RCA Proceedings - Fall 2021

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APRIL 1922

FALL 2021

2021 RCA TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM & AWARDS RETURNS IN VIRTUAL FORMAT NOVEMBER 20

2021 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM TO

CELEBRATE CENTENNIAL OF 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS INSIDE: Details on the 2021 RCA Technical Symposium & Awards Program Meet the 2021 Fellow Class New 9-1-1 Center Gets a Technology Refresh Silicon Valley Dispatches: What Happens When Our Communication Networks Go Haywired?

Why Mobile Phones Can Do So Many Things

August 7-10, Anaheim, CA

Call for Speakers

APCO is looking for fresh and innovative educational sessions for APCO's Annual Conference & Expo taking place August 7-10, 2022, in Anaheim, CA. We invite you to submit a proposal to be considered for a one-hour presentation within our professional development program.

APCO welcomes submissions in the following topical areas: * Communications Center Management

* Frontline Telecommunicator

* Cutting Edge Developments

* Wellness in the Emergency Communications Center

* Cybersecurity for Public Safety Communications

* Leadership Development

* Emergency Preparedness, Response & Situational Awareness

* NG9-1-1 and Emerging Technologies * Radio and Wireless Communications Technologies

* FirstNet: Transforming the Future of Emergency Communications

Submit at APCO2022.ORG/CALL SUBMISSION OPENING DATE: October 1, 2021 SUBMISSION CLOSING DATE: December 17, 2021 FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS

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2021 BOARD LISTING PRESIDENT John Facella P.E.* EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT Nathan "Chip" Cohen, Ph.D.* VICE PRESIDENT David P. Bart* VICE PRESIDENT/COUNSEL Chester "Barney" Scholl, Jr.* TREASURER Ronald J. Jakubowski* SECRETARY Margaret J. Lyons, PE, PMP* DIRECTORS Robert Balais Rich Berliner Ernie Blair Dr. James Breakall Charles Kirmuss Carl Mathis Bruce Mcintyre Carole Perry Don Root Paul Scutieri Dr. Julio Urbina William Waugamann Jane Winter PRESIDENTS EMERITI Steven L. Aldinger Gaetano “Tom” Amoscato Sandra Black John “Jack” Brennan Phillip M. Casciano Mercy S. Contreras Timothy Duffy Mal Gurian Carroll Hollingsworth* Bruce R. McIntyre Stan Reubenstein Anthony “Tony” Sabino, Jr. Raymond C. Trott, P.E. STAFF Amy Beckham, Executive Secretary Miki Tufto, Membership and Order Fulfillment COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS 1921 Transatlantic Test Centennial:** Tim Duffy Awards & Fellows: Bruce McIntyre Banquet: Margaret Lyons / Paul Scutieri Constitution & By-Laws: Chester “Barney” Scholl, Jr. Education: Julio Urbina Finance: Phil Casciano / Ron Jakubowski Fundraising:** Jane Winter Historical/Museums & Archives:** Carroll Hollingsworth Interview & Networking Series:** Tim Duffy Keeping RCA Vibrant:** Margaret J. Lyons, PE, PMP Marketing, Endowment Policy & Onboarding:** Open Membership: Open Nominations & Elections: Robert Balais Operations Handbook:** Bruce McIntyre Publications: David P. Bart RCA Radio Amateur Club License:** Chip Cohen RCA Regional Conferences: Ernie Blair Rocky Mountain Section:** Charles Kirmuss Scholarship Fund: Alan Spindel Sponsors:** Jane Winter / Jon Paul Beauchamp Strategic Planning:** David Bart / Chip Cohen Technical Symposium:** Jim Breakall Website:** John A. Facella, PE, C.Eng. Youth Activities: Carole Perry *Executive Committee Member **Ad Hoc Committee

THE PROCEEDINGS FALL 2021 | Volume 92, Number 2

The Radio Club of America, Inc. Honoring the Past, Committed to the Future

HEADQUARTERS OFFICE: 13570 Grove Drive #302 Maple Grove MN 55311 | (612) 405-2012 amy@radioclubofamerica.org | www.radioclubofamerica.org

CONTENTS From Your President ...............................................................................................................................................4 From the Publications Chairman ............................................................................................................................5 Special Announcement: RCA 2021 Banquet to Feature Dr. Marty Cooper ..............................................................7 2021 Technical Symposium Overview ....................................................................................................................9 2021 Technical Symposium Celebrates Centennial Of 1921 Transatlantic Tests..................................................13 2021 RCA Honors and Awards.............................................................................................................................. 14 2021 RCA Fellows Class........................................................................................................................................ 19 2021 Technical Symposium Sponsors ..................................................................................................................22 A New 9-1-1 Center with a Technology Refresh....................................................................................................23 Drones, FirstNet Data Interoperability, Computer-Aided-Dispatch, Muni-Wi-Fi Again?........................................27 Silicon Valley Dispatches: What Happens When Our Communication Networks Go HayWired?............................. 31 Why Mobile Phones Can Do So Many Things: The Invention Of The Fractal Antenna.............................................34 RCA News.............................................................................................................................................................37 Youth Activities Continue During Pandemic.......................................................................................................37 RCA Adds New Levels for Student Members......................................................................................................39 RCA and IWCE Announce 2021 Young Professional Award Recipients...............................................................40 News Items........................................................................................................................................................... 41 Japan Sets New World Record Data Transmission Speed................................................................................... 41 Updates from the Antique Wireless Association................................................................................................44 Russian Woodpecker Antenna Array Becomes a Cultural Heritage Site.............................................................45 Dr. Nathaniel Frissell Awarded NASA Research Grant........................................................................................46 FCC and GAO Studies Released About Small Business Broadband Needs......................................................... 47 ARRL, RSGB Announce Joint Events to Celebrate Centenary of Ham Radio Transatlantic Success...................49 Book Review: Covert Radio Agents, 1939-1945 by David Hebditch......................................................................50 Book Review: Cutting the Cord, The Cell Phone Has Transformed Humanity by Martin Cooper............................52 Centennial of ARRL’s 1921 Convention.................................................................................................................55 Silent Keys............................................................................................................................................................58 Special Section: Centennial Of The 1921 Transatlantic Tests...............................................................................60 Organizational Resources To Explore The 1921 Centennial Of The Transatlantic Tests..................................... 61 RCA’S Historical Resources Regarding The 1921 Transatlantic Tests................................................................64 Proceedings Articles and Publications About Station 1BCG..............................................................................65 The Transatlantic Tests......................................................................................................................................66 Legacies Of The 1921 Transatlantic Tests.........................................................................................................68 Hams Span the Atlantic on Shortwave!.............................................................................................................76 Legends Of The 1921 Transatlantic Tests..........................................................................................................79 The Story of the Transatlantics..........................................................................................................................85 Bridging the Atlantic..........................................................................................................................................93 QCWA and the 1921 Transatlantic Tests............................................................................................................98 The Beverage Antenna, 100 Years Later..........................................................................................................103 Call for Papers / Editorials .................................................................................................................................106 2021 Sponsorship Opportunities........................................................................................................................ 107 Business Directory .............................................................................................................................................108 RCA Calendar & Events ...................................................................................................................................... 110 Opportunities to Support Radio Club of America ............................................................................................... 111 Cover image courtesy Scientific American, April 1922 TECHNICAL EDITOR John S. “Jack” Belrose, Ph.D., VE2CV 811-1081 Ambleside Dr. Ottawa, ON K2B 8C8, Canada (613) 721-7587; jsbelrose@gmail.com EDITORIAL DIRECTOR David P. Bart 8512 Kedvale Ave. Skokie, IL 60076 (847) 542-9873; jbart1964@gmail.com

ADVERTISING CONTACT Amy Beckham (612) 430-6995; Amy@radioclubofAmerica.org PRODUCTION Sapphyre Group PROCEEDINGS SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR Nathan “Chip” Cohen, Ph.D.

FROM YOUR PRESIDENT Greetings to all our RCA Members!

I hope you will enjoy this edition of the RCA Proceedings; it is one of the largest ones we have had recently, thanks to the efforts of VP David Bart, his Publications Committee, and Sapphyre Group.

the tireless efforts of President Emeritus Tim Duffy, and his group of moderators, including our own Vice President Counsel Barney Scholl, every one of these events was interesting, and attendance continues to rise! They are archived on the RCA You Tube channel if you missed one.

The RCA Officer and Director Elections have closed, and we will be announcing the results. Thanks to all the members who voted in this election, and had the tough task of choosing among many great candidates. A strong and experienced Board of Directors is necessary to continue moving the Club forward. Along this line, earlier in the year the Board added Attorney Ed Riley as VP Vice Counsel; Ed brings patent and trademark expertise. Ed will formally run for his position in the fall of 2022.

We started the year with an ambitious agenda to improve the services and products we offer to RCA members. We reached out to all of our members in two surveys (thanks to Director Don Root and RCA Member Keith Kaczmarek), and also in a number of focus groups with younger members. We learned that there was interest in getting more wireless education, in having mentoring available to younger members (or in being a mentor), and some members would pay an additional amount for printed versions of the Proceedings. Our committees are working on all of these initiatives, and several more.

We continue our efforts to recruit and spotlight younger people and students, who represent the future of wireless and RCA. Together with IWCE, we awarded four Young Professionals Awards at the IWCE trade show. In a first time ever, 75% were women. This year’s Technical Symposium will feature Audrey McElroy as our Youth Presenter.

Maggie Carothers Lynch The RCA website also includes a Member Spotlight on one of our Young Professional Awardees, Maggie Carothers Lynch. Maggie is the CEO of Royal Communications, a company that specializes in selling, installing, and maintaining HF SSB equipment for governments and military. Somehow she juggles her company and a young family!

Despite COVID, we wanted to see our members in a live setting again. As a result, we attended more live events than in the past pandemic year. In addition to our usual APCO cocktail reception and our IWCE breakfast, we attended the Utilities Technology Council show, and several amateur radio events.

Next year we hope to attend even more physical events, so our members can network. RCA logo masks were available to our booth workers, and we still have some available on our Website for RCA members.

Unfortunately, it was with great reluctance that the Banquet Committee, and then the full Board, decided to convert our 2021 Technical Symposium and Banquet to a virtual event this year. We understand that Denver area hospitals are at capacity with COVID cases, so it appears we made the right decision, although it was disappointing all around. Regardless, we have a great lineup of Technical Symposium speakers for Saturday November 20th, thanks to the event Chair Dr. Jim Breakall. We have a nominal charge for the Tech Symposium, but the Awards Presentation is available to all at no charge.

You must register for these events on the RCA website.

Marty Cooper, inventor of the cell phone, will still be our keynote speaker at the Awards Presentation, thanks to efforts of President Emeritus Mercy Contreras. Marty has very generously offered to provide some autographed copies of his new book “Cutting the Cord”. We are working on the details to allow RCA members to purchase these books.

Further improvements were made to our student Scholarship program, thanks to the hard work by Chair Alan Spindel and Vice Chair Barney Scholl. That work included creating a new Young Achiever Educational Grant. The first award was made to Audrey McElroy.

We have been continuing to improve and update the RCA website. Most of the earlier content is now posted, but often in easier ways of access. For example, in Quick Links, under the ‘World of Wireless’ are three categories of interesting fun things, such as wireless museums.

Another of RCA’s initiatives is preserving the past. Last year under President Emeritus Carroll Hollingsworth, we celebrated the 100th anniversary of the first commercial broadcast radio station in the U.S., KDKA. This year, we are celebrating another milestone: The Centennial of the Transatlantic Tests

by RCA radio amateurs. This is an important event that I would encourage all members to participate. Even if you are not a radio amateur, if you have a short wave receiver, you can listen in and obtain a certificate. Thanks to the efforts of President Emeritus Tim Duffy and Executive VP Dr. Chip Cohen, RCA is holding an on-the-air event on November 13th for any radio amateur, and also short wave listeners. Additional

Dr. Marty Cooper

In 2022, we plan to have a live Technical Symposium and Banquet in Atlanta, with the added option of attending in person or virtually.

We have continued our monthly virtual Zoom Networking or Interview Series, begun at the direction of President Emeritus Carroll Hollingsworth last year because of COVID. Thanks to

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events are being held in December with other organizations.

For example, EVP Dr. Chip Cohen and myself will be participating on December 10th in Connecticut to simulate the first transmission from station 1BCG to Scotland 100 years ago, which proved that modest equipment could span the Atlantic Ocean. Additional information is in the articles in this Proceedings and our website.

indicative of that effort. SSPI has agreed to participate in one of RCA’s Interview series next year.

All of these efforts can use your help. Any RCA member is welcome to notify a committee chair, or our Executive Secretary Amy Beckham, of their interest to work on any of our committees (as listed on the website).

Finally, I wish to thank the tireless efforts of Amy and the Sapphyre staff, for working so long and hard on the many initiatives that we undertook this year. Sapphyre is the fuel that keeps RCA moving forward!

RCA continues to expand our reach to other wireless vertical industries, and the partnerships with the Space and Satellite Professionals International (SPPI) signed last year, and the Utilities Technology Council (UTC) signed this year, are

I wish all of our members a Happy Thanksgiving, a joyous holiday season, and a Happy New Year!

JOHN FACELLA, President The Radio Club of America, Inc.

FROM THE PUBLICATIONS CHAIRMAN This issue of the Proceedings brings you the latest information about RCA’s upcoming VIRTUAL 2021 Awards Banquet and Technical Symposium. Hosted jointly by John Facella, Dr. Nathan “Chip” Cohen, and David Bart, the 2021 awards program will showcase RCA’s honorees and the 2021 class of RCA Fellows.

• Our Awards Banquet Keynote Speaker this year will be Dr. Marty Cooper, retired from Motorola and other companies and the inventor of the Motorola portable cell phone (see related announcement). He leads an all-star lineup of incredible award recipients and new RCA fellows.

• We are also honored to meet this year’s recipient of the the Jay Kitchen Leadership Award, Dale N. Hatfield.

Congratulaions to

Mr. Hatfield and all the other award recipients and the new class of RCA Fellows.

• Our 2021 VIRTUAL Technical Symposium provides a full day of presentations on wireless and broadcast topics, with a full schedule included on the RCA website and in this issue of the Proceedings. The participants are invited to interact with the presenters and event sponsors throughout the day.

Congratulations to everyone who is celebrating the centennial of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests in November and December. These tests are extremely important milestones in radio history.

This issue of the Proceedings includes a special section with information about the 1921 tests with information about the original participants, legacies of the tests, and reprints of several articles containing information about the conduct and results of the tests.

A number of other organizations are also celebrating the centennial, and we welcome our members to explore those other events.

I remind our members to download prior issues of the Proceedings, which include coverage of our former award recipients and significant related content. Biographical information for our current award recipients and new RCA Fellows are included in this issue. Complete information about the Technical Symposium also is presented.

Congratulations to all of RCA’s members for their continuing successes. We invite each of you to contribute articles, news stories, and ideas for future content.

We also welcome your comments, recommendations, and suggestions on ways to further improve the Proceedings.

We look forward to seeing all of you online this November.

DAVID BART, KB9YPD Editorial Director and Chairman RCA Publications Committee

Dale N. Hatfield

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Register Today!

2021 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM AND AWARDS PRESENTATION

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20 | VIRTUAL Featuring Keynote Speaker Dr. Marty Cooper, one of Time magazine's “100 Best Inventors in History.”

REASONS TO ATTEND THE RCA BANQUET AND TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM 1

Cutting edge technical learning

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Presentations on a wide variety of wireless topics, from emerging technology to historical aspects, make this a fascinating and educational event.

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Strengthen your network

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Honor the distinguished and deserving

Help develop the future workforce by supporting RCA’s youth efforts, and learn from this year’s Young Achiever Award winner.

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Can you feel the energy?

RCA continues to build on the momentum from last year, re- cruiting new members and developing strategic partnerships with other organizations. Be a part of the excitement and help us shape the organization as we continue our vibrancy long into the future.

The Radio Club of America is the oldest, most prestigious group of wireless professionals in the world. Make the most of your membership by 3 connecting with old friends and developing new contacts.

Register for the 2021 Technical Symposium and Awards Presentation at radioclubofamerica.org.

Join us to celebrate the people who invent, create, inspire and collaborate to create the products, services, and companies that make this industry one of a kind.

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Support the next generation

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SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT RCA’S 2021 VIRTUAL AWARDS PROGRAM TO FEATURE DR. MARTY COOPER The Radio Club of America (RCA) is thrilled to announce that Dr. Martin “Marty” Cooper will be featured at the 2021 banquet and awards ceremony. Dr. Cooper is a recipient of numerous awards including the Radio Club of America’s Fred Link Award and its Lifetime Achievement Award. Among his many honors, he is an IEEE Centennial Medalist, Marconi Prize recipient, IEEE Eta Kappa Nu Eminent Member, and Charles Draper Prize recipient from the National Academy of Engineering. He has been inducted into the Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame and Wireless History Foundation’s Wireless Hall of Fame. He is a lifetime member of the IEEE, was president of its Vehicular Technology Society. In 2007, Time magazine named him one of the “100 Best Inventors in History.” He is a Prince of Asturias Laureate.

Marty Cooper with original Motorola mobile phones.

RCA’S 2021 AWARD PROGRAM

in expanding pager technology from use within a single building to use across multiple cities. He also worked to enhance the manufacture of quartz crystals used in Motorola’s radios, that later benefitted the company when it started mass-producing the first crystals used in wristwatches.

RCA’s 2021 award program will take place virtually on Saturday, November 20. We look forward to connecting with everyone online for this special celebration.

DR. MARTY COOPER

LATER YEARS

Dr. Cooper, is a pioneer in wireless communications and radio spectrum management who has eleven patents.

He invented the first handheld cellular mobile phone in 1973, led the team that developed it and brought it to market, and is considered the father of the handheld cell phone. He is also cited as the first person to make a handheld cellular phone call in public.

A serial entrepreneur, Dr. Cooper and his wife, Arlene Harris, cofounded numerous wireless technology companies. This includes Cellular Business Systems, SOS Wireless Communications, GreatCall, and ArrayComm. He is currently chairman of Dyna LLC and a member of the FCC’s Technological Advisory Council.

He was born in Chicago and graduated from Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). He served as a submarine officer during the Korean War, later returning to IIT and earning his master’s degree in electrical engineering, and also receiving an honorary doctorate degree. He currently serves on the university’s board of trustees.

Dr. Cooper started his career at Cooper Teletype Corporation and then joined Motorola, Inc. as a senior development engineer in the mobile equipment group.

He worked at Motorola for the next 29 years, rising to Vice President and Corporate Director of Research and Development. He was responsible for building and managing Motorola’s paging and cellular businesses. He also led the creation of trunked mobile radio, certain types of oscillators, liquid crystal displays, piezo-electric components, Motorola AM stereo technology and various mobile and portable product lines. He was instrumental

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Mobile phone evolution. (Courtesy Evolution of Mobile Phones, Misstaylorknight Timeline)

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COOPER’S LAW

THE FIRST HANDHELD MOBILE PHONE

“Cooper’s Law” addresses the efficiency of voice/data communications over the radio spectrum. He found that the ability to transmit different radio communications simultaneously and in the same place has grown at the same pace since Guglielmo Marconi’s first transmissions of wireless telegraphy at the end of the 19th century. This led Dr. Cooper to formulate the Law of Spectral Efficiency, otherwise known as Cooper’s Law. This law states that the maximum number of voice conversations or equivalent data transactions that can be conducted in all of the useful radio spectrum over a given area doubles every 30 months.

Inspired by Dick Tracy’s wrist radio in the Sunday newspaper cartoons, Dr. Cooper believed from the beginning that the cellular phone should be a “personal telephone – something that would represent an individual so you could assign a number; not to a place, not to a desk, not to a home, but to a person.” Motorola invested $100 million between 1973 and 1993 bringing the product to market before any revenues were realized. The original handset, the DynaTAC 8000x (DYNamic Adaptive Total Area Coverage) weighed 2.5 pounds (1.1 kg) largely due to the battery. It measured 10 inches (25 cm) long and was dubbed “the brick” or “the shoe” phone and had only 30 minutes of talk time before requiring a 10-hour recharge. Within ten years, the size and weight reduced by half.

Today, the number of radio signals in the world that can be simultaneously sent without interfering with each other exceeds one trillion. This is based on calculations involving effective signal strength and how much today’s technology has split up the electromagnetic spectrum. The partitioning of the spectrum in ever finer degrees is one reason why a roomful of people can now simultaneously use their mobile phones, Bluetooth headsets, WiFi laptops, etc., without their signals interfering with one other.

Cooper’s Law implies that wireless Internet connections will reach ever more people at ever greater speeds until, theoretically, everyone is able to use the full radio spectrum without interfering with anyone else.

On April 3, 1973, Cooper famously demonstrated two working phones to the media and to passers-by prior to walking into a scheduled press conference at the New York City Hilton in midtown Manhattan. Standing on Sixth Avenue near the Hilton, Cooper made the first handheld cellular phone call in public from the prototype DynaTAC. Reporters and onlookers watched as Cooper dialed the number of his chief competitor, Mr. Joel S. Engel at AT&T. “Joel, this is Marty. I’m calling you from a cell phone, a real handheld portable cell phone.” That public demonstration landed the DynaTAC on the July 1973 cover of Popular Science magazine. As Cooper recalls from the experience: “I made numerous calls, including one where I crossed the street while talking to a New York radio reporter – probably one of the most dangerous things I have ever done in my life.”

CUTTING THE CORD In January 2021, Dr. Cooper published Cutting the Cord: The Cell Phone Has Transformed Humanity. The book/ memoir offers an intimate and fascinating account of the cell phone story. It includes lessons about the keys to innovation, how to manage it, failure and why it is important to innovation, and how to inspire others. Dr. Cooper offers readers his life’s lessons, gleaned from his unique perspectives derived from many years of leading dreamers who are dedicated to making the future a reality.

Copies of Dr. Cooper’s book will be available to Radio Club of America members at the RCA Banquet.

Report of the public demonstration of the DynaTAC.

Register today!

The Radio Club of America looks forward to our virtual ceremony on November 20 where we’ll celebrate Dr. Cooper and his lifetime of achievement.

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2021 RCA TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 20 | VIRTUAL The 2021 Technical Symposium this year will be VIRTUAL on Saturday, November 20. Topics and speakers are finalized and available on the Radio Club of America website. We have presenters in many of the areas of wireless technology including antennas, broadband, broadcast, cellular, land mobile radio, military, satellite, and wireless history related technologies.

smaller and eventually miniature circuits, and perfected improved techniques for sending both voice and data transmissions. These tests set the table for many later technological developments in radio that are still applied in international government broadcasting and by private domestic stations, air traffic control, utility stations not intended for the general public, amateur radio, time-signal and radio clock stations. Other sporadic or non-traditional users of the shortwave bands also include clandestine and numbers stations, unlicensed two way radio activity, pirate radio broadcasting, over-the-horizon radar, and ionospheric heaters used for scientific experimentation.

We are featuring a panel highlighting the centennial of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests made by RCA and ARRL members. Once the 1921 Transatlantic Tests proved that large distances could be spanned with very modest wireless equipment, a new era of experimentation and innovation began in wireless. These tests laid the foundation for viable commercial and amateur use of the shorter-wave radio bands under 200 meters. The success of these tests immediately rendered the huge, largescale, longer-wave broadcasting stations obsolete. Other inventors over the next 100 years worked on ever higher frequency equipment, perfected antenna technology,

Please see the website for details. If you have questions or suggestions or ideas, please email info@radioclubofamerica.org.

Our live streaming during the pandemic has been very well received, and we intend to provide another wonderful live stream experience again in 2021, using the Facebook Live platform.

2021 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM HOST Prof. Jim Breakall, WA3FET, received B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Penn State University and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Applied Physics from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, and has over 45 years of experience in numerical electromagnetics and antennas. He was a Project Engineer at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA, and an Associate Professor at the Naval Postgraduate School (NPGS), Monterey, CA. Presently he is a Full Professor of Electrical Engineering at Penn State.

and the Kinstar low profile AM broadcast antenna. He (electrical) and Tim Duffy (mechanical) designed the very popular Ham Radio Skyhawk Yagi antenna, and he is the inventor of the Optimized Wideband Antenna (OWA).

Dr. Breakall is also a life senior member of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society, IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, Eta Kappa Nu, International Union of Radio Science Commission B, IEEE Wave Propagation and Standards Committee, has been an Associate Editor for the Radio Science journal, and served as an Arecibo Observatory Users and Scientific Advising Committee Member.

He has been a frequent speaker at the Dayton Hamvention Antenna Forum and has built two major contest superstations, K3CR and KC3R, near Penn State, and WP3R, on his farm in Puerto Rico near the big Arecibo dish. He has graduated numerous graduate students and received many awards over the years.

Dr. Breakall began his career as a graduate student at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico working on antenna analysis and radar probing of the ionosphere.

At LLNL, he and his group worked on the development of the Numerical Electromagnetics Code (NEC), the first sophisticated antenna modeling program. Other significant projects that he has worked on were the designs of the HAARP facility in Alaska, both HF facilities at Arecibo,

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In 2017, Dr. Breakall was awarded the prestigious Sarnoff Citation from the RCA. He was elected as a Director to the Board in 2018 and 2020 and is the Co-Chairman of the 2020 and Chairman of the 2021 Technical Symposium.

He also serves on the RCA Scholarship Committee.

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WELCOME NEW RCA MEMBERS! Stanley E Dillon, K4RCA

Becky Neugent

Iggy Bragado

Khalid Parvez, AP2KD

Ellen O O’hara

Donald S Brant, Jr

Bobby Samuel

Ben L Ramler, K0BLR

Bill Brown

Gary Campbell

Ken J Rehbehn, KC3PNB

Frank Danna III

Joseph (Sonny) Delio

Daniel M Small

Mahbub Hoque

Mark J Dennis

Travis A Smith, KN4QDE

Michael Kalter

Robert W Denny, N3BD

Ira Wiesenfeld

Jay Schwartz

Walter Grosser, W2TE

Dagfinn Josvoll

Sandra Wendelken

Frank N Haas, KB4T

William R Semethy, K3YEB

Steve Wystrach

Chip Hood, KM4AF

Richard C Ferguson

Jack Mrozak, K2CTH

Curtis W Johnson

Joseph H March

Andrew Husley, KG4HBP

Lee M Lemoine, N3LEE

William C Mims

Mark E Lewis, AG6CU

Calvin T Morton

John Burningham, W2XAB, WQON496

Matthew J McKenna, WL7MN

Francis Nay

Dave Kaun, N9KMY Robert P Smith, N3FTU

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RCA’S 2020 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM AND AWARDS VIDEOS ARE AVAILABLE ON

RCA's YOUTUBE CHANNEL

The Radio Club of America’s (RCA) 2020 Technical Symposium and Awards Banquet were held virtually on Saturday, November 21. The Technical Symposium included a record breaking 11 presentations. Some celebrated the centennial of radio station KDKA’s historic broadcasts, others addressed broadcast themes and other wireless technical subjects.

These events were recorded, and the videos are available on RCA’s YouTube channel, which can be accessed from the RCA Website, along with many other videos from prior Technical Symposiums as well as other RCA events. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive notifications when new content is uploaded.

RCA’s YouTube Channel.

THE 2020 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM VIDEOS INCLUDE: • Recent Progress in Observing Large Scale Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances Using Amateur Radio — Dr. Nathaniel Frissell

• Near Field Drone Measurements of Broadcast Antennas — Nicole Starrett

• The KDKA Tower — Mike Rhodes

• History of Westinghouse Radio and TV Manufacturing on the 100th Anniversary of KDKA — Mike Molnar

• KDKA Representative Presentations — Jim Graci & Chris Hudak

• Rail Wireless Communications – What’s Next? — Umberto Malesci

• Progress Report on RCA’s Youth Initiatives

• Next Gen Interactive TV & Advanced Emergency Alerting and Informing — Fred Baumgartner

• Stranger Things — Frances Bonte (youth presenter) • Modern AM Modulation Techniques — Geoff Mendenhall

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RCA’S 2021 TECHNICAL SYMPOSIUM WILL CELEBRATE

CENTENNIAL OF 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS RCA’s annual Technical Symposium will return on Saturday, November 20, 2021. The full schedule is included in this issue of the Proceedings. The topics reflect the broad shift in the radio and wireless industry and will bring together a range of speakers and panelists who are at the forefront of change.

We will also celebrate the centennial of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests made by RCA and ARRL members.

These tests laid the foundation for viable commercial and amateur use of the shorter-wave radio bands under 200 meters. This milestone accomplishment immediately rendered the huge, large-scale, longer-wave broadcasting stations obsolete. It set the table for many later technological developments in short wave (HF or high frequency) radio that are applied in international government broadcasting and by private domestic stations, air traffic control, utility stations not intended for the general public, amateur radio, time-signal and radio clock stations. Other sporadic or non-traditional users of the shortwave bands also include clandestine and numbers stations, unlicensed two way radio activity, pirate radio broadcasting, over-the-horizon radar, and ionospheric heaters used for scientific experimentation.

Once the 1921 Transatlantic Tests proved that large distances could be spanned with very modest wireless equipment, a new period of experimentation and innovation began in wireless. Inventors such as Major Edwin Armstrong (a member of the Radio Club of America) perfected superregenerative and superhetrodyne receivers, and frequency modulation. Other inventors over the next 100 years worked on ever higher frequency equipment, perfected antenna technology, smaller and eventually miniature circuits, and perfected improved

1BCG Commemorative Monument in Greenwich Connecticut.

techniques for sending both voice and data transmissions.

One of the results today is the proliferation of smart phones, Bluetooth devices, wireless routers to give us Internet access, and many other technologies that we take for granted, which can be traced back to the 1921 Transatlantic Tests.

DISPLAY YOUR RCA MEMBERSHIP WITH OUR CUSTOMIZABLE MEMBER PINS! Wear it on its own, or add Life Member, Senior Member, or Fellow bars to reflect your unique membership distinctions.

• $9.95 for the standard pin • $3 per bar for Life Member, Senior Member, and Fellow bars ORDER AT: https://bit.ly/3eqX64O Prices include shipping & handling.

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2021 HONORS & AWARDS THE JAY KITCHEN LEADERSHIP AWARD Dale N. Hatfield — In recognition of achievement of a high level of success leading a wireless association.

Dale N. Hatfield is currently Spectrum Policy Initiative Co-director and Distinguished Advisor at the Silicon Flatirons Center for Law, Technology, and Entrepreneurship at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The Silicon Flatirons Center (SFC) was founded in 1999 and conducts research and sponsors conferences and other gatherings devoted to the field of information and communications technology (ICT). It provides a forum for entrepreneurs, lawyers, other industry professionals and policymakers to discuss the changing technologies in ICT as well as the new business models and the relevant policy and legal issues associated with them. In his role as Adjunct Professor in the Technology, Cybersecurity and Policy Programn (TCP) at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Hatfield teaches and gives lectures relating to telecommunications technology, policy and regulation in both national and international venues. In recent years he has focused much of his attention on spectrum management.

He no longer engages in telecommunications consulting except on a pro bono basis. He is currently serving on the FCC’s Technology Advisory Council (TAC) and on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC). Hatfield served as the founding Executive Director of the Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group (BITAG), a multi-stakeholder group whose mission is to bring together engineers and technical experts to develop consensus on broadband network management practices and related technical issues that can affect users’ Internet experience.

Mr. Hatfield has had sixty years of experience in the telecommunications field both in the public and private sectors. His government roles have included senior policymaking positions at the Office of Telecommunications Policy in the Executive Office of the President, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce. His last position in government was Chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology at the FCC. In the private sector, he established a successful multidisciplinary telecommunications consulting firm and served as a director on the boards of several publicly traded and privately held companies in the telecommunications field.

In addition, in the academic sphere, he was the founding director of a graduate level telecommunications program at the University of Denver and, during his most recent three-year stay in Washington, DC, he taught a graduate course in telecommunications technology at Georgetown University. From July, 2001 until his retirement in May 2017, Mr. Hatfield served on the Board of Directors of Crown Castle International (CCI), a telecommunications company whose stock is traded on the NYSE.

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FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 14

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2021 HONORS & AWARDS JERRY B. MINTER AWARD Don Hume ­— For significant contributions to the electronics art through innovation in instrumentation, avionics, and electronics.

Don Hume is a pioneer in the areas of infrared motion detection and communication technology. His interest in electronics began early and he received his amateur radio license at age 14. After receiving a BSEE from the University of Colorado in 1969, he began his career in the aerospace industry.

He founded Colorado Electro-Optics in 1973 as a side venture to his full-time engineering job. In 1975, Colorado Electro-Optics became his full-time occupation, developing and manufacturing sensor products for the security industry.

Focusing on passive infrared technology, the company developed a range of motion sensor products based on its proprietary sensor array technology. The company grew rapidly and became a division of Linear Corporation in 1978. It remained a vertically integrated operating division including development, manufacturing, and marketing of its products.

For use in IR motion sensors, the company pioneered the use of multi-element array technology, polyethylene IR optics, and silicon-based IR filters. Colorado Electro-Optics was first to introduce IR motion-controlled lights, and the integration of battery powered wireless IR motion sensor products.

In 1986, Don Hume and Steve Koonce co-founded Inovonics Wireless Corporation. The company developed and manufactured on-site signal and control products utilizing the 902-928 MHz ISM band for use in the United States and similar license-free spectrum in many international markets. The primary Inovonics labeled products focused on needs in commercial security, multi-family submetering and senior care. Many other applications and markets are served

by Inovonics Wireless products on an OEM basis.

Three generations of technology evolution resulted in the EchoStream network, a robust proprietary frequency hopping spread spectrum communications platform. Inovonics Wireless was purchased by Roper Industries in 2005 and remains a growing operating unit. Don retired in 2008.

Now, 35 years after its founding, the company’s products have received global acceptance, and the company is recognized as a leader in commercial wireless applications.

