President's Report This is Michael Corbin VK2PFQ. It is not my intention to spoil anyones' Christmas, however, since the following information is already on "Packet", in a brief form, then it's only fair that those who do not have access to this medium, should be as informed as everyone else. You might get yourself a pencil and a large piece of paper....Although the need for them is not immediate. I'll give you ample warning when to start writing things down. An appropriate title to what I am about to tell you might be..... "Merry Christmas to all Hams from the SMA". or "Nothing escapes Federal Government New Year Tax Hikes...Not even Ham Radio". I must emphasise that the amounts quoted are not necessarily those which will be eventually adopted, they could even be....MORE!!! The following is an abridged account issued by The Federal Office of the Wireless Institute of Australia. It's headed.... AMATEUR RADIO LICENSES - NEW SMA PRICING POLICY Preliminary figures for new Licence fees, to be introduced next year, have been released to the W.I.A. by the Spectrum Management Agency (SMA). There are to be significant rises in the cost of Amateur Licenses. It should be noted, however, that these are preliminary figures and that the final charges, may vary by as much as $10.... up or down! The licensing costs were released to the WIA at an SMA Liaison meeting in Canberra on 5th December. The previous hundred-plus licence categories covering all services are to be reduced to just 18. Amateur Radio will be a single category, with seven sub-categories under the new Amateur Regulations to be announced early in 1995. Note the inclusion of the foreshadowed Intermediate and Novice Limited licences, and that beacons and repeaters will be classed in sub-categories of their own. COSTS The issue/re-issue cost depends on the type of licence. To first issue a licence costs the SMA about $140, it was revealed, but as Amateurs generally keep it for ten years, this is amortized over that period, yielding a cost of $14 a year. The cost to Renew a Licence is about $11, so the Issue/Re-issue cost will total $25. THE SPECTRUM MAINTENANCE CHARGE is the proportion of costs of the on-going work of the SMA. (Personally I thought that "the Spectrum" maintained itself..... with a little help from the Almighty!!) THE SPECTRUM ACCESS TAX is based on the principle of... "spectrum denial." Primary spectrum users, Amateur Radio, deny use of the spectrum to other users. It is on this basis that the government charges the Access Tax. The SMA's "pricing formula" takes into account five factors: Spectrum Location (i.e. frequency), Geographic Location (VHF-SHF spectrum can be "re-used" at sufficiently distant locations), Bandwith and Area Coverage. The formula "values" the spectrum according to usage and demand. i.e. In Sydney, UHF attracts a high "VALUE". On the other hand, the "VALUE" of HF is low, as it is shared by Amateurs ....globally. In calculating Spectrum Access Tax, the SMA excluded Amateur bands on which Amateurs are the secondary service.... i.e. because it is "shared" use. The figure arrived at, taking into account all the primary amateur bands and applied nation-wide, was divided by the total number of Amateurs. So, if we had.... MORE AMATEURS... licence fees should decrease!!! The Minimum Access Tax fee is proposed to be $20. The Spectrum Maintenance charge is about 25% of the Access Tax. Initial work on Amateur Licence fees yielded figure in the $300-$400 range. The SMA believe therefore that Amateurs have been given "a pretty good deal". All fees are to be finalised by 1st March,1995. Beacon licences will cost less because the WIA Divisions provide the initial spectrum planning function through the Technical Advisory Committees. The proposed Repeater licence fee was calculated on an Australia-wide basis. UHF CB repeaters will attract a licence fee. As you are no doubt now aware CBers don't pay fees. Citizen Band Radio is a Class Licence. FIVE-YEAR LICENCES will be introduced, for which the Re-issue cost will be discounted, if payment is made in advance. So a five-year unrestricted licence will cost around $301, rather than $345. In future, if an Amateur gives up a licence (e.g. becomes a Silent Key), a refund of the "unused" proportion of the licence may be provided. The WIA is continuing discussions with the SMA. Now if everyone has a piece of paper and a pencil.....Divide the page into five columns. I'll do this slowly so everyone can