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Amateur Radio Newsline, Thu Oct 15, 6:02 PM MDT (0002Z)
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2555 for Friday, October 16th, 2026 Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2555 with a release date of Friday, October 16th, 2026 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1. The following is a QST. A new crew takes its turn aboard the ISS. Hams help boost disaster training in India -- and balloons become a gateway to ham radio for West Virginia students. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2555 comes your way right now. BILLBOARD CART NEW FCC RULES FOR SALES OF ELECTRONICS ONLINE SKEETER/ANCHOR: In our top story this week, the sales of wireless devices in the US in any online marketplace will be getting more complicated under a new FCC requirement that the sellers make the FCC IDs of listed items visible to prospective buyers. One such marketplace, eBay, has already sent out notices ahead of the deadlines in 2027 stating that unless the IDs are displayed, those listings will be blocked from being seen by US customers. This does not apply to amateur radio equipment. An eBay response to a query from the ARRL assured amateur radio operators and vendors that the online sales platform will not require the display of FCC IDs with listings for ham radio equipment, which is capable of operating only on the authorized amateur radio frequencies. eBay told the ARRL, however, that FCC equipment certification would only be needed for any two-way VHF/UHF radios capable of operating outside of amateur bands. An FCC ID certifies that any device that emits radio waves -- such as a mobile phone, GMRS, FRS and citizens band radio, laptop, router or business radio -- meets government-set standards for safety, compatibility and emission limits. (ARRL, FCC, eBAY, VALUE-ADDED RESOURCE) CREW-12 RETURNS TO EARTH FROM SPACE STATION SKEETER/ANCHOR: The members of SpaceX Crew-12 are back home on Earth from the ISS. Travis Lisk N3ILS tells us what's next. TRAVIS: In the more than 7 months they were on board the International Space Station, the members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 conducted scientific research, logged space walks and had a number of amateur radio contacts with students through ARISS. On Thursday the 8th of October they returned home, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. NASA's Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway KJ5NIV, along with the European Space Agency's Sophie Adenot KJ5LTN and Roscosmos' Andrey [PRON: On Dree] Fedyaev [PRON: Fidd YEV] had spent 237 days in space. One of the most notable ARISS contacts took place just days before the astronauts' return: Jack Hathaway spoke to students in Chile on the 28th of September during the first direct contact any school in that nation had with the space station. Their successors - the members of Crew 13 - include Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney KJ5PPT, Josh Kutryk [PRON: Coo Trick] KJ5PFU of the Canadian Space Agency, and Sergey Teteryatnikov [PRON: Tetter Yet Nick Off] of Roscosmos who have been living and working on the space station since Thursday, Oct. 1. This is Travis Lisk N3ILS. (NASA.GOV) NASA, ARISS SIGN NEW 4-YEAR AGREEMENT SKEETER/ANCHOR: ARISS and the US space agency NASA have announced that they have renewed their partnership for another four years, bringing contact with the International Space Station to students worldwide. ARISS has signed a new agreement with NASA that will run through 2030 -- that makes 30 years of the ISS hosting an amateur radio payload encouraging lessons in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. ARISS released a statement on Friday, October 9th, saying: [quote] "Together we'll continue creating opportunities for students and lifelong learners to connect with space exploration and discover the possibilities of STEM." [endquote] The ISS is scheduled to be decommissioned by the end of 2030. (ARISS) MARGARET HAMILTON, APOLLO MISSION PROGRAMMER, DIES SKEETER/ANCHOR: A pioneering software programmer whose work was key to NASA's Apollo missions has died. We hear about her and her work from Kent Peterson KCODGY. KENT: The work of software programmer Margaret Hamilton helped navigate the Apollo 11 space mission toward the reality of the lunar surface. She was a mathematician at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology when she applied to join the on-campus software team that was working on the Apollo space project. She was the first woman to join the team as a programmer, assigned first to develop software for Apollo's uncrewed missions. She was soon promoted to director of software. MIT's Instrumentation Laboratory was responsible for computers - one in the command module and another which accompanied Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin in the Eagle landing module which touched down on the surface of the moon in 1969. Her work would eventually contribute to subsequent lunar missions and to Skylab, the first US space station, and the early space shuttle. It was her effort on the moon lander, however, that many credited with saving the mission. After the computer's processing unit became overloaded during Eagle's descent, her software ensured that only essential, high-priority functions