Don still maintains an active interest in communication technology and entrepreneurial endeavors.

THE VIVIAN CARR AWARD Ellen O’Hara — In recognition of an outstanding woman’s achievements in the wireless industry.

Ellen O’Hara has held senior management and C-suite level positions at multiple companies manufacturing land mobile radio products. She was president, CEO, and later chairman of Zetron, a company that makes public safety dispatch consoles. She was also chairman of iCERT, an industry council for public safety.

She served as a member of the board of directors of EF Johnson (now a JVC Kenwood company) and held marketing and business development positions at Motorola and GE land mobile radio.

Zetron, Inc. designs, manufactures and sells radio dispatch consoles and E911 Call Taking equipment for command and control operations in public safety, utilities, transportation, and industrial markets. Zetron is an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of JVC Kenwood in Japan. Under Ms. O’Hara, Zetron updated all three of its core platforms to IP technology, grew its international business from offices located in Brisbane, Australia and Basingstoke, England, and substantially increased its share of the large systems market in North America.

Ms. O’hara has a successful track record in growing revenues, profitability, and market share in a high-tech, competitive business environment. She is a recognized leader in operational roles managing P&L, product development, marketing, engineering and supply chain organizations. Her specialties include general management, product operations, product marketing and sales with areas of expertise in engineering and manufacturing management, strategic planning, program management, and brand management.

Ms. O’Hara received a BA from Mount Holyoke College and attended the University of East Anglia; she received an MBA from Harvard University.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 15

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2021 HONORS & AWARDS THE RALPH BATCHER MEMORIAL AWARD Robert Hobday — For significant work in preserving the history of radio and electronic communications.

Bob Hobday, N2EVG, has maintained a life-long fascination with radio and electronics since building his first homemade crystal set and then a one tube radio when he was 12. Mr. Hobday graduated from Union College with a BA in Industrial Administration in 1965.

He worked for Rochester Gas and Electric in the Pricing and Regulatory Department, eventually rising to Manager of Pricing, and subsequently to Manager of Marketing. In 1998, he led one of two teams assigned the responsibility of creating Energetix Inc., a new unregulated subsidiary of RG&E. He retired from Energetix as Managing Director in 2007 and created the consulting firm of Robert Hobday Consultants.

Mr. Hobday maintains a lifelong interest in electronics and radio. He holds a General Class license, N2EVG and has been a member of the Rochester Amateur Radio Association since 1984, serving as secretary, vice president, president, and as a member of the board. He joined the Antique Wireless Association (AWA) in 1984 and became fully immersed in AWA’s management when he was elected to the board of trustees in 2009 and became deputy director, charged with responsibilities for overseeing day-to-day operations of AWA, the AWA Museum, and their financial affairs. He was elected AWA Director in 2020 and in 2021 was elected President and Chairman of the Board.

Mr. Hobday with the other AWA leaders have quadrupled the AWA Museum’s collection; acquired a four-building, five-acre campus; developed the Museum’s 7,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space, and are working toward further expansion in 2022. A future phase of the Museum development will include an auditorium and theater.Mr. Hobday negotiated a partnership agreement with Radio Club of America (RCA) for AWA to maintain and preserve RCA’s historical archive.

He also negotiated a joint working agreement with the Collins Collectors Association to create the Collins Radio Heritage Group that cooperatively works to preserve Collins Radio history and artifacts. That working cooperation resulted in the rescue of the control room and a Collins 821A 250,000 watt transmitter from the Voice of America Station in Delano, California, where it was scheduled to be sold for scrap. The CCA/AWA team dismantled the control room and transmitter and shipped 19 tons of artifacts to the AWA Museum in Bloomfield, New York. The control room and major pieces of the transmitter are now on display

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 16

in the Museum. The Delano Station was dedicated in honor of Jack Poppele, a longtime member of RCA. Mr. Hobday has been a member of RCA since 2009 and was named as a Fellow in 2017 and awarded RCA’s Jack Poppele Award in 2017. He received the AWA Director’s Award in 2011 and again in 2014. In May 2016, the Finger Lakes Visitors Connection, the official tourism agency for Ontario County, New York, presented Mr. Hobday with a 2016 Legacy Award.

RCA PRESIDENT’S AWARD Alan Spindel — For service and dedication to the Radio Club of America.

Alan Spindel, AG4WK, is the senior Electrical Engineer for Global HF in West Palm Beach, FL. He develops hardware and firmware for digital HF radio data modems. Mr. Spindel trained at the University of Tennessee and has over twenty years of professional experience in the telecom industry. He has worked as a broadcaster, professional tower climber, design engineer, and engineering manager. As the principal systems engineer of Mobile Marine Radio/Intraradio/ShipCom LLC, Mr. Spindel automated the operation of one of the world’s largest commercial HF radio facilities. He was the principal engineer for the deployment of a nationwide HF radio emergency network for Public Safety Access Points (PSAPS). As a senior project manager for Smartower Systems he developed active cell tower monitoring systems.

He has served as the CTO of ITG since 2005, designing interoperable radio system hardware for public safety and military customers. He is active in volunteer emergency communications and serves as the Rutherford County, Tennessee, ARES Net Manager for well over a decade.

Mr. Spindel is chair of the Radio Club of America (RCA) Scholarship Committee, and he was named an RCA Fellow in 2019. He spearheaded the complete historical research, analysis, and summary of RCA’s decades-old scholarship program. This was the first time in many years that RCA had performed a complete view of these activities. He then used that information to restructure and consolidate most of the smaller funds into a single operating scholarship fund, the Captain Bill Finch RCA-Legacy Scholarship Fund, while coordinating with the Finch family and various RCA board members. He is also instrumental in implementing the New Century Fund, currently being launched.

www.radioclubofamerica.org

RCA PRESIDENT’S AWARD Tim Duffy — For dedicated service to the Radio Club of America.

Tim Duffy, K3LR, is the CEO of DX Engineering in Tallmadge, Ohio, and the chief engineer and owner of the K3LR Contest Super Station (https://www.k3lr. com) in West Middlesex, Pennsylvania.

Mr. Duffy is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University and was licensed in 1972. An active Amateur Radio contest operator for 49 years. He has hosted over 145 different operators as part of the K3LR multi-op DX contest efforts and the K3LR team has completed over 800,000 QSOs. Mr. Duffy was a member of the team representing the U.S.A. on five different occasions in the World RadioSport Team Championships (WRTC).

Mr. Duffy served on the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Contest Advisory Committee, and was a former chairperson. Tim serves on the CQ Worlwide Contest Committee (30 years). He is a founding member and current President of the North Coast Contesters. He founded and is the chairman of Contest University. He is also the moderator for the Hamvention Antenna Forum, co-coordinator of the Contest Super Suite, Top Band Dinner and the Dayton Contest Dinner for the past 28 years.

Mr. Duffy was the ARRL Section Manager for Western Pennsylvania in 2015 and 2016 and currently serves as a director on the ARRL Foundation Board. He also serves as president of the Mercer Count Amateur Radio Club (W3LIF), president emeritus of the Radio Club of America (RCA), chairman of the World Wide Radio Operators Foundation (WWROF). He is also active in amateur radio emergency groups such as RACES, ACS and ARES. Mr. Duffy started his career in engineering management position at a local AM and FM broadcast station while still in high school. He was engineering manager for SYGNET wireless in Youngstown, Ohio starting in 1985. He then became the chief technology officer and senior vice president at Dobson Communications Corporation (Cellular One) in 1999. In 2007, Dobson merged with AT&T, and he then served as AT&T’s executive director in the Network Planning and Engineering Group. In 2009, he left AT&T to join Stelera Wireless as its chief technology officer, where he was responsible for the company’s technology direction, subscriber product development, engineering related operations and network build out. His last two years with Stelera he served as CEO. He is now the CEO of DX Engineering.

Mr. Duffy has earned many accolades, honors and awards in Amateur Radio, including the 1998 Atlantic Division Technical Achievement Award, election to the CQ Contest Hall of Fame in 2006, 2010 Barry Goldwater Amateur Radio

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 17

Service Award, 2015 Hamvention Amateur of the Year, and the 2016 YASME Excellence Award. He is a Life member of RCA, AWA and ARRL, and became an RCA Fellow in 2010 and received the RCA President’s Award in 2015.

In 2021 he became a fellow of AWA. As President Emeritus, Tim has continued to support RCA in many ways. One of them was to host the first ever virtual RCA 2020 Technical Symposium and Awards Banquet during the pandemic.

Since then, he has held alternating virtual events every month, which allow RCA members to continue to gather and participate in events. His RCA Interview Series, open to the public, and the RCA Members Only networking events help showcase RCA to a wider audience and add value to members. He is currently the chair of the 1921 Transatlantic Test Centennial, and is working with many amateur radio organizations on commemoration activities. To that end, he will run a special “RCA QSO Party” in November 2021 for amateurs around the world able to participate, further showcasing RCA to a wide audience worldwide.

U.S. NAVY CAPTAIN GEORGE P. MCGINNIS MEMORIAL AWARD CTICM (SS) Matthew T. Zullo, USN (Ret) — For service and dedication to the advancement and preservation of U.S. Naval Cryptology, as nominated by the U.S. Naval Cryptologic Veterans Association (NCVA).

Matthew Zullo is a retired U.S. Navy master chief petty officer who has more than 35 years of experience in radio intelligence, now more commonly known as communications intelligence. He holds a Master’s Degree in Strategic Intelligence from the National Intelligence University, where he researched and wrote his thesis about the On-the-Roof Gang. He has published numerous articles about the On-the-Roof Gang in the Naval Cryptologic Veterans Association’s (NCVA) Cryptolog magazine and on social media platforms. As one of only a few experts on the subject, he has spoken at the 2009, 2011, and 2013 Cryptologic History Symposiums, and at several Navy events around the world. He attended the induction of Harry Kidder into NSA’s Cryptologic Hall of Honor and spoke about Harry Kidder at a subsequent event for the sailors of Cryptologic Warfare Group Six. He continues his research into the On-the-Roof Gang as he writes and edits his two-volume history about the group.

Mr. Zullo has extensively researched the history of the NCVA, specifically focusing on pioneering naval cryptologists that were critical to the efforts in the Pacific War with Japan. He has published On The Roof Gang (Volume 1) – Prelude to War, and On The Roof Gang (Volume 2) – War in the Pacific, which tell the story of our Cryptologic pioneers and the genesis of what is today the combined cryptologic and cyber community of the United States Navy.

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RICHARD DEMELLO AWARD

RADIO CLUB OF AMERICA YOUNG ACHIEVER’S AWARD

James Goldstein James Goldstein has more than 30 years of experience working with public safety. He began his career, after law school, working for the Department of Transportation working on government contract issues of federal and administrative proceedings. He joined a major telecommunications company in 1984 as a member of the law department working on government contract litigation. He left the law department and represented the defense piece of the company in Washington D.C. as a government lobbyist. He subsequently joined the communications group of the company working for years in lobbying Capitol Hill and the executive branch representing the company and obtaining funds for public safety. After leaving the company with 26 years of service, Mr. Goldstein joined the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) working on public safety communications issues such as the nationwide public safety broadband network (FirstNet), T-Band spectrum issue, indoor location technology issues at the FCC and sat on the CTIA public safety group working with the carriers amongst a number of issues. Mr. Goldstein also worked on transportation issues and helped create a grant program for first responders dealing with hazardous materials. He has also served as the Delaware volunteer firefighters association public safety radio consultant since 2010. Mr. Goldstein also represented the IAFC on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) SAFECOM Program which is part of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of DHS. After retiring from the IAFC, Mr. Goldstein volunteers his time working for NPSTC focusing on government relations and was actively engaged in the repeal of the T-Band auction requirement (Don’t Break Up the T-Band Act of 2020) and on 9-1-1 issues.

Audrey McElroy — For an excellent presentation by a student at the 2021 Technical Symposium Audrey McElroy is a senior in high school, having been accepted into the STEM academy as a freshman by way of an Amateur Radio video-essay. Her Extra Class callsign is KM4BUN, earned when she was 15.

She has combined her STEM Bio-tech, Physics and advanced Calculus knowledge with Amateur Radio to develop many experiments such as decoding the ISS SSTV transmission using her own automated satellite ground tracking station as well as developing high altitude balloon experiments that have reached the edge of space, and one that orbited the globe 4.5 times, all while maintaining periodic telemetry. She is in demand as a SME on High Altitude balloons by numerous organizations.

At the request of the Southeastern VHF Society, she published a white paper detailing her experimentation with buoyancy and high-altitude balloons that transmit telemetry via WSPR and APRS utilizing the HF bands.

She plans on attending university and pursuing a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) while continuing to work with Amateur Radio to provide hands-on practice of her academics.

Audrey is the first recipient of the RCA Young Achievers scholarship and has had the opportunity to present her experimentation at several conferences such as the American Institute of Aeronautics and Aerospace (aiaa.org) as well as several Amateur Radio virtual podcast events to a global audience.

Congratulations award winners!

Register today!

The Radio Club of America looks forward to our virtual ceremony on November 20 where we’ll celebrate Dr. Cooper and his lifetime of achievement.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 18

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2 021 FELLOW CLASS Jeffrey G. Knight For over thirty years Jeffrey G. Knight served on the IMSA Communications Committee where he was an active contributor to the advancement of wireless technologies in both public safety emergency communications and wireless fire alarm and public emergency reporting systems technologies including system design, operating procedures, national standards development, and FCC licensing.

Beginning in early 2011 he chaired the committee that was charged to update the FCC public safety frequency coordination office of IMSA. Through his leadership and vision IMSA joined with the Forestry Conservation Communications Association (FCCA) to create the nonprofit Public Safety Communications Associates (PSCA) in 2012. PSCA now provides low-cost public safety frequency coordination services to all public safety licensees in all bands and is the primary coordinator for Fire, EMS, Forestry and Special Emergency channels.

He has over forty-nine years of experience in the public safety emergency communications, fire alarm, public safety signaling and the electrical field. He has been a member of IMSA for forty years and is the current president of the New England Section of IMSA, served on the International IMSA Board of Directors, chaired the Educational Advisory Council and is a Past President of IMSA. Jeff is a registered private vocational school instructor providing continuing education programs throughout the New England area. He is the past chair of the NFPA 72 Technical Committee on Public Emergency Alarm Reporting Systems including wireless technologies and serves on NFPA 1221, Standard for the Installation, Maintenance, and Use of Emergency Services Communications Systems.

He began his career in 1981 as a Systems Engineer for the R.B. Allen Co., Inc. where he was responsible for the design, installation and project management of fire and police communication centers in all New England states.

Notable projects included the emergency communications centers in the City of Boston MA, Providence RI, and Hartford CT. He also spent nine years managing all vehicle and fixed base equipment including the DVP network for the US Postal Inspection Service for the Northeast Sector.

From 1989 to 2015 he served as the Superintendent of Communications City of Newton MA Fire Department where his responsibilities included the fire department radio

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 19

system, the city-wide telephone network fiber optic and copper cable plant, the Public Emergency Alarm Reporting System, and the city-wide telephone network. From 1989 – 2004 he managed the licensing, installation and maintenance of the MetroFire T-Band Radio System that serves thirty-four communities including the city of Boston.

Denis Marin, K6OLU Denis Marin is a Principal in Denis A. Marin Consulting. He has been involved in land mobile radio for 52 years, including working at Motorola, the Orange County, California, Sheriff’s office, and in his own consulting firm.

He retired as Manager of Program Support at the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s Communications and Technology Division, responsible for serving 130 agencies with over 27,000 subscriber radios that is currently being re-banded and upgraded to P25. He has extensive experience with SHS, UASI, PSIC, and other grant programs. He was a member of the Communications Response Team and is fully ICS 100-800 trained with COML and COMT training completed. He previous worked as a senior telecommunications engineer at Los Angeles County ISD, responsible for management of the Harris EDACS trunked simulcast countywide system.

Mr. Marin spent over 26 years with Motorola in multiple positions in the distribution revenue business, as a senior systems engineer (International Distribution Group), creator of the International Project Engineering Services Organization, manager of the Central Systems Engineering and Program Management Organization, national service liaison for major cellular systems, and as technical services manager for the Hawaii Branch, among others.

Mr. Marin also has experience serving as a reserve deputy sheriff with Los Angeles County.

He is a member of the Radio Club of America (RCA), California Public-Safety Radio Association a chapter of the Association of Public‑Safety Communications (APCO/CPRA), and a member of National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) Working Committees.

He possesses an FCC General Radio Operator license and has been an Amateur Radio operator since 1955. Mr. Marin serves as the treasurer of an RCA partner organization, GTWCA (the Government Wireless and Technology Communications Association).

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2 021 FELLOW CLASS Margie Moulin Margie Moulin began her radio career as a DJ in both country and top 40 music.

In 1991, she made the transition to public safety radio when she was hired as a 9-1-1 Telecommunicator at a center in Southern Oregon.

Through the next 15 years, she worked as a Telecommunicator, Communications Training Officer, Dispatch Supervisor, Operations Manager, and Assistant Director. In 2006, she was named as Director of the Center.

During her tenure as Director, she led the center through the consolidation of the two emergency communications centers in the County, as well as the design and build of a new facility, and is currently installing P25 Phase 2 radio infrastructure to replace the current VHF conventional system.

Margie began her membership with APCO in 1994 and has served at both the chapter and national levels. She is a member of the Oregon Chapter and served on the Oregon Chapter Executive Committee for nine years. She was elected as the Vice President of the chapter in 2005 and served as President in 2006. She continued her service to the chapter and to APCO International as the Oregon Executive Council Representative from 2009 until 2015.

In 2015, Margie was elected to serve as one of the two Western Regional Representatives on the APCO Board of Directors and remained in that position until being elected to the APCO International Executive Committee in 2018.

Margie served as President of APCO International for the 2020-2021 term, and currently serves as the Immediate Past President.

Margie has also served on numerous committees at both the Chapter and International levels. She has served as the legislative co-chair for the State of Oregon and served as a Group Leader Chair for APCO International, providing support and oversight to all of the APCO International Chapters.

Margie has earned both her Senior and Life member status with APCO International, was in the first graduating class for both the APCO RPL Certification, and the distinguished CPE Certification for APCO International.

Margie remains passionate about the 9-1-1 profession and public safety as a whole. Her husband and children are involved in public safety and service to others through law

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 20

enforcement, health services, and the military. In her spare time, Margie enjoys hiking, swimming, and spending time with family.

Jorge Saad, XE2JAS Jorge Saad is the founder and CEO of El Paso Communications (EPCOM) in El Paso, Texas, a worldwide leading distributor for wireless and security systems. He also founded Sistemas y Servicios de Comunicacion in Chihuahua, Mexico. Mr. Saad has been a member of the Radio Club of America for over twenty years. During the past forty-plus years, he created locations in North and South America that provide access to state-of-the-art communications products throughout the Spanish speaking world. In addition to marketing communications items, Mr. Saad set up training facilities to teach radio theory and practical applications.

Donald R. Whitney, K9DRW Donald Whitney is a senior communications site inspector/Auditor for HICAPS, Inc. He is responsible for inspecting dispatch centers and antenna sites, primarily for Motorola Solutions public safety customers, to ensure compliance with R-56 Specifications. He has worked in over 30 states, Canada, and South. Africa.

Previously, he spent 34 years with the Motorola Corporation as a public safety and association relationship manager, fixed data product marketing manager, technical account executive railroad/ airline market, and systems design engineer radio and data products.

Mr. Whitney made significant contributions to the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) and received the Jack Daniel Award of Distinction (2015) in recognition of exceptional accomplishments by a commercial member of APCO on a national or international level in the field of public safety communications.

He served on APCO’s Board of Directors, Executive Council, and as chair of the Commercial Advisory Council. He was awarded Life Membership and Senior Membership in APCO. He is a Life Member of the American Radio Relay League

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2 021 FELLOW CLASS (ARRL), a Life Member of the Radio Club of America (RCA), and previously held memberships in the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), and International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC).

Mr. Whitney holds numerous certifications and has volunteered with many agencies, including Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) and Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES).

He has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering Technology from Northern Illinois University with post graduate work at Motorola University and George Washington University.

Jane recently joined EAA – Experimental Aircraft Association as Director, Business Development. Prior to that she worked alongside Dr. Nathan (Chip) Cohen at Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc. for 16 years. Along with programs in the Military and Commercial sectors, Fractal was also strategic in the development of “smaller” antennas for the Boeing 787 aircraft and Commercial fleets using Air-toGround Wi-Fi technology.

Jane was a Business Unit Manager for the Electronic Systems Division of Parker Aerospace, leading teams of Hardware and Software Engineers primarily for Boeing and Airbus Commercial and Military Programs for North American and European Markets.

She previously worked as VP Sales/Program Management for CBL Systems, Raytheon. Her teams specialized in fiberbased solutions for aerospace, security, and transportation.

Jane Winter Jane is a veteran of the wireless industry with deep experience in Government, Commercial and Aerospace industries.

She has had leadership roles, managing some of the most complex and technologically advanced programs in communications technology.

Jane holds dual Bachelor of Science degrees in Electrical Engineering and Broadcast Journalism Communication from Miami University. Jane has broadcasted hockey and baseball games and is a published journalist. Jane and her husband, Rick, have two sons and live on a farm in Wisconsin.

Additional Ads for Fall 2021 Proceedings • This ad could replace the stock ad on page 21 at the end of the fellows - it could also go in the Aerogram and in an Enews • Top copy in ppt with separate components – bottom copy is one single png image

Congratulations to our new Fellows!

Support RCA With A Signed Copy of Dr. Marty Cooper’s New Book!!

Dr. Marty Cooper, a long-time RCA member and award recipient, has generously provided RCA with copies of his latest book, Cutting the Cord. His wish is that we distribute them to RCA members as we see fit, in order to raise funds for supporting the mission of our non-profit organization.

--------------------------------------------Dr. Cooper will autograph and personalize the books to the person receiving them. The details of the costs and how the books will be distributed are being worked out and will be announced on the RCA website at a future date. Please check the website for details.

Thank you to Dr. Cooper for his generous support!!

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 21

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Support RCA Youth Activities by Donating Your Frequent Flyer Miles Due to the efforts of Carole Perry, the Youth Activities Program has been very successful. During the year, Carole travels all over the country to meet with people and to speak on behalf of the program.

Almost all of the travel is at Carole’s personal expense. You can help by donating your frequent flyer miles to the Radio Club. If you would like to participate, please contact Carole Perry at wb2mgp@ gmail.com and she will assist you.

THANK YOU: 2021 PROGRAM SPONSORS The Radio Club of America Board of Directors and its members would like to thank the generous event sponsors.

Their support and contributions ensure that the Awards Program is a success and enjoyable for everyone.

Be sure to tell them that you saw their company mentioned in the Radio Club of America Awards Program.

THANK YOU 2021 DONORS • Posner-Wallace Foundation • Vivian Carr Estate • Panther Pines Consulting LLC • Carole Perry • John Swartz • Steven Shaver • John Stewart Oblak • Steve Wystrach • Alan Caldwell • Geoffrey N. Mendenhall • Paulla Shira • David Witkowski

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 22

• Motorola Solutions / Lynn Anto • AviDel Consulting / Heather Dalessandro • Netsync / Haley Glasscock • Catapult Systems / Cody Hedgpeth • Betsy Hooper • Recruiting Source International / Bianca Jackson • Stephen Jones • Sierra Digital Inc. / Raghunathan Kumar • Eric Reeder • Richard Tyler • Ernie Blair

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A NEW 9-1-1 CENTER WITH A TECHNOLOGY REFRESH

By Ernie Blair The Huntsville-Madison County 9-1-1 System (HMC 9-1-1) occupied its new home in September 2020, not a moment too soon. Organizations including NASA, the Army Material Command (AMC), the FBI, Facebook, Missile Defense Agency (MDA), Mazda-Toyota, and AeroJet Rocketdyne propelled Huntsville to the largest populated city in Alabama with a metro population of almost 400,000 people, and another 100,000 who drive in to work each day. The Huntsville-Madison County 9-1-1 Center also experienced rapid growth, leaving Alabama’s largest 9-1-1 Center bursting at the seams.

THE CENTER The Center houses a multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional concept, with seven additional Public Safety Agencies sharing space alongside the 9-1-1 calltakers. HMC 9-1-1 was one of the first such agencies to embrace this concept, with all local police, fire and EMS agencies housing their dispatchers alongside 9-1-1 calltakers.

Operating as a “combined” communications facility, the players coordinating the responders to the scene of an emergency are all located in one large operations room, only a few feet from each other and sharing the best technology available. This combined facility layout allows them to send the best combination of public safety responders accurately and expeditiously to any emergency. Additional space is available for more public safety agencies from the local universities, Redstone Arsenal, and the HMC Airport Authority.

In addition to meeting the requirement of more space, the Board recognized employee retention, employee training, and top-of-the-line equipment and technology

Height adjustable ergonomic operating consoles include built-in heating and cooling.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 23

The new Huntsville-Madison County 9-1-1 Building was designed for function and employee comfort.

as critical requirements for success. The 200+ employees from all agencies provided input into the center’s design and construction, resulting in many personal comfort improvements. The 30,000 square foot FEMA-rated facility doubles the size of the old building with additional conference rooms, including advanced multimedia and click-to-share access, expanded employee break areas, a massive operations room, and an oversized server room.

AMENITIES Social distancing was built into the construction of the operations room, the heart of the Center’s activity.

Hospital operating room air quality and air flow is provided throughout the building by ultraviolet and air scrubbing technology. Sunlight in the operations room

The Spacious Operations Center is FEMA rated for tornado protection.

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TECHNOLOGY IMPROVEMENTS The construction of a new building created an opportunity to upgrade all technology. The way people communicate, along with the ever-changing technological world, means HMC 9-1-1 is always playing catch up. Eighty-five percent of calls to HMC 9-1-1 come from cellphones and there are more and more phone apps created daily that can enhance a caller’s interaction with HMC 9-1-1.

Text-to-9-1-1 is now a reality at HMC 9-1-1, along with several new caller location platforms. Rapid SOS technology provides a more accurate call location, and when completed, “what-three-words” will routinely place a caller’s position down to a ten-foot square area.

A “quiet room” provides a place to recover from stressful calls.

was considered important to employees as the windowless, underground operations room in the old Center was lightheartedly referred to as a “dungeon”. Windows were designed into the new operations room along with ergonomic workstations and chairs. Dispatch furniture has two adjustable levels—one for keyboards and mice and a second supporting the monitors. Each level adjusts to a user’s exact specifications, moving at the touch of a button.

During a long shift, operators can move back and forth between sitting and standing positions by simply entering the numbers of their custom presets. Heaters and cooling fans are built into each station for personal temperature control.

Spacious indoor and outdoor break facilities including smoking areas, exercise room, bunk rooms for extended stays due to inclement weather, and a lighted, secure outdoor walking track were requested and delivered with the new building. Additionally, a pellet ice machine, a convenience store-style vending area, and multiple refrigerators are available for each agency. A “quiet room” is provided for calltakers and dispatchers to recover from stressful calls. HMC 9-1-1 management exceeded expectations by providing a comfortable work environment for these hardworking and dedicated employees.

Redundant generators can run the Center for weeks at a time.

The HMC 9-1-1 telephone system has a redundant “core” in another location that provides a separate telephone controller to take over in the event of a failure at the new HMC 9-1-1 Center. The two cores are connected by diverse, dedicated fiber connections to provide multiple paths connecting the primary and secondary cores. The HMC 9-1-1 telephone system was significantly upgraded during the move into the new building.

The HMC 9-1-1 center also contains the master site for the digital P25 public safety radio system that serves all HMC 9-1-1 user agencies and others in the area. This is the “brain” that controls the radio system. A secondary master site was constructed at another location in anticipation of the move from the old building to the new. This allowed almost no interruption of the radio service when physically moving the original master site equipment to the new building. As a result, we now have geo-redundant master sites that fail over to each other.

A Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network, incorporating both microwave shots and fiber optics connects the two master sites and all radio towers. It was implemented shortly after the move to the new building and provides multiple redundant microwave and fiber paths among the master sites and the various radio towers.

Reliable power quality and emergency power generation capabilities are critical to any 9-1-1 Center. HMC 9-11’s grounding, bonding and transient voltage surge suppression systems are unmatched anywhere. The Center

Sine-wave tracking surge protectors protect all electrical distribution panels.

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Grounding and bonding exceed Motorola R-56 standards.

A dedicated training room fully mimics all 9-1-1 systems and databases.

is fed from two separate commercial power feeds from two different utility substations. Two redundant 400 kVA diesel generators, each with 1800-gallon on-site storage tanks provide back-up power. Two UPS systems in an A/B configuration provide separate uninterruptible sources for devices with dual power supplies.

A separate training room was added in the new building. It provides a dedicated training area outside of the operations room, while providing trainees access to the “live” 9-1-1 environment when needed. Workstations emulate the 9-1-1 phone system and fully mimic all data systems to provide realistic training scenarios. Conference rooms as well as the training area’s computers are available to Emergency Management Agency officials for use as a back-up site.

The new 9-1-1 Center was already used for EMA command and control on one incident.

An IT workshop was built including workbenches, test equipment, and parts storage for the technical staff.

Software can be loaded and tested on multiple servers/ clients simultaneously and hardware can be burned-in and checked-out prior to migration to the operations and server rooms.

Security Monitoring and processes were enhanced at the new HMC 9-1-1 Center with the addition of services of a professional cybersecurity company. Internet accessible and non-internet accessible systems were placed on separate networks. Production systems (those with critical 9-1-1 functions) are now isolated from the public internet.

A better Records Management System utilizing Laser Fiche and other products greatly reduces paperwork and record search time. The HMC 9-1-1 Center’s voice recorder was also upgraded during the move.

PASSING THE FIRST MAJOR TEST The Alabama 9-1-1 Board established the Alabama Next Generation Emergency Network (ANGEN) including an Emergency Services Information Network (ESInet) and a Message Evolution (MEVO) backup 9-1-1 telephone

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The 9-1-1 system allows rapid recovery during provider outages.

system. MEVO phones are located at every position in operations and provide a complete secondary phone system for both 9-1-1 calls and administrative 10-digit calls. The newly installed MEVO phones were successfully put to the test three months after opening the new HMC 9-1-1 Center. The Christmas Day Nashville bombing of AT&T infrastructure caused HMC 9-1-1 to lose access to its 10-digit non-emergency lines. Fortunately, 9-1-1 calls were unaffected since they are delivered through the Alabama 9-1-1 Board’s ANGEN ESInet.

Fast thinking and clever engineering by HMC 9-1-1’s IT staff led to re-routing the failed AT&T 10-digit calls through the MEVO phones, completely restoring that service until AT&T service returned days later. This was important because fire and burglar alarm monitoring companies rely on 10-digit lines to provide critical alarm information to 9-1-1. Lives and property were saved by the combination of the Alabama ANGEN program and HMC 9-1-1 on-site technical prowess.

NEXT STEPS IN TECHNOLOGY EVOLUTION HMC 9-1-1 plans to migrate its Computer Assisted Dispatch (CAD) system to Hexagon’s OnCall Dispatch cloud-based product in the next year or so. Timing is dependent on the vendor’s release schedule. What-ThreeWords and RapidSOS caller location capabilities are continuously improving. The HMC 9-1-1 Center is currently exploring smartphone video to 9-1-1 and many other apps-based technologies. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is highly developed at HMC 9-1-1 and technical staff members are looking at even more advanced uses of GIS. The Alabama 9-1-1 Board has awarded a contract to consolidate all local 9-1-1 GIS data into one statewide platform. All Alabama 9-1-1 Centers will benefit from this development.

The Center will soon connect to a four-terabyte fiber ring for additional redundancy in interconnecting the Operations Center, back up sites, and radio towers.

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Our people are well qualified and extensively trained.

Plaque at the front entrance to the new HMC 9-1-1 System building. Note the “911” in Morse code on the copper wall in the front of the building. A nearby red “side marker” beacon flashes Morse code messages as well.

QUALITY OF LIFE Public Safety is the primary function of government and 9-1-1 is the first of the first responders. A community’s quality of life is dependent on effective public safety and 9-1-1 communications remains the heart. HMC 9-1-1 contributes to the outstanding quality of life in the Cities of Huntsville and Madison, as well as Madison County, Alabama. Nobody does 9-1-1 better than HuntsvilleMadison County 9-1-1, and the new 9-1-1 Center continues to enhance our stellar product to our citizens.

PEOPLE ARE THE KEY TO SUCCESS! Employees of all agencies located at the HMC 9-1-1 Center are the best qualified and best trained anywhere.

They have a “higher calling” to provide the best customer service available to people who are not having a good day.

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They can put those pieces together from a call a few days ago to the call they are now on to help law enforcement catch that bad guy, provide a firefighter information on where a potential victim may be, or where the closest fire hydrant is located. Every day, they get a chance to make a huge difference and they thrive on it. Everyone who works at HMC 9-1-1 saves a life on a regular basis.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ernie Blair is the CEO and Wireless Infrastructure Director for the Huntsville – Madison County 9-1-1 System. Ernie sits on various boards and planning committees throughout the state and nation. For almost 25 years, Ernie has overseen Alabama’s largest 9-1-1 Center, providing communications for all local law enforcement, fire & rescue, and EMS agencies within Madison County, Alabama. “Nobody does 911 better than we do. We are the largest center in the state and one of the few combined centers. We’re important to the quality of life and public safety. Our team saves lives every day. It’s the coolest job anyone could have.”

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DRONES, FIRSTNET DATA INTEROPERABILITY, COMPUTER-AIDEDDISPATCH, MUNI-WI-FI AGAIN?

By Andrew Seybold A number of significant issues have arisen in the past year that are raising concerns for industry connectivity and interoperability among first responders. This article touches on a few of these.

DRONES—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES (UAVS) Concern is growing within the public-safety ranks about citizens flying drones over incidents that call for first responders. When incidents involve wildfires, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) usually declares no-fly zones up to 5,000 feet above the fires. I am told some drones can receive no-fly zone alerts and they will not fly into no-fly areas. Unfortunately, more common, less expensive drones do not have that capability.

