#ke2yk-weekly-roundup — Public Fediverse posts

This Week at KE2YK — November 8, 2026

KE2YK Posts — November 2–7

Wednesday, November 4 — CQ WW CW 2026 Rules: Automation and the Log Deadline

Three key actions in CQ WW CW now need a person to start them, and the log window is down to 48 hours. This guide shows what to check in your station software and when to submit your log. Read the CQ WW CW rules guide.

Saturday, November 7 — Pocket Shack: AllStarLink From Your iPhone, Apple Watch, or Mac

Pocket Shack lets licensed hams with an AllStarLink account listen to compatible nodes from supported Apple devices. The guide explains how to get started, what you can do for free, and what the paid version adds. Read the Pocket Shack guide.

The Daily Brief Recap — November 2–7

The headings show when each Daily Brief appeared. Some of the source reports appeared earlier.

Monday, November 2 — Mozambique, Satellite Status, and CW Sweepstakes

The C8K team laid out its Mozambique operating plans. AMSAT announced a new home for its satellite status page, along with an interface for software developers. The ARRL CW Sweepstakes offered a QRP category and practice copying a longer contest exchange.

Tuesday, November 3 — XR0Z, HOA Antennas, and UNNE-1B

The XR0Z team moved its Alexander Selkirk Island plans to late November, weather permitting. The Community Associations Institute’s position paper explains its opposition to proposed U.S. amateur antenna legislation. AMSAT reported that Spain’s UNNE-1B was sending telemetry during commissioning.

Wednesday, November 4 — Christmas Island, Contest Rules, and Low-Band Noise

The VK9XY Christmas Island team highlighted youth participation and remote operating. The CQ WW committee’s rules update covered operator control and a shorter log deadline. In Senegal, the 6W team’s field report described heavy noise on 80 and 160 meters despite trying several receive antennas.

Thursday, November 5 — Streetlight Noise, Spectrum Talks, and Futuna

The Senegal team’s follow-up pointed to an LED streetlight as the likely source of its HF noise. The Croatian amateur radio association’s conference report covered IARU Region 1 discussions on 40 meters and 23 centimeters. FW3GT’s operator update from Futuna discussed plans for 60 and 80 meters.

Friday, November 6 — UK Spectrum, Pocket Shack, and Guinea

The RSGB reported an extension of UK amateur access to 146–147 MHz through October 2027. Pocket Shack brought AllStarLink listening to Apple devices. The 3X4U team’s station plan highlighted dedicated 6-meter monitoring and moonbounce.

Saturday, November 7 — ISS Pictures, Antenna Reports, and Morse Practice

ARISS announced a November slow-scan TV event from the space station. DXLook’s Antenna View guide shows how to compare signals using reception reports. Cadenza offers Morse listening, sending, and practice contacts on a mobile device.

DX Look Ahead — November 9–14

• KH8A, American Samoa. The KH8A team plans to operate through November 12 on 160 through 6 meters, including CW and FT8. Listen early in the week if you want this South Pacific contact before the team wraps up.
• C8K, Mozambique. The Czech DXpedition Team expects limited activity November 10–11 and full operation starting November 12. CW and several other modes are planned on 160 through 6 meters. Try the lower bands if you want to see how your station does toward southeastern Africa.

See the NG3K Announced DX Operations list for more. DX plans were reviewed November 8 and can change.

Antenna Troubleshooting

Change one thing about your portable antenna, such as its height. Keep your CW power and band the same, then compare reports from the same Reverse Beacon Network receivers. My guide explains what to look for. Portable QRP Antenna Troubleshooting: Beyond 1:1 SWR.

What antenna change has made a difference for you? Share your ideas in the comments. 73!

This Week at KE2YK — October 18, 2026

Catch up on two practical KE2YK articles and six Daily Briefs, then look ahead at the DX activity announced for the coming week.

This KE2YK weekly ham radio roundup uses two date windows. Parts 1 and 2 cover Monday, October 12, at 00:01 UTC through Saturday, October 17, at 23:59 UTC. Part 3 looks ahead from Monday, October 19, at 00:01 UTC through Saturday, October 24, at 23:59 UTC.

Part 1: KE2YK Posts From the Past Week

Monday, October 12 — Thruster Triangular Loop: A Portable Antenna Worth a Look

This introduction looks at KJ6ER’s free Thruster Triangular Loop plans for 20 through 6 meters. It explains why portable operators may want to compare the loop’s directionality, noise pickup, supports, matching, and setup time with an EFHW or vertical.

Wednesday, October 14 — POTA Midnight UTC: Why 12 Contacts May Not Count

This guide explains how crossing 0000 UTC can split one POTA outing into two daily contact totals. It shows why an operator can make 12 contacts yet still fall short of the required total on either UTC date, with practical New York time examples.

