Good morning. It's Sunday the 7th of April and here is the GB2RS news broadcast, prepared by the RSGB and intended for all radio amateurs and short-wave listeners. We start with a request for information. RSGB Headquarters is compiling a 1997 calendar of events. Would organisers of all rallies and other events who have already fixed their dates for 1997 please contact Marcia Brimson, 2E1DAY, at RSGB HQ as soon as possible. The phone number is 01707 659015. The deadline for inclusion in this listing is Tuesday the 16th of April. Groups intending to take part in the RSGB's National Field Day contest on the 1st and 2nd of June are reminded that they must register, by sending details of the site to be used, by this coming Tuesday, the 9th of April, at the latest. Send the details to David Hill, G4IQM, whose address is correct in the RSGB Call Book. Please enclose an SAE if contest stationery or an acknowledgement of entry is required. For further details see page 4 of the RSGB Contesting Guide, which was published in the September 1995 RadCom, or call David Hill, G4IQM, on 01293 882641 weekends or evenings. Operators from Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales will be on board several river cruisers on the River Shannon in Ireland next weekend, the 12th, 13th and 14th of April. They will be using callsigns in the series EI2SRR to EI9SRR, standing for "Shannon River Run", and will activate rare EI counties and Worked All Ireland squares. There will also be a land-based control station with full power and good antennas which will be able to provide information on the activity of the radio boats. A certificate will be available to stations who work each of the boats - probably six in total - plus the control station. Look for them around 3670, 7070 and 14270kHz on SSB or 3570, 7007 and 14070kHz on CW. RSGB headquarters in Potters Bar will be holding another Annual Open Day on Saturday the 4th of May, between 10.00am and 4.00pm. Come along to meet HQ staff, as well as Committee Chairmen and other senior volunteers. See how RadCom is put together, how we send out 3,000 items of mail per week, find out how subscriptions and sales orders are processed, and have a guided tour of the headquarters building. You can also operate GB3RS from the HQ shack, visit the National Amateur Radio Museum, and browse through some of the historical and overseas publications in the National Amateur Radio Library. There will also be traders and second hand equipment stalls. For further information, contact Marcia Brimson, 2E1DAY, on 01707 659015. A new GB2RS news broadcast starts today, the 7th of April, covering the Telford area. The newsreader is G3JKX, and the broadcast is at 1200 via the GB3TF 70 centimetre FM repeater on channel RB8. Reports will be welcomed by the newsreader. Now some items of HF DX news from the weekly RSGB DX News Sheet, which is edited by Chris Page, G4BUE: >From Grenada WB8GEX was planning activity as J3K from the 5th until the 12th of April. Activity will be on all bands from 160 to 10 metres. >From Christmas Island, Martti Laine, OH2BH; his wife Leena, OH2BE; and son Petri, OH2KNB, plan activity as VK9XM from the 6th to the 11th of April. QSL via JA1BK. And from Paros in Greece's Cyclades Islands, which counts as EU-067 for the RSGB IOTA Awards, SM0TXM will be active as SV8/SM0TXM from Thursday the 11th of April for one week. He plans some 160 and 80 metre activity. The Bishops Stortford 70 centimetre FM voice repeater, GB3SV, which normally operates on channel RB0, has been off the air since the 28th of March. It will be off until further notice. Next the Rally News: Feltham and Hounslow Sea Cadets Computer and Radio Rally takes place today, the 7th, at the Feltham and Hounslow Sea Cadet Corps, 2 Popular Way, Feltham, in Middlesex. Talk-in is on 2 metres channel S22. We know of five rallies next Sunday, the 14th of April: The Launceston Amateur Radio Rally takes place at Launceston College. The event features traders, a bring and buy stand, an RSGB bookstall and membership information stand and Morse tests on demand. Doors open at 10.30am and talk-in will be on 2 metres channel