get it down. Now head the columns up as follows: Issue/ Spectrum Spectrum Licence Class Re-issue Maintenance Access Tax Total Now I will read the information to you across the page... UNRESTRICTED $25 $9 $35 $69 I'll read that line again so that you can get it down correctly. The balance will then be straightforward. The next licence class is... LIMITED $25 $8 $34 $67 INTERMEDIATE $25 $8 $34 $67 NOVICE $25 $5 $20 $50 NOVICE LIMITED $25 $5 $20 $50 BEACON $11 $5 $20 $36 REPEATER $25 $9 $35 $69 Further information will appear in the January issue of Amateur Radio Magazine. Now what should we do about all that you might ask, well, I for one intend to write a letter to my Local Member expressing my complete dissatisfaction. I encourage all listeners to do the same. The more who write the greater hope we will have of squashing the whole thing. The latest thing in politics is to bounce ideas off people early. A good example of this was a couple of weeks ago when the Federal Government "leaked" information to the Press about increased Taxation in the New Year....Little did we realise that Amateur Radio....A HOBBY....Our Hobby would be included. The idea is to gauge peoples reaction to a proposal. If the people don't complain then they, the government, go ahead with it. If we do complain and complain loud enough, then even though increases might still be introduced, they might not be as large an increase as has been suggested or even.....no increase at all. If time permits this Division will place an insert in AR magazine. It will be some type of "form letter"... you fill in the blanks and post it off yourself to your local member. Personally I am amazed that the Federal Office has kept this information to themselves for this long. It is as if they accept the increases. Lambs to the slaughter so to speak. Well this Lamb is not going quietly. It's a Consumption tax if ever I saw one.....But, such statements could be regarded as political so forget that I anything about a Consumption Tax!!!!! What a wonderful way to end 1994. Hmmmmmmmm!!! Finally may I take this opportunity to personally wish all Listeners a Happy and a Holy Christmas.....May the New Year bring each and everyone of you all that you wish for yourselves. See you all next year DIVISIONAL NEWS The 1995 broadcast roster The first roster for 1995 will be drawn up during the Christmas break. It will start on the 8th January and will run till the end of March. Would all broadcast team members please contact Steve VK2QZ with their unavailability dates before the end of December, so the roster can be finalised as soon as possible. If anyone listening would like to join the broadcast team you're invited to contact the Parramatta office on 689-2417 or directly to Steve VK2QZ -- Steve's telephone number and address is known to most people, his address of course is in the call book. No special skills are required nor is an amateur licence, although we are in need of a few more full call amateurs and people with good news-reading voices. Submitted by Steve Pullan, Broadcast Roster Coordinator ********************************************* The N.S.W. Division of the W.I.A. runs Amateur classes and examinations, a free QSL bureau for members, slow morse practice on the 80m band, a technical library and bookshop, and Trash and Treasure sales on the last Sunday of every odd-numbered month. You're invited to contact the Divisional Office for more details of the activities of the N.S.W. Division of the W.I.A. FEDERAL NEWS Voice Repeater for MIR Space Station An upgrade planned for the Russian MIR space station, a popular platform for amateur radio in space activities, should see a 2 m to 70 cm FM voice repeater operational within the next two years, acc- ording to a report from 12th Annual Meeting and Space Symposium of the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT-NA). Held in Florida, USA, in early October, the symposium marked the 25th anniversary of AMSAT. Other developments outlined at the Florida meeting covered progress on planning for the "Phase 3D" satellite. Due for launch in mid- 1996, Phase 3D will be the largest, and most complex amateur satell- ite ever assembled. Among the array of ground-to-satellite (uplink) channels planned is one in the 21 MHz (15 m) HF band. Others will be in the various VHF, UHF and microwave bands. Assembly of the Phase 3D satellite is proceeding on schedule, it was reported. It will be about 2.1 metres in diameter. Meanwhile, it