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Interesting ARRL Ham Radio Open House Locations |
| ARRL Ham Radio Open Houses are happening all over the western hemisphere, and more dates are being added each week. Throughout the entire month of April, radio clubs, schools, and even museums are opening their doors to help introduce the public to amateur radio. They will show of their ham radio stations, demonstrating the technology and innovation enjoyed by radio amateurs today.
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Some of the open houses will take place on April 18, World Amateur Radio Day, which this year marks 100 years since the International Amateur Radio Union was founded in Paris, France.
There are some interesting sites hosting ARRL Ham Radio Open House events. The Vintage Radio and Communications Museum, W1VCM, in Windsor, Connecticut, will welcome guests to theirs on April 18. The museum is host to exhibits that show off the developments in communications through the decades, from the 1800s to the late 20th century. Many of the volunteers at the museum are active hams and are able to relay how foundational evolution of gear and technology was for the modern, digital, amateur radio landscape.
New England Sci-Tech in Natick, Massachusetts, W1STR, is also hosting an open house on April 18. This maker space workshop and science center engages young people with outreach programs and gets members of the public hands-on with many science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) projects. They have an active amateur radio club among all the excitement.
On the other end of North America, the Arctic Amateur Radio Experimenters, KL7EX, will be hosting an Open House in Fairbanks, Alaska.
Find a site near you, or list your club’s ARRL Ham Radio Open House at www.arrl.org/Open-House.
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ARRL Iowa Section Wins Ham Exemption From Handsfree Law |
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ARRL volunteers in the Iowa Section have cause to celebrate. Their state-level advocacy work on behalf of amateur radio has resulted in an exemption to the state’s handsfree law that covers ham operators.
Iowa Senate File 22 (SF22), a bill addressing distracted driving, had been in development since 2020. Former ARRL Section Manager Lelia Garner, WAØUIG, and Iowa Section State Government Liaison Alan Erickson, WBØOAV, played a crucial role in fostering and maintaining key legislative relationships. Over the course of five years, they navigated the legislative process to ensure the continued exemption for amateur radio operators.
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| The COVID-19 pandemic and political opposition to the measure ground the bill to a halt, but the ARRL Iowa Section volunteers continued to engage in the process and ensure that amateur radio was represented as the legislature finally took the bill back up. The final language of the bill included, “The provisions of this subsection do not apply to … A person using a two-way radio transmitter or receiver who is licensed with the federal communications commission in amateur radio service.”
Being proactive about sharing the good work amateur radio operators do was key. “We presented a carefully crafted exemption proposal, backed by evidence of our contributions as a radio service,” said Garner.
The texting bill (SF22) passed the Iowa Senate with a vote of 47-1 on March 18, 2025, and the Iowa House passed it on March 26, 2025 with a vote 54-11. On April 2, 2025, it was signed by Governor Kim Reynolds and goes into effect July 1, 2025.
The process encouraged Erickson. “Every legislator I spoke with appreciated the public service that licensed amateur radio provides. They also acknowledged the responsibility demonstrated by amateur radio operators. I was impressed by their willingness to exempt amateur radio from their texting bill, and was also humbled that we have a duty to preserve this awesome reputation.”
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Effort to Save Marconi Towers in Canada – Public Invited to Vote on Project |
| There’s an effort underway to save some of Marconi’s original towers, and an online poll is open for people to vote on it being a restoration project through the “Next Great Save” project from the National Trust for Canada.
Some of Marconi’s first messages were received and transmitted using the Battle Harbour Marconi Towers, thought to be the last of their kind standing in North America. News of Admiral Robert Peary’s 1909 North Pole expedition was transmitted by these towers. After 100 years, the twin towers are in need of repair.
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| The Battle Harbour Marconi Towers on Labrador’s rugged coast. [Photo courtesy of Battle Harbour Historic Trust] |
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To honor 150 years since Marconi’s birth, there are a number of events planned around the world to observe Marconi’s birthday and International Marconi Day.