S22. For further details contact Roy, G0IKC, on 01409 221624. The Bury Radio Society Rally takes place on the ground floor of the Castle Leisure Centre, Bolton Street, Bury, next Sunday, the 14th. Talk-in will be on 2 metres channel S22 and further details may be obtained from Laurence, G4KLT, on 0161 762 9308. The Lincolnshire All Micro Show Computer and Electronics Show will be at the Springfields Exhibition Centre, Springfields Gardens, Camelgate, Spalding in Lincolnshire, on Sunday the 14th. Doors open at 10.00 am and for further details you can call 01473 741533. The Cambridgeshire Repeater Group Annual Rally takes place at Philips Telecom Catering Centre, St Andrew's Road, in Cambridge also on Sunday the 14th. For details ring 01223 811477. And the Swansea Amateur Radio Society Rally takes place on the 14th of April at the Swansea Leisure Centre on the Swansea to Mumbles coast road. Doors open at 10.30am. Talk-in will be on 2 metres channel S22 and further details may be obtained from Roger, GW4HSH, on 01792 404422. The Amateur Radio Caravan and Camping Club's next rally will be in the New Forest, over the May Day Bank Holiday period from the 2nd to 8th of May. There is no trading at ARCC rallies, but any amateur wishing to attend as a caravanner or tent camper is invited to send an SAE for details and a booking form. Booking forms must be returned at least one week before the event. Write to the membership secretary, Alan Gard, G4LWA, whose address is correct in the RSGB Call Book, or telephone 01462 811208. Now news of a special event station: GB60BBC will be in use from Barry, South Wales, from Friday the 12th of April until the end of Sunday the 14th of April. The station celebrates 60 years of television broadcasting and is operated by members of the BBC's Ariel Radio Group. Operation will be on HF, VHF and UHF, and it is hoped to include Amateur TV. Now for the HF contest news: The SP DX contest is taking place this weekend, the 6th and 7th of April, from 1500UTC Saturday for 24 hours. Brief rules are on page 21 of the April RadCom. The second of five sessions in the RSGB Slow Speed Cumulative Contest takes place on Tuesday evening, the 9th of April, from 1900 until 2030 UTC. Send CW no faster than 12 words per minute - and never faster than the other station is sending - between 3540 and 3580 kHz. Novices are particularly encouraged to take part. The third session is next Wednesday, the 17th of April. The rules are in last September's RadCom. Next weekend, the 13th and 14th of April, the "His Majesty the King of Spain Contest" takes place for 24 hours from 1800 UTC Saturday. Separate CW and SSB contests run concurrently. Brief rules are on page 21 of the April RadCom. Next some VHF contest news: The RSGB 1.3 and 2.3 GHz Fixed station contests take place this evening between 1700 and 2100 UTC. The rules are in the September RadCom. The second of three sessions in the RSGB 144MHz SSB Fixed Station Cumulative Contest takes place on Wednesday the 10th of April, from 1900 until 2100 UTC. The final session is on Thursday the 18th of April and the rules are in last September's RadCom. Before the solar news, we have been informed by SSL that as of last Tuesday morning, the latest callsigns allocated were in the Mike Zero Alfa Alfa and Mike One Alfa Alfa series, and Novice calls in the 2 0 Alfa Oscar and 2 1 Echo Whisky series. And now the solar factual data compiled by Neil Clarke, G0CAS. The period from the 25th to the 31st of March saw solar activity at very low levels and the geomagnetic field at mostly "quiet" levels. Sunspot numbers increased to 32 on the 26th but then declined and by the 30th the solar disc had become spotless. The mean for the period was 16. Solar flux levels remained at 72 units until the 28th and then declined to 70 units by the 31st. The average was 71 units and no solar flares were reported. Electron fluence remained at a high level throughout. X-Ray flux levels continued at A1 units every day. The 90-day solar flux average on the 31st was 72 units, one unit down on last week. Geomagnetic activity was at "unsettled" levels with an Ap index of 13 units on the 