seems the popular OSCAR 13, on which many amateurs "cut their teeth" in amateur space communications, is fated for a fiery death in early December when it is scheduled to re-enter the atmosphere. Thanks to the ARRL Newsletter for details. WICEN News This will be the last WICEN news bulletin for the year, and they will start again next year, on Sunday 8th January, when the Broadcast recommences. The Sydney WICEN net will also go into recess during that time, possibly in common with other nets, but the WICEN repeaters will continue to be monitored. In the mean- time, why not write a letter to the media, informing them how WICEN provided the only communications during the Cyclone Tracy and the Newcastle Earthquake disasters, the anniversaries of which are this month? Members are warned to keep their communi- cations equipment in working order, in preparation for an unpre- dictable call-out. Finally, the Dural Engineer, who is an active WICEN member, will personally ensure that these facilities will remain operational during the bush-fire season; members will re- call that the Council of the day, for reasons of their own, closed down the Dural station during the height of last year's fires, despite the fact that Dural is an official WICEN command post. The Hunter region has a meeting tomorrow, at the Emergency Opera- tions Centre, corner of Elizabeth and Hannel Sts, Carrington, commencing at 7pm; please contact Pauline VK2GTB for further de- tails. Those who are planning for next year should note the RTA NSW Bike Ride over the 4-11th March, the Bungonia Cave Rescue exercise on the weekend of 18-19th March, the Oberon Car Rally on 29th April, the Goulburn Training Seminar on the weekend of 13-14th May, the Hawkesbury Classic Paddle on the weekend of 14-15th October, and JOTA on the weekend of 21st-22nd October. On behalf of the WICEN (NSW) Management Committee, we would like to wish all personnel a safe and happy holiday period. -- Dave VK2KFU, WICEN (NSW) Inc. Publicity Officer NEWS BRIEFS The usual function of this section of the broadcast is to bring news from the mainstream memdia to Radio Amateurs; at this time of year, however, it might be worth bringing Amateur Radio back to the mainstream media. As mentioned in the WICEN News segment, Christmas week sees the anniversary of two major natural disasters where Amateur Radio played a vital role in serving the community, namly Cyclone Tracy and the Newcastle earthquake. This would be a good time to write to your local and regional newspapers, to remind them of the role Amateur Radio played during those difficult times. So, why not put pen to paper and gain some valuable publicity for Amateur Radio? It need take only a few minutes of your time and the cost of a stamp ... isn't continued support for your hobby worth it? ****** 2NCR makes the Internet simple. Listners in the Lismore area might be interested in a new radio programme that explains the Internet in terms an ordinary human can understand. 2NCR-FM, broadcasting from the Southern Cross University on 92.9 MHz has begun a radio programme on Sunday afternoons from 3pm to 6pm local time, called "The Internet Cruise". The programme aims to demystify this "Information Superhighway" we've been hearing so much about. ***** Santa Claus gets spammed. It was bound to happen ... Santa Claus put in an appearance on the Internet, and for his trouble he got "spammed". "Spamming" is the Internet term for flooding the network with the electronic equivalent of junk mail. A company called "Schloss Christmas Cheer" broadcast a message to Internet subscribers last week, romising to donate 10 cents each time someone sent them electronic mail to inquire about one of the charities the company was supporting. Alas, many people misunderstood the message, and thought that the company would make the donation for each electronic message sent to their address. As a result, users around the world put the company on the "Cc:" list for every message to anyone, flooding "Santa's" electronic mailbox, at a rate of hundreds of messages every hour. "Santa" woke up one morning to find no less than 42,000 messages waiting. For those interested, "Santa's" Internet address is santa@north.pole.org, but we think his mailbag is plenty full, and listeners who wish to remain on his "nice" list are advised not to send him any more email. "News briefs" looks at communications news items that appear in the mainstream media. Thanks this week go to "The