In the United States, from the Port of Baltimore, Maryland, the Nuclear Ship Savannah Amateur Radio Club will operate K3S on April 26 from 1330 – 2100Z. Check spotting networks for frequency. See QRZ.com info for Savannah Award qrz.com/db/k3s. A QSL card is available by contacting Ulis Fleming, 980 Patuxent Rd, Odenton, MD 21113.
The Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club in Babylon, New York, will operate W2GSB from the Babylon Village Historical Society Museum for Marconi Day on April 26, 1300 – 2030Z. Frequencies include 28.340, 21.250, 14.246, and 7.245 MHZ.
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Amateur Radio in the News |
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On the Air
Sponsored by Icom
Learn APRS at the April On the Air Live Session
This month, ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, returns to the podcast to update us on ARRL’s new monthly livestream, On the Air Live. The April session of On the Air Live will be a tutorial on the Automatic Packet Reporting System (APRS). A handheld radio will allow you to use the APRS. Listen in to find out how easy it is, and how to join the April 22 session of On the Air Live.
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ARRL Audio News
Listen to ARRL Audio News, available every Friday. ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week’s top news stories in the world of amateur radio and ARRL, along with interviews and other features.
The On the Air podcast and ARRL Audio News are available on blubrry, iTunes, and Apple Podcasts.
On the Air | ARRL Audio News
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| Special event amateur radio station K8L will celebrate National Library Week 2025, operating from Youngstown, Ohio, between April 11, 1600 UTC (12 PM EDT) and April 13, 1600 UTC (12 PM EDT). Operation will be from various libraries in the Youngstown area, mainly on 20 and 40 meters, both SSB & FT8. A QSL card is available by sending a request to K8L, 239 Elvira Ct. McDonald, OH 44437. More information is available at QRZ.com www.qrz.com/db/K8L.
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| Broadcast audio processing company Orban Labs has donated an Optimod 9100B AM processor signed by company founder Bob Orban to ARRL in support of this year’s annual auction. The donation was made at the annual National Association of Broadcasters convention. Orban Labs has set the standard for audio processing in the broadcast industry for 50 years. Its donation will be used to raise funds in support of ARRL’s programs in amateur radio at the annual auction. Company founder Bob Orban was on hand to sign the cover plate which makes this unique, vintage, and fully functional item a valuable collector’s piece. Orban Labs co-owner Mike Pappas, W9CN, organized this generous donation which was accepted on behalf of ARRL by Pacific Division Director Anthony Marcin, W7XM.
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| The signed Optimod 9100B AM audio processor |
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| (L to R) Mike Pappas, W9CN; Justin Rodemoyer; ARRL Director of Development Kevin Beal, K8EAL; ARRL Pacific Division Director Anthony Marcin, W7XM; Russ Mundschenk, KD4JO; Bob Orban; Nick Straka, KE2EYN, and Ben Ackerman, KD2JLB |
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| Bob Orban signs the donated Optimod 9100B |
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| Tad Cook, K7RA, (left) receives his ARRL President’s Award from Mark Tharp, KB7HDX, ARRL Northwestern Division Director. |
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Tad Cook, K7RA, has received the ARRL President’s Award. ARRL Northwestern Division Director Mark Tharp, KB7HDX, presented the award to Cook on March 8, 2025, for 36 years of service to ARRL writing the weekly W1AW Propagation Forecast Bulletin. Cook also wrote The K7RA Solar Update for the ARRL Letter. He retired in January 2025, citing a recent ALS diagnosis preventing him from continuing. “He is genuinely a good person,” said Tharp, who noted the award was a complete surprise to Cook. One of the happiest moments of Cook’s many years as a radio amateur was getting on the air when he was 11 years old and making his first QSO on a Heathkit DX-20 with a non-working VFO. His was inspired to become a ham by a pair of Boy Scout brothers working on their Morse code badge, and from watching them get on the air, making a QSO to Oregon, several hundred miles away.
ARRL Letter Editor John Ross, KD8IDJ, worked with Cook for four years. “Early every Friday morning, we would work together to make sure his report for the ARRL Letter was on time and the way he wanted it to read,” said Ross. “Sometimes I think Tad knows more about the Sun than the Sun!” Watch for the full story in an upcoming issue of QST magazine.
