You Are Invited--RCA QSO Party Kicks off Transatlantic Centennial
Few dates are more important in ham radio than December 11, 1921. That’s when
members of the Radio Club of America (RCA) and the American Radio Relay League
(ARRL) successfully transmitted signals that spanned the Atlantic Ocean. The
100th anniversary of that day is upon us and YOU are invited to celebrate!
WHY WE CELEBRATE
During the month of November, 1921, a group of Radio Club of America members,
led by Major Edwin Armstrong quickly pulled together an amateur radio
transmitting station in Greenwich Connecticut. It was the cutting edge of the
era: a nearly thousand watt CW station at the (considered useless) ‘shortwaves’
(just below the present 160m band). On the other end, in Ardrossan Scotland,
Armstrong’s new superheterodyne receiver combined with RCA member Harold
Beverage’s new ‘wave’ antenna allowed state of the art receive selectivity and
sensitivity. The missing piece? The ionosphere: speculated to exist and to work
for long distance at the new shortwaves. On December 11, 1921, it all came
together and station 1BCG made it across, the first of about two dozen amateur
radio stations heard.
The importance? Notes RCA President John Facella, K9FJ: “Hams, through the
innovations of the RCA members, used ingenuity, smaller, state of the art
electronic equipment, and new bands and mode to connect the continents. That
set the pace for the 100 years of smaller and higher performance
telecommunications wonders that followed, making a truly connected world.” Yes,
the world owes it to ham radio!
JOIN US IN A QSO PARTY ON 13 NOVEMBER
The Radio Club of America is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the
Transatlantic Test by hosting a CW and SSB QSO Party from 1200Z, November 13 to
0400Z, November 14. We will all contact each other—not just special event
stations. Open to ALL hams and shortwave listeners on 160, 80, 40, 20, 15, and
10 meters, with 10 bonus points awarded (per band and mode) for contacting
Radio Club of America’s station, W2RCA. Scores should be posted to 3830 Scores
Home.
You can find all the rules and more information about additional events
commemorating the Transatlantic Test’s centennial:
Transatlantic Test Centennial - Radio Club of America
A free certificate will be available, along with a complimentary copy of the
commemorative RCA Proceedings, from the RCA site.
A MONTH OF FESTIVITIES
The RCA Transatlantic QSO Party is held as a centennial anniversary
commensurate with the building of TX station in November. Note that this is
the ONLY participatory QSO event for the Transatlantic Centennial, so plan your
celebration now😊
But…stay tuned… the Radio Club of America will be RE-ENACTING the TRANSATLANTIC
TRANSMISSIONS at 02:52 UT on 12 December on 160m with W2RCA. More info to come!
The Antique Wireless Association(AWA), American Radio Relay League(ARRL), The
Radio Society of Great Britain(RSGB), Radio Club of America(RCA), and others
all are participating in the Transatlantic Centennial festivities Watch for
additional news pieces as the month progresses!
(text by W1YW and KE8JFW)
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