Australian" and "The Sydney Morning Herald". If your local or regional paper runs an item of interest to Radio Amateurs, why not send a clipping to the Divisional office? --Ruchard Murnane VK2SKY Carbon supercapacitors Capacitors currently used as electronic components in computers. televisions, etc., have relatively low capacitance but recent advances, resulting in greater capacitance (1-10 Farads), allow them to be used in energy storage for low energy demand situations. Further capacitance increases to 100-1000 Farads give them the potential for storing energy in a form superior in many ways to conventional batteries. Capacitors have a number of advantages over conventional batteries: * they can be charged and discharged almost indefinitely and have superior charging characteristics, a much longer life amd more rapid recharge rates, * they can provide hogh discharge currents not easily achieved by batteries, * They require no maintenance and are therefore more suitable for use in remote locations, and * they can be fabricated from non-toxic and relatively inexpensive materials - one such material is carbon. Electric double layer capacitors (EDLCs) utilise the separation of charge that occurs when an elctrolyte contacts a conductor. In car- bon EDLCs, carbon acts as the electrodes and the electrolyte is typically an aqueous acid or salt solution, or an organic electrolyte. When a voltage is impressed across a pair of carbon electrodes, charge migration occurs in both the carbon electrodes and the electrolyte. Carbon is the material of choice in EDLCs because of the extremely high surface area that is obtainable after treatment - up to 2000 square metres per gram. The scientific challenge is to produce a quality carbon that combines high surface area with low resistivity. Dr. Tony Vassilic who heads the CSIRO team explains that although surface area is important, it is not the overriding criterion for high capacitance; pore size distribution, electrical conductivity and particle size need to be optimised. In addition the elctrloyte must have a high conductivity and breakdown voltage. "Initially we will be basing our products on current carbon EDLC technology and our own knowledge of this area but, built into the program will be research to identify and prepare better construction methods", he says. The importance of this approach is confirmed by Plessey Components, the industrial partner in this research, and Australia's largest manufacturer of capacitors. Plessey's managing director, Mr. Anthony Kohgats, says, "There is a limited time-frame available and we must run research and engineering development projects concurrently to get marketable components up and running as soon as possible. Our aim is to market, over three years, a number of capacitors of in- creasing perormance, each manufactured for a specific application area." These application areas could include capacitors as back-up for computers, as energy storage devices for photovoltaic cells and as secondary energy storage for electric vehicles. "We see this as a major growth technology and one which could provide Australia with an opportunity for significant high value exports". Item fom Dr. J.K. Wright VK3EXV. Chief, Coal and Energy Technology Division of CSIRO. IPS WEEKLY REPORT ----------------- 09 NOVEMBER - 15 DECEMBER DATE OF ISSUE: 16 DECEMBER 1994 INDICES: DATE 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 10CM 87 86 95 99 97 95 93 A 11 8 10 10 13 7 (17 ESTIMATED) T 18 30 27 41 52 6 8 SOLAR ACTIVITY WAS VERY LOW 9TH-12TH, AND 15TH DECEMBER, LOW ON 13TH, AND MODERATE ON 14TH. THERE WAS AN M2 FLARE ON 14TH, AND A SHORT WAVE FADEOUT WAS NOTED IN ASSOCIATION WITH THIS FLARE FROM 0540-0550 UT. THE GEOMAGNETIC FIELD AT LEARMONTH WAS QUIET ON 10TH DECEMBER, AND QUIET TO UNSETTLED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE PERIOD UNTIL 12 UT ON 15TH WHEN THE FIELD BECAME UNSETTLED TO ACTIVE FOLLOWING THE START OF ACTIVITY FORECAST FOR 16TH-17TH DECEMBER. IONOSPHERIC F2 CRITICAL FREQUENCIES AT SYDNEY WERE NEAR PRE- DICTED TO SLIGHTLY ENHANCED 9TH-11TH, ENHANCED BY UP TO 15 PER CENT 12TH-13TH, RETURNING TO NEAR PREDICTED MONTHLY VALUES TO THE END OF THE PERIOD. OCCASIONAL SPORADIC E WAS REPORTED FROM CAMDEN, TOWNSVILLE AND HOBART ON 9TH, AGAIN FROM CAMDEN AND HOBART ON 10TH-11TH DECEMBER. SYDNEY EXPERIENCED SPORADIC E LAYER BLANKETING AT INTERVALS ON 14TH. FORECAST (16 DECEMBER - 22 DECEMBER) SOLAR: LOW TO VERY LOW GEOMAGNETIC: UNSETTLED