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The annual Armed Forces Day (AFD) Crossband Test, hosted by the Department of Defense, is scheduled for Saturday May 10, 2025. The event will test two-way communications between military stations and amateur radio operators as authorized by the Federal Communications Commission in Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations 47 CFR 97.111. The tests provide opportunities — and challenges — for operators to test their individual technical skills in a controlled scenario that will not impact public or private communications. The annual DOD message will be transmitted via RTTY on 14,667 kHz at 1400 and 2000 UTC. Military stations will transmit on selected military frequencies and announce the specific amateur radio service frequencies that will be monitored. All scheduled times will be in UTC, and all scheduled frequencies will be upper sideband (USB), unless otherwise noted. For more than 50 years, military and amateur stations have taken part in this event. Information on frequencies, times, and other technical information can be found at DoD MARS – Armed Forces Day. A QSL card will be available in May after the test at www.usarmymars.org/home.
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| This image was taken on April 10, 2025. [Photo courtesy of NASA SDO/HMI] |
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ARRL Solar Update April 10, 2025
A relatively fast-moving stream of solar wind has been buffeting Earth’s magnetic field, and this is causing minor G1-class geomagnetic storms. High-latitude sky watchers should be alert for auroras. Solar activity reached moderate levels with several flares.
Radio blackouts reaching the R1 levels were observed over the past 24 hours with the largest on April 8. There is a chance for R1-2 (Minor-Moderate), and radio blackouts will persist through April 11 primarily due to the flare potential. An associated coronal mass ejection (CME) was observed on April 6. Modeling of the event showed the potential for a grazing blow around midday on April 11. There have been no Earth-directed CMEs in coronagraph imagery.
The 10.7 centimeter flux: April 11, 145; April 12 – 14, 140; April 15, 135; and April 16 – 27, 140.
Predicted Sunspot numbers: April 11, 159; April 12, 158; April 13, 164; April 14, 169
For more information concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical Information Service, read “What the Numbers Mean…,” A Quick Guide to HF Propagation Using Solar Indices, and check out the Propagation Page of Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA.
For customizable propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio website.
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- April 12 — QRP ARCI Spring QSO Party (CW)
- April 12 – 13 — JIDX CW Contest (CW)
- April 12 – 13 — DIG QSO Party (CW)
- April 12 – 13 — OK/OM DX Contest, SSB (phone)
- April 12 – 13 — Yuri Gagarin International DX Contest (CW, phone)
- April 12 – 13 — IG-RY World Wide RTTY Contest (Digital)
- April 12 – 13 — Texas State Parks on the Air (CW, phone, digital)
- April 12 – 13 — New Mexico QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
- April 12 — Africa FT4 DX Contest (FT4)
- April 12 – 13 — North Dakota QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
- April 12 – 13 — Georgia QSO Party (CW, phone)
- April 13 — ARRL Rookie Roundup, SSB (phone)
- April 14 — 4 States QRP Group Second Sunday Sprint (CW, phone)
- April 14 – 15 — 144 MHz Spring Sprint (CW, phone, digital)
- April 16 — RSGB 80m Club Championship, SSB (phone)
- April 17 – 18 — Walk for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)
- April 17 — NTC QSO Party (CW)
Remember to visit the ARRL Contest Calendar for more events and information.
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Upcoming Section, State, and Division Conventions |
- April 11 – 12 | Green Country Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Oklahoma State Convention, Claremore, Oklahoma
- April 25 – 27 | Big Bear HamEscape, hosting the ARRL Orange Section Convention, Big Bear Lake, California
- April 26 | Delmarva Amateur Radio and Electronics Expo, hosting the ARRL Delaware State Convention, Georgetown, Delaware
- April 26 | Spokane Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Washington State Convention, Spokane Valley, Washington
- May 4 | Warminster Amateur Radio Club – Annual Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Eastern Pennsylvania Section Convention, Bristol, Pennsylvania
- May 10 |
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