When a drone is reported in the area of an incident, planes and helicopters (helos) are grounded and cannot assist when needed during wildfires and under certain other circumstances. Because of this, many within the public-safety community are calling for the FAA and potentially the FCC to permit public-safety personnel to disable drones flown by citizens or reporters and to recommend ways to do so. It is reckless for people to continue to fly drones into areas where public safety must be able to monitor the safety of equipment and personnel assisting them from above. There are hefty fines for violating FAA rules but first, someone has to find the person flying the drone and he/she must be arrested.

Perhaps some of our military’s methods for disabling drones would be appropriate for public-safety use.

Of course, there are some issues with using RF jammers and the wireless community is very familiar with these since it has encountered jammers when some prisons and even schools have ignored FCC rules and jammed radio systems to prevent unauthorized cell-phone use.

It is illegal to use most jammers, and all jammers intentionally spew out interference that impacts WiFi, cellular, and public-safety radio traffic. There must be a better way to disable drones.

INTEROPERABILITY ON THE FIRSTNET NETWORK The idea behind FirstNet was to empower the publicsafety community with a nationwide, broadband network capable of providing interoperability between public-

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safety agencies regardless of where they are and among all agencies reporting to an incident.

When the FirstNet Authority was formed in 2012, work began to turn the vision into a reality. While the contract for a private partner to build out, operate, and maintain the network was not awarded until early in 2017, today, the contractor (AT&T) is ahead of the five-year buildout requirements on all counts. Now we have a true nationwide broadband network that is being used by more than 17,000 public-safety agencies and more than 2.2 million users.

The network portion of the vision has come together better and faster than most within the public-safety community and vendors thought possible. Both the FirstNet Authority and FirstNet (Built with AT&T) have shown time and time again that they are intent on providing the interoperable network public safety has been without for far too many years. While there may be more to be done and more sites to be built, they have delivered it and it is called “FirstNet.” In the meantime, AT&T is opening up its 5G spectrum to FirstNet publicsafety users. However, the “smart broadband network” is not yet providing the extent of nationwide interoperability promised.

FIRSTNET DATA INTEROPERABILITY There continues to be a lack of interoperability between the various forms of data that flow throughout the FirstNet smart network. It is clear that the FirstNet Authority oversees the network and the contractor (AT&T).

What is not clear is who should be responsible for driving interoperability for data services including Push-To-Talk (PTT), data, video, and applications.

Frankly, I believe it will be much more difficult to provide common-data solutions than it was to build the network.

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Public safety and the FirstNet Authority understand this.

While building and operating a network takes a qualified and experienced company, it seems there are no definitive rules or guidelines for providing interoperable PTT, data, video, and applications—the next important phase of the FirstNet project.

This phase should begin with federal funding to deploy Next-Generation 9-1-1 (NG911), an incoming broadband pipe that will direct incoming calls to Emergency Communications Centers (ECCs). Today, ECCs using standard 9-1-1 systems handle mostly straightforward phone calls and some can process text. Once deployed nationwide, NG911 will deliver incoming voice calls, text, video, pictures, and perhaps more to the ECCs. These will be vetted and ECCs will send some or all of the information directly to those responding to an incident and their line officers. Thus, NG911 will deliver better, more detailed information to first responders. When the Public Safety Alliance (PSA) was formed to persuade Congress and others to allocate spectrum and funding for FirstNet, NG911 was not part of the plan. NG911 is a separate project that is once again being driven by the public-safety community.

FIRSTNET “SMART” NETWORK Back to the FirstNet “smart” network. Today we can send data over FirstNet in the form of voice, text, video, images, and more. “Data” is defined as everything transported over the network. With the exception of text messages, data traveling over FirstNet is in many different formats and it is difficult to impossible to share this data between agencies at an incident or with anyone in a position to assist personnel at the incident.

Everyone knows we do not yet have a common and fullyinteroperable push-to-talk platform across FirstNet. All the pieces and parts are there but it seems the current state of affairs is to wait until all the “open standard” pieces and parts are available and we put them together. I believe interoperable PTT is the first, most important element of data interoperability across the FirstNet network and we could have interoperable PTT today with existing vendors and existing applications.

We have all the tools necessary for PTT interoperability between FirstNet agencies and to-and-from Land Mobile Radio (LMR). It should be relatively easy to implement since there is a known number of PTT-approved providers.

The difficulty arises when trying to convince these vendors to come together to make PTT interoperable on a nationwide basis and available to all FirstNet users.

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FIRSTNET APPLICATIONS INTEROPERABILITY Once PTT is interoperable, applications, another element of FirstNet, will need to be interoperable. Applications may be the most difficult to deal with even though the use of APIs may help. Even then, some data sets might not be able to be corralled into some form of interoperability.

The FirstNet library contains a host of great applications.

Many agencies come to FirstNet using what they consider to be the best applications for their purposes and they want to continue using them. Different applications use different types of data files and a number of vendors are resisting making changes to their applications to enable sharing data with other vendors’ applications. Some are even protecting their software and data in ways that prevent them from becoming interoperable.

Data interoperability will require much more work and a great deal of coordination. Missing from the puzzle is an entity “in charge” of delivering interoperable data—not a committee of fifty, or a single person, and certainly not a single vendor. We need a taskforce of knowledgeable people to sit down, develop a plan, and then execute that plan.

A while back, the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) undertook a project to enable programing of other vendors’ handheld and mobile radios in the field.

As I recall, it built a spreadsheet that could import many different data formats and then output the appropriate format for each vendors’ programing application. A similar attempt to bring together multiple venders was the recent launch of the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) effort to standardize on a handheld radio and microphone that can withstand very harsh and hot environments.

Both projects were successful but each took a lot of time because so many wanted to be involved. The goal of determining how to achieve better interoperability is sound; it’s the execution that is difficult. In fact, it may not even be possible for some data sets.

FIRSTNET BROADBAND NETWORK FirstNet had to be a broadband network because it takes broadband to transport and share applications, video, pictures, maps, and much more in a timely manner so all who need the information will have it. I see no technical impediments to prevent all these data forms from becoming fully interoperable…if an entity decides to drive the task of bringing vendors and others together to reach a consensus on a standard for how to exchange their data.

The Public Safety Communications Research (PSCR) division of the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST), the FirstNet Authority including the Technology Office in Boulder CO, the Public Safety Advisory Council to the FirstNet Board of Directors, FirstNet (Built with AT&T), and organizations including the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council

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(NPSTC) and APCO Worldwide are all helping to bring together vendors and others to negotiate standards.

Fortunately, or unfortunately as the case may be, there are so many people with great ideas and the desire to get things right that it tends to takes a long time to reach an agreement. There is also the issue of whether a company is willing to give up its intellectual property for the good of the public-safety community. The rules were clear when I co-founded the Portable Computer and Communications Association (PCCA) many years ago, when I participated in the Personal Computer Memory Card Association (PCMCIA), and when I served on the Bluetooth committee.

(Remember the PCMCIA? I described this acronym as “People Cannot Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms.”)

The rule was if you come to contribute, leave your patents and intellectual property at the door. For the most part, this worked well.

SUMMARY With the increasing burden on our public-safety agencies with more and larger incidents that require a wide range of resources, we do not have time to wait for interoperability on many fronts. The issue is not whether open standards can facilitate interoperable data sets over FirstNet, it is how long will it take and whether the vendor community will cooperate.

FirstNet has made a huge difference for the 17,000-plus agencies using it and more agencies are joining every month. Now that FirstNet is nationwide, we find we did not need to be concerned about overloading the network or being concerned about being less than 100% public-safety grade. (In reality, even the best LMR network will not meet all the requirements of public-safety grade.) Any concerns proved to be unfounded mostly due to the number of deployables and feet on the ground provided by AT&T. Now that FirstNet is essentially in place, we need to turn our attention to making content that moves across the network interoperable between agencies.

COMPUTER-AIDED DISPATCH (CAD) While not directly tied to FirstNet, one more data set needs attention. Computer-aided dispatch can transport files including maps and other location-information data files from one ECC to another, or even into the field, using FirstNet if the data is interoperable. Several years ago, in Santa Barbara, I was asked to look into whether there was a way for the five county Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) to be able to share their data files. (I think five is too many for a population of several hundred thousand.)

After spending a lot of time investigating, I found one vendor that said it could write a software package to

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convert CAD files from one format to another. The price was horrendous and if only one CAD vendor made changes to its data format it would cost even more. On that note, the project was dropped. Today, exchange of CAD files is a bit easier, but with nationwide NG911, it should be easier than ever to share CAD files between ECCs.

WINDING DOWN Long before I was writing the Public Safety Advocate, I was writing and publishing monthly newsletters (19812003). For a couple of years, I was writing a series of newsletters for Forbes and adding fairly regular columns to AndrewSeybold.com. During that time, I was very critical of the mad rush for cities and counties to provide MuniWi-Fi within their jurisdictions. Most of these systems failed because, as many of us pointed out, there was no a sustaining economic model to continue to pay for network expansion, maintenance, or other items, and WiFi coverage into homes and offices from WiFi access points was not dependable when most access points were mounted on telephone poles.

New York City tried multiple times for a successful muniWi-Fi system. In one attempt, pay phones on street corners were supposed to house WiFi access points for residents, and this was followed by yet another attempt. I had forgotten how many cities tried and failed at Muni-Wi-Fi until I saw a recent news article about the LinkNYC Kiosk program that uses a combination of WiFi “hotspots” and charging stations. Announced by the Mayor in early 2020, the program is way behind schedule, and most kiosks are being installed in areas where tourists are likely to be, not in the communities that make up New York City. NYC residents, the people who really need this program, do not have access.

In big headlines, the LinkNYC website states, “Free SuperFast Wi-Fi and that’s Just the beginning.” Further down it says, “Good-Bye Pay Phone, Hello Link!”

It is surprising that this project was even announced in 2020. Most Muni-Wi-Fi projects had folded their tents and left town, leaving equipment installed on light poles and debts but no service. If you look up at street lights in Phoenix, you will see many small boxes with three antennas each. These WiFi devices were left by Metricom, the precursor to Muni-Wi-Fi. As I recall, Phoenix tried harder than any other city to succeed with the Metricom system but eventually turned everything off. We will wait to see if NYC can make a go of its LinkNYC project or if it will end up with abandoned kiosks on its sidewalks.

I wrote my commentary in the Public Safety Advocate before Ida made landfall and proceeded to wreak havoc, first in Louisiana, then in the east where it caused flooding

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and storm damage in Philadelphia, New York, and New Jersey. Ida knocked many cell sites off the air, Louisiana’s power grid was basically destroyed, and backhaul (fiber, etc.) was damaged.

During situations like this, the FCC tracks how many cell sites from each vendor are affected daily. Based on that information, we can see how quickly most network operators put their networks back on the air. FirstNet had at least sixteen deployable assets in the area and in less than a week after Ida’s landfall, the AT&T network (meaning FirstNet as well) was 98% operational.

Communications are vital to assisting with rescue efforts and coordinating the huge tasks that are putting people’s lives back together and we saw a lot of hard work and dedication from AT&T and the other network operators.

Sixteen years ago, when Hurricane Katrina hit the same area, it was many weeks before communications were restored.

Once again, we thank first responders, medical personnel, cellular network and power company employees, and everyone else who pitched in to help.

Reprinted from the Public Safety Advocate, September 9, 2021.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Andrew Seybold has been involved in Public Safety and Public Safety Communications for more than fifty years, starting as a first responder and then working with RCA Mobile Communications, General Electric Communications, Biocom (where he helped develop the first paramedic radio for sending voice and EKG from an incident to a hospital), and Motorola. In 1981, he began his career as a consultant, educator, and author.

For the past ten years, Mr. Seybold has been volunteering his time and efforts to the Public Safety community in its quest to build a nationwide, interoperable broadband communications network, and has worked closely with the Public Safety Spectrum Trust, The Public Safety Alliance, the Major City Chiefs Association, APCO, The International Chiefs of Police, the National Sheriff’s Association, and other organizations. Mr. Seybold is a former board member and a Fellow of the Radio Club of America. He received RCA’s Sarnoff Award; APCO’s President’s Award and Special Partnership Recognition Award; National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) Special Recognition Award; National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) Presidents Award; and the Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST) Commendation.

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RCA

INTERVIEW SERIES Beginning in August 2020, the Radio Club of America (RCA) launched a new webcast interview series available for members and the general public.

The series has met with great success, and we encourage all of our members and guests to attend this ongoing series.

RCA president emeritus Tim Duffy, K3LR, hosts, and each interview runs approximately 1 hour. The interviews are alternated with online RCA networking sessions. Past guests have included a range of notables: Discussions center on careers in wireless, life-long passion for radio, views on industry trends and outlooks for technology, and on the current work the guests are undertaking as well as their history with RCA. If you missed any of these interviews, they are available on the RCA Youtube page at https://bit. ly/3tjFooc.

Tim Duffy is assisted by Barney Scholl, RCA Vice President and Counsel, and RCA Member Scott Jones who act as moderators and host the questions and answers.

RCA plans many more of these exciting virtual activities. Please see https://bit.ly/3tmrJgb for further announcements.

INTERVIEW SERIES

UP NEXT Taking place on the 2nd Tuesday of even numbered months, these interviews with notable individuals in wireless are very well received and attended.

Discussion range from careers in wireless to upcoming technology.

Join us December 8 when we hear about FCC Strategic Directions with Nick Tusa and learn about his upcoming book.

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CURRENT PERSPECTIVES

SILICON VALLEY DISPATCHES: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN OUR COMMUNICATION NETWORKS GO HAYWIRED?

By David Witkowski [Editor’s Note: We welcome David Witkowski as a new columnist who will offer his perspectives on the current state of play in the wireless industry. We look forward to his many insights that will appear in the upcoming issues of the Proceedings.]

significant wireless communications to disrupt, certainly not wireless as we think of it today. Data networking was limited (at best) to 9,600 bits-per-second connections over dial-up modems. In 1989, the Plain Old Telephone System (POTS) was the technology for voice, and the only thing carried on coaxial cables were local television stations and some paid channels.

In late 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey asked me to be co-author of a chapter in their next earthquake scenario, named HayWired, because it combines a hypothetical major earthquake on the Hayward Fault (in the San Francisco Bay Area) with an analysis of potential impacts to the Silicon Valley’s communication and data networking systems. The work was coordinated through Joint Venture Silicon Valley, a non-profit think tank where I serve as executive director of their Civic Technologies Initiative, which includes oversight of their wireless, wired broadband, and smart cities work. (I dislike the term “smart cities”, but that is a topic for a future column.)

Dissolve, as they say in Hollywood, to present day. Our lives are hyper-connected, and companies with the highest stock market capitalizations are internet-focused companies that provide the connections and connected services we’ve come to depend on. The Dot Com boom of the late 1990s was enabled by dial-up modems, ISDN, and Fractional T-1 circuits. The current market boom is enabled by 4G LTE and Wi-Fi. The epicenter of this economic boom is Silicon Valley, located a scant 25 miles away from the epicenter of the 1989 earthquake, and only 25 miles away from another (and potentially

Having previously worked on disaster impact analysis and table-topping in the past — notably the Disaster Preparedness Initiative at JVSV in 2007, which later became the Disaster Management Initiative at Carnegie Mellon University’s Silicon Valley campus — the disaster scenario outlined by the USGS for HayWired intrigued me. The last time the San Francisco Bay Area experienced a major disaster was the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989, sometimes called the “World Series earthquake” because it happened just as the third game of that series was starting. I was 100 miles away from the epicenter on that day, yet even at that distance the shaking was so violent it set off car alarms. We lost power, and long-distance phone circuits were jammed up, but most communications remained intact — because the 1989 earthquake was pre-Internet and there were not USGS – Hayward Scenario Shakemap. (Courtesy USGS)

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even more damaging) seismic structure known as the Hayward Fault.

Since 1989, the Bay Area has dealt with wildfires, winter storms, and precautionary electric power shutoffs during fire season, but effects from these were relatively mild compared to the extensive damage caused by the 1989 earthquake. Historically, the Hayward fault has experienced a massive earthquake on average about every 150 years — and the last Hayward earthquake happened in 1868. The Bay Area is overdue for a major earthquake, and when it happens it will quiet literally shake the Silicon Valley to its core. Previous USGS disaster scenarios looked at the effects to physical infrastructure; roads, bridges, water, sanitation, and electrical power. HayWired extends this to consider the effects to communication networks and data systems.

For me, the most challenging — yet most interesting — part of the process was developing a viable scenario by looking at other disasters. For example, we know that earthquakes in other countries had certain impacts to communications and data, but would those impacts map over to a U.S. earthquake? What would be different, and what would be similar? We know that fire-following earthquake is a major damage vector from earthquakes, USGS HayWired Scenario Cellular Site Impact Forecast (Courtesy USGS) so could we use the western U.S. wildfires as proxies? Again: what would over fiber optic lines. Smartphones still access voice, be different, what would be similar? Backup power for texting, and data via cellular sites, but also via Wi-Fi telecommunications infrastructure is a major issue, and connected to the internet via xDSL, cable, or fiber. And our is known problem in the aftermath of hurricanes, so how definition of what constitutes a “telephone” is constantly would telecom backup power fare during a Bay Area evolving as users shift to app-based communication such earthquake? as Messenger, Facetime, WhatsApp, WeChat, Skype, and a The other challenging — and more frustrating — part of the process was trying to describe an increasingly complex telecommunications system into something a non-engineer could digest. The telecommunications world of 2021 is no longer neatly divided into wired telephones and cable TV. Twisted-pair copper wiring can carry POTS, POTS plus various flavors of Digital Subscriber Line (xDSL), or just xDSL where the voice telephone service is converted from digital signals by equipment at the subscriber site.

Likewise, coaxial cable is no longer just for RF television channels, but instead carries high-throughput Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) data signals which provide both broadband and entertainment.

And increasingly, homes and businesses are served data

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host of other apps.

Many of our findings were interesting if not sometimes counter-intuitive. At first, we thought that large lattice towers would likely fail most readily, but after an analysis in light of the TIA-222-H standard we discovered that large lattice towers — guyed or free-standing — are in fact very seismically stable. The analysis (conducted by the leaders of the TIA-222-H committee) found that — absent landslides or other damage to the foundations — lattice towers in the heaviest shaking zones will likely remain standing. (Whether the appurtenances on the tower are damaged or dislodged is another discussion.) Monopoles, on the other hand, could be damaged by shaking if they are heavily loaded with radios and antennas. We found that

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many cellular sites are installed on buildings, which can be vulnerable to seismic damage, and if a building is “redtagged” (unsafe to enter due to seismic damage) there may be no way to access the cellular equipment to make repairs.

It is often said that “It takes a lot of wires to support wireless,” and our analysis finds that, indeed, it is failure of the wires that will cause cellular sites to go off the air.

Loss of electrical power, and damage from fire or pole toppling to the fiber optic lines that provide data to cellular sites, combined with seismic damage, could take as many as one in four monopoles off the air.

We also realized that many users are not well-prepared for loss of telecommunications. xDSL, cable, and fiber optic broadband networks are not powered by the internet service provider (ISP) but rather by electrical circuits at the subscriber’s home or business. Without a backup power source if the power goes out, so does the broadband.

Broadband networks (especially cable broadband) are susceptible to power outages that affect the hubs, distribution amplifiers, and repeaters in the network’s upstream wiring. All of this is hard for me, an engineer with four decades of experience in communications, to describe and organize. What will happen when millions of people in the Bay Area, many of whom have never experienced a major disaster affecting their ability to communicate, are offline for hours or possibly days?

The project took six years to complete, and the level of effort proved to be, quite frankly, stunning. My co-author, Dr. Anne Wein of the USGS, and I spent several years reviewing reports on effects to communication networks and data systems in disaster scenarios and after-action reports from seismic events, such as the 2011 Tohoku Japan earthquake, and non-seismic events such as Hurricane Michael’s impacts in 2018, which took down 1,357 cellular sites across Florida, Alabama, and Georgia.

During the project I spent untold hours on phone and Zoom calls with scientists and industry experts, planned

and hosted two full-day workshops that convened wired and wireless industry experts from a variety of disciplines, and defended our analysis and assertions during numerous editing and peer-review cycles, until at last receiving an email announcing the work was done, and the publication was live on the USGS website.

The telecommunications chapter, known formally as Chapter S: The HayWired Scenario—Telecommunications and Information Communication Technology, is part of the HayWired Earthquake Scenario — Societal Consequences (Volume 3) release, is available online at https://pubs. er.usgs.gov/publication/sir20175013V3. I do hope you will read it, and that you might find this an interesting example of the kind of work an RCA member gets up each morning to do.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR David Witkowski is an author, advisor, and strategist who works at the intersection between local government and the telecommunication industry. He is a Fellow of the Radio Club of America, an IEEE Senior Member, the Founder and CEO of Oku Solutions LLC, and is the Executive Director of Civic Technologies Initiatives at Joint Venture Silicon Valley.

He served in the U.S. Coast Guard and earned his B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of California, Davis. He held leadership roles for companies ranging from Fortune 500 multi-nationals to early-stage startups, and currently serves as Co-Chair of the Deployment Working Group at IEEE Future Networks, Co-Chair of the GCTC Wireless SuperCluster at NIST, as a member of the Connected Communities Forum at the Wireless Broadband Alliance, and as an Expert Advisor to the California Emerging Technology Fund. He is the author of several books and many articles about the state of the industry.

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FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 33

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WHY MOBILE PHONES CAN DO SO MANY THINGS: THE INVENTION OF THE FRACTAL ANTENNA

By Robert Colburn, IEEE History Center [EDITOR’S NOTE: This article originally appeared in IEEE-USA InSight. It is reprinted here with permission from IEEE-USA. Copyright 2021 IEEE.] Mobile phones perform multiple tasks by transmitting and receiving on many different frequencies. For example, when the user first dials, there is a carrier frequency that the phone and the base station communicate with each other to set up the call, establish which cell tower the phone is in range of, and choose which frequency or frequencies to use for the call. Some mobile phone systems use frequency-shift keying, which means the zeros of the digital signal are sent on one frequency and the ones are sent on another. BlueTooth, WiFi, and other applications use yet more frequencies.

Prior to the late 1980s, this would have required mobile phones to use an antenna for each frequency. Mobile phones would have needed many different antennas sticking out, each sized according to wavelength.

Instead, today’s mobile phones owe their sleek design in part to antennas whose shapes are determined by fractals.

In 1982, mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot published his influential book, The Fractal Geometry of Nature.

Some of the earliest applications of fractals were in computer graphics. Mandelbrot gave a paper on the landscapes of an imaginary planet at the 99th Colloquium of the International Astronomical Union, held in Balaton, Hungary in June of 1987. Also giving a paper at the conference was IEEE member and radio astronomer Prof. Nathan Cohen of Boston University.

Cohen was a ham radio operator, and Mandelbrot’s talk

Satellite sandwich with fractal antenna metamaterial over solar cells.

(Courtesy © Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc.) FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 34

Scaled up example of an enhanced RCS road reflector for autonomous cars/roads. (Courtesy © Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc.)

intrigued him. He wondered how an antenna shaped according to fractal geometry would work.

Cohen found that it worked very well. However, his then landlord had a strict policy about not attaching antennas to the building. Cohen was working with 2-meter FM, meaning that a conventional antenna would need to be about one meter, and thus quite visible. Having found that his fractal antennas could be made much smaller, Cohen made a fractal microstrip antenna out

Wideband fractal elements for a multisector MIMO array.

(Courtesy © Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc.)

www.radioclubofamerica.org

(left) Fractal antennas as metamaterials (showing insides) for far smaller replacement of a Yagi-Uda antenna. and (right) 2.4 GHz metablateTM antenna and the Yagi-Uda it replaces. (Courtesy © Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc.)

of aluminum foil, glue, and construction paper using the pagoda motif, and attached it to the railing of his apartment. It was about six inches square.

Despite its diminutive size and looking more like a doily than an antenna, (as well as being up on the 27th floor), the landlord learned of its existence and cut it down while Cohen was at work, teaching a math class. Cohen found its sad remains in the snow on the ground below a few days later. Given that the antenna’s descendants now function in hundreds of millions of devices around the world, the severing of the prototype must surely rank as one of the most infelicitous acts of technological obstruction since the Visigoths dismantled the Roman aqueducts. In addition to their uses in mobile phones and computers, fractal antennas have important applications in RFIDs and in vehicular radar and collision-avoidance systems.

They reduce scattering of the signal and enhance the radar reflection of highway tags. As one measure of fractal antennas’ importance, IEEE has published more than 2,100 papers on them.

“Fractal antennas not only shrink antenna sizes, but also control multiband performance, enable wideband use, and actually increase realized gain in small sizes. The gain attribute arises from being able to produce multiple current maxima, such as on a fractal perimeter, in a highly compact area. Constructive interference can happen in regimes far smaller than a ¼ wave,” Cohen explains.

Fractal Antenna Systems, the company Cohen founded, filed U.S. patent 6,452,553 in August of 1995 for the fractal antenna. The earliest adopters of the technology were government customers. “Today,” notes Cohen, “you would be challenged to get an x-ray, use radios or phones in a public building, or fly on a commercial jet without fractal antennas. Fractals are a big part of keeping the world connected.”

In addition to being a very widely used technology, fractal antennas are visually intricate and beautiful. Because they are small enough to be hidden inside the technologies that they make work, most of us are not aware of them. The author hopes that this article has raised their visibility.

SOURCE Robert Colburn, IEEE-USA Insight, IEEE History Center, Aug. 4, 2021, https://insight.ieeeusa.org/articles/whymobile-phones-can-do-so-many-things-the-invention-of-thefractal-antenna/.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Conductive ink on fabric for wideband antenna on garments.

(Courtesy © Fractal Antenna Systems, Inc.) FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 35

Robert Colburn is the research coordinator at the IEEE History Center. For more articles by the History Center staff, visit their publications page at: http:// ethw.org/Archives:Books_and_Archival_ Publications or visit the IEEE History Center’s Web page at: http://www.ieee. org/about/history_center/index.html. The IEEE History Center is partially funded by donations to the History Fund of the IEEE Foundation. www.radioclubofamerica.org

100th Anniversary Celebration of the First Trans-Atlantic Radio Transmission of a Message by Amateur Radio Saturday, December 11, 2021 HISTORY WAS MADE -- On a cold winter night on December 11, 1921, members of the Radio Club of America sent the first amateur radio message from a small shack in Greenwich, CT that was received by American Paul Godley in Ardrossan, Scotland. This transatlantic test proved the value of shorter wavelengths – long considered worthless to long distance communications and through their success ushered in the age of global shortwave radio communications.

CELEBRATIONS -- The Antique Wireless Association, in association with the Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut in Windsor, CT, the Radio Club of America, the American Radio Relay League, and the Radio Society of Great Britain, will participate in the 100th Anniversary special events to be held Saturday, December 11, 2021.

REPLICA TRANSMITTER -- For the 75th anniversary celebration of the 1BCG accomplishment in 1996, AWA members Bob and Mike Raide constructed a replica of the 1921 transmitter. For this 100th celebration, AWA Museum Staff has restored the replica. AWA will place the replica 1BCG transmitter on display at the VRCMCT Museum Saturday afternoon, December 11, 2021. The Museum will be open to the public.

OPERATION & DISPLAY -- The Vintage Radio and Communications Museum of Connecticut in Windsor CT has graciously offered to host AWA operation of the replica transmitter during the evening of December 11th.

“AWA sincerely appreciates the support and commitment of VRCMCT Museum and Museum Staff to make this 100th anniversary celebration use of the AWA replica transmitter possible,” said Robert Hobday N2EVG, AWA President and Chairman.

The transmitter will be operating as W2AN/1BCG on 1.820 MHz, plus or minus, using CW. Members of the RSGB in Ardrossan will be listening for those signals with the goal of replicating the 1921 successful transatlantic reception using a 1921 designed transmitter. The 1921 message was sent one-way.

Acknowledgment of Paul Godley’s reception of 1BCG’s massage was sent back to the US via telegraph to Wales and the Marconi high power radio transmitter in Wales. The VRCMCT Museum will be open to the public to view the evening operation of the 1BCG replica transmitter.

INFORMATION -- For further details on the operating schedule and the history of the accomplishment in 1921, please visit the AWA 1BCG.org website.

CERTIFICATES -- Any station receiving the 100th centennial message sent by W2AN/1BCG can receive a 100th 1BCG Anniversary Certificate emailed from AWA by emailing their report to 1BCG@AntiqueWireless.org.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 36

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RCA NEWS

Youth Activities Continue During Pandemic

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Carole Perry initiated and leads the Radio Club of America Youth Activities Program.

For approximately 15 years, RCA has worked with Ms. Perry on her activities to encourage youth to get interested in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) activities, using ham radio as a vehicle for education. She has been instrumental in providing activities at Hamventions and other gatherings of radio enthusiasts worldwide. Many of her students have gone on to college and graduate school and undertaken careers in the radio, wireless, and electrical fields. Ms. Perry continues her work during the pandemic.]

RCA YOUTH ACTIVITIES

Audrey (l) and Jack McElroy (r) at RCA’s Huntsville Youth Forum presenting about

Carole Perry, WB2MGP, has been working Fun with Hot Air Balloons and Ham Radio with Carole Perry (c). with youth using radio as a means of ongoing operation of the Somers fund, which issues grants promoting education in the science and to students supporting their activities and education. RCA technical fields for more than 30 years. She started her can accept donations via Check, Money Order, PayPal or Youth Activities Program at the Radio Club of America Credit Card. Tax deductible donations specifically to RCA (RCA) in 2008. In 2011, she was encouraged to introduce Youth Activities can be made through the RCA website. a new RCA Youth Activities initiative at RCA’s already very prestigious annual RCA Technical Symposium, creating the The RCA Youth Activities program is chaired by RCA annual RCA Young Achievers Award and presentation. The Director Carole Perry with Richard Somers, Stan RCA Young Achievers whom Ms. Perry selects to showcase Reubenstein, Gordon West, Ernie Blair, and Charles during the year are the best and the brightest of our Kirmuss as committee members. technically creative young hams. The Dayton Hamvention Youth Forum typically gave Ms. Perry the opportunity to YOUTH ACTIVITIES 2021 feature from eight to 10 bright young presenters aged 18 The COVID pandemic has brought and below. The presenter for the RCA Technical Symposium significant disruption worldwide, can be selected from that event or from any venue that Ms. and the cancellation of virtually Perry moderates across the country during the year. all live events in 2020 and much The purpose of the RCA Youth Activities Program is of 2021. Nevertheless, in these to foster in school aged youth an interest in wireless very “unique” times, Ms. Perry communication technology, and to encourage their future has remained actively involved with career in wireless. To pique the interest of youth, RCA’s many of RCA’s Young Achievers.

Youth Activities Program uses amateur radio as a vehicle to • In February 2021, Audrey McElroy, the introduce wireless concepts. first recipient of our RCA Educational Scholarship Grant joined Ms. Perry in a virtual Orlando Hamcation Youth YOUTH SCHOLARSHIP FUND Forum. Ms. McElroy gave a great presentation about In 2008, RCA authorized the establishment of a youth recruiting and retaining girls in STEM programs via the scholarship program. The Richard G. Somers Youth fun of Ham Radio.

Scholarship Fund was established in 2009, through a • During 2021, Ms. Perry also featured 8 RCA Young generous donation from the fund’s namesake, to encourage Achievers at 2 QSOToday Virtual Ham Expo events. and support educational, technical, ham radio and Some of their great topics included, “Building Telegraph related activities of young people through high school. Tax Keys and Digital Devices on a Budget,” “Starting Ham deductible donations to RCA Youth Activities enhance the Radio Clubs in High School,” “Working the World on HF FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 37

www.radioclubofamerica.org

with the WSPR Digital Mode and QRSS,” “Combining the Fun of Hot Air Balloons with Ham Radio,” and “Working with a US congresswoman to create National Amateur Radio Operators’ Day” to honor the volunteer first line workers in communications.

• In August 2021, Ms. Perry moderated the Huntsville Hamfest Youth Forum and showcased 2 RCA Young Achievers who made us all so proud with their excellent presentation to a very supportive audience. This was a live event and the participants were excited to enjoy in person activities.

DONOR GIFT:

COMMEMORATIVE CODE PRACTICE OSCILLATOR

2021 YOUNG ACHIEVER AWARD This year’s RCA Young Achiever Award winner at RCA’s Technical Symposium will be Audrey McElroy. Audrey is a senior in high school, having been accepted into the STEM academy as a freshman by way of an Amateur Radio videoessay. Her Extra Class callsign is KM4BUN, earned when she was 15.

Audrey McElroy

She has combined her STEM Bio-tech, Physics and advanced Calculus knowledge with Amateur Radio to develop many experiments such as decoding the ISS SSTV transmission using her own automated satellite ground tracking station as well as developing high altitude balloon experiments that have reached the edge of space, and one that orbited the globe 4.5 times, all while maintaining periodic telemetry.

She is in demand as a SME on High Altitude balloons by numerous organizations.

At the request of the Southeastern VHF Society, she published a white paper detailing her experimentation with buoyancy and high-altitude balloons that transmit telemetry via WSPR and APRS utilizing the HF bands.

She plans on attending university and pursuing a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) while continuing to work with Amateur Radio to provide hands-on practice of her academics.

Audrey is the first recipient of the RCA Young Achievers scholarship and has had the opportunity to present her experimentation at several conferences such as the American Institute of Aeronautics and Aerospace (aiaa.org) as well as several Amateur Radio virtual podcast events to a global audience.

FUTURE PLANS The 2022 Orlando Convention is planning to hold an inperson event in February. Ms. Perry is scheduled to aid in the selection and presentation of the Carole Perry 2022 Educator of the Year Award and to moderate the Youth Forum with one or more RCA Young Achievers.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 38

We all know that students today are often more interested in computers than wireless. As a result, the future of wireless depends on getting more youth interestesd in wireless.

