RAC Bulletin 100814

RAC Ontario Section Bulletin for August 14, 2010
NATIONAL NEWS
ONTARIO SECTION NEWS
ITEMS OF INTEREST
1. Grounding for Lightning Protection
Radio World has a series of three "Tech Tips" on how to ground
commercial radio station antennas for lightning protection.  Much of
that information is also relevant to amateur stations.  See the
articles at tinyurl.com/grounding-1, tinyurl.com/grounding-2, and
tinyurl.com/grounding-3.
-- ARRL Contest Update
2. Wind Loading Calculations
Contesting.com's Wiki has a handy reference for antenna wind loading
calculations.  You can see it at tinyurl.com/2elnzko (Two Echo Lima
November Zulu Kilo Oscar).
-- ARRL Contest Update
3. RFI from LED lamps
Many hams have discovered that CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lamps) emit
radio frequency interference.  Some have hoped that LED lighting will
solve the problem.  But New Zealand's Radio Spectrum Management
department reports that LED bulbs can produce RFI, too.  The problem
is that the current regulators in LED bulbs use switching circuits
similar to CFLs.  So check those LEDs for interference before you
install them.
-- Southgate ARC News
4. ARRL Contest Corral
The ARRL's "Contest Corral" is the list of upcoming contests that is
published in QST Magazine.  This list includes all ARRL-sponsored
contests and most other major ham radio contests. Visit
www.arrl.org/contest-calendar and click the link for "Contest Corral"
for the monthly listings.
-- ARRL Web