatt Associates, said that even assuming heavy traffic, occupancy should not exceed 120 MHz. That way, all NII/SUPERNet users could fit in the 5.15 to 5.35-GHz segment, thus not affecting current users (including hams) at 5.725 to 5.875 GHz.

ARRL urged that the upper 150 MHz proposed for the NII/SUPERNet devices not be made available immediately, but only after a need for the additional spectrum has been evaluated. The League also said that alternatives to NII/SUPERNet devices for wideband, high-speed data transfer over long-range paths can be found in licensed services. Duplicating those links would be "inefficient and inconsistent," the ARRL said.

The League said the proposal also failed to address interference potential to Amateur Radio and other licensed operations in the 5-GHz band.

Among other things, the FCC has proposed to limit peak effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) for the NII/SUPERNet devices to -10 dBW (0.1 W) to provide "typical communications distances of 50 to 100 meters," the FCC said in its notice in ET Docket 96-102. The rules state the NII/SUPERNet devices "must accept any interference caused by licensed services." The petitioners had asked for higher-power, longer-range communication links, but the FCC, expressing concerns about "unacceptable interference risks to other services," decided to put forth the more modest proposal for now. But the Commission also didn't close the door to considering higher power operation at up to 1 W for community networking--as the petitioners proposed--and seeks additional comments on the issue.

The FCC has proposed a basic "listen-before-talk" protocol. Unlicensed devices would have to monitor their frequencies for at least 50 s to determine if they are unused and available, limit transmit time to 10 ms and wait at least 50 s after transmitting before resuming monitoring. (This so-called "deference time" would double each time an attempt to access the band fails, up to an upper limit of 12 ms.) Out-of-band emissions would typically have to be at least -50 dBc. Typical bandwidths could be 25 MHz or greater.

The proposed rules state that the NII/SUPERNet devices "will not be deemed to cause interference to licensed services provided the devices operate in accordance with the output power, out-of-band emissions limits and spectrum etiquette requirements" and provided the devices are indoors or use an outdoor antenna mounted no more than 15 meters above ground. (Any outside antenna mounted higher than 15 meters would have to make other accommodations, such as reduced power, to eliminate harmful interference to licensed services.) The FCC said it would establish "clear technical operating parameters" for the new service so NII/SUPERNet devices "may operate without risk of being considered sources of harmful interference." The FCC encouraged industry to develop additional standards it believes necessary.

In other comments filed earlier with the Commission, the ARRL contended the proposed application was unnecessary and duplicative of other services, including microwave and licensed and unlicensed personal communication services. In particular, the League said that Apple's allocation proposal for the 5.8-GHz band failed to sufficiently address the potential for harmful interference to amateur operations. The ARRL also said the company did not address the issue of coordination between unlicensed users and incumbents. Left unexplained, the League asserted, was why spectrum above 40 GHz would not be more appropriate. The Southern California Repeater and Remote Base Association also have opposed the allocation, expressing concerns that hams would be overpowered by commercial use and driven from the band.

The FCC declined to go along with the petitioners' proposal to create a Part 16 regulatory regime to accommodate such devices. ARRL opposed this request, arguing that the Communications Act of 1934 did not provide legal authority and that it would be unfair to licensed users to give unlicensed devices the protected status afforded licensed services and the advantages inherent in unlicensed operations.

The complete text of the proposal in ET Docket 96-102 is available via the FCC's Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/.

Early on the morning of Thursday, July 18, 1996, severe storms and heavy rains hit Northern Illinois, causing massive flooding over a large area. Within DeKalb County, nearly 240 mobile homes were either destroyed or severely damaged, and many other residences were affected as a result of the floods. President Clinton declared 11 Northern Illinois counties, including DeKalb, as Federal disaster areas. This declaration permitted the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Small Business Administration (SBA) to offer aid to those who were affected.

With the assistance of the Kishwaukee Amateur Radio Club, which serves DeKalb County, the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army were able to respond during the early stages of the disaster. By using the 2-meter radio system that had been set up at the local Red Cross chapter in DeKalb, and the local WA9CJN club repeater (which a Chicago area ham--the engineer for DeKalb radio station WDKB--was able to put on a standby generator), volunteers were able to communicate with the Salvation Army as they arrived to set up canteen services at one trailer park in Sycamore, while other hams assisted the Red Cross at another trailer park in Kirkland. Later that day, the Salvation Army set up a shelter for the Sycamore residents, and the Red Cross established a shelter in Kirkland. Both shelters benefited from the ham radio link until regular telephones could be installed a few days later.