Here is a great opportunity to support our RCA Youth Program under Director Carole Perry and obtain a free gift as a result. Carole has been driving our Youth Program for 30 years this year! As a surprise to her, Director Charles Kirmuss commissioned a CW Morse code practice oscillator that was the same design Carole used years before with her early amateur radio classes with middle school and high school.

If you donate at least $30 to Carole's RCA Youth Program, you will receive a commemorative code practice oscillator. Your donation will be used to assist with costs like awards to the children, donation materials for school radio clubs, travel expenses for youth presenters to the Technical Symposium, and more.

In addition, if you renew your RCA membership for three years, you will also receive a code practice oscillator.

If you have interest in donating to the Youth Program, please email Director Carole Perry directly (wb2mgp@gmail.com) and she will provide instructions as to how to send a check.

If you wish to renew your membership for three years, contact Amy Beckham (Amy@radioclubofAmerica.org) for details on getting the code practice oscillator.

www.radioclubofamerica.org

RCA NEWS

RCA Adds New Levels for Student Members

At their Spring board meeting in June, the Board of Directors of the Radio Club of America voted in favor of adding two new classes of membership: Student/Family memberships. Effective immediately, the member level of Student + 1 Parent was added for students under the age of 18.

A Family Membership was also added in recognition that some families have multiple students interested in RCA.

STUDENT MEMBERSHIP

These members are full-time students at an accredited academic institution at the middle school, high school, or college/university level. This level of membership is entitled to vote, and to hold elected office as an Officer or Director. Dues are at a reduced rate, determined as to whether the Student Member is under 16 years of age, or 16 years or older. Upon ceasing to be a full time student, a student member should become a Regular Member at the next renewal of their dues.

FAMILY MEMBERSHIP

This membership is intended for those families who have two or more students interested in the wireless arts; it provides a joint membership for family members.

Register today!

The Radio Club of America looks forward to our virtual ceremony on November 20 where we’ll celebrate Dr. Cooper and his lifetime of achievement.

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FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 39

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RCA NEWS

RCA and IWCE Announce 2021 Young Professional Award Recipients

E

ach year, the International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE) introduces the next generation of leaders in communications technology. The annual IWCE Young Professional Award showcases the future leaders of the communications technology industry.

The 2021 Young Professionals, selected in a program jointly managed by IWCE and the Radio Club of America, were welcomed as members of the oldest organization of wireless professionals in the world, the Radio Club of America, during IWCE 2021. The four individuals all work in wireless, are under the age of 35 and were recognized for “executing some of our industry’s most innovative ideas, showing creativity and initiative.”

MEET THE 2021 YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

Margaret (Maggie) Carothers Lynch

Susan Kea

JoAnna Wang

Maggie has been CEO of Royal Communications International, Inc., since 2013, and is the majority owner of this woman owned small business. Royal Communications International, Inc. is a worldwide supplier of communications equipment, Maggie specializes in HF communication systems.

Susan is a rising star in the wireless industry.

She’s enthusiastic about the technology, attentive to her customers and others in the business, and is always there when needed.

Susan goes out of her way to welcome new professionals in the industry, and she’s always looking for ways to create win-win situations in business.

JoAnna Wang is the Director of Government and Community Affairs at Modus LLC. A licensed attorney and experience telecom professional, JoAnna is a consummate professional who understand that, at the end of the day, it’s critical for people and residents of a community feel comfortable with the build projects wireless carriers do to extend their networks. She’s always accessible, personable, and a pleasure to work with.

Austin Schaller Austin Schaller worked on electronics and amateur radio projects with his grandfather and participated in a local amateur radio club for youth at a young age. As an aspiring engineer and licensed ham radio operator, KDØFAA, he was invited to talk at the Dayton Hamvention Youth Forum in 2009 and subsequently the RCA Tech Symposium as the first Young Achiever presenter in 2011. In high school, he began interning at FreeWave Technologies, and later, XetaWave, both companies that design and manufacturer digital radios. Austin is currently a design engineer at Ball Aerospace in the RF Electronics group for Tactical Solutions since 2018 but originally interned with them in 2017. His experience includes broadband passive and active RF electronics design, embedded FPGA and microcontroller design, and software development. He holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree from LeTourneau University in Texas and continues to work on projects in his free-time.

IWCE’s Young Professional Awards recognize young professionals under 35 who have made a significant contribution in his or her company or agency and works in the communications technology industry. These individuals are executing some of the most innovative ideas, showing creativity and initiative. These individuals are the up-andcomers in the telecommunications industry, honored for their spectacular work and accomplishments.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 40

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NEWS ITEM

Japan Sets New World Record Data Transmission Speed

R

esearchers at Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) in Tokyo set a new world record data transmission speed of 319 terabits/second across more than 3000 km.

They doubled the previous long-haul data transmission speed record of 172 Tb/s established by NICT and others in April 2020. The researchers recently presented their results at the International Conference on Optical Fiber Communications in June 2021.

The researchers employed a number of technologies and techniques that remain new, and which have not yet become mainstream, including: special low-loss 4-core spatial division multiplexing (SDM) fiber employed in research projects, erbium and thulium doped-fiber amplifiers, distributed Raman amplification, and, in addition to utilizing the C-band and L-band transmission wavelengths, they used the S-band wavelength. S-band usage has been typically limited to lab tests conducted over just a few tens of kilometers in research projects.

They claim to have achieved high transmission quality in the 4-core fiber that maintains the same outer diameter—0.125 mm—of glass cladding used in standard single-mode fiber.

Ben Puttnam, a senior researcher at NICT and leader of the record-breaking project team, stated, “Because our SDM fiber has the same cladding as standard single-mode fibers, it can be compatible with the same cabling technology currently in use and makes early adoption more likely.” He also noted, “Keeping the same diameter is also important because the mechanical properties and failure probabilities are well understood. Exactly how bending and twisting of larger fibers may affect their properties is not fully known.” NICT previously explored some research fibers with cladding diameters almost 3x larger and could achieve

Comparison of transmission speeds. (Courtesy NICT)

transmission rates of over 10 petabits a second, but found these fibers were hard to handle and sometimes snapped.

Larger diameter fibers were also harder to make in long span lengths, and the likelihood of splicing errors increased when fibers are joined together.

The researchers at NICT’s laboratory set up a recirculating transmission loop to achieve a distance of 3,001 km.

Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) of 552, 25GHz spaced channels generated from a comb source and tunable lasers carried the data. They doubled the amount of information carried, before launching a 120 nm signal into each of the four cores of the fiber, by using dual-polarization modulators. At 69.8 km intervals along the fiber, they compensated loss by using two kinds of

Schematic diagram of the transmission system. (Courtesy NICT) FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 41

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Experimental results. (Courtesy NICT) Benefits of Raman band amplification. (Courtesy NICT)

amplifiers, one doped with erbium and the other with thulium, to boost the signals in the C/L bands and in the S bands, respectively. In addition, Raman pump amplifiers provided gain along the transmission fiber, preventing the signal power from decaying excessively. This led to less noise when the signal is amplified and improves overall performance.

The decoded data rates across the S, C, and L bandwidths were: 102.5 Tb/s (S), 108.7 Tb/s (C) and 107.7 Tb/s (L). Putnam stated, “Now we are working to increase the transmission distance. We’ve already measured channels at a distance of 8,000 kilometers and want to push on to at least 10,000 kilometers by better optimizing the gain flattening. Over short distant spans of 50 to 70 kilometers, I think we could eventually transmit over 1 petabit a second in this fiber.”

Currently, standard single-core single-mode optical fiber, which is widely used for medium- and long-distance communication, is considered to have a capacity limit of about 100 terabits per second in the conventional C- and L-bands and 200-300 terabits per second if adopting additional bands. In order to further increase transmission capacity, research on multi-core fibers with more cores (light paths) and multi-mode fibers has been performed extensively in recent years.

QAM is a multi-level modulation format with high spectral information density. 16 QAM uses 16 different signal symbols and can therefore encode 4 bits of information in each. The spectral density of 16 QAM is therefore 4 times higher than for simple modulation formats such as on-off keying. Modulation methods that can transmit 5 times (32QAM) and 6 times (64QAM) information of OOK can also be used, but 32QAM and 64QAM but make the system more vulnerable to signal distortions such as optical amplifier noise and are not suitable for long-distance transmission. 16QAM is considered to be a practical multilevel modulation methods because it can reach medium and long distances sufficiently while increasing the information density per symbol.

It is possible that once the technology has been optimized, and provided SDM fiber is shown to be practically and economically capable of manufacture with the same cladding as standard single-mode fiber, the technology could be used in trans-ocean submarine cables, where space is at a premium. Another likely customer would include large data centers, where high-density connectors can be crucial and new fibers are routinely added. The potential bandwidth of SDM fibers would also be attractive in terrestrial fiber networks, but the costly business of fiber deployment somewhat complicates the issue.

After deployment, Puttnam expects applications like high-resolution video streaming, online gaming and IoT communications to be some of the applications eating up the additional bandwidth, as will be the advent of 6G in a decade’s time.

SOURCES J. Boyd, World-Record Data Transmission Speed Smashed, IEEE Spectrum, Aug. 2, 2021.

Main standard outer diameter optical fibers that NICT has conducted transmission experiments.

(Courtesy NICT)

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 42

Demonstration of World Record: 319 Tb/s Transmission over 3,001 km with 4-core optical fiber, NICT Website, https://www.nict.go.jp/ en/press/2021/07/12-1.html, accessed, Sep. 7, 2021.

www.radioclubofamerica.org

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NEWS ITEM

Updates from the Antique Wireless Association

The AWA Review Is Now Online

T

he Antique Wireless Association’s research publication The AWA Review is now entering its 35rd year of publication.

An archive of these issues has been placed online for researchers.

The AWA Review is one of the oldest academic publications dedicated specifically to the history of radio, wireless and telegraph technology history. It includes in depth exploration of material The 2020 AWA Review. that was prepared in the context of presenting annual conference papers and providing research findings. This periodical offers a mechanism for AWA to publish longer articles that are not possible in The AWA Journal. The focus of articles in The AWA Review is on the history of communication technologies and associated individuals,

places, technologies, and artifacts. The articles are peer reviewed, meaning that authorities other than the author have reviewed each contribution, and their anonymous comments have been forwarded to authors during the editorial review process.

The AWA Review has been published since 1986. The AWA Board of Trustees has approved the online posting of all issues except the last two year’s issues. The AWA website contains a listing by Year and Volume for each issue. The listing provides a “hot link” to each issue’s PDF document. All volumes are .pdf word searchable format.

In some cases, the file is of substantial size, especially those that contain color illustrations. A few issues are yet to be posted. Please see https://www.antiquewireless. org/homepage/awa-review/ and also https://www. antiquewireless.org/homepage/awa-review-archive/.

If you are searching for a specific topic, the button to the right will take you to a page with a complete set of indexes for both The AWA Journal and The AWA Review. The combined index is available at https://www.antiquewireless. org/homepage/journal-review-index/.

The AWA 2021 AWA Annual Conference

AWA Hosts Monthly Zoom Meetings — “AWA Shares”

On October 5 to 9, 2021, the Antique Wireless Association hosted a successful AWA Annual Conference with over 120 in attendance. During the 4 ½ day Conference, AWA provided 12 interesting and informative presentations, three dinners including the Annual Awards Banquet, a dessert social, a flea market, a book sale, an Old Equipment Contest, visits to the Antique Wireless Museum and an auction. It was a busy schedule, but attendees found plenty of time to renew old and make new friendships.

Each month, there will be a one hour well researched presentation by an expert in their field followed by a short question and answer period from the attendees.

AWA Webinar Wednesdays on Zoom will be held the third Wednesday of the month with a refreshing new topic with each meeting. You do not need to be an AWA member and the meetings are FREE! You need to register for each meeting so that AWA can make sure we have enough Zoom capacity. The registration link is posted at https://www. antiquewireless.org/homepage/awa-shares/.

Many of the Conference presentations will be posted on the AWA YouTube Channel. The link to the AWA YouTube channel can be found on the AWA website at https://www. antiquewireless.org/homepage/awa-youtube-channel/.

The AWA is a partner organization to the Radio Club of America. See the AWA website for more information at https://www.antiquewireless.org/homepage/.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 44

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NEWS ITEM

Russian Woodpecker Antenna Array Becomes a Cultural Heritage Site

F

rom the 1970s until the late 1980s the Soviet Union operated a massive Duga-1 antenna array that transmitted the obnoxious and infuriating “Russian Woodpecker” HF signal. It is now a cultural heritage site.

The array, located near Chernobyl in Ukraine, was part of an over-the-horizon radar (OTH-R) system designed to detect and offer early warning of incoming ballistic missiles from the U.S. A complementary receiver site was located 40 miles away. When the system was operating, its broad rat-a-tat signal, typically at a 10 Hz rate, caused severe interference in the amateur bands. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster and the end of the Cold War preceded the end of the system and the interference it caused. NATO military intelligence discovered and photographed the structure, which it dubbed the “Steel Yard.”

The radar array was nearly 2,300 feet long and more than 450 feet tall. Its steel beams sit in the Chernobyl exclusion zone and tower above the surrounding forest. Seen from a distance, it appears to be a massive wall or the side of a cage. As Vice recently reported, the Association of Chernobyl Tour Operators announced that Ukraine had made Duga-1 a protected heritage site. The Russian Interfax news service later reported the official designation: “Our heritage is not only the area around the power plant but also the buildings located on its territory,” Oleksandr Tkachenko, Ukraine’s Minister of Culture and Information Policy, said in a Telegram thread about the announcement.

“So now we are working on identifying other objects that should be part of the list of monuments. Our goal is to prevent destruction when possible.”

A Duga array seen from the ground, note the radiation sign.

[Ingmar Runge photo]

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 45

A Duga array seen from a distance. [Ingmar Runge photo]

The Soviet Union deployed two similar OTH-R installations, known and Duga-1 and Duga-2, near Chernobyl and in eastern Siberia. Transmitter power levels were rumored to be in the 10-megawatt EIRP range.

Duga-1 was the focus of a 2015 documentary, The Russian Woodpecker, by Chad Gracia. The film includes interviews with Duga Commander Vladimir Musiets and others involved in building and operating the OTH-R system. The production was a 2015 Sundance Film Festival winner in the documentary category. In recent years, the Duga-1 radar has also played a role in other films, as well as in various video games and novels.

The surrounding buildings, Chernobyl nuclear plant, and gigantic radar array, abandoned suddenly and left to decay over decades, are haunting reminders of the dangers of nuclear power and because they keep appearing in popular movies and video games. Duga-1 is the setting for several Call of Duty maps, including a prominent place for a sniper’s nest in the new, 1980s themed Warzone map.

It also appears as the final map in Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War and the Sosnovka military base in Player Unknown Battleground as well as STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl.

Constructed in 1972, the radar system was intended to be an early warning system for incoming ballistic missiles.

When Duga-1 came online, sometime in the mid-1970s, radio operators around the world noticed a strange signal

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coming from the forests of Ukraine. The system was so powerful that it disrupted some frequencies with an irritating thumping noise. Amateur radio operators dubbed the signal’s source “The Russian Woodpecker” because of the repeated tapping noise it pumped into HAM radios.

Ukraine sees Pripyat, Chernobyl, and the Exclusion Zone as part of its heritage. Duga-1 is a part of that landscape. Ukraine wants the Zone and its buildings to become a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, and this designation is an important step in that process.

SOURCES Gault, M., A Missile Radar in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone Is Now a Protected Heritage Site, Vice Website, https://www.vice.com/amp/en/ article/88nagx/a-missile-radar-in-the-chernobyl-exclusion-zone-is-now-aprotected-heritage-site.

Russian Woodpecker Antenna Array Now a Cultural Heritage Site, ARRL Letter, July 1, 2021, http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2021-07-01.

NEWS ITEM

A Duga towering over the forest. [Ingmar Runge photo]

Radio Club of America Member and HamSCI Founder Dr. Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, Awarded NASA Research Grant

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adio Club of America member and Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) founder Dr. Nathaniel Frissell, W2NAF, an assistant professor in The University of Scranton’s Physics and Engineering Department, has been awarded a $481,260 grant through the NASA Space Weather Applications Operations Phase II Research Program. Frissell will serve as principal investigator for a research project entitled, “Enabling Space Weather Research with Global Scale Amateur Radio Datasets.” He will collaborate with Philip Erickson, W1PJE, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory and Bill Engelke, AB4EJ, at the University of Alabama.

Dr. Frissell stated, “This grant includes significant funding for participation of Scranton undergraduate students in this research, as well as support for new computation resources.” He explained that the grant will fund “the development of an empirical model for the prediction of traveling ionospheric disturbances (TIDs) in high-frequency radio communications while investigating the geophysical drivers of these disturbances.” The grant will cover two years of work.

Dr. Frissell said that the predictive, empirical TID models will be developed using data collected by the Reverse Beacon Network, WSPR, and PSKreporter; these are automated, global-scale radio communication observation networks operated by the amateur radio community.

Undergraduate students will help the faculty researchers to create algorithms used for the model development.

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This new NASA award complements a five year National Science Foundation grant of more than $616,000 that Dr. Frissell received in 2020. That investigation aims to understand the source of TIDs observed in amateur radio and other scientific datasets.

In 2019, Dr. Frissell received a $1.3 million National Science Dr. Nathaniel Frissell Foundation grant to fund a three year initiative to measure modulations produced in the Earth’s upper atmosphere.

The grant supports a collaborative team to develop the HamSCI Personal Space Weather Station, a modular, multi-instrument, ground-based space science observation platform used to study variability in the coupled geospace system and to better understand HF radio propagation.

This is Dr. Frissell’s second NASA grant. A space physicist, he is among the researchers working on a NASA Living with a Star Program (LWS) project, “Wave-Driven Asymmetries in the Ionosphere-Thermosphere due to Asymmetries in the Northern and Southern Polar Vortices.” That project is being led by Richard Collins of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute.

SOURCE ARRL Letter, Sep. 9, 2021.

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NEWS ITEM

FCC and GAO Studies Released About Small Business Broadband Needs

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he broadband needs of small businesses are rapidly changing. Meeting their needs is essential, given the important role that small businesses play in the U.S. economy by creating jobs and promoting economic opportunity. The COVID-19 pandemic has created many social and business disruptions that have forced more small businesses to conduct their business online.

Broadband is a critical tool for their economic survival.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Government Accountability Office (GAO) released two studies about U.S. Broadband in July 2021.

more than $29 billion of capital expenditures in 2019 (roughly 18% of global mobile capital spending), the largest mobile broadband investment since 2015.

The FCC concluded that advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed on a reasonable and timely basis, nevertheless, efforts to close the digital divide are not complete.

FCC STUDY In its July 2021 broadband deployment report, the FCC concluded that the 2015 broadband speed benchmark does continue to meet the current requirements for reasonable and timely deployment of broadband services to all Americans.

However, FCC representatives acknowledged that rapidly changing small business requirements had not been taken into consideration when making that initial determination.

The FCC found that 96% of the U.S. population has access to broadband, defined as an “always on” internet connection operating at or above the FCC’s benchmark for minimum speed, which was set in 2015 at 25 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloads and 3 Mbps for uploads.

The FCC has prioritized closing the rural/urban digital divide by promoting competition in the telecommunications marketplace and removing barriers to infrastructure investment. The FCC concluded that fixed and mobile providers continue to make gains in bringing highspeed broadband service to all Americans. The number of Americans living in areas without access to at least 25/3 Mbps has dropped from to fewer than 14.5 million Americans at the end of 2019, and more than threequarters of those in newly served areas, nearly 3.7 million, are located in rural areas, bringing the number of rural Americans in areas served by at least 25/3 Mbps to nearly 83%.

As of the end of 2019, mobile providers now provide access to 5G capability to approximately 60% of Americans. Mobile broadband deployment benefited from

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 47

GAO STUDY The GAO’s July 2021 study of broadband concluded that FCC’s estimate of effective access may be overstated, especially with regard to rural areas, and that questions remained whether current broadband services are fast enough to meet the evolving needs of small business owners in particular. GAO cited two recent surveys by the National Federation of Independent Business and Google, which found that approximately 8 percent, or about 2-3 million, U.S. small business lack access to broadband.

Small businesses likely benefit from the FCC and the Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) funding to expand broadband deployment. For example, FCC estimated that approximately $9.2 billion allocated for broadband infrastructure in 2020 will serve over 5.2 million residences and businesses.

Much of the literature GAO reviewed suggests that FCC’s current broadband minimum benchmark speeds of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) for downloading and 3 Mbps for uploading are likely too slow to meet many small business needs.

Sources vary in terms of the specific recommendations for small businesses. For example, in 2017, BroadbandUSA—a National Telecommunications and Information Administration program—published a fact sheet stating that small businesses need a minimum of 50 Mbps speeds in order to conduct tasks such as managing inventory, operating point-of-sale terminals, and coordinating shipping. A 2019 USDA report on rural

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broadband and agriculture stated that, as technology advances and volumes of data needed to manage agriculture production grow, speeds in excess of 25/3 Mbps with more equal download and upload speeds will likely be necessary.

incorporate the results of that analysis into the FCC’s benchmark for broadband.

GAO noted that FCC was required to fulfill a statutory requirement to determine annually whether advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed on a reasonable and timely basis to all Americans, FCC sets a minimum broadband speed benchmark. In its 2021 Broadband Deployment Report, FCC stated that the current benchmark, last set in 2015, continues to meet that requirement. However, FCC officials said they are not aware of any small business requirements that have been taken into consideration in determining the minimum speed benchmark. GAO concluded that analyzing small business speed requirements could help inform FCC’s determination of the benchmark speed for broadband.

SOURCES

Complete copies of the two reports are available at the website links cited below.

Assessing Small Business Broadband Needs, IEEE-USA Insight, Jul. 19, 2021, https://insight.ieeeusa.org/articles/ assessing-small-business-broadband-needs/.

Broadband: FCC Should Analyze Small Business Speed Needs, Report to the Congressional Addressees, United States Government Accountability Office, July 2021, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-21-494.pdf.

Fourteenth Broadband Deployment Report, Adopted: Jan. 13, 2021 Released: Jan. 19, 2021, Federal Communications Commission, FCC 21-18, https://docs.fcc. gov/public/attachments/FCC-21-18A1.pdf.

The FCC agreed with GAO’s recommendation that the FCC solicit greater stakeholder input for analysis and

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ARRL, RSGB Announce Joint Events to Celebrate Centenary of Ham Radio Transatlantic Success

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RRL and the Radio Society of Great Britain will jointly sponsor events to celebrate the achievement of transatlantic communications by radio amateurs 100 years ago.

In December 1921, ARRL sent Paul F. Godley, 2ZE, as its representative to listen for amateur signals from North America during the Second Transatlantic Tests. Setting up his listening station in Ardrossan, on the west coast of Scotland, Godley received the signals of more than 2 dozen US amateur radio stations, the first on December 12 (UTC) from 1BCG in Connecticut, operated by members of the Radio Club of America. The message read: “Nr 1 NY ck 12 to Paul Godley, Ardrossan, Scotland. Hearty Congratulations.

(Signed) Burghard Inman Grinan Armstrong Amy Cronkhite.”

These successful transatlantic tests and the ones that followed would spur technological advances and new global wireless distance records. Several amateur radio operating events this year and next will commemorate the centenary of these significant milestones that heralded the dawn of twoway international amateur radio communication.

ARRL and RSGB will activate special event stations for 6 hours (0200 – 0800 UTC) on December 12 for the 160-Meter Transatlantic Centenary QSO Party. The RSGB will activate GB2ZE from Scotland, with a team of stations from the GMDX Group sharing operating duties. ARRL will activate W1AW. The stations will operate only on CW. If transatlantic propagation holds up, the stations may continue to operate beyond 0800 UTC. The GMDX Group of Scotland will award a quaich — a traditional Scottish drinking cup representing friendship — to the first stations in North America and the UK to complete contacts with both W1AW and GB2ZE during the QSO Party.

A commemorative certificate will be available for download.

The RSGB and ARRL are also organizing an international amateur radio marathon on the HF bands to commemorate transatlantic tests held between 1921 and 1923. The Transatlantic Centenary Marathon will take place in December 2022. The objective will be to mark these historic events by encouraging all radio amateurs to get on the air.

Event details are pending.

ARRL and RSGB have assembled a list of stations and groups that are also organizing events and activities to celebrate 100 years of amateur radio transatlantic communication.

For more information, visit arrl.org/transatlantic and rsgb. org/transatlantic-tests. The sites also include links to many previously published articles and presentations covering the historic tests.

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ADDITIONAL EVENTS AND COMMEMORATIONS Radio Club of America (RCA) Transatlantic QSO Party, 1200 UTC on November 13 to 0400 UTC November 14, 2021 (16 hours total). The QSO Party commemorates the contribution of members of the Radio Club of America, who constructed and operated the 1BCG transmitter site in Greenwich, Connecticut, that sent the first message received by Paul Godley, 2ZE, in Scotland.

W1AW Commemorative Transatlantic QSL Card. Stations making contact with Hiram Percy Maxim Memorial Station W1AW between December 11, 2021, and December 31, 2022, qualify to receive a commemorative W1AW QSL card. US stations should QSL with a SASE; international stations should QSL via the Bureau.

The 2021 ARRL 160-Meter Contest, 2200 UTC on December 3 – 1559 UTC on December 5.

This 42-hour CW-only contest is most similar to the original Transatlantic Tests of the early 1920s. Stations in the US and Canada work each other as well as DXCC entities. The RSGB is planning to activate one of the original call signs used in the Transatlantic Tests, with up to seven different prefixes from the UK and Crown Dependencies. Look for G6XX (England); GD6XX (Isle of Man); GI6XX (Northern Ireland); GJ6XX (Jersey); GM6XX (Scotland); GU6XX (Guernsey), and GW6XX (Wales).

Special Event GB1002ZE, December 1 – 26, 2021. The Crocodile Rock Amateur Group (CRAG) based near Ardrossan, Scotland, will activate the special event station GB1002ZE to commemorate the successful reception of amateur transatlantic signals by Paul Godley, 2ZE, in 1921. The RSGB encourages stations in the UK and Crown Dependencies to append the suffix “/2ZE” to their station’s normal call sign throughout the period, as authorized by UK regulator Ofcom.

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BOOK REVIEW Covert Radio Agents, 1939-1945 by David Hebditch Reviewed by Philip Cala-Lazar, K9PL EDITOR’S NOTE: The following book has been suggested as interesting reading or as a useful resource. The following review does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by RCA. We welcome suggestions and recommendations from RCA’s members regarding books to share with RCA’s membership. The scope can include technical, regulatory, or other subjects. We encourage you to send your suggestions to David Bart at jbart1964@gmail.com for publication in a future issue of the Proceedings.

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avid Hebditch’s Covert Radio Agents, 19391945: Signals From Behind Enemy Lines, enthralls with its account of the men and women who, while deployed behind enemy lines, daily risked their lives to collect enemy intelligence. That intelligence played an essential role in formulating Allied tactical and strategic war plans.

Comprised of civilian volunteers and active military, covert radio agents served under the aegis of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), Special Operations Executive (SOE), and America’s Office of Security Services (OSS). The agents were of many nationalities, British, American, Norwegian, Australian, French and more, united in common cause, they gave themselves to great acts of bravery and selflessness, often unto torture and death.

Postwar, their undercover operations remained largely unknown owing to stringent secrecy acts that outlasted the war and the lives of many agents by decades.

Covert Radio Agents, 1939-1945 is a riveting, informative and engaging book. It is profusely illustrated with photographs, maps, original documents, diagrams and the author’s drawings.

Hebditch covers the panoply of covert radio agents from their recruitment, to their training, deployment in enemy territory and, notably, detailed descriptions of the radio gear supplied.

Those radios ranged from Britain’s tiny, “cigarette case-size” Biscuit radio receiver and the Soviet’s compact, modular Tensor/Tenzor, to Norway’s home brew Olga, through the Paraset(s) and various Type A & B sets, to Australia’s Coastwatchers’ AWA 3BZ Teleradio, that “weighed 168 kg (379 lbs) including generator and batteries that required 12 to 16 porters to transport.”

Of especial interest is 56-page Chapter 8, “Technical Briefings.” The chapter comprises four “tutorials”: “...radios and how they worked; ...how enemy radio

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intelligence could monitor and locate transmissions; ...the use of Morse code and the format of messages and ...how messages were encrypted by the agent and the home station to make them difficult as possible for the enemy to read.” Armchair adventurers will also find in this chapter a diagram for clandestinely setting up a SOE Type A Mark I radio, indoor antenna and counterpoise, and vicariously experience parachuting behind enemy lines aboard a specially equipped bomber or STOL Westland Lysander aircraft.

The author suggests some readers may want to first read Chapter 8 to bolster their knowledge of the book’s subject matter. Truly, the chapter’s radio and Morse code tutorials would have made a robust Novice Class study guide with its inclusion of radio theory, antennas, propagation, Morse technique and history, and procedural- and Q-codes.

SOE agents trained at schools located in Great Britain and Canada. The SOE and sister agencies sought candidates possessing special abilities, particularly valued were amateur radio operators with 20-wpm, or better, Morse skills and fluency in a foreign language.

“Twenty words per minute was the minimum expected of a specialist W/T [wireless telegraphy] operator, and most could achieve 25 wpm.”

Following deployment, agents were required to locate as secure a base of operations as possible; erect an antenna; meet receiving and transmission schedules; encrypt and decrypt messages; contact, when necessary, other agents; recruit and train trustworthy locals as agents; all the while trying to evade capture, interrogation, torture, imprisonment and death by keeping a low profile and transmissions brief and few as possible. Once settled they frequently moved at a moment’s notice when neighbors or the authorities became too curious. Then repeat the process of locating and setting up a new base. This peripatetic lifestyle was common to both urban and sparsely populated areas where agents shifted position when

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enemy patrols came too close and/or D/F (direction finding) teams sighted.

From Scandinavia’s frigid fjords to lush islands in the southwestern Pacific, to the heart of the Axis in Europe, the author devotes five chapters to covert intelligence gathering and radio operation.

SIS IN NORWAY Stationed in caves and on rocky precipices located on fjords and isolated islands, Norwegian operators’ observations assisted in air and sea attacks on the German Kriegsmarine heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen and the battleship Bismarck. SIS officer Torstein Raaby, who spied on a number of German warships including the battleship Tirpitz, appears in this chapter. In 1947, Raaby, operating as LI2B, would serve as one of two radio operators, with Knut Haugland, aboard Thor Heyerdahl’s Kon-Tiki.

SOLOMON ISLANDS OPERATION FERDINAND The brave and lonely exploits of coast-watchers based on Japanese occupied or soon to be occupied islands in the southwestern Pacific. Manned primarily by Australians, as the war progressed, they were joined

by New Zealanders, Pacific Islanders and other Allied personnel. Named for the bull in the eponymous children’s book, “...Ferdinand ...who did not fight but sat under a tree and just smelled the flowers.”

Coast-watchers were expected to sit “...circumspectly and unobtrusively, gathering information,” but were ferocious and effective fighters when need be.

THE RED ORCHESTRA: NAZIS VERSUS SOVIETS The Soviet’s Red Orchestra, “...a remarkable network of spies, couriers and radio operators...” was spread across Europe, from Belgium to Switzerland and included operatives in at least 10 other countries.

The German Central Security Office (RSHA) coined the name Die Rote Kapelle/The Red Orchestra: espionage reports via radio, music; radio operators, pianists; the Grand Chef, its maestro “in the field”; and its director, located in Moscow, conductor.

SOE AND OSS IN SWEDEN AND NORWAY Objective: Sabotage Norway’s Nordland Railway to delay 150,000 German troops and their armaments’ movement south following the “...liberation of France and the Low Countries.” A young Major William Colby of the OSS (later director of the CIA), after cutting his teeth in France during Operation JEDBURGH, plays a prominent role in this chapter.

One hiccup in this chapter is located on page 163 where the Continental Morse code letter “P” sent by “torch (flashlight),” to aircraft overhead is stated to consist of “...two long, one short...” rather than the correct “one short, two long, one short.”

FRANCE: “VOTRE PLACE NÈST PAS ICI!” The home of some original, perhaps eccentric, but definitely effective and courageous agents including Virginia Hall (subject of Jeffrey W. Bass’s painting, Les Marguerites Fleuriront ce Soir on the book’s cover), the daring Nancy Wake and Georges Bégué.

Bégué is best remembered for suggesting the now legendary and highly successful idea to pass messages to field agents via the BBC’s–Messages Personnels.

OVERALL RECOMMENDATION Covert Radio Agents, 1939-1945, Signals From Behind Enemy Lines is a treasure of a book, part narrative, part tutorial and, throughout, an authentic adventure saga. Ultimately, it is a very human story generously seasoned with ingenuity, technology and hardy individualism. See Casemate publishers to order at https://www.casematepublishers.com/covertradio-agents-1939-1945.html.

Reprinted with permission of the K9YA Telegraph (http://www.k9ya.org).

Covert Radio Agents, 1939-1945: Signals From Behind Enemy Lines, David Hebditch, Pen & Sword Military, Yorkshire-Philadelphia, 2021, ISBN 978 1 52679 494 9, 301 pages including notes, bibliography and further reading, and index.

ABOUT THE REVIEWER Philip Cala-Lazar, K9PL, is the CoFounder and Editor of the Robert F. Heytow Memorial Radio Club and its publication the K9YA Telegraph.

He is a member of multiple radio organizations and the recipient of multiple awards, including: A-1 Operator Club, FISTS, SKCC, NAQCC, CWops, CTC, FPQC, JA A-1, DXCC, WAC, WAS, and ARRL VEC.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 51

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BOOK REVIEW Cutting the Cord, The Cell Phone Has Transformed Humanity

by Martin Cooper Reviewed by John Facella EDITOR’S NOTE: The following book has been suggested as interesting reading or as a useful resource. The following review does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by RCA. We welcome suggestions and recommendations from RCA’s members regarding books to share with RCA’s membership. The scope can include technical, regulatory, or other subjects. We encourage you to send your suggestions to David Bart at jbart1964@gmail.com for publication in a future issue of the Proceedings.

