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Ärende: AR Newsline Report 2537 - 12 Jun 2026
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Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2537 for Friday, June 12th, 2026
 
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2537 with a release date of Friday, June
12th, 2026 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.

The following is a QST. Mirage and Ameritron get a new owner. A suspect is
arrested after copper theft at a US radio station -- and hams stick their necks
out to help giraffes. All this and more as Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number
2537 comes your way right now.

**
BILLBOARD CART

**
AMERITRON, MIRAGE BRANDS SOLD TO ITU CORP.

PAUL/ANCHOR: Our top story this week is the sale of Mirage and Ameritron to the
Indiana company that acquired the Cushcraft and Hygain brands from MFJ
Enterprises earlier this year. Mirage and Ameritron, who are known for their
amplifiers, are to join the amateur radio portfolio of ITU Corporation. ITU's
president, Dave Carpenter, posted both brands' logos on his profile page on the
 LinkedIn business platform, referring to their recent acquisition.

As Newsline went to production, the official statement was covered on Linton
News, a local online Newspaper where ITU Corporation is located.


This past April, ITU announced it will return Hygain and Cushcraft brands to
the marketplace by manufacturing them at a 15-acre property that is the former
home of a National Guard Armory in Linton, Indiana. In a joint announcement
that month, Dave and Kambi Carpenter, who own the electronics supply business
TekShack, announced the deal with Martin Jue, K5FLU, who closed the business he
founded in Starkville, Mississippi.

(LINTON NEWS)

**
ARREST IN COPPER THEFT AT US RADIO STATION

PAUL/ANCHOR: As copper thefts continue to climb around the US, police have
announced the arrest of a suspect in an incident that left a radio station off
the air in Kentucky. Jack Parker W8ISH brings us up to date.

JACK: Copper communication cables were stolen in late May from the tower site
of radio station WDGG, 93.7 FM, launching an investigation by local
authorities. A transmission line was also cut, throwing the station temporarily
off the air. The 100,000-watt station, which is owned by Kindred
Communications, has since returned to broadcasting but at a much lower power,
less than 10 watts.

Within days, police announced the arrest of  a 63-year-old Kentucky man, Paul
Crisp, after they said he was seen fleeing the same site during what police say
was a second attempted copper theft.
 
According to a report on the Inside Radio website, authorities used a search
warrant to enter his home and found several pieces of communication cable and
tools that they believe were involved in the incident.

The last few years have seen a dramatic rise in copper wire thefts in the US,
according to a recent report on National Public Radio. With growing demand for
use of copper, especially in AI data centers, the value of the metal has
doubled. Todd Swenson of AT&T's construction and engineering division, told
National Public Radio that it is also being increasingly stripped out of phone
lines throughout the communications system as thieves try to capitalize on what
are now a record-high prices.

This is Jack Parker W8ISH.

(INSIDE RADIO, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO)

**
HAM'S EXPERIMENT WOULD ADAPT TELETEXT FOR AMATEUR RADIO

PAUL/ANCHOR: Everything old is new again - or at least that's true for some
things, such as the old Teletext system, the focus of one ham here in the US.
Daniel Garcia W2DIY has that story.

DANIEL: In Europe for over 40 years, TV sets have been capable of receiving a
broadcast information service known as Teletext. Now the broadcasting protocol
is being harnessed for a modern digital radio mode using AX.25 packet radio
data links on both HF and VHF bands.

This is an experiment by Stephen Cass. KB1WNR, who reported on his work in the
IEEE [Eye Triple E] Spectrum, where he is an editor. Stephen writes that he was
inspired by BBC's service known as Ceefax, which even in the days of analogue
TVs, enabled viewers to select what they wanted to read on screen by entering
different numeric codes into their TV remotes.

This experiment works on adapting Teletext for ham radio.

Stephen wrote: [quote] "I thought it would make a great radio protocol. In
fact, I thought it could be a digital counterpart of slow-scan television."
[endquote] SSTV transmissions are analogue and somewhat slow and are often
transmitted a few times to ensure the entire message - images plus text - can
be received.