Over the next few days, KARC hams proved invaluable as they pitched in to help with damage assessment, administrative duties, mass care and logistics. Nearly 25 KARC hams volunteered their time and resources to help out in this disaster, once again proving the value of Amateur Radio.--Barry Leonard, N9VJQ

Solar observer Tad Cook, KT7H, in Seattle, Washington, reported August 16 that average solar flux was down about 5 points over the previous week. Flux values are expected to rise above 70 starting around August 22. After that, solar flux should peak around 76 on August 29, and be back to 70 around September 4. No big upsets are expected, but there could be some minor geomagnetic activity around August 27.

The fall equinox is about four weeks away, and the days are gradually getting shorter. Forty meters is the best nighttime band for worldwide propagation, while 20 is best during the day. We are still suffering from very low solar activity at the bottom of the current solar cycle, so MUFs are depressed. Expect big improvements over the next two years.

The September issue of QST includes an informative article by Dean Straw, N6BV, on advanced propagation-prediction software. An interesting one is the Voice of America Coverage Analysis Program or VOACAP, created for The Voice of America. It's available free via the web at http://www.voa.gov/. Click on Other Services, and then Software Distribution after the opening screen. At the Gopher menu, click on Voice of America Coverage Analysis Program.

Sunspot numbers for August 8 through 14 were 24, 20, 33, 30, 22, 16 and 30, respectively, with a mean of 25. The 10.7-cm flux was 69.8, 70.2, 72.8, 72.9, 70.1, 69.6, and 68.8, respectively, with a mean of 70.6.

The following is a list of the FCC's most recently issued call signs as of August 1, 1996.

# New prefixes are available for this block, but none have been issued.
++ All call signs in this group have been issued in this area.

A Continuing Legal Education seminar, "Land Use Regulation of Federally Licensed Communications Facilities and the Doctrine of Federal Preemption" will be presented at two ARRL conventions during October.

ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, N3AKD, and Mike Raisbeck, K1TWF, will present the seminar at the New England Division Convention, October 4, at the convention site, the Holiday Inn, Boxboro, Massachusetts. The seminar will run from 9 AM until 3 PM.

Imlay and Phil Kane, K2ASP, will present a CLE seminar October 18, at Pacificon '96, at the Hilton Hotel, Concord, California. The seminar will run from 9 AM until 3 PM.

CLE credits will be available for both seminar sessions. The fee is $50 for those seeking credit. Otherwise, the seminars are free. If you seek credit, send a check and registration information to John Hennessee, KJ4KB, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111. Include your name, address and bar membership information. ARRL volunteer counsel members and other attorneys are encouraged to attend one of these sessions.

Eli Nannis, K4JMH, of Largo, Florida, died August 14, 1996. He was 82. For several years while he lived in Massachusetts, Nannis served as emcee and cochairman of the New England ARRL Convention in Boxboro, Massachusetts, sponsored by FEMARA. He retired in Florida. He was a member of the ARRL and the QCWA and was associate treasurer of FEMARA. He leaves his wife, Bee, two sons and several grandchildren. Services were August 16.--Gene Hastings, W1VRK

Past Vice President and Past Director Bill Stevens, W6ZM, of San Jose, California, died August 17. He was 84. Stevens served as Pacific Division director for four terms, from 1978 through 1985. The Board elected him vice president at the 1986 annual meeting; he served one term. He is survived by his wife Delphie. A memorial service was set for August 24.

• New Oklahoma SM: Coy C. Day, N5OK, has been elected Oklahoma section manager. He polled 475 votes to 149 for Richard E. "Dick" Russell, KJ5VV. Day takes office October 1. He replaces Joe Lynch, N6CL, who did not seek re-election.

• Welcome aboard! Ed Hammond, WN1I, of Buckfield, Maine, has joined the ARRL HQ staff. His primary responsibilities will involve publication sales and membership recruitment activities. Ed has already spoken to many clubs on behalf of ARRL and Amateur Radio. He previously worked as amateur division sales manager for Cushcraft.

• New ham astronaut: Astronaut David Wolf is now KC5VPF. Wolf will be part of a long-duration mission on Mir in late 1997 or early 1998.

is published by the American Radio Relay League, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax 860-594-0259. Rodney J. Stafford, KB6ZV, President; David Sumner, K1ZZ, Executive Vice President.

Electronic edition circulation, Kathy Capodicasa, N1GZO, e-mail kcapodicasa@arrl.org.

Editorial, Rick Lindquist, KX4V, e-mail rlindquist@arrl.org.

Visit the ARRL Web page at http://www.arrl.org/.

The purpose of The ARRL Letter is to provide the essential news of interest to active, organizationally minded radio amateurs faster than it can be disseminated by our official journal, QST. We strive to be fast, accurate and readable in our reporting.

Material from The ARRL Letter may be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form, including photoreproduction and electronic databanks, provided that credit is given to The ARRL Letter and The American Radio Relay League.