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his book provides a very nice summary of Marty Cooper’s life’s work in wireless and telecommunications. Dr. Cooper has spent all of his adult life working in the wireless industry, and he has amassed a long list of very major accomplishments, many of which are detailed in this 242 page book. Dr. Cooper has also been a commentator on the impact of technology in our society, and this book outlines his ideas on these topics. In 2010, he was the keynote speaker at RCA’s Annual Awards Banquet in New York City, and at that event Marty talked about his views on the possible future that wireless technology could play in many areas, especially health care.

Once again, RCA will have the marvelous opportunity to honor Dr. Cooper when he is our keynote speaker in Denver this November. We all look eagerly forward to his presentation.

This review discusses his recent book Cutting the Cord, The Cell Phone Has Transformed Humanity. It is published by Rosetta Books and has the ISBN listing of 978-1-948122-74-0. The list price on the book jacket is $26.99 in the U.S. The book is organized into 18 chapters, presented in two parts. However, I believe the book can actually be viewed as having four major sections, each of which may appeal to different readers: • Motorola History: Chapters 2 through 6 detail the early MTS and IMTS mobile telephone and 2 way radio systems built at Motorola, their entrance into quartz crystal manufacturing, and the company’s relationship with AT&T and Bell Laboratories.

• Cellular Telephone System History: Chapters 7 through 9 and 11 explain the AMPS Cellular telephone system and the DynaTAC, the world’s first portable cellular phone, which was designed in three months, but took another ten years to become fully commercialized.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 52

• Innovation & Management Advice: Sprinkled throughout chapters 1 through 12 in Part I, and especially in chapter 10 (“Eureka Doesn’t Happen”), and his one page “Bridge, Marty’s Maxims” on page 153, are his insights into management and the creative process.

• Future Impacts of Wireless on Society: In Part II, chapters 13 to 18, Marty outlines how the cell phone can transform our lives in the areas of poverty, education, collaborative work, and health care.

PART I, CHAPTER 1 In this section Dr. Cooper explains his early family history. He tells how his father moved the family from the Ukraine, which Russian Cossacks had invaded, and then transported the family in a wagon train across Europe into Belgium, where they then went by boat to Canada, and eventually arrived in Chicago, where Marty was born in 1928. Marty graduated from high school in 1946, and then went to the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT). He joined the U.S. Naval ROTC program, and eventually served on a heavy cruiser, a destroyer, and a submarine.

After three years in the Navy, he returned to civilian life and worked for the Teletype Corporation making teleprinters. But after less than a year there, Marty decided he wanted to work in the electronics field, so in 1954, he joined Motorola as a senior development engineer.

PART I, CHAPTERS 2 TO 6 These chapters will hold special interest for those that worked at, or competed with, Motorola in the 1950s to the 1970s.

Chapters 2 and 3 review some of the early projects Marty worked on at Motorola, including a cryptographic machine that was Motorola’s very

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first fully transistorized device, a transistorized manual car telephone (MTS) decoder-selector device, and the more automatic IMTS car telephone radios. He also discusses Motorola’s early and somewhat tense relationship with AT&T as well as Motorola’s major competitor General Electric.

The rationale of why and how Motorola decided to delve into developing high quality quartz crystals is explained in Chapter 4. Quartz crystals were the predominant frequency determining device within wireless equipment at the time.

Motorola became a dominant supplier of crystals as a result of this project.

Chapter 5 provides a nice historical overview about many of Motorola’s early products, including the World War II and Korean War “handie-talkie” SCR 536, the Pageboy pager, the HT 220 portable radio, their paging terminals, and Motorola’s work with the Chicago Police Department that led to the first receiver voting systems, which created path/ geographic receive diversity technology.

The end of Chapter 5 and Chapter 6 provide insights into Motorola’s leadership at the time and its management philosophies.

PART I, CHAPTERS 7 TO 12 Chapter 7 presents “Cooper’s Law” and explains the proposals from both AT&T and Motorola to the FCC for opening up spectrum that could be used for mobile telephone applications.

Chapter 8 discusses how Motorola used theatre as one means of promoting technological change and making the public aware of new advances in wireless, although audiences were skeptical that these changes would occur or that they would be broadly accepted into daily life.

Chapter 9 is a key chapter that describes in 26 pages how the first portable cellular telephone, the DynaTAC, was developed in an amazing three months! It would take another ten years to refine the portable cell phone and to develop the infrastructure necessary to support it, but the story of these engineering achievements is inspiring.

Chapter 11 details the subsequent versions of the DynaTAC that were built, and explains the regulatory delays that

Motorola encountered along the way. The chapter also talks about Motorola’s Technology Roadmap, a process which this author experienced first-hand, and Motorola’s subsequent forays into other technologies. Dr. Cooper explains his views about why Motorola ultimately had to downsize and exit many of its businesses.

Chapter 10 is a bit different, and focusses on ways to inspire and encourage corporate innovation. Marty offers a wise perspective from someone who has been a serial technology inventor.

Chapter 12 provides a transition that explains some of the other businesses that Marty ventured into after he left Motorola in 1983.

The last section of Part I is on page 153, “Marty’s Maxims”, in which he provides a summary of how to fundamentally think about wireless technologies. These offer important reading for any wireless entrepreneur!

Interspersed among these chapters in Part I are Cooper’s thoughts about being close to customers, the importance of understanding their needs, view on the problems with monopolies like AT&T, and perspectives on the difficulties of convincing government to adopt new technologies.

PART II In Part II, Dr. Cooper provides some future predictions about the role wireless technology will play in our lives going forward. Some of these ideas have already started to come to fruition, others will take more time.

Marty’s vision of the role that the cell phone and other wireless devices can play in the future is very interesting.

His perspective is that the cell phone has improved or will improve many aspects of society. Detractors might question why the book did not examine some of the negative impacts of technology, for example the distraction aspect on school students. But his views, based on decades of experience in serving people’s needs with wireless technology, should be carefully listened to.

Chapter 13 explains the adoption rate of wireless phones, and Marty’s oft mentioned belief that connections are made between people and not places.

FRESH CONTENT – ON THE –

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The positive economic impact of wireless technology is explained in Chapter 14. Data is presented on mobile phone adoption in low and middle-income countries.

wireless may be. I enjoyed the candor and frank discussion, and the many insights provided by Dr. Cooper based on his incredible life working in the world of wireless.

Dr. Cooper presents his view of why spectrum scarcity is a myth, and why we need better ways to assign spectrum in Chapter 15.

Cutting the Cord: The Cell Phone Has Transformed Humanity, Martin Cooper, RosettaBooks, 2021, ISBN 978 1948122740, 264 pages.

Chapter 16 is a short discussion on the impact of wireless technologies on education.

Chapter 17 discusses creating collaborative work environments. He uses an example of how such collaboration can help to solve problems of hearing degradation in older adults.

Chapter 18 traces the possible evolution of health care using wireless technology and artificial intelligence (AI), progressing ultimately to a life adjunct to people he calls Human 2.0.

OVERALL RECOMMENDATION This book is a must read for anyone in the wireless industry who is interested in its history, interested in the process of making big innovations, or interested in where the future of

ABOUT THE REVIEWER John Facella has a 30+ year career in wireless, including working for Motorola and their largest competitor Harris (now L3 Harris), and a national consulting company. He has also been the chief of executive of several small high tech companies, and served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. He graduated from Georgia Tech with a BSEE degree, is a registered professional engineer, and is the current president of the Radio Club of America. The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and not an official opinion of RCA.

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CENTENNIAL OF ARRL’S 1921 CONVENTION

By David Bart, RCA Fellow, Director, Life Member In September 1921, the ARRL held its first annual convention. Today, the topics still seem fresh; and, they preceded immediately the conduct of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests (see related articles). Congratulations to ARRL on both events!!

ARRL In September 1921, the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL) met in Chicago for its first national convention at the historic Edgewater Beach Hotel on the shores of Lake Michigan. Founded by Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence D. Tuska in 1914 as a spin-off from the Radio Club of Hartford, the organization resumed operations after a hiatus during World War I. Prior to the war, in December 1915, the ARRL published the first issue of its principal magazine, QST. A year later, the ARRL attained its 1,000th member.

By 1921, ARRL operated as the leading organization promoting and defending the interests of amateur radio operators nationwide. The number of amateur operators swelled from 6,000 before World War I to 10,800 in 1921. That year, from August 31 through September 3, over 1,200 amateur radio operators and more than 50 industry exhibitors met in their first convention.

QST provided news about the four-day extravaganza

in its August, September and October 1921 issues.

Subsequent issues offered additional coverage.

THE CONVENTION The sprawling convention spread out from the Edgewater Beach Hotel to other sites within a few blocks. A national radio show convened at the 6th Regiment Armory on Broadway, then the largest and most modern exhibition hall in Chicago, featuring more than 50 exhibitors and displays. The armory also hosted educational sessions.

ARRLs meetings were held at the nearby Swiff School.

The Sheraton Plaza Hotel provided additional meeting space.

The exhibit hall filled the Armory, which was capable of hosting 8,000 people when used as a dance floor. Displays included new inventions, featuring Formica Insulation, new transformers and Remler products. Hammond Radio Equipment and Jewell Electrical Instrument showed their new meters, while Precision Equipment featured its new receiver. Klitzen demonstrated its new transmitters. The still young Radio Corporation of America operated a double booth. The U.S. Dept. of Commerce, the U.S. Army Signal Corps and U.S. Navy provided major displays. Liberty Radio Supply, Manhattan Electric Supply Co. and many others helped fill the hall.

The range of exhibitors at the National Radio Show included the most recognized names in the business: Amrad, Association of Manufacturers of Radio Equipment, Acme, Murdock, Clapp-Eastham, Westinghouse, American Radio Sales and Service, Adams Morgan, Chicago Radio Laboratories (Zenith), Crosley, A.H. Grebe, Federal Telephone & Telegraph, Commonwealth Edison and many others.

In addition to the impressive exhibits, the convention’s daily offerings included automobile and motor-bus tours of Chicago, yacht and motor-boat rides on Lake Michigan, hydro-aeroplane trips and swimming, tennis and golf facilities available at the hotel.

FOUR DAYS OF PROGRAMS The first day brought welcome addresses by the Mayor’s office, Cook County Board plus the local ARRL hosting organization. Herbert Hoover, the spokesman for the U.S. Secretary of Commerce, sent the opening Radiogram.

The U.S. Department of Commerce Chief Radio Inspector W.D. Tarrell, Lieutenant Parmenter of the U.S. Navy, Cover of QST, September, 1921.

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Exhibits by: (left) Chicago Radio Laboratory (Zenith) and (right) Klitzen Radio Mfg.

representatives of AT&T, Mr. Preston of the U.S. Bureau of Standards, and Dr. H.W. Hunt from the National Council of the Boy Scouts of America all provided programs.

Hiram Percy Maxim explained the ARRL’s origins in 1914, noting that initial efforts to communicate with amateurs between Hartford Connecticut and Springfield Massachusetts, a distance of 26 miles, seemed like an incredible achievement. (Within just a few months of this speech, amateurs succeeded with their two-way transatlantic radio tests from Greenwich Connecticut to Ardrossan, Scotland. See related articles in this issue of the Proceedings) He concluded by discussing the ARRL’s great achievement in bringing together a convention of U.S. and Canadian amateurs for the first time.

Over the next four days, a number of related meetings disseminated the latest news in radio regulatory activities and national trends in radio traffic and station expansion.

• Day One — The Secretaries of Commerce and the Navy held meetings with ARRL and its members. U.S. Radio Inspectors provided the latest news about enforcement and licensing of operators. M.B. West spoke about the position of the amateur radio man within the industry.

Charles H. Stewart reviewed the legislative environment.

A presentation was made about new police broadcasting practices. F.F. Hamilton, 9ZJ, reviewed developments on antenna design. Technical sessions were held on spark transmitting, receiving, antenna design, power factors and other topic. Speakers included Paul F. Godley, M.B. West, J.K. Hewitt, V.M. Bitz, E.S. Rogers, E.W. Stone, P.E. Viggin and Irving Vermilya. The activities were so extensive that the last talk of the day started at midnight.

• Day 2 — Purdue University’s Professor R. V. Achatz described radio engineering as a profession. Harvey Mitchell Anthony of Muncie and Professor C. M. Jansky of the University of Minnesota explained CW transmitters and how to organize radio schools. Regional clubs met. Hiram Maxim discussed the relationship of the national organization to the local clubs. Educational sessions included presentations by Commander A. Hoyt Taylor, and Messrs. L. M. Clausing, Robert F. Gowen, Frank Conrad, E. F. W. Alexanderson, K. B. Warner.

Frank Conrad discussed “The Effects of the Radio Phone on Traffic Work”. A ‘CW’ night ended the day’s activities with programs on transmission, antennas, tube design and practical advice for operators.

• Day 3 — Messrs. Kruse and Anthony and Professor Terry of University of Wisconsin discussed Fading Phenomena. ARRL hosted a baseball game where the ARRL’s Board of Direction beat the Chicago Executive Council by 4-1. The SS Theodore Roosevelt brought 800 participants on a cruise of Lake Michigan. A final “Chicago Night on Town” offered more social activity.

Radio Exposition at the Armory.

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• Day 4 — Mr. Anthony and by Mr. J. H. Miller, of the Jewett Electrical Instrument Co. provided educational sessions. ARRL hosted a beach walk with gondolas on the lake. The final banquet drew 400 people who enjoyed the vaudeville skit “At The QST Foundry” with Peg, the beautiful stenographer, and T.O.M. (the old man – Hiram Percy Maxim). Magnavox, Commander W.F. Jacobs of the U.S. Navy Great Lakes Radio School, and prominent FISTS were introduced.

LEGACIES Late 1921 was a particularly busy period for ARRL. The emergence of the Chicago Plan to voluntarily manage radio traffic was proving successful and provided a model for other large cities. Many variations of it were adopted around the U.S. in the early 1920s. Planning for Transatlantic Tests dominated, and the ARRL Convention included “the biggest banquet ever held in the history of Amateur Radio.” The October issue 1921 ARRL of QST filled more than fourteen Convention Medal pages, and its cover proclaimed (Authors’ collection). that all districts were represented, featuring a group picture to prove it. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover sent a Radiogram message to the convention stating that amateur radio was “a very important movement.” And, Hiram Maxim talked about how far amateurs had progressed, and he predicted that nothing could stop relaying from going worldwide.

The first convention proved a huge success. Detailed records of the convention spanned 563 pages, which were summarized in the September, 1921 issue of QST. The convention established publicly the state of the art in 1921, and firmly established the contributions of amateurs to the art and science of radio.

Today, with 160,000 U.S. members plus 7,000 foreign members, the ARRL is the largest amateur radio association in the country and in the world. The ARRL National Convention continues to meet annually. The ARRL is also the largest exhibitor at the annual Hamvention in Ohio, the largest meeting place of hams in the world, hosting from 20,000 to 25,000 participants annually.

Both the ARRL National Convention and the Hamvention in Ohio continue the legacy of ARRL’s 1921 gathering.

Both feature a full slate of forums, presentations, training sessions, equipment manufacturers and sellers, radio club booths, and flea market. ARRL staff and volunteers run booths and tables on behalf of the League in the

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ARRL EXPO area. Programs continue to present the latest in transmission and reception, antennas, research, organizational and club news, and tips for amateur operators. Manufacturers and amateurs continue to offer demonstrations and educational activities and hundreds of displays can be seen.

RCA AND ARRL Of particular note for Radio Club of America members, RCA maintains its ties to ARRL that date to the very beginnings of the industry. For example, RCA’s participation in the first transatlantic amateur shortwave broadcasts in December 1921 also celebrates a centennial this year. Today, ARRL and RCA maintain a close working relationship, and many of RCA’s leadership team are active members of ARRL or participate in ARRL’s own leadership roles. RCA routinely provides presenters at ARRL’s national and regional activities and at the Hamvention in Ohio.

As the legacy of ARRL’s first conference continues to be celebrated, RCA looks forward to being involved with ARRL in many more years of exciting programs and events.

REFERENCES Bart, D. and Bart, J., ARRL’s First Annual Convention in 1921, Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, Fall 2012, p. 14.

The Chicago Plan, Ham Radio History Website, w2pa.net/ HRH/the-chicago-plan/, accessed Sep. 1, 2021.

Come to the Convention, QST, Aug. 1921, p. 7.

Crossings I – Aquitania, Ham Radio History Website, w2pa. net/HRH/crossingsi-aquitania/, accessed Sep. 1, 2021.

Greetings!, QST, Sep. 1921, p. 3.

Mathews, R. H. G., An Explanation of the “Chicago Plan”, QST, July 1922, p.

27.

Our Board of Direction, QST, Aug. 1921, p. 19.

Our First National Convention, QST, Oct. 1921, p. 7.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR David P. Bart, KB9YPD, is Vice President and Chairman of the Radio Club of America Publications Committee and Editorial Director of the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America. He is a Life Member and Director of the Antique Wireless Association, and a Life Member, Director, and Fellow of RCA. He is also the former treasurer of the IEEE History Committee and vice president of the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago.

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SILENT KEYS Silent key is a term of respect for a deceased amateur radio operator. The key in the term refers to a telegraph key, the instrument that all early amateur radio operators, as well as many contemporary amateur radio operators, used to send Morse code. The term SK is used in telegraphy to indicate an end of transmission. Today, the term is commonly used within the radio community as a sign of respect and condolence, regardless of whether the deceased was an amateur radio operator.

ARCHIBALD COLVILLE DOTY JR. March 28, 1920 -January 27, 2021.

Former RCA Board Member, and RCA Fellow In the Fall of 1939, Arch brought radio to Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT with his tiny homemade AM transmitter broadcasting under the self-assigned call letters WES. Over 80 Years later, WESU FM remains one of the oldest and the longest continually operating student radio stations in the country.

Arch had many interests. He was a life-long IEEE member and had numerous patents, the latest was in his 90’s. He was an intrepid world traveler. He always had a garden. He loved to learn and loved his well-trained dogs.

Before he passed, Carl was content and accepting of what was to come. He expressed to his family that he had no regrets and had a fantastic 76 years.

His influence, personality and enthusiasm will long be remembered by all he touched.

One of the things closest to Carl’s heart was the University of North Alabama and during the last year of his life he worked diligently to create a scholarship to honor the students who attended UNA during the 1960s. The family asks that in lieu of flowers donations be made to this scholarship fund.

When you go to the site below, please enter the Spirit of the 60s Scholarship Fund (under the choice of other) and say your donation is in memory of Carl Mathis.

You can go to https://www.una.edu/give/give-now.html.

ROBERT J. STRICKLAND Robert J. Strickland of Littleton, CO, passed away peacefully on May 1, 2021.

CARL MATHIS Carl Johnson Mathis passed away on the evening of June 8, 2021.

In recognition of his importance to the field Carl was recognized by the Radio Club of America as a Fellow in 2001. He also served as the Chairman, President and Director of Manufacturer’s Representatives Educational Research Association and the Institute for Professional Advancement.

One of Carl’s favorite things to do was travel, whether in the United States or internationally. One of the items on his bucket list was to travel to all seven continents. He had successfully visited all of them minus Antarctica.

Despite his travels abroad, he always looked forward to returning to the United States, the country he loved and exclaimed was the greatest place in the world.

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An RCA member since 2016, in 2019 he was bestowed with The Frank A. Gunther Award for major contributions to the advancement of military electronic communications systems. An Airforceman “Spookie” seen with his SR-71 was capable of flying at speeds over Mach 3.2 and at a height of 85,000 feet. His last tour. He was also a marksman with the Army.

Passed at 80, he was still working until his last weeks with DOI/DOA/APHIS as the National Radio Program Manager.

MARK DAVID PALLANS. January 24, 1943 - October 18, 2021 Mark David PALLANS, age 78, of North Las Vegas, Nevada passed away on Monday, October 18, 2021. Mark was born January 24, 1943 in Astoria, NY.

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SILENT KEYS Silent key is a term of respect for a deceased amateur radio operator. The key in the term refers to a telegraph key, the instrument that all early amateur radio operators, as well as many contemporary amateur radio operators, used to send Morse code. The term SK is used in telegraphy to indicate an end of transmission. Today, the term is commonly used within the radio community as a sign of respect and condolence, regardless of whether the deceased was an amateur radio operator.

RAYMOND TROTT

DONALD TAYLOR VAUGHAN, JR. TROTT, Raymond Clark Born on February 28, 1934 in Boston, Massachusetts, Raymond Clark Trott passed away on August 27, 2021 in Dallas, Texas. A pioneer and industry leader, he was inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame in 2010, served as a past president, director, and frequent master of ceremonies for Radio Club of America, and was a Life Senior Member of IEEE.

Ray had a wonderful sense of humor and loved his travels with Eleanor, including a flight on the Concord, riding the Orient Express and their favorite destination, Hawaii. Ray had a deep compassion for animals; his beloved family pets were Countess, Hans, Wiley, Oscar, Bonnie and Chloe.

Donald Taylor Vaughan, Jr., a resident of Oceanport, NJ, died September 10, 2021. Don was born September 25, 1949 in Neptune, NJ but lived most of his life in Oceanport, NJ. He went to Shore Regional High School. Don attended Drexel University where he received a BS in Humanities and Social Science. In 2003, he achieved his MBA from University of Phoenix. He worked as a project manager, most recently for the MTA, designing radio systems. He was also a Fellow in the Radio Club of America. Don was very proud of the work that he did to make sure that our law enforcement officers could communicate effectively for the safety of all.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Dallas SPCA.

Conference Giveaway Thanks to ICOM for donating a ICOM IC-705 HF/VHF/UHF All Mode Transceiver. All members who are present for both the 2021 Technical Symposium and the Awards Program will be entered into the raffle.

The winner will be announced at the end of the Awards Program.

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SPECIAL SECTION

Centennial Of The 1921 Transatlantic Tests EDITOR’S NOTE: This issue of the Proceedings celebrates the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, where amateurs successfully broadcast between Greenwich, Connecticut and Ardrossan, Scotland, demonstrating the viability of shortwave radio for long distance communication. The story represents the triumph of newly invented radio and antenna circuitry, the advent of more sophisticated vacuum tubes, the beginning of a century of development toward ever smaller electrical communication technologies using ever shorter wavelength radio spectrum frequencies, and a demonstration of the contributions made by independent inventors and experimenters. In many ways, the 1921 tests represent the beginnings of the modern radio and wireless era, moving electrical communications beyond wireless telegraphy and toward the many applications found today in everyday use.

The successes of these tests were widely heralded at the time in the amateur and professional as well as the general press, and they helped mark the dawn of an era that witnessed explosive growth and new advances in wireless telegraphy, two-way radio, and commercial broadcasting.

The decades that followed brought the commercialization of this new form of communication.

The 1921 Transatlantic Tests also marked a period when the Radio Club of America emerged as an important organization. Founded in 1909, RCA quickly became, and continues to be, a forum for those interested in the art and science of radio, where they gather and share information across professional and amateur boundaries and across business and personal competitive rivalries. The participants in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests were each founders and/ or members of RCA. Their test results were presented and debated at many RCA meetings, and details were published in the Proceedings, QST, Scientific American and other journals and periodicals. A century later, that RCA legacy continues. The format of today’s annual RCA Technical Symposium resembles those original meetings; providing a place to present, learn about, discuss, and appreciate the work of others interested in wireless and radio communications, while meeting together in a relaxed, less formal collaborative and collegial environment.

In this issue, we recognize the remarkable achievements of these early efforts in 1921 to communicate over the horizon with shortwaves. This special section includes: • • • • • • • • • • •

1921 Transatlantic Tests Photo Montage “Organizational Resources to Explore The 1921 Centennial of the Transatlantic Tests” “RCA’s Historical Resources Regarding The 1921 Transatlantic Tests” “The Transatlantic Tests” by Michael Marinaro “Legacies of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests” by David and Julia Bart “Hams Span the Atlantic on Shortwave” by Bruce Kelley “Legends of 1921” by David and Julia Bart “The Story of the Transatlantics” by QST “Bridging the Atlantic” by Bruce Taylor “QCWA and the 1921 Transatlantic Tests” by Ken Oelke and John Facella “The Beverage Antenna 100 Years Later” by Ward Silver and Frank Donovan

We hope you enjoy this special issue and our commemoration of this historic milestone in wireless communications!

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ORGANIZATIONAL RESOURCES TO EXPLORE

THE 1921 CENTENNIAL OF THE TRANSATLANTIC TESTS The Radio Club of America joins several other organizations in celebrating the centennial of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests on station 1BCG in Greenwich, Connecticut. These organizations have partnered and shared information, event planning, and research regarding the centennial.

RCA recommends our members explore these other organizations and their website links for further information. The organizations are presented in alphabetic order.

1BCG

The Antique Wireless Association has compiled an online resource for information about the 1921 transatlantic tests. The website contains historical information as well as information about commemorative events and activities. Links to other sites and organizations are also included, and additional information from others can be posted here. For further information, please see http://1BCG.org.

ARRL

The Amateur Radio Relay League is the largest organization of amateur radio operators in the world. ARRL publishes QST, which in 1921 and 1922 published original research results from the transatlantic tests. ARRL has publicized events regarding the 1921 centennial and placed links onto its website. Fall 2021 issues of QST will also carry historical articles about the centennial. For further information, please see www.arrl.org/transatlantic.

Electrical Engineers and the Institute of Radio Engineers, AIEE and IRE, respectively, during their lifetimes. The IEEE maintains the ETHW, Engineering and Technology History Wiki website that provides biographical material, articles, and searchable links to historical articles, oral history transcripts, and original research publications, much of which is available to the general public. For further information, please see https://ethw.org/Main_Page.

RCA

The Radio Club of America played an important role in the 1921 tests through its members, which worked with the ARRL to perform the experiments. Many of these members later received awards from RCA or other organizations for their work.

RCA has provided information about the centennial on its website with links to other organizations and historical material. RCA will operate a QSO event on November 13-14, 2021. RCA’s publication the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, previously published original research and historical discussion of the 1921 events, which are described elsewhere in this issue. For further information, please see https://www.radioclubofamerica. org/transatlantic-test-centennial.

RSGB

AWA

The Antique Wireless Association is a partner to RCA and shares resources. AWA will be operating a replica of the 1921 transmitter at its QSO party, as well as operating the replica at the centennial events in Greenwich, Connecticut. AWA has placed research material about the 1921 transatlantic tests onto its 1BCG.org special event website A historical presentation about the 1921 tests by Bruce Kelly, AWA’s founder, is also available.

For further information, please see https://www.antiquewireless. org/homepage/. AWA publications include information about the people and the technology of the era.

The Radio Society of Great Britain has organized several anniversary events regarding the 1921 transatlantic tests in prior years, notably the 90th and 95th anniversaries. RSGB is operating a centennial QSO party on November 13-14. RSGB has published several historical articles as well as placing historical material onto its website. For further information, please see https://rsgb.org/main/activity/transatlantic-tests/.

SARN

IEEE

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is the largest professional society in the world. It maintains considerable online resources for research. It and its predecessor organizations published numerous professional papers by the principal people involved in the 1921 transatlantic tests, including papers regarding the technology used in those tests.

Several of those individuals received prestigious awards from IEEE and its predecessor organizations, the American Institute of

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Southgate Amateur Radio News provides information to the United Kingdom amateur radio community. SARN is publicizing U.K. centennial events and providing historical information about the 1921 transatlantic tests, including links to other U.K. organizations, such as RSGB’s Radcom and CRAG. A QSO party will be hosted in December 2021 with a special event station, 2ZE. For further information, please see http://www.southgatearc. org/news/2021/june/transatlantic-tests-100-centenary.htm#.

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1BCG Transmitter Section at the Greenwich, Connecticut Radio Shack Four Radiotron UV204 vacuum tubes are mounted on the center of the table: the oscillator is on the right and the three amplifiers on the left. The oscillator circuit with ribbon inductance and mica condensers are in the left foreground, and the power amplifier variable plate tuning condensers are in the rear center. One of the keying relays is on the table in the front center. A choke coil of the filter system is left of the plate tuning condensers just below the other keying relay mounted on the wall. The counterpoise lead-in insulator, antenna coupling coil, radiation ammeter, and antenna lead-in are shown in the upper left. The 2000 volt DC motor-generator is in the lower right and the filament transformer is under the table in the left foreground. The electric fan for cooling the high voltage generator is on the floor to the left of the motor.

1BCG Receiver at the Greenwich, Connecticut Radio Shack The short wave Paragon RA 10 regenerative receiver and amplifier are shown on the table at right center.

The long wave set for copying the nightly reports from WII is mounted on top of the Paragon RA-6.

The small cabinet to its right contains the frequency monitor. The sending key and the two transmitter power control switches are on the right in from of the Magnavox loud speaker.

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1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS

WHAT DID THEY HEAR IN SCOTLAND? FIRST NIGHT -- Godley first heard a transatlantic signal from 1BCG at 0050Z Saturday, Dec. 10, 1921 on 230-235 meters (1300 kHz). During the 1920s this was known as shortwave.

No other U.S. stations were heard that night. (QST, Feb. 1922, p. 24) SECOND NIGHT -- Godley copied many more U.S. stations on Sunday, Dec. 11, 1921. The stations, listed in time order, were: 1RU, 2FP, 2BML, 1ARY, 1BDT, 2BK, 2DN, 3BP, 1BDT, 1BGF, 1YK, 1XM, 2FD, 2EH, 8ACF, 8XV. (QST, Feb. 1922, p.

27) THIRD NIGHT -- Godley copied “the first message” of congratulations from 1BCG at 0252Z Monday, Dec. 12, 1921.

He copied many fewer U.S. stations that night: 1BKA, 1RZ, 2ARY, 2AJW, 3FB. (QST, Feb. 1922, p. 28) --------------Since the objective was to copy a meaningful shortwave message, the message sent by 1BCG on Dec. 11 as received in Ardrossan on Dec. 12 is considered the moment of success, and this is the date etched into the monument in Greenwich, CT.

Godley’s original copy of the first transatlantic message from 1BCG.

Note, previous transatlantic radio traffic was performed with low frequency (longwave) technology, including the Marconi Station MUU’s transmissions from Wales to R.C.A. in New York where Godley confirmed his receipt of the 1BCG shortwave messages.

Commemorative plaque in Ardrossan, Scotland.

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RCA’S HISTORICAL RESOURCES REGARDING THE 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS Many of the people who participated in the 1921 transatlantic tests were members of the Radio Club of America.

Over the years, RCA published numerous articles in the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America and provided commemorative booklets about the 1921 tests. These items included firsthand accounts and summaries of the technology and the results as well as prior commemoration activities. The following items are available from RCA that provide considerable information.

The following articles were published in the Proceedings through 2013. This list is based on a search of the station call letters 1BCG. Other articles about the principal people and their work can be separately identified using the Centennial Index to the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America (indexed through 2013), which can be located at https://www. radioclubofamerica.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=500767&module_id=470281.

Publications from the Radio Club of America that contain significant information about the 1921 Transatlantic Tests.

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PROCEEDINGS ARTICLES AND PUBLICATIONS ABOUT STATION 1BCG Author

Article Title

Burghard, George E.

Station 1BCG” Presented at RCA at Columbia University 1922-02 (Feb 1922) Dec 30, 1921

Godley, Paul F.

Trans-Atlantic Reception

1922-02 (Feb 1922)

Armstrong, Edwin H.

Recollections of a Member of the Engineering Staff of 1BCG

1934 25th Anniversary Yearbook

Burghard, George E.

“Station 1BCG” Presented at RCA Dec 30, 1931

1934 25th Anniversary Yearbook

Proceedings Special Issue

1BCG Commemorative Issue Radio Club Proceedings

1950-03 (Vol. 27 No. 3)

Proceedings Special Issue

Dedication of 1BCG Memorial Greenwich Connecticut October 21, 1950

1950-03 (Vol. 27 No. 3)

Proceedings Special Issue

Issue

1BCG Memorial Ceremonies an Outstanding Event in Radio Club History “What the Press Had to Say at the Time, About the Transatlantic Radio Transmission” and “Articles About the First Message” The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message: 1BCG Commemorative Issue of the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America The Story of the Trans-Atlantics (published in QST Feb 1922)

1950-03 (Vol. 27 No. 3) 1950-10 (Fall 1950) 1950-10 (Fall 1950) 1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Amy, E.V. and Burghard, G.E.

The History of 1BCG

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Armstrong, Edwin H.

Introduction

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Armstrong, Edwin H.

Recollections Of A Member Of The Engineering Staff of 1BCG

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Burghard, George E.

Station 1BCG

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Godley, Paul F.

Official Report on the Second Transatlantic Tests (published in QST Feb 1922)

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Godley, Paul F.

Retrospective re: 1BCG

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

Morelock, O.J. and Horle, L.C.F.

Forward

1950-10 (Fall 1950)

1BCG Monument

1953-03 (Vol. 30 No. 3)

1BCG Monument

1954-01 (Vol. 31 No. 1)

1BCG Memorial Dedication

1959 50th Anniversary Golden Yearbook

Gordon V. Peck

Another 1BCG Listener

1974-03 (Vol. 48 No. 1)

Kelley, Bruce L. and Morris, Robert M.

In Retrospect: The Radio Club’s Station 1BCG

1991-05 (Vol. 65 No. 1)

Special Issue with numerous articles about E.H. Armstrong

The Legacies of Edwin Howard Armstrong

1990-11 (Vol. 64 No. 3 Nov.)

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The Transatlantic Tests From 1921 to 1924, radio amateurs experimented with transmitting across the Atlantic.

Michael Marinaro, WN1M Hiram Percy Maxim had editorialized that beyond the relay tests in the US, which took place during the 1910s, the next hurdle was transmitting across the Atlantic.