Stephen asks that hams wishing to help him to experiment contact him via the
IEEE Spectrum online magazine at spectrum dot i  e  e  e  dot org
(spectrum.ieee.org)

This is Daniel Garcia W2DIY

(IEEE SPECTRUM, ONE NEWS PAGE.COM)

**
SILENT KEY: PROMINENT QATARI HAM ABDULLAH BIN HAMAD AL ATTIYAH, A71AU

PAUL/ANCHOR: A prominent figure in the government of Qatar - and in amateur
radio there - has become a Silent Key. We hear about him from Graham Kemp
VK4BB.

GRAHAM:  Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah,  A71AU, was an influential presence in
the leadership of Qatar and in amateur radio there. In public life, he was a
former deputy prime minister and minister of energy and industry in Qatar. More
recently he served as chairman of the Qatar Amateur Radio Society and was a
major proponent for the development of the QO-100 satellite. Launched in 2018,
the satellite, also known as Es'hail-2, carried the world's first geostationary
amateur radio transponder as its payload. The project was a cooperative effort
by the Qatar Amateur Radio Society, the Qatar Satellite Company and AMSAT-DL.

Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah became a Silent Key on the 27th of May. He was
73.

This is Graham Kemp VK4BB.

(AMSAT-DL, 425 DX BULLETIN, )

**
IRTS SEEKS OPERATORS FOR TEAM IN IARU HF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

PAUL/ANCHOR: Hams in Ireland have the opportunity to be part of the IRTS
headquarters team in the IARU HF World Championship. Jeremy Boot G4NJH tells us
how.

JEREMY: As the date for the IARU HF World Championship approaches, the Irish
Radio Transmitters Society is still in search of hams who can represent Ireland
by calling CQ with the callsign EIØHQ. There are 12 operating slots that remain
to be filled for the event, which runs for 24 hours from the 11th to the 12th
of July on all the HF bands, excluding the WARC bands. If you are interested in
being part of Ireland's headquarters station team contact Mark EI6JK, the
contest manager, by emailing him at contestmanager at irts dot ie
(contestmanager@irts.ie).

This is Jeremy Boot G4NJH.

(IRTS)

**
NASA ANNOUNCES ASTRONAUTS FOR ARTEMIS III MISSION

PAUL/ANCHOR: NASA has announced the names of the four astronauts for next
year's Artemis III mission, and Travis Lisk N3ILS tells us who they are.

TRAVIS: The Artemis 3 mission is designed to be the last NASA mission leading
up to a planned 2028 moon landing - and the four astronauts chosen for it will
be responsible for tests on two commercially built lunar landers. The Orion
spacecraft's pilot will be Luca Parmitano, KF5KDP, an Italian astronaut from
the European Space Agency. He is the only member of the Artemis 3 team with an
amateur radio callsign.

The team includes test pilot and flight veteran Randy Bresnik, first-timer
Andre Douglas and Frank Rubio, who holds the United States record for the
single longest spaceflight - a total of 371 days. The lunar landers are being
build by Blue Origin and SpaceX.

This is Travis Lisk N3ILS.

(NBC NEWS, CNN)

**
AMSAT EXPLORES CUBESAT PAYLOAD ON ARTEMIS MISSION

PAUL/ANCHOR: Artemis is also on the mind of AMSAT, which is looking to launch
one of its CubeSats on board one of NASA's next missions in that program, as we
hear from Sel Embee KB3TZD.

SEL:  AMSAT hopes to develop a CubeSat that will become a secondary payload on
board one of NASA's next Artemis missions. In a letter of intent submitted
recently to the space agency, AMSAT said that the high-Earth deployment offered
by the missions would align well with AMSAT's own goals to bring ham radio
satellites into increasingly higher orbits.

The proposed CubeSat payload would be a 6U-class spacecraft, weighing less than
14 kilograms, or 30 pounds. It sould have deployable solar arrays and an
amateur radio communications system developed by AMSAT to support VHF uplinks
and UHF downlinks. The CubeSat would also have a 5 GHz uplink and a 10 GHz
downlink. Hams around the world would be asked to provide telemetry reception
using AMSAT's analysis tools.

AMSAT responded to a NASA request for interested parties for its Artemis 3, 4
and 5 missions, which can accommodate 6U and 12U size CubeSats.

This is Sel Embee KB3TZD.

