Greg Mossop G0DUB, IARU region 1 emergency communications coordinator has issued a statement regarding the ITU. He says:

“The ITU have updated the recommendations to the Amateur Service for how they would like our service to prepare for emergencies. This Recommendation is something I have referred to in presentations for many years but things have changed a bit in this version. The changes are:

‘1 that administrations should encourage the development of amateur service and amateur-satellite service networks capable of providing radio communications in the event of natural disasters or other emergencies, and that these networks are available when called upon by appropriate authorities;

‘2 that these amateur and amateur-satellite networks should be capable of operation in the absence of other radio communications networks and capable of operating from temporary locations, (as required) using local generator or battery based power supplies when public grid power is not available;

‘3 that amateur organizations should be encouraged:

‘3.1 to promote the design of robust organizational structures and technology systems capable of providing reliable radio communications during disasters and relief operations;

‘3.2 to train regularly so that the necessary skills to provide an effective communications support are developed and maintained for deployment during emergency events.’

“I have highlighted the changes in bold text and the changes put more focus on us being able to deliver and to be seen to regularly train. The requirements are now not just for natural disasters but ‘for other emergencies’ and having no grid power is also called out specially.”

Greg hopes further that there is enough here though to have some good conversations in our countries.

Thanks to him for the communique, and apologies to any who might have already heard me report on this.

Writing for en.clickpetroeoegas.com.br Alisson Ficher is reporting that a scientific network in the Arctic is bringing together thousands of antennas to map the ionosphere and reveal how solar particles produce the aurora borealis, a luminous phenomenon linked to space weather that can interfere with satellites, communications, and electrical systems across the planet.

Norway is making progress in building the EISCAT 3D, a next-generation scientific radar designed to observe the upper atmosphere and near-Earth space environment with greater precision.

The core of the system is located in Skibotn, in the north of the country, and encompasses approximately 10 antennas in a phased array arrangement. The structure was designed to monitor, almost in real time, variations in the ionosphere and the physical processes linked to the formation of the aurora borealis.

This phenomenon also serves as an indicator of risks to satellites, GPS navigation, radio communications, and power grids. The project does not operate in isolation.

In addition to the main facility in Norwegian territory, the EISCAT 3D integrates receivers in Finland and Sweden, forming an infrastructure focused on monitoring the Arctic sky.

Auroras appear when energetic particles from the Sun interact with Earth’s magnetic field and gases in the upper atmosphere. When these particles collide with oxygen and nitrogen, they release energy in the form of light. This process produces hues that vary according to altitude and the type of atmospheric excitation.

In general, emissions associated with the aurora appear in bands of the upper atmosphere and ionosphere that extend from about 80 to 600 kilometers. The phenomenon is particularly common at altitudes between approximately 100 and 400 kilometers.

In practice, the radar system emits radio waves and analyzes the signal scattering by encountering free electrons in the ionospheric plasma.

Based on this feedback, researchers are able to estimate electron density, temperatures and velocities of plasma.

It also becomes possible to map movements that help explain how the Sun’s energy is distributed over the Polar Regions.

This type of radar allows for the measurement of parameters that were previously observed in a more limited way, such as electric fields, neutral winds, and particle flows during auroral events.

Thanks to Alisson Ficher for the report.

And Star News, reporting from Canterbury, New Zealand reports that a large number of police, army and other emergency personnel in helicopters and boats are set to descend on a Canterbury lake township this weekend.

A multi-agency search and rescue training exercise called Operation Oasis is set to take place in the Tekapo area from Friday to Sunday. The complex, multi-phase exercise is designed to test search techniques, field skills, and fatigue management in realistic conditions. More than 200 search and rescue specialists from across Canterbury will be taking part in the exercise.

This will include personnel from the police, Coastguard, Surf Life Saving New Zealand, Land Search and Rescue, Amateur Radio Emergency Communications, Alpine Rescue Canterbury, Hato Hone St John, and the New Zealand Defence Force.

“Members of the public will see increased activity in the area, with use of helicopters, boats, and Search and Rescue personnel and equipment,” a police spokesperson said.

“This is a planned, routine training exercise and the public should not be alarmed.

“We appreciate and thank the community for their understanding and support as our teams work to maintain and enhance their capability to respond to emergencies.”

Sounds like the type of exercise we in South African provinces ought to be holding.

And itbrief.asia says that Taiwan Mobile has restored telecoms services in eastern Taiwan after Typhoon Ragasa cut a key network route, and using a laser-based wireless link across a damaged river crossing.

The operator worked with Singapore-based Transcelestial and local systems integrator dBTech after the Mataian River Bridge in Hualien County collapsed in torrential rain. A communications route running beneath the bridge was severed when the structure failed.

Engineers installed a 1.25-kilometre connection using Transcelestial’s CENTAURI equipment. The link spanned the Mataian River between two sites, bypassing the damaged infrastructure.

Repairs to the bridge and the damaged route were expected to take close to six months because of the scale of reconstruction required. By contrast, the temporary laser link was deployed and made operational within days, restoring service without waiting for bridge works or ground access.

As the saying goes: “Where there is a will, there’s a way!”

This is Dave Reece ZS1DFR reporting for HAMNET in South Africa.