Everyday Engineering magazine organized the first sending test with English amateurs prepared to listen for signals from the US. Upon the magazine’s suspension of publication, the League assumed leadership of the project.

rough listening post was comprised of a (superheterodyne and regenerative) receiver, a 1300-foot Beverage antenna suspended 12 feet above ground, batteries, and auxiliary equipment. [Godley detailed this trip in his “Official Report of the Second Transatlantic Tests,” which appeared in the February 1922 issue of QST. — Ed.]

The test was scheduled for the nights of February 1, 3, and 5 of 1921.

Twenty-five almost entirely east coast stations, including 1AW and 2RK, were selected to transmit designated signals at designated times on 200 meters. This test was a failure. Not one of the US stations was heard by any of the 250 or so enrolled British amateur listeners. The misfortune was attributed to any number of factors: the poor design and sensitivity of the English receiving equipment; harmonics from Figure 1 — The cover of the January 1922 issue of QST. commercial press stations; interference from a Royal Navy station; the short period of time permitted for individ- During the preliminary distance trials, ual transmissions, and the fact that most of held in November, 27 stations qualified as the transmitting stations were using spark. finalists, and were each assigned a group of sealed letters and specific and rotating The Second Transatlantic Test transmission times during the period of Undeterred, the League began to plan for a 9:30 PM to 1:00 AM EST each of the second Transatlantic Test to include what 10 consecutive days from December 7 was thought essential — the presence of an to December 16. Non-qualifying staAmerican expert, equipped with the most tions were encouraged to transmit from modern receiver available, who would be 7:00 PM to 9:30 PM EST each evening stationed at the European receiving end. during rotating 15-minute segments by The ARRL Board selected receiver circuit district. The rest of the US amateurs were designer, Paul F. Godley, 2ZE, for this asked to remain silent. assignment. Godley was considered “the most expert operator in the practical recep- Meanwhile, in a field in Ardrossan, Scottion of short wave signals.”1 The intent was land, located southwest of Glasgow, Paul F. for Godley to augment but not supersede Godley was joined by the District Inspector for the Marconi Company, D.E. Pearson. the British listening effort.

The two attempted to keep out of the driving wind and rain by sheltering themselves 1Editor, “The Story of the Transatlantics,” QST, — and their equipment — in a tent. This February 1922.

When the official starting time arrived, the receiving apparatus had been fine-tuned and an identifiable spark signal from 1AAW was distinctly heard, but only briefly and not in test format. This, the first signal to traverse the Atlantic (albeit unofficially) was determined to be that of a pirate in the Boston area. The duo continued to listen on the sub sequent mornings of December 8 and 9, to no avail. On the morning of the 10th, the CW signals of official entry 1BCG were solidly heard on 230 to 235 meters.

This signal derived from the specially designed and constructed station of the Radio Club of America at Greenwich, Connecticut — the only station heard that morning.

During the nights and early mornings that followed, until the end of the test, eight spark and 18 CW stations were heard.2 Eight English amateurs heard eight stations, including 2FP first and five listeners logging 1BCG, all CW; a Dutch amateur heard 1BCG. Surprisingly, many of the stations that qualified in the preliminary tests were not heard in Europe. Conspicuously, CW won the day, landing the final blow to the demise of spark.

The next Transatlantic Test, scheduled for December 1922, was again a listening test but now with the second half of the event devoted to North American amateurs listening for British and French stations.

The ARRL Operating Department was the leader of this complicated program. The Wireless Society of London and a French

Reprinted with permission from May 2014 QST ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio®

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only two British stations (the specially constructed 5WS in London and 2FZ in Manchester) and one French station (8AB in Nice).

Further Tests Two major international tests were conducted during the later part of 1923. In October, a transpacific one-way test with amateur listeners in Australia ultimately reported hearing upwards of 150 stations from the US and Canada. Stations as far east as the 3rd and 2nd districts were logged by the Melbourne receivers.

Figure 2 — Paul F. Godley, 2ZE, was sent to Scotland to aid in the second Transatlantic Test.

committee of their three leading societies along with Swiss and Dutch participation conducted activities in their respective countries. Other unique features of this test were the use of Greenwich Mean Time as the recording standard and the broadcasting of results daily by RCA long wave commercial stations on both sides.

The 20-day test was divided into two 10day transmitting periods. The first period, December 12 to 21, was for signals from the US to Europe and the second for signals from Europe to the US. Each US morning (midnight GMT onward) was divided into the first 21⁄2 hours for non-qualified, “freefor-all” stations rotated by district and the remaining 31⁄2 hours for qualifiers. The 324 US and Canadian stations that qualified were assigned transmitting times and individual codes to transmit and similar procedures were set down by the Europeans.

The US and Canadian results were striking, though the European results were lackluster.

315 different North American stations from all nine districts and Canada were heard in Europe, 85 of which were heard in the British Isles as well as on the Continent. In the reverse, 20 American reporters heard

2This

included 2FP. Six of the CW stations were located in the NYC-Long Island area.

This listening test was succeeded by the fourth Transatlantic Test which ran from December 21, 1923 through January 10, 1924. This was strictly an east to west affair — initially North American stations were to listen only. The test period was divided into three one-way transmitting periods: European free-for-all, French designated individual, and English designated individual. Innovatively, the day after the listening periods, January 11, was devoted to attempts at two-way transatlantic communications. The test results evidenced that the Europeans had improved their previous test performance with 42 stations, including four in Holland, which were now received by 100 North American amateurs.

The two-way segment was encouraged by two record contacts which had been made while the event was being planned. The first two-way transatlantic contact was accomplished by Connecticut’s 1MO and 1XAM and France’s 8AB on November 17, 1923. This contact was followed shortly on December 8, with Connecticut’s 1MO contacting British station G2KF. It is significant to note that these contacts took place on 108 to 118 meters after attempts on 200 meters had failed.

The balance of the ’20s saw the PanAmerican tests, the Franco-British tests, the Italian tests, the Australia-US tests, and the Commonwealth tests, as well as replays of previous tests. Continually improving technology brought reliable and consistent relays domestically. As amateurs began to recognize the potential of the shorter wavelengths and the understanding of propagation advanced, new records were established and international communication became increasingly frequent.

Simultaneously, the interest in listening tests gave way to two-way transmitting

QST ® – Devoted entirely to Amateur Radio

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Good Tidings One relay was not announced in QST, because it was to be kept secret. Instead it was announced by mail to members of the ARRL field organization and on the air by the appointed, official broadcasting stations. During the weekend between August 31 and September 2, W1MK, the official ARRL station in Hartford, was on the air continuously on 80 and 40 meters, receiving messages addressed to ARRL President Hiram Percy Maxim. These wishes extended congratulations and good wishes on the occasion of his 60th birthday. The recipient was “bowled over” by the more than 700 messages received from individuals, clubs, and associations throughout United States, as well as 10 other countries. And so, the 1920s concluded with a relay that captured the spirit and sentiment of the times.

tests which became more specific as to intent, region, mode, and wavelength — and consequently became more competitive.

The designation “test” evolved to “contest.” Contest inaugurations include Field Day in 1934, the International test in 1927, Sweepstakes in 1930, and the ARRL DX contest in 1932. Challenging tests spurred technological advances and were a cornerstone in the foundation of Amateur Radio and its enjoyment.

In the decade to come, Amateur Radio would continue to extend its limits — eventually aiding explorers in polar expeditions.

An article about amateur involvement in polar expeditions is forthcoming in QST.

Michael W. Marinaro, WN1M, an ARRL member, was first licensed in 1952 as KN2CRH and has been licensed continuously ever since. He now holds an Amateur Extra class license.

Mike is the ARRL’s volunteer historian. You can reach him at PO Box 404, 250 Cold Brook Rd, South Glastonbury, CT 06073-0404 or by e-mail at wn1m@arrl.net.

Reprinted with permission from May 2014 QST

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LEGACIES OF THE 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS

By David and Julia Bart

B

y 1920, radio, or rather wireless telegraphy, was still fairly young, but the first generation of wireless explorers were now aging or passing away. That year, the American Institute of Electrical Engineers awarded Profesor Michael Pupin its Edison Medal for his work in math and physics associated with wireless communication, and, the Institute of Radio Engineers awarded Guglielmo Marconi its highest honor, a Gold Medal, for his work. These two highly prized annual recognitions continue to be awarded today as the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers’ (IEEE) Medal of Honor and the IEEE’s Edison Medal. It had been nine years since Marconi received the Nobel Prize in 1909 for his early wireless research performed at the dawn of the 20th century. Professor A. Righi, Marconi’s teacher who inspired Marconi’s lifetime of research, died in 1920, and Dr. Alexander Muirhead, who was associated with Sir Oliver Lodge’s early wireless experiments, also passed away. The Titanic sank in 1912, and a terrible World War recently ended in 1918.

These events and others all brought wireless telegraphy and the promise of radio into the public eye.

The ensuing few years would set the stage for a century of radio development. That progress is directly linked to a set of momentous experiments conducted in 1921 by members of the Radio Club of America (RCofA)

and the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL). This article explores some of the legacies of those 1921 Transatlantic Tests. (See related articles in this issue of the Proceedings for descriptions of the tests and biographies of the participants.)

RADIO IN THE EARLY 1920S The first regularly operated wireless stations in the U.S. were located at Siasconset (Nantucket), Massachusetts in and on the Nantucket Shoals Lightship No. 66 in 1901. Twenty years later, the U.S. government had licensed 5,972 wireless stations plus 135 government shore stations and 470 ship stations, and an estimated 10,800 amateur radio operators were participating in radio operations.

Wireless telegraphy and broadcast radio in the years 1920-1923 underwent profound changes. After World War I concluded, thousands of military trained radio operators returned home to join the ranks of amateurs and professionals interested in wireless. Americans in particular launched into the roaring 1920s filled with energy and optimism. The world of wireless was romantically and excitedly described in the popular press with dewy-eyed editorials speculating on the potential of wireless to establish a permanent world peace. The exploits of amateur wireless operators featured prominently in those press accounts.

Amateurs, inventors, institutions, the press, and the public all interacted to spin a new fabric of meanings, and implications, for a wireless future around the new medium.

Yet, ever since the Radio Act of 1912, amateurs remained exiled to the shortwave end of the spectrum, while military and commercial interests; especially, the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America (American Marconi) and its successor, the newly formed Radio Corporation of America (R.C.A.), operated with their choice of frequencies. Broadcasting had become a privilege, not a right, and World War I left government, the military, and corporate interests in control.

Cover of Scientific American (April, 1922) depicting an incident in the Transatlantic Tests, from an oil painting by Howard H. Brown depicting the Ardrossan, Scotland station.

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In November 1919, wartime restrictions lifted, and amateur radio operators were back on the air. They soon enjoyed a freewheeling, dynamic renaissance after enduring years of silence during the war when operations were prohibited by law. Now, permitted to return to a world 200 meters of wavelength and down, experimentation, contests of skill, new discoveries, and collaboration, as well as competition, marked an exciting

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and challenging time of advances. In April 1920, QST, published by ARRL, circulated to ten thousand; by June 1923, circulation reached sixteen thousand, and women were on the air as well. As the airwaves filled with activity, radio operators sought contacts that were further and further away.

REACHING FOR DISTANCE Efforts to transmit and relay signals across the U.S. stirred the imagination; and in January 1921, amateur transcontinental tests sponsored by the ARRL were successful, with one relay making its way across the country in just six and one half minutes. In early 1921, ARRL founder Hiram Maxim Percy, 1AW, managed a two way contact with V. M. Bitz, 6JD, in California.

Why not reach across the Atlantic? Some claimed to have succeeded, but they lacked confirmations, and no satisfactory results had been achieved. In February 1921, ARRL announced plans to sponsor contests that made the attempt, but these first trials failed due to insufficient planning in too short a time period. The ARRL coordinated a new second set of tests, scheduled for December 1921, by publishing notices to American readers in QST and to British amateurs in Wireless World and Radio Review.

ARRL further publicized its tests at its first convention, held in Chicago in September, where protocols, equipment, confirmations, and individuals were selected to participate.

The Radio Club of America (RCofA) embraced the challenge, although late in its own planning, and rushed to develop its approach (see separate articles in this issue of the Proceedings). Edwin H. Armstrong led the U.S. team to transmit, and Paul Godley went to Scotland on behalf of the team to receive. Results were transmitted back to America via Marconi Company’s Carnarvon Radio Station, MUU, and were received by R.C.A.’s station, WII. Godley later regretted not sending his own confirmations, but he had been prohibited from operating his own transmitter in Scotland since he did not have a British operating license. On December 7, 1921, Godley heard an American amateur, 1AEP (later verified as 1AAP); and on December 9, 1921, he heard the RCofA’s station 1BCG, reporting back that “Signals from 1BCG were steady and reliable” and recording the “Remarkable performance.” Soon, he heard 30 more American amateur stations. Eight British stations also received transmissions from American amateurs. The tests were a resounding success, and signals had traversed the Atlantic on less than one kilowatt of power! Several records were set 1BCG during the tests, including distances of 3,800 miles to Amsterdam and 2,600 miles to California, and its signal was heard in all 50 states as well as Puerto Rico and Vancouver, British Columbia.

By February 1923, American amateurs reported many contacts with British and French operators. By the following year, two-way transatlantic contacts became commonplace and worldwide communication had been launched. The story is remarkable, but what did it mean?

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1922 Radio Corporation of America advertising in Wireless Age, noting that RCA UV-204 vacuum tubes were used at station 1BCG during the Transatlantic Tests.

What were the longer term impacts of the 1921 tests? For RCofA, a bright future was in store since, in the words of George Burghard, “The organization (RCofA) belongs to no one branch of the radio art, but to all branches, and therefore its duty at present must necessarily be one of education.” For the industry, change was on the horizon.

STANDARDIZATION AND CONTROLS Prior to 1920, amateur radio was “self-sufficient and self-contained.” The rapid expansion of amateur and commercial broadcasting necessitated increased regulation worldwide to insert some form of control over the expanding chaos on the airwaves. The First National Radio Conference took place in March 1922 to revise Federal laws and licensing. Global call signs were initiated in 1923, QSL cards proliferated as an accepted means of acknowledging contacts, standardized language developed for communication and acknowledgement (Roos’ International Auxiliary Language, ILO and Radio Auxiliary International Language Society, RAILS), QST English became accepted with its language of Q codes, amateur radio organizations proliferated, and by 1928, the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) ratified its constitution following the 1927 International Radio Conference. These were important advances that both standardized operations and helped maintain clear paths for communication. After 1921, low-power less-expensive transatlantic communication was proven viable, which opened the door to greater usage of the radio spectrum.

These legal controls, accepted standards, and normalized customs enabled the growth and expansion of international radio operations to proceed in an orderly way.

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Paragon superheterodyne tuner and amplifier in the tent at Ardrossan, Scotland. Note, Godley used the Paragon RA-6, not the more recent RA10 used at 1BCG. (Courtesy QST, Feb 1922)

CW VERSUS SPARK In continuous wave (CW) transmission, a perfectly uniform wave of constant amplitude is generated, leaves the antenna, and travels through space without losing its form. The distance it travels is depends upon the amount of power at the initial source. CW transmission may be obtained by several different methods, but the most popular method employed by most amateurs in the early 1920s utilized an oscillating vacuum tube. In the spark, discontinuous or damped method of transmission, the emitted wave is not continuous in form, and the amplitude of its oscillations is not constant. It is produced by the spark type of transmitter and travels through space until exhausted, or damped; thus, its distance is proportional to its initial amount of energy. CW with its constant

amplitude, does not dampen out and is, therefore, known as an undamped wave. Spark based transmission required cumbersome transformers, huge condenser jars and ponderous spark dischargers of the stationary or rotary types to create the discharge of the radio wave. CW eliminated the need for this equipment. It was practically noiseless, operating conditions were greatly improved, and the operator could send and receive almost simultaneously; without having to manipulate large change-over switches to connect with the spark generating equipment or to disconnect and switch over to the receiving equipment.

In 1921, spark transmission still remained the choice for long distance communication. Large, expensive, high power transmission required the ability to generate huge wattages of power that were sent crashing over the airwaves. Incredibly, the basic concept had not changed since Marconi first traversed the Atlantic with the letter “S” in 1901. Over the ensuing years, ever more powerful stations were built; and by 1920 a debate raged whether spark or continuous wave was the better, more efficient technology. The Transatlantic Tests of 1921 sent a clear message and could not be ignored; amateurs had traversed the Atlantic with only 1kW of power, and the bill to ARRL was only $1,900. It would only be a matter of time before CW would prevail.

CW AND R.C.A.’S UV-204 TUBE

CW transmissions, when intercepted by the receiving station, are so sharp and constant in character that the receiver must be tuned exactly to the transmission’s wave length.

Since tuning is critical to eliminating interference between stations, CW’s more selective methods of transmission made it preferable over damped wave forms of transmission.

CW relied on the greater economy in power consumption brought by the use of radio tubes/ valves. CW could carry five times the distance spanned compared to older spark methods. It was not uncommon for a 1kW vacuum tube transmitter to outdo a 5kW spark type set.

The use of vacuum tubes in transmission enabled not only CW, but also ICW, or interrupted continuous wave operation, as well as radio telephony, which combined CW and ICW techniques.

Interior and schematic of the Paragon RA-6 superheterodyne receiver used at Ardrossan, Scotland.

(Courtesy QST, Feb 1922)

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The 1921 Transatlantic Tests utilized R.C.A.’s UV-204 power vacuum tubes in the 1BCG transmitter. World War I yielded significant advances in transmitting tubes. After the war, the U.S. Navy asked to upgrade their shipboard stations to 250W and 1kW phone transmitters. Beginning in March 1921, the final stage tube used in these transmitters was a UV-204, which was later modified and renamed the R.C.A. Radiotron UV-204A. It was R.C.A.’s largest transmitting triode available for commercial sale.

R.C.A.’s first commercial line of Radiotron tubes were actually developed and manufactured by General Electric and Westinghouse, under cross licensing agreements tied to R.C.A.’s initial formation in 1919 by GE, Westinghouse, American Marconi and others. Each company manufactured two tubes of the four tube series. The R.C.A. UV-204 made by GE was exhibited at the October 1921 Electrical Show in New York City as part of R.C.A.’s large and popular display of its entire tube series. The UV204 featured prominently in R.C.A.’s very first catalogue, published in 1921, that highlighted the use of Radiotron tubes in experimental CW telegraph and telephone sets.

The UV-204A became widely available to the general public in the summer of 1923. The maximum permissible anode voltage was 3,000V, maximum anode dissipation 250W, and the maximum anode current was 275mA. The R.C.A. UV-204 and UV-204A were notable in that they could be operated in a vertical or horizontal position and they had exceptionally long operating lives. The UV-204 continued in production until mid-1926. The UV-204A was so successful that it was still in production in 1931.

American Marconi’s newly built station in Chatham, Massachusetts opened in 1921 and employed tube transmitters. The following year, R.C.A. began using tube transmitters for service from the U.S. to England and Germany. R.C.A. also began substituting tube transmitters on ships to replace spark sets and began replacement of crystal receivers by tube receivers on ships. Tubes remained dominant into the 1960s, when they began to be replaced by transistors, which arguably miniaturized the basic principles of tube design and operation, but at the molecular level. The 1921 Transatlantic Tests’ demonstration of tubes demonstrated that they were the option of the future for generating efficient long distance communication.

EVEN FURTHER DISTANCES ACHIEVED The development of vacuum-tube equipment and new circuits helped greatly advance amateur radio. A March 1921 QST article, “Progress,” reviewed how over the previous nine years the transmitting range covered by amateur Ralph H. G. Mathews in Chicago, Illinois had increased from only 4 to nearly 3,000 miles. Far more sensitive regenerative and superheterodyne radios began supplanting crystal detectors, even while vacuum-tube CW transmitters began replacing spark based communications.

Together, these developments in the efficiency of radio communications achieved staggering improvements in the functionality of radios.

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Receiving tent at Ardrossan, Scotland with Marconi Inspector D. E. Pearson. Table includes Baldwin headphones, General Radio Company precision wave-meter, Burgess batteries, an A.P. amplifier tubes, RCA U.V. 200 vacuum tubes, Paragon superheterdyne and regenerative receivers.

(Courtesy QST, Feb 1922)

Coincidentally with the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, American efforts to span the Pacific were also underway. On January 18, 1922, A. H. Babcock in Berkeley, California (6ZAF) and Clifford J. Dow in Maui, Hawaii (6ZAC) engaged in two-way radio traffic across the Pacific. The British were also reaching for distance on the short waves. In October 1924, Ernest Simmonds (2OD) and then Cecil Goyder (2SZ) were heard in New Zealand, and a month later Ernest Simmonds made contact with the Australian station 3BQ. With these successes, many stations started to make contacts all over the world at shorter and shorter wavelengths. It was soon discovered that long distance contacts could also be made during the day, not just at night; and as a result, the first transatlantic daytime contacts were made in February 1925. Finally, in 1926, Brandon Wentworth, 6OI, worked all continents from his station in California for the first time.

EVER SHORTER WAVELENGTHS The 1921 Transatlantic Tests showed the viability of using shortwaves to span distance. Experimentation to find strategies that employed different antenna systems and the quest for lower power alternatives exploded after 1921.

The free access to wavelengths lower than 200 meters allowed entrepreneurs a wide open space to experiment.

Boyd Phelps encouraged amateur experimenters to try ever shorter wavelengths in his March 1922 article in QST, “Radio Below 200 Meters.” Soon, he was operating tests with J. C. Ramsey (1XA) and Frank Conrad (8XK later known as KDKA) to achieve good signals down to 100 meters. In 1923, KDKA, in addition to its normal operation on 360 meters, began transmitting on shortwave wavelengths from 80 to 100 meters. In 1924, Marconi discovered that shortwave transmissions of 30 meters could be heard in daylight and at night around the world, marking the often recognized beginnings of skywave transmission. In the subsequent decades, broadcasting over ever shorter wavelengths became viable, right down to the present day as research surrounding the use of www.radioclubofamerica.org

millimeter waves has taken hold and new applications are being found.

HIGH POWER STATIONS AND LONG WAVES The concept of using high power to drive long distance radio transmission had not changed since Marconi’s own efforts to transmit cross the Atlantic. In 1901 and 1902, Marconi built high-power wireless stations in Poldhu, Cornwall, England; Glace Bay, Nova Scotia; and South Wellfleet, Cape Cod, to compete with transatlantic undersea cable service. Twenty years later, and following a World War, the basic approach remained the same, build big antennas and use more power.

Following the war, while the amateurs were now restricted to operating below 200 meters and searched for low power alternatives to drive transmission and reception, government and commercial interests continued investing in high power stations. The U.S. government already operated several high power stations, starting just before World War I and continuing into the 1940s. The most well-known of these was NSS operated by the U.S. Navy from 1913-1941 at Arlington, Virginia, which was opened to establish reliable long distance radio communication. In 1921, American Marconi, which soon came under the direction of R.C.A., built the largest shipto-shore radiotelegraph station in the U.S. in Chatham, Massachusetts. Between 1920 and 1923, R.C.A. opened high power stations at Radio Central at Rocky Point on Long Island, New York; Tuckerton, New Jersey; and Warsaw, Poland. Each operated with 200kW Alexanderson alternators, used Beverage wave antennas, transferred their signals over private wire lines, and used ink recorders for reception of wireless telegraph signals. R.C.A. had plans to open stations in six other countries in Europe and South America. High power stations were also being constructed by others.

The development of radio telephony, expansion of smaller stations, and growth of broadcast radio in the early 1920s all posed risks that demand could shrink for high power services at these stations when shorter

distance radio communication was involved. The rapid growth of broadcast radio, especially in the U.S., also shifted demand toward consumer and related amateur applications. Nevertheless, the high power stations did communicate at distances of up to 4,000 miles. Even so, the Transatlantic Tests of 1921 foretold a future where low-power, physically smaller equipment would eventually be developed that would replace these giant transmitters, and shortwave transmission would replace the long wave technologies.

Longwave radio does survive and is still used today because it can diffract over obstacles like mountain ranges and travel beyond the horizon, following the contour of the Earth. This mode of propagation, called ground wave, can be received up to 1,200 miles from the transmitting antenna. Very low frequency waves, below 30 kHz, can be used to communicate at transcontinental distances, and can penetrate saltwater to depths of hundreds of feet. So, it is used by the military to communicate with submerged submarines. Low frequency waves can also occasionally travel long distances by reflecting from the ionosphere at distances exceeding 190 miles from the transmitting antenna. Long waves are used for non-directional beacons, time signals, submarine communication, low frequency experimental radio (LowFER), and some broadcasting notably in Europe, North Africa and Central Asia as well as some amateur radio operations.

Today, most modern radio systems and devices use wavelengths which would have been considered ultra-short and were not well known in 1921, but the Transatlantic Tests helped pave the way for this future development.

ANTENNAS The 1921 Transatlantic Tests succeeded in no small part due to the use of a Beverage wave antenna in Ardrossan, Scotland. It had been invented earlier that year and was first published by Harold Beverage in the November 1922 issue of QST. The 1921 tests provided a unique opportunity to demonstrate the superior performance of

Covers of QST regarding the Transatlantic Tests: (L-R) December 1921, January-February-December 1922.

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1950 memorial dedication in Greenwich. (L-R): Paul F. Godley, Maj. Edwin H. Armstrong, George E. Burghard, Wilbur A. Peck and Dr. Caldwell (both of Greenwich) and Ernest V. Amy.

this new antenna design, and an opportunity to publicize its success.

A Beverage antenna consists of a horizontal wire from one-half to several wavelengths long (tens to hundreds of meters at HF to several kilometers for longwave) suspended above the ground, with the feedline to the receiver attached to one end, and the other end of the Beverage terminated through a resistor to ground. The antenna has a unidirectional radiation pattern with the main lobe of the pattern at a shallow angle into the sky off the resistor-terminated end, making it ideal for reception of long distance skywave (skip) transmissions from stations over the horizon that reflect off the ionosphere. However, the antenna must be built so the wire points at the location of the transmitter. The skip effect explains why the power of the transmitter for shorter wavelengths is less important than the distance to the receiver. The advantages of the Beverage antenna include excellent directivity and a wider bandwidth than resonant antennas. Its disadvantages are its physical size, requiring considerable land area, and inability to rotate to change the direction of reception.

Installations often use multiple antennas to provide wide azimuth coverage.

In 1921, Beverage was granted a patent for his antenna.

Beverage long-wave receiving antennas up to nine miles long were installed at R.C.A.’s Riverhead, New York; Belfast, Maine; Belmar, New Jersey; and Chatham, Massachusetts receiver stations for transatlantic radiotelegraphy traffic. AT&T built what may be the largest Beverage antenna ever constructed, an array of four phased Beverages three miles long and two miles wide, in Houlton, Maine, for the first transatlantic telephone system opened in 1927.

Exploration of antenna designs as the critical component of radio transmission and reception continued after the 1921 tests. The central question of how to match the frequency of the antenna’s capabilities, related closely to its length, to the transmitted wavelength was not overcome until the emergence of fractal antennas beginning in FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 73

1988. Fractal antennas are based on a different approach that maximizes the effective length by increasing the perimeter of material that can receive or transmit electromagnetic radiation within a given total surface area or volume. This new approach permits a considerable reduction in antenna length, and is now widely used in counterpoises, loads, ground planes, and filters, all parts that can be integrated with antennas, and which are used in television, cell phones and other applications. But, even Fractal antennas can trace their heritage to the legacy of Beverage’s work.

IMPROVED CIRCUITRY OPENS THE DOOR Edwin H. Armstrong’s regenerative circuit dated from 1912 and was already being widely used by 1920. His superheterodyne circuit traced its roots to 1918 and was not well known, but the adaptations employed in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests and its success brought early, wide recognition. Its superiority of performance over other forms of receiver was soon unquestioned. It not only provided improved sensitivity and selectivity, but greatly simplified the external interactions with the circuits that were necessary for reception. The superheterodyne circuit standardized and built in the intermediate frequency within the radio set, reducing the need to tune only the desired frequency to match the amplifier. This approach enabled the general public to operate far simpler radio reception equipment. Manufacturers responded by producing radios with fewer knobs and adjustments, which brought results quicker and easier, making radio more appealing to the non-technical enthusiast. This opened the door to a huge potential audience who could participate in radio, once programming and other on-air content developed.

R.C.A. soon brought out its first commercial superheterodyne receiver in 1924; and in 1925, the same year the electrodynamic speaker became available, R.C.A. brought out a receiver capable of operating from alternating current. All of these depended on advances www.radioclubofamerica.org

in receiver circuitry and in tube designs, which parlayed Armstrong’s original concepts for receivers into commercial products that were available and useable by the general public.

EVER SMALLER CONSUMER RADIOS The use of the regenerative and superheterodyne circuits, the incorporation of ever more efficient radio tubes/valves, and the ability to reduce the size and complexity of the entire radio system launched a quest to make ever smaller and more portable options available to the radio consumer.

Lower power and easier means of reception opened the door to a century of development. After 1921, the radio consumer would witness reductions in the physical size, power requirements, and cost of radios, making them more affordable and attainable. Radios transformed from room sized technological agglomerations of equipment operated by technical hobbyists to consumer products that evolved from floor-furniture pieces, to table tops, to small portable radios. Decades of development followed, all based on the initial premise from 1921: that size and power could be minimized without sacrificing function.

OPENING OF THE SPECTRUM Prior to 1921, the spectrum below 200 meters was considered a wasteland, suitable only for amateurs to enjoy. But the success of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests set the table for many later technological developments in shortwave radio. Pittsburgh station KDKA was among the leaders in developing shortwave broadcasting early on.

These bands of the spectrum enjoyed boom years in the Second World War and in the Cold War Era, with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Voice of America (VOA), and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) as well as Soviet/Russian and Chinese stations all among the biggest broadcasters of that era. They are still used in international government broadcasting and by private domestic stations.

Today, air traffic control, utility stations not intended for the general public, amateur radio, time-signal and radio clock stations, satellite radio and TV, Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM), and some mobile platforms all use the shorter wavelengths. Other sporadic or non-traditional users of the shortwave bands include clandestine and numbers stations, unlicensed two way radio activity, pirate radio broadcasting, over-the-horizon radar, and ionospheric heaters used for scientific experimentation. Even smaller microwaves, with higher throughput for data upload and download rates than radio waves, can transmit more data, but are more limited in range and can be disrupted by solid objects. So, microwaves are often used for radar and satellite communications. Would any of this have been possible without the success of the 1921 experiments that proved the viability of the shortwave spectrum bands?

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Cover of The Wireless Age (March, 1922) Paul Godley making his first speech over the radiophone at WDY, describing the Transatlantic Tests.

FUTURE DIRECTIONS Long distance communication in 1920 was dominated by expensive and complex longwave radio transmitters and submarine telegraph cable. A transatlantic submarine cable was twice the cost of two longwave stations. Even so, cable operators remained largely unthreatened by competition from radio because cables were more reliable, worked equally well both day and night, were not affected by storms, and competition from radio actually stimulated innovations in cable technology. Shortwave radio under 200 meters was considered to have no practical value and was left to amateurs for experimentation.

For 25 years, long distance radio evolved by increasing the size, complexity and cost of equipment. By 1924, the British Marconi Company considered its longwave stations to be obsolete. It offered to build a chain of shortwave stations across the British Empire that would cost only five percent of a comparable longwave chain and would use only twenty percent of the power but would transmit at three times the speed. Shortwave was clearly the future.

In October 1926, Marconi gave a speech to the IRE and concluded, “I admit that I am responsible for the adoption of long waves for long-distance communication. Everyone followed me in building stations hundreds of times more powerful than would have been necessary had short waves been used. Now I have realized my mistake…” By the following year, shortwave radio had captured half the world’s intercontinental cable traffic.

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THE LEGACIES OF 1921 The 1921 Transatlantic Tests represent the triumph of newly invented radio and antenna circuitry, the advent of more sophisticated vacuum tubes, and the beginning of a century of development toward ever smaller, less expensive and more widely available electrical communication technologies based on ever shorter wavelengths of the radio spectrum. It demonstrates that major contributions are made by independent inventors and experimenters.

For the next 100 years, experimenters and inventors sought to continually improve wireless technologies and devices. That progress and invention initially brought the expansion of radio telephony and eventually spawned the smart phones, smart watches, smart TVs, wireless internet routers, GPS tracking devices, and Bluetooth headsets that we use today, all of which depend on wireless technologies.

In many ways, the 1921 tests represent the beginnings of the modern radio and wireless era, moving electrical communications beyond wireless telegraphy and toward the many applications found today in everyday use.

The Transatlantic Tests were widely heralded at the time in the amateur and professional as well as the general press, and they helped mark the dawn of an era that witnessed explosive growth and new advances in wireless telegraphy, two-way radio, and commercial broadcasting. The decades that followed brought the commercialization of this new form of communication. Indeed, the legacy of 1921 continues into the 21st century.

SOURCES Anderson, J. M., Supplying Tubes, Sets, and People to RCA: The General Electric Connection, AWA Review, Vol. 5, 1990, p. 1.

Armstrong, E. H., “The Superheterodyne: Its Origin, Development and Some Recent Improvements,” Presented Before the Institute of Radio Engineers, Mar. 5, 1924, Proceedings of the IRE, Vol. 12, No. 5, Oct. 1924.

Bartlett, R. A., The World of Ham Radio 1901-1950: A Social History, (Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Company, 2007).

Beverage, H. H., The Wave Antenna for 200-Meter Reception, QST, Nov. 1922, p. 7.

Boucheron, P., “At the Sending End of Radio: Spanning the Atlantic with Fifty Watts of Electrical Energy and a Few Facts Regarding CW Transmitters,” Scientific American, April 1922, p. 232-233.

Burghard, G. E., “Station 1BCG,” Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, Vol. 2, No. 2, Feb. 1922.