(AMSAT)

**
TIME TO SWITCH HAMCLOCK BACKEND SERVER

PAUL/ANCHOR: This is a reminder that the original backend server for the
popular HamClock shack accessory is set to stop working this month. If you wish
to continue using HamClock and all its features and to receive its updates, you
will need to switch your backend server as soon as possible.

OpenHamClock Backend is an open-source server run by a development team that is
also providing updates to the HamClock client. The client version is now at
V4.26

For details, visit the link in the text version of this week's newscast at
arnewsline.org

[DO NOT READ:   https://ohb.works  ]

(OPEN HAMCLOCK BACKEND)

**
BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the W8VPV
repeater of the Cuyahoga Falls Amateur Radio Club in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio at 8
p.m. on Mondays.

**
EVACUATED ASTRONAUTS RETURN TO ISS AFTER LEAK

PAUL/ANCHOR: An air leak on the ISS temporarily forced NASA astronauts to
shelter in their spacecraft, as we hear from Kevin Trotman N5PRE.

KEVIN: Five space station astronauts, including the four-member team of
Crew-12, returned to the space station on June 5th after taking shelter in
their Crew Dragon spacecraft where they were sent under evacuation orders from
NASA. The space agency reversed its earlier evacuation order that had been
prompted by an air leak discovered in the Russian service module. Cosmonauts
were working to repair the recurring leak which Roscosmos, the Russian space
agency, said did not pose any immediate danger to the crew or the spacecraft
itself. NASA and Roscosmos have been working together to determine their cause.

This is Kevin Trotman N5PRE.

(REUTERS, MSN)

**
FOLDABLE ANTENNA BOOSTS DATA RATES FOR CUBESATS

PAUL/ANCHOR: An antenna design known as the Origami Antenna is showing promise
for data transmission from tiny CubeSats, as we hear from John Williams VK4JJW.

JOHN: Using a folded antenna design, researchers have succeeded in helping
CubeSats overcome their typically limited data transmission rates. The design,
known as the Origami Antenna, increases to 25 times of its stored size on board
the tiny satellite. When stored, the 64-gram antenna is 10x10x6 centimetres.
Its deployed size creates a surface that is 50x50 centimetres.

Researchers at the Institute of Science Tokyo have found that the antenna not
only supports transmissions at higher rates but strengthens signals by focusing
the transmissions into a narrow beam. The antenna transmits at a frequency of
5.8 GHz and has a gain of 18 dBi.

The antenna was deployed on the 23rd of May on Science Tokyo's OrigamiSat-2
CubeSat, which was launched in late April.

The researchers' next task challenge will be a larger foldable antenna to be
installed on larger satellites conducting observations of Earth.

This is John Williams VK4JJW.

(IEEE SPECTRUM)

**
ARDC LAUNCHES DISCORD DISCUSSION THREAD

PAUL/ANCHOR: Amateur Radio Digital Communications has just opened up a new
channel of communication for those interested in what they have to offer, as we
hear from Stephen Kinford N8WB.

STEPHEN: If you want to engage in a more direct dialogue with the staff at
Amateur Radio Digital Communications, you can now join their new thread in the
Discord app. ARDC invites discussions about project updates, 44Net, grants and
other topics relevant to the kind of work that ARDC does. Anyone involved in
amateur radio or digital communications is welcome. Bring your thoughts, ideas
and questions.

The California-based foundation provides support to projects involved in
scientific research, amateur radio, experimentation, digital communication and
communication technology.

You'll find a link to the server in the text version of this week's newscast at
arnewsline.org

This is Stephen Kinford N8WB.

[DO NOT READ:  https://discord.ardc.net  ]

**

WORLD OF DX

In the World of DX, the Caen Radio Club is on the air as TM6DDAY through to the
20th of June, using CW, SSB and the digital modes. Listen for them on 80
through 6 metres. They will be operating from the Merville Gun Battery site on
the eastern flank of the landing area code-named Sword. 

Manu, CE3YMR, is using the callsign 3GØYM from Easter Island, IOTA Number
SA-001, from the 20th through to the 27th of June. He will be using SSB and FT8
primarily on 40, 30 and 6 metres. If local conditions permit, find him as well
on 60, 20 and 10 metres.