25th, but then declined to "quiet". The average was Ap 8 units. The following data covers the period from the 19th to the 25th of March. The aa indices, as supplied by the British Geological Survey, increased from "active" levels on the 19th to "sub-storm" levels on the 21st with 62 nanoTeslas. They then declined back to "active" levels. The average was 37 nanoTeslas, about K3. Solar wind speeds increased to 610 kilometres per second by the 22nd but then declined to 540 kilometres per second for the rest of the period. Particle densities also increased to 16 particles per cubic centimetre by the 20th. The Bz was predominantly southward at about minus 2 nanoTeslas for most of the period. I'll repeat the figures: spots - 16, flux - 71, Ap - 8, X-Ray flux - A1. Now the ionospheric data for Central France: The F2 daytime critical frequencies at Poitiers, as reported by Meudon for the period from the 22nd to the 28th of March, declined from 7.4MHz to 5.1MHz by the 26th, but showed signs of improvement by the 28th. The darkness hour lows increased from 1.9MHz on the 22nd to 2.7MHz by the 28th. The daylight highs averaged 6.0MHz, with the darkness hour lows averaging 2.4MHz. The daytime highs took place between 1300 and 1900, with the early evening now being more common than the period around midday. The darkness hour lows took place between 0400 and 0500 hours every day. I'll repeat the figures: highs - 6.0MHz, lows - 2.4MHz. And lastly the solar forecast: This week solar activity is expected to remain at very low levels, even though a slight increase in solar flux could take place. Geomagnetic activity is expected to be at "active" levels today and maybe tomorrow, but then decline to "quiet" levels. Ionospheric MUFs for the south are expected to be about 17MHz, the north-south paths could be slightly higher with the 21MHz band open to South Africa on the better days. The darkness hour lows are expected to be about 10MHz. Levels for the north will be about 2 to 3 MHz lower. And that's the end of the solar information. You're listening to GB2RS, the news broadcasting service of the Radio Society of Great Britain, transmitting in the 80, 40, 6, 2 metre and 70 cm bands. Next, the local news. NEWS FOR THE SOUTH EAST Meetings for Wednesday the 10th of April: Cheshunt and District Amateur Radio Club gathers for a talk by Dennis, G3TIK. For further details telephone 0181 366 0157. Darenth Valley Radio Society has a valve radio construction contest. Telephone 01689 826846 for more details. Fareham and District Amateur Radio Club has an on-the-air evening. For further details contact Andrew, G0AMS on 01329 235397. Farnborough and District Radio Society meets for a talk by Dave, G6DJA about North East Hampshire Raynet. Contact Andy, G4XYW on 01344 761184 for further information. Worthing and District Amateur Radio Club gathers to make final plans for the Hobbies Exhibition at the Assembly Hall, Worthing. Contact G4GPX on 01903 753893 for details. Meetings for Thursday the 11th of April: Echelford Amateur Radio Society has its Annual General Meeting. For more details telephone 01344 843472. Edgware and District Radio Society gathers for a talk entitled 'Experiences in Amateur Radio Retailing' by Chris Taylor. For more information contact Stephen, G0PQB on 0181 953 2164. Mid Sussex Amateur Radio Society has a surplus equipment sale. For further details contact Mike, G0GNV on 01444 241407. Reading and District Amateur Radio Club has an MX0AAA on-the-air evening. Details from Peter, G0PUB on 01734 617388. Southgate Amateur Radio Club has a surplus equipment sale. For details telephone 01707 850146. Shefford and District Amateur Radio Society has a talk entitled 'Uni Sat Satellite Television' by John Reynolds. Details from Derek, G4JLP on 01462 851722. Three Counties Amateur Radio Club meets to make preparations for its Annual General Meeting. Telephone 01428 606298 for details. Meetings for Friday the 12th of April: Dunstable Downs Radio Club meets for a talk entitled 'Cable Tel' by George Carr. More details from Paul, G7TSJ on 01582 861936. Itchen Valley Amateur Radio Club meets for a talk entitled 'Somerset