Douglas, S. J., Inventing American Broadcasting, 18991922, (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1987).

First Atlantic Amateur Radio Contacts, Electronics Notes Website, https://bit.ly/3b7bJI6, accessed Aug. 30, 2021.

Headrick, D. R., Shortwave Radio and Its Impact on International Telecommunications Between the Wars, History and Technology an International Journal, 1994, 11:1, 21-32, DOI: 10.1080/07341519408581852.

Radio Apparatus for Amateur and Experimental Use With Instructions for Continuous Wave Operation, Radio Corporation of America, Sep. 1, 1921.

Radiotraon Model UV-204A 250-Watt Output, Instructions J-84 Edition A, Radio Corporation of America, Jan. 1927.

Record of the Development of Wireless Telegraphy, The Yearbook of Wireless Telegraphy, (New York: The Wireless Press, for years 1921, 1922, 1923).

The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message, 1BCG Special Issue: Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, Oct. 1950.

To Be Where The Audience Is: Report of the Special Committee on the Future of Shortwave Broadcasting, Board of Broadcasting Governors, Aug. 2014.

Tyne, G.F.J., Saga of the Vacuum Tube, (Berkeley Heights, NJ: Prompt Publications, 1994).

Warner, J. C., “Part I-The Years to 1938,” RCA: A Historical Perspective, Radio Corporation of America, 1977.

Westman, H. P., Radio Pioneers 1945, New York Section of the Institute of Radio Engineers, 1945.

Wireless For Everybody, World Wide Wireless, Radio Corporation of America, Vol. 2, Nov. 1921, p. 5.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS David Bart is Vice President of the Radio Club of America and a Fellow, Director, and Life Member of both RCA and the Antique Wireless Association as well as chairman of the RCA Publications Committee. He is a Life Member of ARRL, the former treasurer of the IEEE History Committee, and Vice President of the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago. Julia Bart is an advisor to and a fellow of the AWA, a former officer of the Antique Radio Club of Illinois, and coauthor of numerous articles with David.

DeSoto, C. B., Two Hundred Meters and Down: The Story of Amateur Radio, (West Hartford, CT, American Radio Relay League, 1936).

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Dec 1996 QST - Copyright © 2021 American Radio Relay League, Inc. - All Rights Reserved

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Dec 1996 QST - Copyright © 2021 American Radio Relay League, Inc. - All Rights Reserved

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Dec 1996 QST - Copyright © 2021 American Radio Relay League, Inc. - All Rights Reserved

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LEGENDS OF THE 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS1

By David and Julia Bart

W

ho were the men responsible for the 1921 Transatlantic Tests? The following biographical information provides some background regarding these intriguing individuals. Those directly involved in the experiment included: Ernest V. Amy, Edwin H. Armstrong, George E. Burghard, Minton Cronkhite, Paul F. Godley, John F. Grinan, and Walker P. Inman. In addition, we have included information about Harold H. Beverage; although he did not directly participate in the tests, his discussions with Godley and the adoption of Beverage’s wave antenna system made him, in our view, an important contributor to the experiment’s success.

Some of these individuals started their careers as youth involved in amateur radio and then stayed in the radio field, some left radio for other opportunities, and some were involved in the broader electrical industry. Their lives were fascinating. We hope you enjoy these brief biographies about the legends of 1921.

EDWIN H. ARMSTRONG (1890-1954) 3 Armstrong, one of the greatest inventors of the 20th century and one of the key fathers of modern radio

Edwin Armstrong explaining the superregenerative circuit to the Radio Club of America in room 306, Havemeyer Hall, Columbia University, New York City, 1922.

communications, led a complicated, eventful, and tragic life. His biography is the subject of many books and articles. For our purposes here, he was an American electrical engineer and inventor who invented the regenerative circuit (vacuum tube feedback oscillator), the superregenerative receiver, the superheterodyne receiver, and frequency modulation (FM) radio transmission. He held 42 patents and received numerous awards, including the first Medal of Honor awarded by the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE, now IEEE) in 1917, the French Legion of Honor, 1941 Franklin Medal and IRE’s 1942 Edison Medal.

He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and included

Legends of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests in front of the Greenwich, Connecticut station shack -- Standing (L to R): John F. Grinan, Ernest V. Amy, Edwin H. Armstrong, George E. Burghard, Minton Cronkhite; Seated front: Walker P. Inman; Not shown: Paul F. Godley (or Harold H. Beverage).2 FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 79

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in the International Telecommunication Union’s roster of great inventors.

Armstrong was an inspiration and a major contributor to the Radio Club of America (RCofA), authoring more papers (26) than anyone else in the club’s history. He received the first Armstrong Scroll and the first Armstrong Medal, named in his honor, from RCofA, in addition to his many other awards and citations. His tragic death by suicide in 1954 shortchanged the world of his potential future ideas and inventions.

Armstrong’s regenerative feedback circuit (1912) took wireless telegraphy out of the spark-gap, crystaldetector stage into continuously amplified sound. His superheterodyne circuit (1918) underlies all modern radio and radar reception. His superregenerative receiver (1922), although not commonly used in general commercial receivers, did find widespread use in specialized applications such as IFF transceivers and low data rate applications. His wide-band frequency modulation or FM circuit (1933) provided a novel system of high-frequency broadcasting which excludes noise and forms the core of developments in high-fidelity sound.

A student of legendary physicist and educator Michael Pupin at Columbia University, Armstrong’s contributions to the U.S. Army Signal Corps in World War I earned him the rank of Major. After the war, he sold his patents for both the regenerative and superheterodyne circuits to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company. In 1922, after the Transatlantic Tests, he sold his patents for the superregenerative circuit to the Radio Corporation of America (R.C.A.). His relationship with David Sarnoff, R.C.A.’s powerful president, evolved from one of mutual respect and partnership as well as supportive friends into bitter enemies over time, but in 1921, both admired the other’s work. In fact, Armstrong married Sarnoff’s young secretary, Esther Marion MacInnis, in 1923 and built Marion what is described as “the world’s first portable radio” as a wedding gift.

The circuits used and tested in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests form the basis for all modern radio and radar communications. Armstrong’s regenerative circuit made possible loud speaker reception. His superheterodyne receiver circuit became the basis of ordinary radio receivers. The superregenerative receiver circuit provided greater amplification and made high-frequency shortwave communication much more effective. Armstrong first described his system for shortwave communication in a paper read before the IRE in January 1920 that was published in February 1921. This was only a year after he presented his method to receive weak signals, or shortwaves, at RCofA in December 1919. Success with the 1921 Transatlantic Tests was greeted with wide acclaim, and both Pupin and Sarnoff visited the 1921 test cabin in Greenwich, Connecticut.

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ERNEST V. AMY (1892-1979) 4 Amy graduated from Columbia University in Electrical Engineering. He served in World War I in the Engineering Corps, and returned to work with Edison and Marconi. He joined R.C.A. in 1922. He later formed Amy, Aceeves and King, a consulting engineering firm, of which Amy was president.

Ernest V. Amy. He received more than 30 patents, including one for an All Wave Receiving System regarding antenna systems and arrangements for supplying a radio receiver with actuating or signal voltage, thereby maintaining the highest ratio of signal voltage to interference or noise voltage. Amy designed and constructed the antenna for the 1BCG transmitter. He also developed early vacuum tube transmitters for commercial marine use, high power short wave transmitters and directional antennas and multi-coupler master antenna systems used in FM and TV broadcasting.

Amy was a long time contributor to, and the assistant editor of, the Proceedings. He co-authored with George Burghard “The History of 1BCG” in the 1950 publication The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message: 1BCG Commemorative Issue of the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America. He also co-authored an influential book, Radio Transmitters, in 1930 with Harry Franklin Dart.

Amy was a founding member of the RCofA. He appeared in the initial wireless call book (a set of mimeographed sheets) that listed approximately 30 wireless radio operators; it was issued by RCofA in 1910 and is the father of all subsequent radio call-books. Amy served as treasurer, vice president, and president of the club, and was a long time director. Amy received an Armstrong Medal in 1950 for his work in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, and was also named an Honorary Member of the club.

Amy was the last surviving member of the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, and he was the only member other than Armstrong to receive both the Armstrong Medallion and the Armstrong Medal as well as a Pioneer Citation and other awards for his contributions to wireless and radio communications. Amy was a charter member of the Armstrong Memorial Research Foundation.

HAROLD H. BEVERAGE (1893-1993) 5 Beverage was born in North Haven, Maine, in 1893. As a teenager, he built a home-made wireless set through which he picked up signals from the Carpathia, the ship that rescued the Titanic’s survivors. In 1915, he graduated from the University of Maine and went to work for General Electric Company as a radio-laboratory assistant to Dr. E. F. Alexanderson. During World War I, he worked on radio transmission technologies for naval applications, and on

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adaptations for voice transmission.

He studied the effects of extremely long antenna wires through a variety of experiments in 1919.

In 1920, Beverage was placed in charge of developing receivers for transoceanic communications at the R.C.A.’s Riverhead, New York research facility. He became the first chief research engineer at the newly created RCA Communications Harold H. Beverage. in 1929. Beverages early work at R.C.A. led to what is still referred to as the “Wave Antenna” or “Beverage Antenna”, for which he received his first patent. This antenna became a standard for long-wave receiving. His work later extended to ultra-short wave equipment as well. Beverage later rose to vice president of research and development and also director of radio research, where he worked until his retirement.

Although Beverage did not participate directly in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, he had a profound influence upon them. Godley met Beverage during Godley’s voyage to Ardrossan, Scotland, to erect the receiving station for the tests. Beverage convinced Godley to use a specially designed, highly sensitive, and directional 1,300-foot antenna, the Beverage Antenna. This choice increased the receptivity of the Ardrossan receiving station, and played an important role in the success of the experiments.

Beverage was widely recognized throughout his career.

He held 41 patents. He was known for the wave antenna and also for the diversity reception system that he co-developed with H. O. Peterson. He was a Fellow Director and Honorary Member of RCofA. He was also a member of the IRE and American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE)(both now IEEE), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), International Geophysical Union (IGU), and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL).

In 1923, when he was just 30 years old, he received the IRE’s Morris Liebmann Memorial Prize for his contributions to the development of transoceanic radio, and in 1937, he became IRE president. In 1938, RCofA presented him with the Armstrong Medal for his work in the development of aerial systems. The Beverage antenna, the citation said, was “the precursor of wave antennas of all types.”

Beverage received the IRE Medal of Honor and the AIEE’s Lamme Gold Medal. He was a charter member of the Armstrong Memorial Research Foundation.

GEORGE E. BURGHARD (1895-1963) 6 Burghard graduated from Columbia University and served in World War I commanding the Compass School at the Pelham Bay Naval Training School. After the war, he returned to Columbia, graduating from the Law School.

Burghard was a close friend of Edwin H. Armstrong, and he organized and led the Armstrong Memorial Research Foundation. Burghard served as president of RCofA and George E. Burghard. served for almost 50 years on its board of directors. He was a senior member of the IEEE, trustee of Lenox Hill Hospital, and a member of the engineering council of Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science. He was a member of the Veteran Wireless Operators Association (VWOA), ARRL, Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA) and other organizations in radio and wireless. An internationally renowned stamp collector, he was elected to the roll of Distinguished Philatelists by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain.

Burghard was described as a fun, suave, outgoing young man with a large capacity for life, who was intensely interested in radio. He was, in that time and place, the perfect foil for Armstrong, drawing Armstrong out of himself and helping him to know the world. Burghard had a flair for dress and conversation, a fast foreign car-a Delage-all of which Armstrong envied, yet Burghard’s devotion to Armstrong’s genius grew with the years.

Burghard was a founding member of RCofA and served as recording secretary and later as president as well as its legal counselor. He appeared in the initial wireless call book (a set of mimeographed sheets) that listed approximately 30 wireless radio operators that was issued

by RCofA in 1910; it is the father of all subsequent radio call-books.

Harold H. Beverage at his Amateur Radio station, possibly at the University of Maine, circa 1915.

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Burghard was at the key when 1BCG made its first contact with Godley in Scotland, as later confirmed with relayed long-wave messages sent back to the U.S. by British Marconi and R.C.A. engineers (see Grinan’s biography below regarding confirmations of the first complete messages.) Burghard presented a report on the 1921

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George Burghard at radio station EB in 1910.

Transatlantic Tests to RCofA, “Station 1BCG,” on Dec. 30, 1921, which appeared in the Proceedings. Burghard co-authored with Ernest V. Amy “The History of 1BCG” in the 1950 publication The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message: 1BCG Commemorative Issue of the Proceedings of the Radio Club. Burghard received an Armstrong Medal in 1950 for his work in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests. Burghard was also a charter member of the Armstrong Memorial Research Foundation.

MINTON CRONKHITE (1919-1971) 7 Cronkhite was the owner and president of Liberty Electric Company in Stamford, Connecticut. He was a noted builder of model railroads and executed models of the Santa Fe Railroad for several expositions, including the World’s Fairs in 1933 and 1939. For those who grew up in Chicago, the Museum of Science and Industry housed the ultimate model railroad display layout: the 50-by60-foot O scale “Museum & Santa Fe Railway” built in 1941 that depicted the U.S. from Chicago to Los Angeles, which operated in the museum for 60 years prior to its renovation and ultimate Minton Cronkhite. replacement in 2002.

The RCofA’s 1921 Transatlantic Test station was located in a small shack on the Greenwich, Connecticut, property of Minton Cronkhite. Cronkhite served as RCofA’s Corresponding Secretary, and later as a Director.

He received an Armstrong Medal from RCofA for his participation in the 1921 tests.

Transatlantic Tests. Godley himself designated Ardrossan as the reception site due to its geographic location, southwest of Glasgow, since there was no high land between it and New York. Godley sailed aboard the SS Aquitania following a testimonial banquet in New York City given in his honor. During his voyage, Godley met Harold Beverage, who convinced him to use a specially Paul F. Godley circa 1939. designed, highly sensitive, and directional 1,300-foot antenna, referred to as the Beverage Antenna. By midnight on December 7, 1921, Godley completed his installation in a tent on the Ardrossan Moor, where he picked up a 60-cycle synchronous spark signal that he later identified as station 1AEP, nine other spark transmitting stations, as well as 15 other stations including 1BCG who used vacuum tube transmitters. His reception of continuous wave (CW) signals transmitted at less than 200 meters and meagre power of 1kW from across the Atlantic demonstrated viability for low power transmissions using vacuum tubes, and the capabilities of reception with superheterodyne and regenerative circuits using a Beverage antenna. Godley summarized the experiment in “Transatlantic Tests” published in the January 1922 issue of Wireless World and in the “Official Report of the Second Transatlantic Tests” in the February 1922 issue of QST. Afterward, during a brief stay of just a few hours in London, Godley was introduced to Senator Marconi, Admiral of the Fleet Sir Henry Jackson, Alan A. Campbell Swinton, and other distinguished members of the Wireless Society of London, known today as the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB). Upon his return, Godley experimented with even lower wavelengths (higher frequencies), further demonstrating the viability of long distance communication and short line-of-sight communication in the medium-to-ultra high frequency ranges.

Godley started his career by helping to build the first chain of transcontinental wireless stations in the Amazon basin of South America, and he worked with deForest and the

PAUL F. GODLEY (1889-1974) 8 Godley was one of the foremost receiving experts in the U.S. in 1921, operating station 2ZE in Upper Montclair, New Jersey. He was a member of the ARRL’s Advisory Technical Committee members and a member of the IRE. He designed the famous Paragon receivers and was selected to travel to Ardrossan, Scotland, for the 1921

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Paul F. Godley’s radio station 2ZE in 1914.

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United Wireless Telegraph Company. Godley met Armstrong at a meeting of RCofA, where he described his work in the Amazon and Armstrong described receiving the stations transmissions at his home in Yonkers, New York. Those discussions culminated in Godley’s design of the Paragon line of radio receivers manufactured by Adams-Morgan Company using a modification of Armstrong’s newly patented regenerative circuit. After meeting with Hiram Percy Maxim and Clarence Tuska, Godley supported the publication of QST and wrote the first issue of the ARRL Handbook. He later served as a design engineer, for Liberty Electric Company, vice president and general manager of Farrand Mfg. Co., and as vice president of ChalmersGodley Corporation.

Godley became a Fellow and President of RCofA; a Fellow and Life Member of IRE (now the IEEE), and a founding member of the Association of FCC Consulting Engineers.

He was recognized and honored with a bronze plaque by the Executive Council of the Second Radio District. The ARRL presented him a Sheepskin Award and an Award of Merit. RCofA presented him the Armstrong Medallion.

VWOA gave him the Marconi Memorial Award and the deForest Audion Award. Broadcasting Magazine ran a feature story about him in 1946.

Godley published many articles in the Proceedings about his research. He was the Technical Editor for Wireless Age and Radio Editor for the Newspaper Enterprise Association.

He served as Vice President, President and Director of RCofA.

JOHN F. GRINAN (1894-1957) 9 “Johnny,” as he was called by most everyone, started in radio in 1909 and became the world’s most famous amateur operator. He was the first to send direct transcontinental signals, he sent the first transcontinental relay message, he sent the first transcontinental message, and sent the first transatlantic short wave message from station 1BCG in 1921.

His own station, 2PM in New York City, was known to every amateur and local commercial operator before World War I, and John F. Grinan. he held three world records: for sending the first relayed transcontinental message across the U.S. from New York City to California, for sending the first direct signals across the continent, and for sending the first wireless message (professional or amateur) across the Atlantic from America to Ardrossan, Scotland. Known as “one of the prettiest fists in radio” for his distinctive style at the wireless key, Grinan was the chief operator for the 1BCG 1921 Transatlantic Tests at the Greenwich,

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John Grinan’s radio station 2PM in 1916.

Connecticut station, and he was the operator who sent the first complete and widely confirmed messages to Godley in Scotland.

Grinan was born in Kingston, Jamaica B.W.I., where his family owned and operated sugar plantations. He introduced amateur radio to Jamaica during the 1930s, where he set up station NJ2PZ and later VP5PZ thru which he communicated regularly with his friends in the U.S. and all over the world. In 1940, Grinan donated his station equipment to the Government of Jamaica, which became the first licensed broadcast station, ZQI, in Jamaica. He was an early proponent of FM broadcasting to the government of Jamaica. This station became even more famous than old 2PM. In later years, he lived in St. Petersburg, Florida where he died of a heart attack at age 61.

Grinan was vice president of Continental Radio Corporation (wholesale distributors for RCA-Victor), a member of the Government Wireless Board, Broadcasting Board, and Electricity Board. He was also chairman of the board of Grinan Estates, Ltd. Grinan received RCofA’s Armstrong Medal for his work.

WALKER P. INMAN (1895-1954) 10 Inman was step son of James Buchanan Duke, President of the American Tobacco Company, Duke Power Company (now Duke Energy), and the major benefactor and trustee of Duke University. Inman’s life included airplanes as well as yachts, cooks, butlers and his step-sister, Doris Duke, the wealthiest woman in America when she turned 21.

Inman lived on 5th Avenue in Manhattan, moved to the Riverside Hotel in Reno, Nevada, and later to Greenville Plantation in Georgetown, South Carolina. His divorce proceedings in 1928-1929 were front page news. Divorce testimony included accusations by Walker’s wife that he fraternized with other women, including Juva Marconi, Guglielmo Marconi’s niece. Ms. Marconi had recently

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obtained her own divorce in Reno.

Speculation holds that perhaps their alliance stemmed from Walker’s contribution to short wave radio when participated in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests.

Previously, he served in World War I.

Etter, J. M., A Tribute To Harold H. Beverage, Proceedings, May 1993, p. 3; AA3PX’s Antenna Page: Harold Beverage, https://www.qsl.net/aa3px/beverage.htm, accessed Aug. 20, 2021; Harold H. Beverage Biography, ETHW Oral History, IEEE, https://ethw.org/Harold_H._ Beverage, accessed Aug. 20, 2021; Wallen, A. (1988), Genius at Riverhead : A Profile of Harold H. Beverage, (North Haven, ME: North Haven Historical Society).

5

Inman’s early interest in radio and his participation in station 1BCG were noted in his obituary as significant accomplishments.

Walker P. Inman.

He is credited with playing an important role in development of Duke University’s Medical School and Hospital. Inman received RCofA’s Armstrong Medal and he participated in the 1BCG radio station monument unveiling.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS David Bart is Vice President of RCA and a Fellow, Director, and Life Member of both RCA and the Antique Wireless Association as well as Chairman of the RCofA Publications Committee. He is a Life Member of ARRL, the former treasurer of the IEEE History Committee, and Vice President of the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago. Julia Bart is an advisor to and a fellow of the AWA, a former officer of the Antique Radio Club of Illinois, and coauthor of numerous articles with David.

SOURCES Herein, the Proceedings = Proceedings of the Radio Club of America.

1

The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message, Proceedings of RCofA 1BCG Commemorative Issue, Oct. 1950, p. 10.

2

Lessing, L.P., The Late Edwin H. Armstrong, Scientific American, Vol. 190, No. 4 (April 1954), pp. 64-69; Lessing, L. (1956), Man of High Fidelity: Edwin Howard Armstrong, A Biography, (Philadelphia: Lippincott); Lewis, T. (1991), Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio, (New York: Edward Burlingame Books); The Legacies of Edwin Howard Armstrong, Radio Club of America, 1990.

3

Obituary: Ernest V. Amy, Proceedings, Mar. 1979, p.

18; Burghard, G., Eighteen Years of Amateur Radio, Proceedings, July 1923, p. 3.

4

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6 Obituary: George Ehret Burghard, Proceedings, Feb. 1964, p. 9; Burghard, G. E., Eighteen Years of Amateur Radio, Proceedings, July 1923, p. 3; Silent Key: W2GEC 1895–1963, Quarter Century Wireless Association, https:// qcwa.org/w2gec-01000-sk.htm, accessed Aug. 18, 2021; Radio Club of America 25th Anniversary Yearbook, 1934, p. 13.

Obituary: Minton Cronkhite, New York Times, Nov. 13, 1971; Member biography: Minton Cronkhite, Golden Jubilee Yearbook, 1909-1959, Radio Club of America, p.

185; Orr, S., Minton Cronkhite and Chicago’s Magnificent Museum & Santa Fe layout, The Midnight Railroader, http://midnightrailroader.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_27. html, accessed Aug. 17, 2021.

7

Obituary: Paul F. Godley, Proceedings, Mar. 1974, p. 20.

Meyers, R., First Transatlantic Message on 200 Meters, Proceedings, Mar. 1974, p. 3; Nelson, W., An Interview With Paul Godley, Proceedings, Mar. 1975, p. 3; Paul F. Godley Member Profile, Golden Jubilee Yearbook, 19091959, Radio Club of America, p. 189; Paul Godley Set Up a Receiving Station at Ardrossan in 1921, Amateur Radio From Scotland, www.amateurradio.eu/gm/silent-keys/2zepaul-godley.html, accessed Aug. 10, 2021; GB2PG-Paul Godley: An Investigation into the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, Dec. 2, 2011, gb2pg.blogspot.com/2011/12/investigationinto-1921-transatlantic.html, accessed Aug. 10, 2021; Transatlantic Tests Mark 99th Anniversary, ARRL News, Dec. 9, 2020, http://www.arrl.org/news/transatlantic-testsmark-99th-anniversary, accessed Aug. 18, 2021; Radio Club of America 25th Anniversary Yearbook, 1934, p. 22.

8

John F. Grinan Obituary, Golden Jubilee Yearbook, 19091959, Radio Club of America, p. 142, 143; The Jamaica Amateur Radio Association: Its History And Organization 1939-2005, https://www.jamaicaham.org/downloads/ Jara%20History.pdf; Radio Club of America’s 25th Anniversary Yearbook, 1934, p. 27.

9

W.P. Inman Dies; Duke Trustee, 60, New York Times, Sep. 20, 1954, p. 23; Walker Patterson Inman (18951954) - Doris Duke’s Half Brother, Oakland Municipal Airport Register, https://oaklandairfield.org/index.php/ people/walker-patterson-inman-1895-1954, accessed Aug. 7, 2021.

10

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Feature

Bridging the Atlantic

Jack Partridge, 2KF, achieved the first UK - US contact with this station in London on 8 December 1923. (RSGB).

T

he first short wave transAtlantic amateur radio contacts launched a major communications revolution.

Whether by sailing ship, submarine cable, or wireless waves; the challenge of crossing the Atlantic Ocean has always captured the imagination of adventurers and pioneers.

Well before the Postmaster General had been persuaded to restore limited transmitting rights to British radio amateurs after WWI, Marconi had established reliable wireless telegraphy links between Britain and North America. But the resources needed to achieve this had been colossal.

His 300kW long wave (6,667 metre) transmitter near Clifden, on the west coast of Ireland, was powered by six steam engines; their hungry boilers fired by peat transported from the surrounding bogs by special light railway. The antenna, directed towards its sister station at Glace Bay in Nova Scotia, was supported by eight 210ft masts, and occupied an area 200ft wide and 1000ft

long [1]. The huge 15kV condenser was composed of 1,800 steel sheets, each 30ft by 12ft, suspended from the roof of a building 350ft long by 75ft wide. And when the station was transmitting, the ear-splitting crashes of its disc spark discharger could be heard throughout the surrounding area.

Compared with this, British amateurs were restricted by the GPO to a maximum power input of 10W and a total antenna wire length not exceeding 100ft. Small wonder that with these limitations and the rudimentary technology of the early 1920s, the possibility of a 3,000km transatlantic amateur QSO seemed remote.

First steps But in the New World radio regulation was much more liberal, for there had been a view that the radio spectrum was a natural resource that in peacetime could be used freely by any American citizen. Although the US Navy had attempted to retain control of all wireless communications after the war, this move had been thwarted by commercial and amateur interests. Many US amateur

stations had 1kW CW or spark transmitters, antenna size was not limited and contacts over several hundred miles were becoming commonplace. So in September 1920 Milton Sleeper, the radio editor of Everyday Engineering, proposed that a series of tests be organised in which British amateurs would try to receive signals from a selection of 25 of the best-equipped US stations, on the ‘useless’ wavelength of 200 metres to which they had been banished.

The driving force for these tests in Britain was Philip Coursey, 2JK, an experienced engineer with the Dubilier Condenser Co who had been an assistant to Ambrose Fleming (of diode valve fame) and became Honorary Secretary of the RSGB in 1924. Coursey publicised the tests through the Wireless Society of London, the forerunner of the RSGB, and after several radio manufacturers offered handsome prizes, over 250 British amateurs declared they would take part.

The ARRL organised the US transmissions, which took place on 2, 4 and 6 February 1921 during the early hours of the morning in Britain, when most of the Atlantic path was in darkness. Early receivers had limited

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State of the receiver art in 1921. Godley’s superhet had one regenerative RF amplifier, five RC-coupled IF stages and one AF amplifier. The BFO was a separate oscillator loosely coupled to the detector. (ARRL).

selectivity and Coursey appealed to all British amateurs to observe radio silence during the tests. To avoid any false claims of reception, the US stations transmitted secret code words in addition to their callsigns and on one night they also sent pre-assigned portions of a text.

To the disappointment of all participants the tests were a complete failure, not one British listener having received a signal that could unquestionably be attributed to an American amateur. With hindsight, since short wave radio conditions can be variable it was an error to limit the tests to only three short sessions. Although no-one qualified for the reception prizes, W R Wade of Bristol was awarded a 3-valve Burnham audio amplifier for the description of the receiver he used, which was a fine home-built design with

7 valves, including a separate heterodyne oscillator.

Aftermath It was understandable that Kenneth Warner, the Editor of QST, should blame the negative result on the lack of experience of the British amateurs, as well as on the “decidedly inferior” circuits of their receivers. But no British station is far from the sea and the wideband splatter from ship-to-shore communications by outmoded spark transmitters had proved a source of troublesome interference. Apart from the short duration of the tests, the entrants also complained that they had to contend with severe interference from the harmonics of high power European commercial stations (such as Nantes)

operating on longer wavelengths, as well as radiation from the self-heterodyne receivers of other participants. This was a problem that was later to plague the fledgling broadcasting industry for many years.

There was great enthusiasm on both sides of the Atlantic for further tests the following winter and these were scheduled on the nights of 8 to 17 December 1921. This time round the sessions were extended to 6 hours per night, with the first 2½ hours being a free-for-all, followed by a period reserved for the selected 20 CW and 7 spark qualifying stations. More than 12 British companies offered prizes, including three Burndept receivers, a Sullivan laboratory wavemeter worth £35 and three cash prizes from the Marconi Scientific Instrument Co. In May 1921, Warner had written that, “if a good US amateur with … an Armstrong Super could be sent to England, reception of US amateurs would straightway become commonplace” [2]. So at the first ARRL Convention in Chicago in September, the Board of Directors unanimously voted the funds to send a US amateur to Britain for the tests. Thus began one of the strangest DXpeditions in amateur radio history.

Welcome to Britain As a “good US amateur” to show the British how it should be done, the ARRL Board could not have made a better choice. 32 year-old Paul Godley, whose home call was 2ZE, was a recognised wireless expert who had developed the Paragon line of receivers for Adams-Morgan, before working for Marconi during WWI and later starting his own

Dr Bruce Taylor, HB9ANY bgtaylor@iee.org Wade’s homebuilt 7-valve superhet was awarded first prize in the 1st transatlantic tests. (Wireless World).

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Ardrossan

Marconi Inspector Pearson with Godley’s receivers in the tent at Ardrossan. (Wireless World).

company. The equipment he chose to take to Britain included a Paragon regenerative set, a tuner, and a 9-valve superhet with a regenerative radio frequency amplifier stage and local oscillator, followed by five RC-coupled amplifier stages with input and output circuits tuned to the intermediate frequency of 100kHz. For CW reception, a harmonic signal from a separate beat frequency oscillator was loosely coupled to the detector feeding the final audio output amplifier. There were individual filament rheostats for all 10 valves.

When Godley sailed from New York on the Aquitania on 15 November, he was surprised to find that RCA’s receiver designer, Harold Beverage, 2BML, was also a passenger.

It was during the voyage that Beverage suggested to Godley that he use his long wire ‘wave antenna’ for the tests, instead of the vertical that he had planned. Because of the directional characteristics of the Beverage antenna, this suggestion may have been critical to the success of his venture.

When the Aquitania docked in Southampton on 22 November, Godley was met by the local Marconi Co superintendent, who helped him import his radio gear before he travelled on to a lavish reception in London. During his stay in the capital he received VIP treatment. A dinner was held in his honour, and he attended a lecture at the Royal Institution and met such notables as Marconi, Fleming, Jackson, Swinton and Hope-Jones, as well as the Chief Engineer of the GPO Wireless Section. He then set up his receiver at the Wembley Park home of Frank Phillips, who had designed the Burndept III grand prize receiver, to sample reception conditions in the London area.

After five nights of fruitless listening until 4.30am, Godley had had enough. The atmospheric noise (QRN) was something he had never experienced in winter in the US. He also found the short wave band crowded with harmonics from powerful commercial single valve and Poulsen Arc transmitters, as well as spark splatter from Poldhu. So he rapidly obtained a new one-month operating permit from the GPO and set off to seek quieter conditions in Scotland.

Godley had already chosen Ardrossan as his ‘Plan B’ site if conditions near London proved unsatisfactory. The village had a railway link to Glasgow and was well situated on the North Ayrshire coast with a clear outlook to the west over the Firth of Clyde. As in London, Godley received a royal welcome north of the border. He was met in Glasgow by two representatives of the Marconi International Marine Communication Co (MIMC Co), whom he found extremely helpful in obtaining a tent, antenna poles, GPO insulators, wire, accumulators and other accessories such as a lantern and oil heating stove. On 5 December he arrived in Ardrossan and with the enthusiastic help of the Town Clerk, Police Sergeant and other worthy citizens, he selected a site for his tent in a farmer’s field, albeit one that had been covered with seaweed as fertiliser. He was joined by D E Pearson, the MIMC Co District Inspector, who assisted him throughout the whole period of the tests.

Local labourers installed a ground system of buried iron pipes, and a line of wooden poles across the field to support the 1300ft Beverage antenna wire at 12ft above the ground. Despite strong winds, freezing temperatures, drenching rain and muddy conditions, Godley and Pearson managed to get their tent erected and all the equipment installed just before the first transmissions were due. Firing up his superhet, Godley found that harmonics were much less

Station 1BCG in Connecticut had the most outstanding signal in Europe. The 1kW transmitter used three paralleled UV-204 Radiotrons in the PA, driven by a fourth as master oscillator. (ARRL).

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The transmitter at 1MO that was used by QST Editor Ken Warner for the first transatlantic US – UK QSO. (Wireless World).

troublesome than in London, although QRN levels were still high and there was strong interference from Clifden and a high-speed GPO transmitter in the north of Scotland.

Tuning the Beverage involved adjusting the terminating resistor (at the far end, away from the tent), by struggling back and forth across the slimy seaweed in the darkness and driving rain. Despite these difficulties the transatlantic tests were entirely successful, with a total of 27 US and one Canadian station being identified.

At 7 every morning the commercial station MUU at Caernarfon transmitted the reception logs to the US, using hand-sent Morse at 12wpm so that amateurs could copy the signals directly. Marconi provided this service free of charge, although the ARRL is said to have rung up a message bill of $1,900 [3]. Signals from the 1kW station 1BCG, which had been set up specially

by Edwin Armstrong and other prominent amateurs in Connecticut, were so consistent that Godley asked Pearson to cable them to send real messages instead of just ‘TEST’.

But Pearson used the British abbreviation ‘SEND MGES’ instead of the American ‘SEND MSGS’, so the 1BCG operators misunderstood the request and transmitted the word ‘MGES’ all night long!

After returning to London, Godley spent ten hours in Coursey’s office dictating his adventures. His account was subsequently published in Wireless World [4]. He received hearty congratulations from all the London crowd, but was also teased for having endured the bitter Scottish winter in a tent, while British amateurs had copied nine of the US stations in the warmth and comfort of their homes, using simpler homebuilt receivers with as few as three valves and their normal much shorter antennas.

