The WSJT Development Group has announced the “general availability” release of WSJT-X version 2.1.0. This major upgrade formally introduces FT4 as a finished protocol for HF contesting. WSJT-X version 2.1.0 supplants any “release candidate” (beta) versions, and users should discontinue using any beta versions of the software. The latest edition of the popular digital software suite also include...

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) accepted the European Radio Amateurs’ Organization (EURAO) as a sector member at the recent meeting of the ITU Council. It joins the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) in representing the Amateur Service at ITU conferences. IARU President Tim Ellam, VE6SH/G4HUA, said his organization welcomes EURAO to ITU membership and hopes to work closely...

ARRL-initiated efforts for rival parties to reach consensus on some of the issues they raised in the so-called “Symbol Rate” proceeding have ended. In April, the FCC granted ARRL’s request for a 90-day hold in the proceeding, FCC Docket WT 16-239, to provide an opportunity for ARRL to lead an effort to determine whether consensus could be reached on some or all of the issues that commenters hav...

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) member-society in the Netherlands, VERON, has invited radio amateurs from around the world to take part in what it’s calling a 2-meter propagation experiment. VERON said the aim is to collect as much data as possible about contacts made on 2 meters. All modes are welcome. The event is set for July 20 from 1700 to 1900 UTC. Submit logs to ClubLog befo...

Well-known contester and DXpeditioner Ananth Pai, VU2PAI, of Mangalore, India, died on July 13. He was 47 and was reported to have suffered a heart attack while on a business trip. He was on the VU4CB, VU7AG, 8Q7KP, HB0/VU2PAI, and VU7LD excursions, among others. On his QRZ.com profile, Pai described himself as “a die-hard DXer.”

Licensed in 1995, he was active on all bands from 160 through 6 me...

The winning article for the July 2019 QST Cover Plaque award is “The Vibro-Debugger” by Mike Bryce, WB8VGE.

The QST Cover Plaque Award -- given to the author or authors of the most popular article in each issue -- is determined by a vote of ARRL members on the QST Cover Plaque Poll web page. Cast a ballot for your favorite article in the August issue today.

The Hamvention Executive Team announced on July 15 that attendance at Dayton Hamvention® 2019 was 32,472. This marks the highest attendance recorded since Hamvention moved in 2017 from Hara Arena to the Greene County Fairgrounds and Exposition Center in Xenia, Ohio. This year’s attendance also approached an all-time Hamvention high. Attendance at the show peaked in 1993 at 33,669, before the 19...

Amazon's Prime Day is almost here! Deals start at 3 AM ET on Monday, July 15, and continue through Tuesday, July 16. Prime Day is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. As you browse the great deals available exclusively to Amazon Prime members, we invite you to shop at AmazonSmile, choosing the ARRL as your charity of choice.

With every qualifying purchase you make through AmazonSmile, A...

The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) officially secured operations for Hurricane Barry at 1900 UTC. “When we first activated the Net on Friday, July 12 at 2300 UTC, Barry was a tropical storm forecast to become a hurricane prior to landfall,” Net Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, said. “The storm was finally upgraded to a Category 1 Hurricane at 1500 UTC Saturday. Barry made landfall near Intracoastal Cit...

The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) is active on 14.325 MHz and 7.268 MHz in response to Category 1 Hurricane Barry. WX4NHC at the National Hurricane Center has activated and plans to operate through landfall on Saturday. In addition, the Maritime Mobile Net is expected to be active on 14.300 MHz. All amateurs not involved in the storm response are encouraged to avoid these frequencies, allowing some...

Language in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2018 will exclude all but a small number of Amateur Radio towers from marking requirements. Thanks to action taken in 2017 and 2018 by ARRL, the bill’s original language was amended to the extent that amateur towers, as well as residential towers used for over-the-air TV reception, were effectively exempted from markin...

Listen to the new episode of ARRL Audio News on your iOS or Android podcast app, or online at http://www.blubrry.com/arrlaudionews/. Audio News is also retransmitted on a number of FM repeaters. Click here and then scroll down to see the list.

Like June 24-27, July 7 had a new spot from cycle 25, according to the magnetic signature. This week’s brief appearance was last Sunday with a daily sunspot number of 12.

Average daily solar flux declined marginally from 67.5 to 67.1.

Predicted solar flux for the next 45 days is 67 on July 12 through August 25. That’s right, 67 on every day.

Predicted planetary A index is 8 on July 12, 5 on July 1...