would be permitted to continue - as a result, the module went forward toward a safe landing. She later received the Presidential Medal of Freedom among her many honors. Margaret Hamilton died on September 30th in a Cambridge, Massachusetts hospital. She was 90 years old. This is Kent Peterson KCODGY. (NEW YORK TIMES, MIT NEWS) IN W. VIRGINIA, PICO BALLOONS ARE JUST THE BEGINNING SKEETER/ANCHOR: A lot will be riding on six pico balloons this month when they are released by students in the Hurricane High School Aerospace Engineering class in West Virginia. JIM DAMRON: A half-dozen lightweight solar-powered pico balloons are being launched in West Virginia, carrying small transmitters to provide location and telemetry for tracking in WSPR mode on 20 meters. For the six student teams and their teacher, however, the classroom-designed and -built balloons are carrying so much more. Their ascent skyward bears the accomplishments of the newly licensed young hams and their teacher, Adam Osbourne, KF8HLQ, supported by coaching, FCC license testing and technical assistance from Bob Gibson W8RLG and other members of West Virginia Amateur Radio Club, WV8AR. The club also provided a rig and 20-meter dipole. The balloons will be tracked using WSJTX running on a laptop. Adam told Newsline that the project is part of the school's four-course aerospace engineering program. Flight operations, power systems, communications systems, testing and verification are also part of the exercise -- but so is amateur radio. The balloons are also carrying students and their teacher toward more active ham radio involvement. Adam told Newsline he plans to make use of his General class license and hopes the school will become a great home for a student amateur radio club. Students have built a relationship with the hams in the West Virginia club and now understand that ham radio includes public service and emergency communications too. Meanwhile, they cross their fingers, hoping that at least one balloon may actually circle the globe. They have already seen that even as ham radio helped them take to the sky, it also does much more to help everyone on the planet below. This is Jim Damron N8TMW. (ADAM OSBORNE, KF8HLQ; BOB GIBSON, W8RLG) BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world including the K2ADA repeater in Ocala Florida on Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. WEST BENGAL HAMS, OFFICIALS SIGN AGREEMENT FOR DISASTER TRAINING SKEETER/ANCHOR: An agreement between hams and officials in West Bengal, India, will make is easier for more people to receive intense training in disaster communications, as we hear from Jason Daniels VK2LAW. JASON: Under a memorandum of understanding signed by the West Bengal Disaster Management and Civil Defence Department and radio amateurs, more people living in remote areas of that Indian state will be trained on how to pass emergency traffic during times of crisis. The president of the West Bengal Radio Club, Subir Datta, VU3ZSD, called the October 9th signing of the agreement "a proud moment," noting that it officially recognises amateur radio operators as lifesavers. He told the Indo Asian News Service [quote]: "During natural disasters, hams work as an important link between the wireless sets operated by various agencies. This aids in keeping all teams abreast of developments." [endquote] The club's secretary, Ambarish Nag Biswas VU2JFA said that the club is known for its effective response during cyclones when the hams are called up by government officials. He said that rescue efforts benefit, especially in remote areas, when emergency traffic can get through. In cooperation with the affiliated Indian Academy of Communication and Disaster Management, the hams have already prepared many civil defence employees for their licensing exams and conducted mock-emergency drills. Although the West Bengal hams were also prepared to deploy recently after flash flooding devastated the region of Nepal near the Tibet border, he said the Nepalese government did not grant them the necessary permission. Club members did provide essential communication links between agencies in Nepal in April of 2015 after an earthquake struck parts of the country. This is Jason Daniels VK2LAW. (INDO ASIAN NEWS SERVICE, THE STATESMAN) APPLICATIONS OPEN SOON FOR QCWA SCHOLARSHIPS SKEETER/ANCHOR: Amateur radio operators who are students at an accredited college, trade school or university anywhere in the world may be eligible for one of 19 scholarships from the Quarter Century Wireless Association. Each scholarship provides $3,000 toward studies at either the undergraduate or graduate level. Applicants must have an active amateur radio license. The QCWA will begin accepting applications on the 31st of October. Additional details are available at www dot qcwa dot org (www.qcwa.org) (TONY PERALES, AI1U) HAMS RECEIVE HONORS FROM RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA SKEETER/ANCHOR: A number of amateur radio operators are being honored by the Radio Club of America for the different roles they have played in advancing wireless communication. One recipient is a previous winner of Amateur Radio Newsline's Young Ham of the Year award. Sel Embee KB3TZD tells us who they are. SEL: Audrey McElroy, KM4BUN, Amateur Radio Newsline's Young Ham of the Year for 2022, is being given