Perhaps as a result of the transatlantic tests, the Postmaster General relaxed the restriction on the length of receiving antennas from 4 May 1922.

East to west Among the lessons learned from the 1921 tests were the superiority of CW to spark, the variability of propagation conditions (on one night signals were very strong, whereas on several nights none were received at all) and the fact that high power was not always necessary for DX communication on short waves. (Several US stations got across with less than 50W output). This augured well for the next phase in the transatlantic tests, which were organised for the winter of 1922. In this series, American and Canadian amateurs transmitted on the nights from 12 to 21 December, then listened out for European stations from 22 to 31 December.

During these tests 47 British amateurs reported receiving an average of 50 different North American stations per night, including a few on the Pacific coast and two in Canada.

But US listeners were hampered by receivers lacking radio frequency amplifiers, by QRM from the large number of local amateurs

who didn’t play the game and respect the reception periods, by harmonic interference from commercial stations and, initially, by misunderstanding of the schedule times, which had been listed in GMT! Although there were other unverified reports, the only confirmed European stations received in the US were 5WS from Wandsworth in South West London and 8AB from Nice in the South of France. 5WS was a station that had been set up by the RSGB especially for the tests and it had been granted a special 1kW permit by the GPO [5]. It was received by ten amateurs in the US, as well as in other countries – including an SWL with a onevalve set in Reykjavik.

In retrospect, it seems surprising that the operators of 5WS made no attempt to make two-way contact with the US stations that reported they were receiving their messages.

But 5WS stuck rigidly to the prescribed schedule of separate 10-day periods for transmitting and receiving and so missed the opportunity to achieve the first transatlantic QSO. That had to await the next series of tests a year later.

100 metres As a result of the interference problem during the third tests, the initial emphasis during the fourth series was to be on improving US station operating discipline, to allow more European stations to be received. But it was planned that after the period from 22 December 1923 to 10 January 1924, which was reserved for separate transmitting by amateurs on either side of the Atlantic, two-way contacts would be attempted from 11 January. However, enthusiasm on both sides was riding high and in the

Léon Deloy, 8AB, in Nice used this antenna for the first two-way QSO between Europe and North America. The top of the mast is 105ft agl, and at their far end the cages are 12ft in diameter. (ARRL).

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Running only 30W, Ernest Simmonds, 2OD, of Gerrards Cross made the first UK - Canada QSO with 1BQ in Halifax. (RSGB).

event French amateur Léon Deloy, 8AB and ARRL traffic manager Fred Schnell at 1MO jumped the gun on 28 November, moved down from 200 to 100 metres and achieved the first historic transatlantic QSO. At the time little was understood about short wave propagation, since Edward Appleton’s ionospheric research wasn’t published until 1925. Hence the success on 100 metres came as an unexpected surprise. It was initially attributed just to lower QRM or higher antenna efficiency.

Other amateurs soon joined in the fun, and Jack Partridge, 2KF in London achieved the first UK – US contact with a long QSO with Ken Warner at 1MO on 8 December.

1MO had 400W input, 2KF somewhat less.

Both amateurs were using simple receivers with one detector and one audio amplifier stage. On 12 December Frederick Hogg, 2SH, in London also worked 1MO. Four days later the first Canada – UK QSO was made between A W Greig, 1BQ of Halifax and Ernest Simmonds, 2OD of Gerrards Cross, running only 30W. Hugh Ryan, 5BV of Wimbledon worked 1BQ on 28 December, and 1XW the following day.

Throughout 1924 other intercontinental DX records followed in rapid succession.

On 19 October 18 year-old Cecil Goyder [6] created a sensation by contacting Frank Bell, 4AA, in New Zealand from the Mill Hill School station, 2SZ, in London, a distance of over 19,000km. One result of the explosive growth of international working was the

general introduction of country prefixes (G for Great Britain, HB for Switzerland, etc), since it was found that several stations in different countries had the same callsigns. This prefix scheme had been proposed by Deloy, and it was officially approved by the GPO from March 1924 [7].

For amateurs in many countries operation on 100 metres was not actually legal, as even transmission on wavelengths between 200 and 150 metres required a special permit.

1MO received permission for 100 metres just prior to working 8AB, while the French authorities only authorised operation down to 90 metres from March 1924. GPO permits were so expensive and restrictive (operation only between 01h00 and 07h00 – and then for not more than 15 minutes per night) that few British amateurs even bothered to apply for them. But in the US, 80, 40, 20 and 5 metre amateur radio allocations were granted from 25 July 1924, opening the way for further experiment and discovery.

Revolution Such was the media interest in the successful amateur transatlantic tests that during an interview with the Times Marconi felt obliged to declare that his huge high power long wave stations were still required, since on short waves “a reliable service could not be maintained under certain atmospheric conditions”. But by April 1924 he had been won over and recommended to the British

Cabinet committee studying the Donald report that the project to build expensive long wave transmitters for the Imperial Wireless Chain should be scrapped, with much lower power short wave stations being built instead [8].

This revolutionary change of plan was ratified by Parliament in August of that year and in October 1926 Marconi inaugurated the first commercial short wave transatlantic radio link, operating between Britain and Canada on 16.5 metres during the day and 32.2 metres at night. The move to short waves, pioneered by the radio amateur transatlantic tests three years earlier, was considered by many the greatest innovation in communication since 1897.

References [1] P R Jensen, Early Radio, Kangaroo Press, 1994, ISBN 9780864176073, p. 61 [2] K Warner, Failure of the Transatlantic Tests, QST, May 1921, pp. 15-16 [3] C B DeSoto, 200 Meters and Down, ARRL, 1936, ISBN 9780872590014, p. 74 [4] P F Godley, Transatlantic Tests, Wireless World, 21 January 1922, pp. 660-663 [5] P R Coursey, 5WS, Wireless World, 17-31 March 1923, pp. 785-877 [6] E Richards, Centenary: 100 years of working for amateur radio, RSGB, 2013, ISBN 9781905086894, pp. 10-11 [7] J Clarricoats, World at their Fingertips, RSGB, 1967, ISBN 9780900612091, pp. 100-101 [8] M Raboy, Marconi, Oxford University Press, 2016, ISBN 9780199313587, p. 483

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QCWA AND THE 1921 TRANSATLANTIC TESTS

By Ken Oelke, VE6AFO QCWA President, and John Facella, K9FJ RCA President

T

he Quarter Century Wireless Association (QCWA) and the Radio Club of America (RCA) have had an organizational partnership since November 16, 2016 to help promote the wireless art. QCWA was formed in 1947, with a mission to promote friendship and cooperation among Amateur Radio (Wireless) operators who were licensed as such at least a quarter of a century ago. QCWA operates exclusively for charitable, educational and scientific purposes, and more specifically to promote interest in Amateur Radio Communications and the advancement of the electronic art.

RCA was organized in 1909 and is the world’s oldest society of wireless professionals. RCA promotes the cooperation of those interested in scientific investigation in the art of radio communication. Maintaining a vision focused on the future, while also honoring the past, RCA strives to encourage, educate, and engage students of all ages and professionals in a myriad of wireless careers.

RCA is not an amateur radio club, but many of its members are radio amateurs.

The two organizations have a strong relationship, and Carole Perry, WB2MGP, serves as a Director on the Boards of both organizations. In the spirit of cooperation between our organizations, we present this article which details the contributions made by QCWA amateurs to the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, including: QCWA’s founding president, John DiBlasi, its first general manager Ralph G. Barber, Paul F. Godley who was sent to Scotland to receive the CW test signals, and two others.

Inspired by what Hertz had done, Italian-born Guglielmo Marconi began to experiment with this strange phenomena. In 1896, he had sent signals 2.5 kilometers; in 1897, he sent signals 22 kilometers between the English coast and the Isle of Wight; and, in 1899, he sent signals across the English Channel. This progression of successes suggested to Marconi that he might be able to cross a much larger distance, say the Atlantic Ocean. Marconi was both an engineer and a businessman. He saw the economic opportunity of being able to rapidly send messages between continents.

In 1900, Marconi began setting up two super stations.

Along the way, he had to overcome many obstacles created by Mother Nature, but finally on December 12, 1901, Marconi successfully heard the letter ‘S’ sent across the Atlantic from Poldhu cove in Cornwall, England to Signal Hill, Newfoundland, Canada.2 Marconi expended considerable sums of money to build these stations. The Poldhu transmitter was a two stage spark transmitter, with a capacitor that possibly had to store a charge at a 150 kV potential. The original antenna system consisted of an inverted cone created by 20 masts, each 61 meters (200 feet) high, ans

BACKGROUND In December 1921 a major event in communications history took place. Radio amateurs, using modest equipment, for the first time successfully transmitted radio signals that spanned the Atlantic Ocean from the east coast of the U.S. to Androssan, Scotland.

To understand the magnitude of this event some background is needed.

Wireless arguably began with German scientist Heinrich Hertz, who was able to transmit and receive a signal across his laboratory in 1887. His transmitter was an induction coil and spark gap, and his receiver was a loop whose ends were close together. A spark was created across the ends.1

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Cover of QST, January, 1922. (Courtesy of ARRL)

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suspending 400 wires. This unfortunately blew down in a storm, so he rebuilt with just two 45.7 meter (150 feet) masts, and constructing a cage of 54 wires. In addition, he had other stations at Clifden, Ireland and Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada with transmitters so powerful that the noise from the signal arcing could be heard several kilometers away. His original receiving station was to have been in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, but those antennas also blew down, so he had to relocate to Newfoundland.3 During the next two decades, the size of trans-Atlantic radio stations grew.

It is against this backdrop of complex and expensive stations that radio amateurs in the U.S. decided twenty years after Marconi, to attempt to cross the Atlantic with much more modest equipment. At the time, amateurs in the U.S. were relegated to wavelengths of 200 meters (1.5 MHz) and down, because they were not at the time considered useful for government or commercial communications. A first attempt was made in February of 1921, but for various reasons no U.S. stations could be heard. So the amateurs decided to try again in December of the same year, and more planning ensued.

213 East 75th Street, north side, between Third and Second Avenues, 1920. (Courtesy OldNYC, https://www.oldnyc.org/#714445f-a)

The site chosen was the existing ham shack of Elisha P. Cronkhite, 1BCG, in Greenwich, Connecticut. The transmitter used two 250 watt “P” tubes and one as an amplifier. This was a MOPA (master oscillator-power amplifier) type transmitter, similar to what we use today but rather different from the spark gap transmitters still in use by some amateurs at the time.4 The antenna was a flat top T antenna strung between two masts 108 and 75 feet high. A counterpoise of 30 radial wires each 60 feet long suspended 7 feet off of the ground was used. There was an existing radio shack at the site to house the equipment.5 The receiver site in Scotland was housed in a tent, where American Paul F. Godley sat with both a Paragon regenerative receiver and a Paragon superhetrodyne receiver.6 The antenna design was a Beverage antenna, selected as a result of Godley’s meetings with Harold Beverage onboard the Acquitania as Beverage traveled to Scotland.

Beverage convinced Godley that his antenna design would

help reduce static, which was a big problem in those days.

The antenna was about 1250 feet long and fastened to 10 poles, 12 feet above the ground, with the end grounded via a variable non-inductive resistor to several buried iron pipes.7 The amateur setup was inexpensive compared to the millions of dollars spent by Marconi and other wireless companies and governments to do what these amateurs did for about a thousand dollars.

The Marconi Company loaned their own Mr. Pearson to be an independent witness to the event. Reception was made at night, and started on December 8th, and continued each night until the morning of December 17th. The receivers were manned generally from midnight until 6 AM each day. Many stations were heard over the course of those days, too numerous to mention here, but it all is recorded in a formal report to QST8. Broadcasts from the Greenwich station 1BCG were heard in Scotland loud and clear on numerous nights, attesting to the efficiency of the station’s performance.

Old Callsign from Jan. 1922 QST

Name

Modern Call Sign

QCWA Member #

Notes

2FD

John DiBlasi

W2FD

#1

First QCWA President 1947-1964

2FP

Ralph G. Barber

W2ZM

#68

First QCWA Executive Secretary 1955-1964

2ZE

Paul F. Godley

W2ZE

H0001,133

Honorary Member10

1BDT

Sheldon S. Heap

W1OT

#1380

8BU

James L. Russell

W8BU

#4757

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At the time of the Transatlantic Tests, DiBlasi was 23 years old and attending Cooper Union. He graduated in 1922 with a degree in electrical engineering. It is not possible to know why 2FD was only heard on one night.

A transmitting scheme that scheduled specific times for different U.S. call areas, and for certain stations to be assigned a cypher not known to anyone until the beginning of the tests, was employed to provide a level of confidence in the results made known to the public.14 Although 2FD had a cypher, there is no record to indicate whether that cypher was heard by Godley.

DiBlasi kept the same call sign 2FD in 1922 and 1923, but at a different address in Flushing, New York; presumably, he had moved after graduating from college.

John DiBlasi W2FX. (Courtesy QCWA)

Ironically, the Transatlantic Tests were successful almost exactly 20 years after Marconi first traversed the Atlantic with his equipment. Whether December 1921 was picked by the U.S. amateurs to coincide with Marconi’s event 20 years earlier, or whether it was accidental, is unknown.

QCWA AMATEUR INVOLVEMENT The following list includes the amateurs who participated in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests and who were later members of QCWA. The authors of this article checked the list of call signs shown on the cover of the January 1922 issue of QST against listings in the June 1920 edition of the U.S. Dept. of Commerce’s Radio Stations of the United States to obtain the operators’ names.9 The names were then entered into the QCWA’s total membership search tool on its website to see if there was a match. The results are shown below. There may be some missing QCWA members, because several call signs shown on the QST cover could not be found in the Commerce listings.

John DiBlasi — We will start with QCWA’s founding president, John DiBlasi, who was born on November 5, 1898 in Sicily. John demonstrated an early interest in radio in 1913 at the age of 15, and was first licensed as a radio amateur in 1915, 2AGP. In 1919, just after World War I commenced, his call sign changed to 2FD.11 His address is listed as 227 E. 75th Street, New York, New York, and his transmitter power was listed as 30 watts. In this area of the city were four and five story buildings, and hence scant room for an efficient 200 meter antenna.

As 2FD, DiBlasi operated one of the many stations heard

by Paul Godley in Scotland during the December 1921 Transatlantic Tests.12 He operated a CW station as opposed to the more primitive spark transmitters, which were used by some of the other amateurs at the time. DiBlasi was heard by Godley calling 9XAH at 4:49 and 4:54 AM on December 11, 1921. Godley’s comment was “Fine, clear, and strong. Pearson marvels at proficiency of amateur operators.” Godley cabled to 1BCG in America the various stations he heard, including 2FD.13

After 1924, Diblasi is no longer listed in the federal call sign books as 2FD, and that call was eventually given to a Roy Cook of Vanderbuilt Ave., Brooklyn in 1925. In 1937 or 1938, DiBlasi received the amateur call sign W2LKC; and finally in 1945, he was issued W2FX, which he used for the remainder of his life.

DiBlasi was QCWA’s first president from 1947 to 1964, a span of almost 17 years. He remains to this day (2021) the QCWA president with the longest tenure. QCWA instituted a “John DiBlasi Award” in 1964, which is given to deserving members. John received QCWA’s Roll of Honor Award in 1981.

John DiBlasi became a Silent Key in December, 1981 at the age of 83. He was eulogized on the front cover of the spring 1982 issue of the QCWA News.

Ralph G. Barber — Ralph Barber served as editor of the QCWA Bulletin from 1952 until 1959, and again 1961 to 1964. He became a director in 1953, was treasurer from 1955 to 1965, and was QCWA’s first executive secretary/ general manager from 1955 to 1964.

Ralph Barber W2ZM. (Courtesy QCWA)

Ralph Barber QSL Card. (Courtesy NL7XM Collection)

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Barber was also a member of the Old Old Timers Club (OOTC # 0091). Barber became a Silent Key in November, 1966. Ralph received the QCWA Roll of Honor Award in 1986.

Paul F. Godley — Paul Godley was the amateur who went to Scotland to do the tedious work of receiving the CW signals being sent by U.S. Amateurs during the Paul Godley, W2ZE. (Courtesy Transatlantic Test. Godley QCWA Website) was born September 23, 1889. He was considered one of the best amateur operators at the time, which was why the team working on the preparations at 1BCG in Greenwich, Connecticut wanted to send him. The trials he underwent to get to Scotland, and the nights he spent in a cold and wet tent, are noted in the Background Section above, and in the various end-notes.

Godley went on in 1935 to found one of the early radio consulting engineering firms. Together with George H. Brown, they started Godley & Brown, Consulting Radio Engineers, Montclair, New Jersey.

In 1937, Godley and Edmund A. Laport applied for a patent for radiating systems. The system envisioned looks similar to today’s fractal and helical antennas.15 Sheldon S. Heap — No information beyond that provided in the table above has been found about this member.

James L. Russell — No information beyond that provided in the table above has been found about this member.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS Ken Oelke, VE6AFO, is the President of the Quarter Century Wireless Association.

Ken was licensed as VE6AFO in 1961 at age 15, which was then the required age to get a license in Canada. Ken is an Automotive Service Technician and owned and operated his own business for 20 years from 1974 to 1994. In 1995, he started working for Canadian Regional Airlines (later JAZZ Air/Chorus Aviation) for 16 years as a Ground Equipment Technician. Ken is a former director of the Canadian Radio Relay League (CRRL) and later the Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC). He is a former President of RAC, serving from 1999 to 2001. Ken is a Life Member of QCWA, ARRL, RAC and CSVHF. John Facella, P.E., K9FJ, is the President of the Radio Club of America. John has a BSEE degree from Georgia Tech, is a registered professional engineer, and has been involved in wireless since age 14. He has worked for over 30 years in the wireless industry, primarily in public safety land mobile communications. His employers have included the U.S. Army Signal Corps, Motorola, Harris, several wireless related startups, a national consulting firm, and his own consulting firm. John is a Life Member of IEEE, RCA, QCWA, and AWA.

SOURCES See J. Belrose, Fessenden and Marconi: Their Differing Technologies and Transatlantic Experiments During the First Decade of this Century, International Conference on 100 Years of Radio, Sep. 5-7, 1995, https://ewh.ieee.org/ reg/7/millennium/radio/radio_differences.html.

1

Some contemporary researchers have questioned Marconi’s claim, arguing that the transmitter and receiver were not tuned to the same frequency, and limited capabilities of the equipment, including the poor sensitivity and lack of amplification of the receiving apparatus (coherer). See Belrose, 1995, see reference: Ratcliffe, J.A. [1974], “Scientists’ reactions to Marconi’s transatlantic radio experiment’, Proc. IEE, 121, pp. 10331038.

2

CONCLUSION QCWA is proud that five of its members participated in the 1921 Transatlantic Tests, which proved that amateur radio operators with modest equipment could span a great distance like the Atlantic Ocean. In subsequent years, amateurs would begin messaging in both directions across the Atlantic, and eventually use voice communications, teletype, facsimile, slow scan TV, data, and many other forms of communication. The explosion of wireless experimentation as a result of these early tests, led to the many advances in communications over the past 100 years. The culmination of the modern smart phone, which uses frequencies in the GHz range, multiple antennas for diversity, and complex orthogonal frequency division multiplex (OFDM) transmission techniques, was unimaginable to those early amateurs.

QCWA and RCA are pleased to provide this snapshot of history into this important wireless event.

Note: This article is being published both in the QCWA Journal and the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America.

Supra, Note 1.

3

Spark gap transmitters created a “damped wave” emission, which as a result decayed in amplitude as the key contact remaineddepressed. CW transmitters using at least a sinusoidal oscillator often followed by one or more stages of amplification, created an emission that was not damped, but rather had continuous amplitude as long as the key was held down. As a result, CW transmissions were more easily received at the distant end.

4

E. V. Amy and G. E. Burghard, “The History of 1BCG,” Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, 1BCG Commemorative Issue, Oct. 1950, pp. 4-20 by.

5

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P. F. Godley, “Official Report on the Transatlantic Tests,” QST, Feb. 1922, pp. 14, 23, 39, as reprinted in the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, 1BCG Commemorative Issue, Oct. 1950, pp. 39, 48, 57.

6

Ibid., pp. 16, 22, 23, as reprinted pp. 41, 47, 48.

7

Ibid., pp. 24-38, as reprinted pp. 49-56.

See https://earlyradiohistory.us/statlist.htm which will lead you to: U.S. Dept. of Commerce Call Sign Lookup 1920, go to latter pages listed alphabetically by call sign: https://bit.ly/3nsDbG3 See QCWA 1970-71 Yearbook page 2: https://bit. ly/3m5eK1P. According to QCWA’s President Emeritus, Bob Roske N0UF, Godley was first made an honorary member in 1948. Around 1975 when QCWA began to issue member numbers, Godley was then registered as member # 133. (Honorary Membership is for life.)

See “The Story of the First Trans-Atlantic Short Wave Message”, Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, 1BCG Commemorative Issue, October 1950”, pp. 35, 37, 51, 52 (all excerpts from QST, Feb. 1922), and p. 61 (excerpt from Radio News, Feb. 1922).

11

8

9

The 1920 listing in the U.S. Dept. of Commerce’s Radio Stations of the United States (p. 31) shows DiBlasi’s address as 227 E. 75th Street, NY, NY, and his transmitter power was listed as 30 watts.

10

QST February 1922, pages 12, 26, and 27, as reprinted in the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, 1BCG Commemorative Issue, October 1950 12

QST February 1922, page 10, as reprinted in the Proceedings of the Radio Club of America, 1BCG Commemorative Issue, October 1950 13

For more on Godley see https://www.qcwa.org/w2zeh0001-sk.htm 15

SUPPORT RCA WITH A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTION Help RCA continue its mission of advancing wireless art and science for the betterment of society by making a tax-deductible donation today! RCA believes in the future of the industry and your contribution will help us with the important work of encouraging the next generation of wireless pioneers and entrepreneurs. Consider making a donation in someone’s honor as a memorial or gift.

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The Beverage Antenna, 100 Years Later Still relevant for its noise-rejection abilities, the Beverage will become more important during Solar Cycle 25 as increasing sunspot activity leads to weaker signals on 160 and 80 meters.

Ward Silver, NØAX, and Frank Donovan, W3LPL

The trade-off is length — Beverages need to be at least 3 ⁄4  long to provide effective noise rejection.

On June 7, 1921, Harold Beverage, W2BML, (previously 2BML) obtained his first patent for his radio receiving system. Back then, as they do now, operators struggled to hear signals through the atmospheric static that grew stronger as the frequency dropped. The VLFthrough-MF spectrum had very high noise levels that overloaded receivers and made consistent reception very difficult, particularly in the summer months.

Beverage’s main discovery was that a long horizontal wire (known to have a bidirectional pattern) could be made unidirectional by keeping it close to the ground and terminating one end of the wire with a resistor.

When the wire was aimed at the transmitting station, this had the effect of rejecting noise and interference from other directions, which increased the signal-tonoise ratio (SNR).

The basic Beverage antenna system is shown in Figure 1. The antenna needs to be close to the ground (as opposed to being high in the air) and works best over a ground area with medium-to-poor conductivity.

RX

3

4

T1 1:3 Turns Ratio

A radio wave is an electromagnetic field (EMF) with an electric (E) and magnetic field strength (H) component at right angles. An EMF induces voltage and current in every conductor it encounters. How much voltage and current depends on the orientation of the EMF, with respect to the antenna. As a radio wave arrives from the ionosphere, its vertically polarized electric field component (E field) is tilted forward, as shown in Figure 2.

Wave front tilt results from being reflected by the ionosphere. Higher arrival angles increase the tilt.

Figure 2 shows why tilt is important. For the wave to induce a voltage in the antenna, the E field must at least partially align with the antenna. There won’t be any voltage if the wave front arrives with a perfectly vertical E field. When the E field is tilted, however slightly, it becomes partially parallel to the antenna. The vertical portion of the tilted E field doesn’t create voltage in the antenna, but the horizontal portion does. The result is induced voltage along the entire length of the antenna.

A Basic System

QS2111-Silver01

Wave Front Tilt

Vertical vs. Horizontal Polarization

to 5 λ at lowest f

R=Z 0 Ground Radial System

Figure 1 — A simple one-wire Beverage antenna with a resistive termination and a 9:1 impedance transformer provides a good match to 50 Ω coaxial cable.

Reprinted with permission; copyright ARRL.

Figure 2 shows a vertically polarized E field. A horizontally polarized E field that’s parallel and close to Earth is severely attenuated by ground losses.

Furthermore, if arriving along the antenna, the E field is at a right angle to the antenna and can’t induce voltage in it. That means the Beverage antenna is most sensitive to vertically polarized signals arriving in line with the antenna. (Regardless of a signal’s www.arrl.org QST November 2021

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 103 www.radioclubofamerica.org

55

original transmitted polarization, ionospheric propagation always causes polarization rotation, known as Faraday rotation, so the sky-wave signal arrives with a mix of vertical and horizontal polarization.)

The Side and Top Even if tilted, the vertically polarized E field of signals arriving broadside to the antenna is at a right angle to the antenna and can’t induce voltage. Horizontally polarized signals arriving broadside to the antenna have an E field parallel to the antenna, but don’t result in strong received signals.

While the vertically polarized E field of a sky-wave signal is perpendicular or tilted with respect to Earth, the horizontally polarized E field is always parallel to Earth. When a horizontal E field is very close to Earth (much less than 1⁄4 ), it’s significantly attenuated by ground conductivity and can’t induce much voltage into the antenna.

When sky-wave signals arrive from nearly overhead, both horizontally and vertically polarized E fields are parallel to Earth. They are severely attenuated when close to Earth, before inducing a voltage into the antenna.

Front and Back The Beverage antenna develops a main forward beam because wave fronts arriving at angles offset from the antenna induce progressively less voltage into it as the angle increases.

Figure 3 shows the Beverage antenna accepting signals from the “front” and rejecting them from the “back.”

If the right-hand end of the antenna in the figure is left open-circuited, a signal from the back reflects off the end of the wire, just like in an open-ended transmission line. The signal then returns to the feed point, diminished by a small amount of attenuation from the lossy

ground below the wire. This unterminated, bidirectional Beverage receives signals from the “front” and slightly less from the “back.”

If the antenna is terminated with a resistance approximately matching its characteristic impedance, the undesired signal is absorbed at the end of the antenna and not reflected to the feed point. We now have an antenna that attenuates signals in all directions, except from the direction of its terminating resistance. Figure 4 shows the resulting pattern for 160-meter Beverages that are 1  (545 feet) and 2  (990 feet) long.

Traveling-Wave Antennas The Beverage antenna is a traveling-wave antenna because it never has standing waves from reflections from the ends of the wire. As a result, it’s also nonresonant, and the antenna dimensions aren’t required to be a specific fraction or multiple of the signal wavelength. Beverages work well over a fairly wide frequency range where they’re between about 3⁄4 and 5  long, with good performance around 1 to 2 .

Transmission Line The Beverage antenna has a characteristic impedance and not a feed-point impedance. Like a dipole antenna, current in the Beverage’s horizontal wire creates an electrical reflection or image on the ground below it. The current in the wire and its image create an unbalanced transmission line with a characteristic impedance. If this Beverage transmission line is terminated with that same impedance, any signals flowing toward the termination are absorbed, as with any other transmission line. Most Beverages have a characteristic impedance of about

QS0604-Silver02

Induced Voltages

To Receiver

Ground

Back

Front

Signal Absorbed

Wave fronts Arriving

To Receiver

Figure 2 — Incoming signal wave fronts tilt at ground level, due to reflection in the ionosphere and the effects of ground.

56

Wave fronts Arriving

Ground

Figure 3 — Voltage waves build up along the antenna and are either transferred to a feed line or absorbed by a terminating resistance.

Reprinted with permission; copyright ARRL. November 2021 QST www.arrl.org FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 104 www.radioclubofamerica.org

QS0604-Silver03

0 330

−3

30

1 λ Beverage

−6 −9 −12

300

60

−18

270

90

120

240

150

210 Max Gain = 8.52 dBi Freq = 1.83 MHz

180

2 λ Beverage

Azimuth Plot Elevation Angle = 10°

Figure 4 — Radiation patterns for a 1 and 2  Beverage antenna. Both antennas have a broad forward lobe and good rejection of signals from the sides and back.

500 . The exact value is relatively unimportant to the performance of the antenna.

Ground Conductivity Ground conductivity has a big effect on Beverage performance. Lossy ground enhances its performance, but high ground conductivity (especially salt water) severely degrades it. The horizontally polarized E field and tilted vertically polarized E field that induce voltage into the antenna when it’s installed over lossy ground are shorted out. Unlike transmitting antennas, the Beverage requires medium or poor ground conductivity to work well.

quencies. Longer BeverTable 1 — Recommended ages develop a Beverage Lengths progressively narrower Band Length pattern and better inter160 meters 500 – 1,200 feet ference suppression 80 meters 300 – 600 feet outside the narrower 40 meters 200 – 500 feet beam. With a length above 5 , sensitivity begins to decline because voltages and currents induced by the tilted wave front start interfering with voltages and currents traveling along the antenna to the feed point.

Speaking from experience, the Beverage wire should be high enough that animals don’t run into it. Typical heights range about 6 – 10 feet. The wire should have insulated support at about every 50 feet, but this isn’t critical. Electrical fence insulators work well and can be nailed to wooden posts or trees.

The antenna isn’t particularly sensitive to small variations in height above ground. Like small “wrinkles” in a two-wire feed line, unless the variations exceed about 0.1 , which is about 50 feet at 160 meters, they’ll have little effect. Small detours around or over non-conductive obstructions also have little effect.

By using separate feed lines at each end or by using relays to switch between a terminating resistor and a transformer and feed line, signals can be received from either direction. You can also build a two-wire Beverage that can receive from either direction through a single feed line, as described in The ARRL Antenna Book for Radio Communications (www.arrl.org/arrl-antennabook) or ON4UN’s Low-Band DXing by John Devoldere, ON4UN (SK).

Building a Basic Beverage Figure 1 shows a basic Beverage antenna. Any sturdy wire will do (insulated or bare), as long as it’s strong enough under the necessary tension. Transformers can be purchased from various sources, or you can wind your own. Tom Rauch, W8JI, has published an informative website on constructing Beverage antennas at https://new.w8ji.com/beverage-antennaconstruction.

The full benefits of a Beverage antenna begin to appear when the length reaches about 1 , but any length above about 1⁄2  will have some useful directivity (see Table 1). Consider that a Beverage antenna that’s 1  long at 160 meters will be 2  on 80 meters and 4  on 40 meters. The antenna can be used on all of these fre-

Ward Silver, NØAX, has been licensed since 1972. He is Lead Editor of The ARRL Handbook and The ARRL Antenna Book, and is the author of all three editions of the ARRL Ham Radio License Manual and study guides. He released the well-received Grounding and Bonding for the Radio Amateur in 2017 and recently authored the third edition of Ham Radio for Dummies.

Ward can be reached at n0ax@arrl.org.

Frank Donovan, W3LPL, began his ham radio journey at 12 years old, during the W1OP/1 Providence Radio Association 1959 Field Day. His multioperator, multitransmitter DX contest teams have made more than one million DX contacts in CQWW and ARRL DX contests. He retired 10 years ago as a Chief Engineer at General Dynamics, after a 45-year career in electronics and systems engineering. Frank can be reached at donovanf@erols.com.

For updates to this article, see the QST Feedback page at www.arrl.org/feedback.

FALL 2021 PROCEEDINGS 105 www.radioclubofamerica.org

Reprinted with permission; copyright ARRL.

www.arrl.org QST November 2021

57

CALL FOR PAPERS & EDITORIAL COMMENTS The Proceedings of the Radio Club of America is known for bringing you a wide mix of papers, ranging from sophisticated technical material to historical surveys of subjects related to electronic communications. RCA also is known for fostering discussion and sharing the viewpoints of its members. RCA is therefore issuing a call for papers and editorial comments for publication in upcoming issues of the Proceedings.

We seek interesting or important technical articles, editorials and discussion pieces in any of the following areas: • Antennas and supporting structures (i.e., towers) • Broadband communications • Broadcast

The Proceedings is published semi-annually, and has been issued since 1914. The Proceedings is considered to be the first publication geared to promoting and sharing the intellectual development of all aspects of radio and wireless communications.

Coverage has expanded to include relevant articles encompassing science, technology development, marketing and regulatory topics. We seek articles from knowledgeable engineers, professionals, academics and amateurs who are participating in building future applications, as well as those who want to document the history of relevant technologies.

• Cellular telephony

As a fellow reader of the Proceedings, we would like you to author an article or editorial for publication. We welcome “early work,” even if it is still in the process of being drafted. RCA offers a unique opportunity for you to get an early reaction to important work now underway in wireless communications. It is also a unique opportunity to air your views, inviting commentary and response from the membership.

• Robotics

Please submit an abstract (1-3 paragraphs) including the title, author(s) and contact information, a synopsis of the material to be published, and a note as to why you think the subject is interesting or important to the wireless industry. Authors of papers selected for publication in the Proceedings may be given an opportunity to present at one of the RCA’s upcoming events, such as the annual Technical Symposium. (Note: participants are responsible for their own travel expenses to RCA events.)

• FirstNet • Ham (amateur) radio • Land mobile radio • Long-Term Evolution (LTE) • Military communications • Regulatory topics

• Satellites • 4G/5G Cellular • Semiconductors, LED or other devices supporting wireless communications • Any other wireless/radio technologies

Please send abstracts for articles and editorials to be published in the Proceedings to: John Facella at pantherpinesconsulting@gmail.com with copies to David Bart at jbart1964@gmail.com.

Please send abstracts for potential presentation topics at RCA events to: John Facella at TechSymp2018@radioclubofamerica.org.

For general questions about RCA, an article idea or submission, please contact Amy Beckham at Amy@radioclubofAmerica.org.

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