Listen for Olafur, TF1OL using the callsign D4OL from Boa Vista, IOTA Number
AF-086, Cape Verde, from the 12th through to the 22nd of June. He will be using
FT8 and FT4 on 80-6 metres.

In Tanzania, Chas, NK8O is on the air as 5H3DX until the 2nd of July, using CW,
FT8 and FT4. Listen for him on 40-6 metres.

For QSL information and other operating details, please see each station's page
on QRZ.com

(425 DX BULLETIN)

**
YOUTH ON THE AIR SUMMER CAMP ACTIVATES W4Y

PAUL/ANCHOR: It's the season for Youth on the Air Americas Camp in Huntsville,
Alabama for young amateur radio operators in North, Central, and South America.
Be listening for special event call W4Y while camp is in session from June 14th
through to the 19th. When the youngsters aren't on the air, they'll be engaging
in a number of space-themed activities and will livestream their contact with
ISS astronaut Chris Williams, KJ5GEW.

(YOTA AMERICAS CAMP)

**

KICKER: HAMS LAUNCHING A TALL CONSERVATION ENDEAVOR

PAUL/ANCHOR: In this weeks final item, we learn about a special event
celebrating Tatu and Joshua. They and about 140,000 others like them are about
to enter the spotlight thanks to a group of hams from the Lehigh Valley in
Pennsylvania. Newslines Mark Abramowicz (Abram-oh-vich) NT3V has the story

MARK: If I asked you what the date June 21st means to you, youd probably say
that sounds like the first official day of summer in the United States. It
marks the longest period of daylight for a day this year.

Coincidentally, this date for the summer solstice this year also marks the
celebration of Fathers Day in America..

So, what do Tatu and Joshua have to do with all of this?

Both of these named creatures  whose origins can be traced to the continent of
Africa - are mammals and the tallest animals on the planet.

Come on, Sherlock Holmes  its elementary!

They are giraffes!

Theyre going to be honored with a special event station to be set up on Sunday,
June 21st to observe World Giraffe Day from the Lehigh Valley Zoo outside of
Allentown where they both now live.

Walt Skavinsky KB3SBC is coordinating the W3G operation on behalf of the
Education Alliance for Amateur Radio.

Skavinsky tells Newsline the W3G special event creates a rare intersection of
wildlife conservation and communications technology.

He says [quote] "It will give zoo visitors and the public an opportunity to see
real-world radio operations in action while celebrating giraffes and supporting
awareness of conservation issues for them." [endquote.]

Skavinsky says giraffes in the wild face significant threats including habitat
loss and poaching. He says world conservation groups use World Giraffe Day to
focus on the silent extinction the gentle creatures are facing.

More details at QRZ-dot-com, search W3G in the call sign window in the upper
left box.

By the way, Skavinsky observes [quote] "This may be the only special event
station where the antenna is not the tallest thing around." [endquote]

Im Mark Abramowicz NT3V

**
NEWSCAST CLOSE

With thanks to Amateur Radio Daily, AMSAT News; AMSAT-DL; ARRL Letter; CNN;
David Behar, K7DB; DX World; 425DX News; HamSCI; HamClock BackEnd; IEEE
Spectrum; InsideRadio; Irish Radio Transmitters Society; LinkedIn; Linton News;
MSN.com; National Public Radio; NBCNews; OneNewsPage.com; QRZ.com; Reuters;
RSGB; shortwaveradio.de; Wireless Institute of Australia; YOTA Americas Camp;
and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio Newsline. We remind
our listeners that Amateur Radio Newsline is an all-volunteer non-profit
organization that incurs expenses for its continued operation. If you wish to
support us, please visit our website at arnewsline.org and know that we
appreciate you all. We also remind our listeners that if you like our newscast,
please leave us a 5-star rating wherever you subscribe to us. 

For now, with Caryn Eve Murray KD2GUT at the news desk in New York, and our
news team worldwide, I'm Paul Braun WD9GCO in Valparaiso Indiana saying 73. As
always we thank you for listening. Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright
2026. Amateur Radio Newsline retains ownership of its material even when
retransmitted elsewhere. All rights are reserved.

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