On Monday of this week, GDACS started carrying news of Tropical Cyclone AMPIL, active in the North West Pacific, and threatening the west coast of Japan, with wind speeds of up to 185km/h.
By Thursday, a RED alert had been issued for Japan, as AMPIL strengthened, developing winds of 210km/h. Five million people were faced with winds of at least 120km/h. Tokyo itself was the most at risk, with the eye of the storm passing just east of Tokyo on Friday at about 12h00 UTC.
And Tropical Cyclone ERNESTO announced itself in the Caribbean on Tuesday, threatening the Dominican Republic, the British Virgin Islands, Montserrat, Dominica and Bermuda, and especially bringing heavy rainfall and strong winds to the Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
It was forecast to generate heavy rainfall, strong winds and storm surge over the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The ARRL, in its Thursday newsletter, reported that “Ernesto had moved out of Puerto Rico. The island suffered flash flooding, storm damage, and widespread power outages on Wednesday as Ernesto moved past. Half of all residents were without power, with flooding and damage especially pronounced in the eastern part of the island. Angel Luis Santana Díaz, WP3GW, Public Information Coordinator for the ARRL Puerto Rico Section, reports that amateur radio operators there are on the KP4FRA repeater system reporting situations in different municipalities.
“Fred Kleber, K9VV / NNA2FK, Section Manager of the ARRL Virgin Islands Section, reports Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VIETMA) activated its emergency operations centres on Tuesday night. Power is out to all customers on all islands with lines down and trees blocking some roads. Kleber estimated that full power restoration may take 1 – 2 days. All U.S. Virgin Island (USVI) repeaters are operating except for one, and the British Virgin Islands BVI.73 repeater is on the air as well.”
Techspot.com is reporting this week that major efforts to explore the Moon’s surface and build permanent human outposts will require precise timing technology. The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is proposing a new “lunar time” system designed to make life much easier for astronauts – whether on the Moon or elsewhere in space.
While traditional atomic clocks are pushing the boundaries of time measurement precision with science fiction-like technological breakthroughs, those organizing the future of space exploration are focused on a more practical, yet otherworldly, issue. Atomic clocks on the Moon tick faster than those on Earth, gaining an additional 56 microseconds every 24 Earth hours.
This well-known discrepancy could jeopardize efforts to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon, as precise time measurement is essential for surface navigation, network communication, and more. On Earth, GPS satellites have atomic clocks synchronized to a common time reference, allowing receivers to determine position and time by measuring the delay in signals from multiple satellites.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is now proposing a GPS-like system for the Moon, featuring a new master “Moon Time” that would serve as the timekeeping reference for the entire lunar surface. Instead of having clocks gradually fall out of sync with Earth’s time, the Moon would be synchronized to a single “time zone” adjusted for its reduced gravity, the agency explained.
As confirmed by Einstein’s theory of relativity, time is not a uniform phenomenon and is influenced by gravity. The Moon’s gravity is weaker than Earth’s, causing clocks to tick slightly faster. The plan conceived by NIST researchers includes a “highly precise” network of clocks placed at specific locations, both on the Moon’s surface and in orbit.
This lunar network would function as a GPS-like navigation system, providing precise measurements for landing attempts and vehicle-based surface exploration. Without this technology, astronauts working at a permanent lunar outpost could easily lose their way. According to NIST physicist Bijunath Patla, “the goal is to ensure that spacecraft can land within a few metres of their intended destination.”
The new navigation system is designed to support NASA’s efforts to return humans to the Moon. The Artemis program aims to establish a sustained human presence on the Moon while preparing for further exploration of Mars and beyond. According to Patla, the framework proposed by NIST could eventually enable exploration not just beyond the Moon, but even beyond the solar system.
I hope some or all of you are involved in the International Lightship and Lighthouse Weekend for the rest of today, either involved at a lighthouse with your club or favourite group, or trying to make contact with some of them. I think, though I am not sure, that more lighthouses are being activated in Division One than in any of our other coastal divisions, but there are usually about 500 lighthouses and lightships activated around the world, so hopefully, if propagation allows it, you will be able to make contact with some of them.
In the Western Cape, today also sees the running of the Kleinmond Trail Run, organized by Wildrunners, and part of their series of trail runs. HAMNET has been asked to assist, and we have two operators, one at base, and a 4×4 vehicle at a critical spot on the course, and using CalTopo mapping software to keep track of things. Michael, ZS1MJT will be at the base, and Sybrand, ZS1L will be up on the course. I hope to give you a report back next week.
Sciencenews.org reports that, for the second time, the World Health Organization has declared that Mpox, formerly called Monkeypox, is a global health emergency.
In 2022, global spread of the virus, which causes rashes, fevers, muscle aches and other symptoms, led to the first emergency declaration. That version of the virus, called Clade II, is still causing a small number of cases around the world, including in the United States.
Even as clade II cases decline globally, infections with Clade I Mpox have shot up in Congo. Nevertheless, the first Mpox emergency ended in 2023. The sometimes deadly Clade I virus has now spread to previously unaffected countries in Africa and reported cases have surged beyond levels seen in 2022 or 2023. Children have been particularly hard hit.
Following the committee’s advice, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on August 14 that the outbreak is now a public health emergency of international concern. “It’s clear that a coordinated international response is needed to stop these outbreaks and save lives,” he said.
It will never be an epidemic or pandemic like Covid-19, but, in that it is a virus infection, treatment will be difficult, and spread will be easy.
This is Dave Reece ZS1DFR reporting for HAMNET in South Africa.