Range of Kits' by Tim, G3PCJ. For details contact Sheila, G0VNI on 01703 813827. Maidstone YMCA Amateur Radio Society has an RAE talk on Measurements by Keith, G4YTU. For details telephone Graham, G4AXD on 01622 729462. Silverthorn Radio Club meets to discuss the PW QRP contest and the 'club camp'. Telephone 0181 505 1871 for further details. NEWS FOR THE SOUTH WEST Meeting for Sunday the 7th of April: Flight Refuelling Amateur Radio Society has an open evening. For details telephone 01425 653404. Meeting for Tuesday the 9th of April: Salisbury Amateur Radio Club has a planning session for International Marconi Day. Telephone 01722 329398 for more details. Meeting for Wednesday the 10th of April: South Bristol Amateur Radio Club has a computer activity evening. Telephone 01275 834282 for details. Meetings for Thursday the 11th of April: Bristol Amateur Radio Club has a computers and packet evening. For further details telephone 0117 9654886. Swindon and District Amateur Radio Club has a nostalgia evening. Contact Den, G7PDV on 01793 822705 for further information. Yeovil Amateur Radio Club meets for a talk entitled 'HF DXing' by G3KZR. Further details from Peter, G3CQR on 01935 813054. NEWS FOR EAST ANGLIA Meeting for Wednesday the 10th of April: Norfolk Amateur Radio Club has an on-the-air evening. For details contact Mike, G4EOL on 01603 789792. NEWS FOR THE MIDLANDS Meeting for Monday the 8th of April: Stratford upon Avon and District Radio Society has its Annual General Meeting. For further details telephone 01789 773286. Meetings for Tuesday the 9th of April: Bromsgrove Amateur Radio Society meets for a talk about RadCom's 'In Practice' column. For more details call Barry, G0TPG on 01527 542266. Loughborough and District Amateur Radio Club has an on-the-air evening. For details contact Alan, G0PHT on 01509 231289. Mid-Warwickshire Amateur Radio Society pays a visit to BBC Engineering. Contact G8HRI on 01926 424465 for more details. Meetings for Wednesday the 10th of April: Derby and District Amateur Radio Society has a junk sale. Further information from Martin, G3SZJ on 01332 556875. Telford and District Amateur Radio Society meets for a talk by Reverend George Dobbs, G3RJV on low power operation, equipment and techniques. Further details from Paul, G2RSA on 01952 261923. Meeting for Thursday the 11th of April: Salop Amateur Radio Society has a construction competition. For further details contact Ian, G7SBD whose address is correct in the RSGB Call Book. NEWS FOR THE NORTH OF ENGLAND Meetings for Tuesday the 9th of April: Chester and District Amateur Radio Society has a talk entitled 'Experimenters Diary part 6' by Dave, G2FVA. For details call 0151 608 3229. Liverpool and District Amateur Radio Society has an on-the-air evening. Telephone 0151 722 1178 for more details. Wakefield and District Radio Society has an on-the-air evening. Details from Bob, G3WWF on 0113 282 5519. Warrington Amateur Radio Society meets for 'A Brief History of the Mersey Ferries' by Chris, G7GZB. Details from John, G0RPG on 01925 762722. Meetings for Wednesday the 10th of April: Hornsea Amateur Radio Club meets for a talk entitled 'Receiver Specifications' by G1YVL. Telephone 01964 533331 for more details. Stockport Radio Society meets for a talk by G3WFK entitled 'Fast Scan TV'. Telephone 0161 439 4952 for further details. Wirral and District Amateur Radio Club gathers for a talk by Andy, G7HUD entitled 'My PC Doesn't Fly - Why?' More Details from Bob, G4NCI on 0151 606 8989. Meeting for Thursday the 11th of April: Preston Amateur Radio Society has a quiz night. For details telephone 01772 686708. Meetings for Friday the 12th of April: East Cleveland Amateur Radio Club has a vintage radio evening. Details from Alistair, G4OLK on 01642 475671. North Ferriby Amateur Radio Society meets for a talk by Hugh, G7EDI on 'Quartz Crystals'. Contact David, G7PER on 01482 656324 for details. South Manchester Radio Club meets for an evening devoted to 'EMC Problems and their Solutions'. Telephone 0161 969 1964 for details. -- GB2RS is prepared by the Radio Society of Great Britain. Tel +44 1707 659 015 Fax +44 1707 645 105