the Carole Perry Young Professional Award from the Radio Club of America for her ongoing achievements in her career in the wireless field. In 2021, the RCA recognized her with its Young Achiever Award. She is among several hams who the RCA will honor next month at a banquet in New York City. Ajay Poddar, AC2KG is receiving the Dr. Arno Penzias Award for Contributions to Basic Research in the Radio Sciences, Charles Kirmuss, WOCBK, is being given the Henri Busignies Memorial Award; Anthony Rizi, NR1Z, is receiving the Frank Gunther Award; Jay Adrick,K8CJY, will receive the Ralph Batcher Memorial Award; and Charles Counselman, W1HIS, will be presented with the Dr. Ulrich Rohde Award for Innovation in Applied Radio Science and Engineering. The RCA is conferring an honorary Centenarian Award to Henry L. Richter, W6VZA. After a lifetime of pioneering efforts supporting space exploration, he became a Silent Key on the 12th of August at the age of 99. Finally, the Major Edward H. Armstrong Medal is being given to Andrea Goldsmith, who becomes the first woman to receive this award, which carries the name of the radio pioneer who helped make AM and FM radio possible. Visit the RCA website to see the names of other award recipients. The link appears in the text version of this week's newscast at arnewsline.org [DO NOT READ: https://radioclubofamerica.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=50 0767&module_id=805355 ] This is Sel Embee KB3TZD. (RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA, AMATEUR NEWS DAILY) WORLD OF DX In the World of DX, Hans-Martin, DK2HM, is on the air as 3D2HM from Nadi, IOTA Number OC-016, Fiji, through to the 22nd of October. He is using SSB and FT8 on the HF bands. Listen for Morten, LA9GY, using the callsign 3DA0GY from Piggs Peak, Swaziland, through to the 2nd of November. Morten is operating CW and SSB and will be active on 40-10 metres during the Worked All Germany contest on October 17th and 18th and the CQ WW DX SSB contest on October 24th and 25th. Kazu, MOCFW is using the callsign 3B9/MOCFW from Rodrigues Island, IOTA Number AF-017, on the 20th through to the 28th of October. Listen for him during the CQ WW DX SSB contest, where he will be using the callsign 3B9KW. In Kathmandu, Nepal, Jan, DL4XT, will be active as 9N7XT from the 23rd through to the 31st of October. He will be on various HF bands using CW, SSB and FT8. (425 DX BULLETIN) KICKER: FINDING CONNECTION IN A NET OF COMPASSION SKEETER/ANCHOR: There have almost always been words to thank hams for the kinds of service they provide - emergency communication in a disaster; public safety at community events or Elmering hopeful new radio operators. There are only a few words for the solace one ham can give at a time of tragedy -- and Jim Davis W2JKD shares them now in our final story. JIM DAVIS: The weekly Four State Net of the Antietam Radio Association went suddenly quiet during check-ins on the night of May 27th. There was no response from Steve Struharik, WA8EIH, the net control station. Repeated calls to him on the radio -- and then directly to his mobile phone -- went unanswered. Finally, another call was made, this time to the sheriff's office near Steve's Myersville, Maryland home, asking that someone visit the house to check on him. Meanwhile, Peter Nowinski, W3LIX, left his shack in Pennsylvania and made the drive to Maryland. He arrived 45 minutes later and found the sheriff's deputy at the house. The pair informed Steve's wife, Jean, of their concerns, then went downstairs to the radio shack. They discovered Steve lifeless in his chair. The Struharik family needed a friend that night - and that friend was Peter. Joe Maguire, WA1ZZQ, the club's activities chairman, told Newsline that a special service award plaque from Jean Struharik and the couple's two sons, John and Mike, was presented to Peter by the Antietam club at a meeting in August, as everyone recalled that difficult night. Joe said Peter's actions [quote] "epitomize the spirit of friendship and duty that makes amateur radio such a wonderful community." [endquote] Steve, he said, was at the heart of that community and [quote] "we miss him dearly." [endquote] This is Jim Davis W2JKD. (JOE MAGUIRE, WA1ZZQ, WIA, ANTIETAM RADIO ASSOCIATION) NEWSCAST CLOSE With thanks to ARRL, Adam Osborne, KF8HLQ; Amateur Radio Daily, Antietam Radio Association; ARISS; Bob Gibson, W8RLG; David Behar, K7DB; FCC; 425 DX Bulletin; Indo Asian News Service; Joe Maguire WA1ZZQ; MIT Times; NASA.gov; New York Times; QRZ.com; Radio Club of America; The Statesman; Tony Perales, AI1U; Value-Added Resource; Wireless Institute of Australia; YouTube; Zero Retries newsletter; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. We remind our listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that incurs expenses for its continued operation. If you wish to support us, please visit our website at arnewsline.org and know that we appreciate you all. We also remind our listeners that if you like our newscast, please leave us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our news team worldwide, I'm Skeeter Nash N5ASH in Jonesboro, Arkansas saying 73. As always, we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2026. Amateur Radio Newsline retains ownership of its material even when retransmitted elsewhere. All rights are reserved.