Part 2: The Daily Brief — October 12–17 in Review

Here is the completed Monday-through-Saturday news record. Each item links to the source used in that day’s Daily Brief.

Monday, October 12 — Online Radio Sales, Winlink, and Portable CW

eBay tightened FCC ID requirements for some wireless-equipment listings, raising questions for sellers of used and older radios. RadioMail 2.0 brought built-in Packet and ARDOP modems, IC-705 support, and improved Winlink tools to Apple devices. A POTA field test examined the Chelegance JKEYER-CPO16 and the value of an external message keyer for simple CW rigs.

Tuesday, October 13 — RF Safety, Amateur LTE, and Station Records

FCC and HHS RF-exposure inquiries approached their public-comment deadlines, although current amateur-radio requirements remained unchanged. XCL.IS demonstrated an experimental amateur LTE cellular network. A practical station-documentation method showed how inventories, diagrams, settings, and checklists can simplify troubleshooting and portable operation.

Wednesday, October 14 — Mesh Networks, CW Logging, and Historic Morse

AREDN began testing a major mesh-networking release candidate with multi-radio support and simpler network connections. RadioLog 4.0.6 added beta multi-signal CW decoding and keying tools. Sweden’s historic SAQ Grimeton station announced an October 24 transmission on 17.2 kHz CW, with SK6SAQ also planning amateur-band activity.

Thursday, October 15 — DXpedition Lessons and Youth Outreach

The 9T0MD team reported more than 90,000 contacts despite serious power, equipment, and internet problems. Jamboree on the Air prepared to connect Scouts and amateur-radio operators worldwide. NG3K also listed an upcoming 5Z4GO/P QRP CW operation from Wasini Island, Kenya.

Friday, October 16 — Amateur Radio in Space and Smarter DX Monitoring

NASA and ARISS announced a new four-year agreement supporting amateur radio aboard the International Space Station. The 3X4U Guinea team planned continuous six-meter SDR and FT8 monitoring to catch short band openings. The same Newsline report covered a West Bengal emergency-communications agreement built around training and cooperation before disasters.

Saturday, October 17 — Hurricane Communications and Pacific DX

Florida amateur-radio volunteers supported emergency operations and shelters during Hurricane Isaias. JD1BQP began an Ogasawara Islands operation covering 160 through 6 meters. The POTA Support Your Parks autumn weekend encouraged portable activators and hunters to get on the air.

Part 3: DX Activity for October 19–24

These announced operations overlap the coming Monday-through-Saturday window. Dates are plans, not promises of nonstop activity. Travel, setup, propagation, contests, and local conditions can change a schedule.

• 3D2HM — Fiji: Planned through October 22 from Nadi, using SSB and FT8 on HF.
• 3DA0GY — Eswatini: Planned on 40 through 10 meters using CW and SSB.
• 5W0ZP — Samoa: A QRP holiday-style operation is planned from October 19 on 40 through 10 meters using FT8, FT4, and possibly CW.
• 5H3MB — Tanzania: Planned to begin October 19 on 80 through 10 meters using CW.
• 6O2M — Somalia: Spare-time CW and SSB activity is planned on 40 through 10 meters through October 25.
• 7P8GE — Lesotho: Team activity is planned on HF, including 60 meters.
• 9N7XT — Nepal: Planned to begin October 23 on 160 through 10 meters using CW, SSB, and FT8.
• C5R — The Gambia: The longer HF operation remains scheduled throughout the week and may join the CQ World Wide DX SSB Contest.
• H44MS — Solomon Islands: Planned on 80 through 10 meters, mainly FT8 with some SSB.
• H49A — Solomon Islands: Planned through October 21 on HF and 6 meters using CW, SSB, and FT8.
• JD1BQP — Ogasawara: Planned on 160 through 6 meters from Chichijima Island.
• S9R — São Tomé and Príncipe: Planned on 160 through 6 meters, including 60 meters, using CW, SSB, RTTY, and FT8.
• S21HRG — Bangladesh: Planned through October 20 on 80 through 10 meters using SSB, FT8, and CW.
• TZ4AM — Mali: Planned to begin October 22 on 80 through 6 meters using CW and SSB.
• V63SC — Micronesia: Planned from October 22 on 80 through 2 meters using FT8 and SSB.
• ZA/AE5X — Albania: Ten-watt CW activity remains planned on 20 through 10 meters, including portable and POTA operations.

The CQ World Wide DX SSB Contest begins October 24, so additional rare and contest calls may appear late in the week. For last-minute changes and QSL details, check the NG3K Announced DX Operations list. Thanks for reading, good luck with the week’s DX, and enjoy your time on the air. 73!

KE2YK posts and Daily Brief topics cover October 12–17. DX schedules were checked October 18, 2026, against NG3K and the linked operator or team pages. Plans, software, event details, and propagation can change.