TO ACTIVE 16 DEC, MOSTLY ACTIVE WITH BRIEF PERIODS OF MINOR STORM LEVELS 17 DEC AND QUIET TO UNSETTLED THEREAFTER. IONOSPHERIC: OCCASIONAL DEPRESSIONS OF 10-20 PER CENT 16-17 DEC AND NEAR PREDICTED MONTHLY VALUES FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK. COURTESY OF THE IPS RADIO AND SPACE SERVICES SUMMARY BY PAT VK2JPA ANARTS BROADCAST OFFICER CLUB NEWS: AATC The next of the A.A.T.C. Inc. will be a combined committee meeting and minor general meeting next year 1995 - January 29th on a Sunday 1.00 pm at RCS Radio Bexley. The purpose of this unusual procedure is so the Technical committee can assess from the members attending as to what the AATC will have on display at the Wyong Field Day. - a practice run you might say. So please be here with your intended items for display to be logged on Sunday the 29th of January at 1.00pm - locstat - RCS Bexley. The end of the year is nigh and thanks go to the WIA for the Sunday news broadcasts and for all to have a quite sobering Christmas break. For more information about the A.A.T.C. listen to the net on Tues- day nights from the Liverpool area on 146.625 MHz - approx 19.30 hrs - or watch us on 1250 MHz from our Oakdale repeater anytime. Also you can ring the Publicity Officer on (02) 587-3491 any time. Remember the Wyong Field Day is only 10 weeks away - see us there! AATC Inc. Publicity Officer Bob Barnes CLUB NEWS: WAVERLEY Waverley Amateur Radio Society The Society's next meeting will be held on Wednesday 21st December at 7:30 p.m. in the Society's new premises located in the Rose Bay Scout Hall in Vickery Avenue, Rose Bay, next door to the Rose Bay R.S.L. Club. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. The main topic for the evening will be an introduction to Amateur TV by Dave Pack of the Australian Amateur TV Club. Visitors are most welcome. Refurbishing of the new premises has come on apace thanks to the efforts of a number of members, so come ans see the results. Now having permanent premises, the Society is planning to expand its program of activities next year into the operating, equipment con- struction and morse training fields. In February the Society celebrates the 76th anniversary of its foundation in 1919, and is planning a special event to mark the occasion. In the menatime the Society will try to contact past members and trace historical records relating to its early activities. If you can help, drop a line to VK2BV, P.O. Box 130, Watson's Bay, NSW 2030 Simon Buxton - VK2EII - Publicity Officer ANARTS HOLIDAY DATES FOR ANARTS BROADCASTS THE ANARTS RTTY BROADCAST WILL GO INTO RECESS AFTER 18TH DECEMBER AND RESUME ON 15TH JANUARY 1995. THANKS TO ALL OUR LISTENERS OVER THE PAST YEAR AND WE WISH YOU ALL THE COMPLIMENTS OF THE SEASON, AND MAY THE CHRISTMAS GIFTS BE JUST WHAT YOU DESIRE. MERRY CHRISTMAS, FROM PAT VK2JPA ANARTS BROADCAST OFFICER Coming events Now, a summary of upcoming events of interest to members and other Radio Amateurs ... Last VK2WI broadcast for 1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .TODAY Last ANARTS RTTY broadcast for 1994. . . . . . . . . . . .TODAY Fishers Ghost Amateur Radio Club meeting & BBQ . . . . Wednesday Waverley Amateur Radio Club meeting. . . . . . . . . .Friday (?) Divisional office closes for Christmas . . . . . . . next Sunday Christmas Day (no broadcast) . . . . . . . . . . . . next Sunday 20th Anniversary of Cyclone Tracy. . . . . . . . . . next Sunday 5th Anniversary of Newcastle Earthquake. . . . . . . 28 December 1995 New Years Day (no broadcast) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 January First VK2WI broadcast for 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 January (Divisional office closed during January, phone will be redi- ected to duty Councillor) ANARTS broadcasts resume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 January First live ATV transmission of 1995 from Gladesville .18 January Divisional Council meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 January Do you have an event you'd like publicised on the weekly broad- cast? If so, then please send details to the Divisional Broadcast Officer, Michael Corbin VK2PFQ, by phone on (02) 626-9288, or by fax on (02) 626-6066.Items can also be forwarded to the Divisional Office. ------------------------------------------------------------------ VK2WI Broadcast, 18th December 1994. Copyright 1994 WIA (NSW) & contributors. Material may be used elsewhere if the source is acknowledged.