BIG TWISTER

On May 1st, a magnetic filament on the sun wound up and erupted. NASA's STEREO Ahead spacecraft was in the perfect position to observe the blast. Click on the image to set the scene in motion:
Movies: Quicktime Large (26MB), Small (4MB); MPEG Small (7MB)

The time-lapse movie spans three days, April 30th to May 2nd, and shows not only the big twister, but also many smaller filaments that twist and swirl without erupting. Such activity occurs every day and is part of the dynamism of the ever-changing sun.

More great movies from STEREO may be found here.

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New Kenwood Rigs.

From Kenwood on May 7, 2010
Website: http://www.kenwood.co.jp/en/news/2010/20100507.html

Launch of New Amateur Radio Products:

Kanagawa, Japan, May 7, 2010 — Kenwood Corporation, an operating company of the JVC Kenwood Group, is proud to announce the autumn/winter launch of two new Amateur Radio transceivers: the TS-590S and TH-D72.

HF/50MHz All-Mode Transceiver - TS-590S (tentative naming)
Featuring a 32-bit floating-point DSP, the TS-590S will offer advanced receiver performance and an extensive range of features that make it ideal for beginner and seasoned DX’er alike. The radio’s exceptional ease of operation, true to the Kenwood tradition, will be especially welcome for contest and mobile applications.

144/430MHz Dual Band FM Portable - TH-D72 (tentative naming)
The APRS® capability found on Kenwood’s TH-D7* and TM-D710 has been upgraded for the TH-D72. Thanks also to the internal GPS unit, APRS operations will be more enjoyable than ever. The TH-D72 also offers EchoLink® memory compatibility and a mini-USB connector for enhanced computer connectivity. This transceiver is sure to make ham radio operations easier and more fun for all.

* For overseas model/Discontinued model

Anyone interested in these two models will be able to view product samples at: Dayton Hamvention 2010 (Dayton, Ohio, USA, May 14-16), and HAM RADIO 2010 (Friedrichshafen, Germany, June 25-27).

Please note that as these products are under development features and specifications are subject to change without notice.

APRS is a registered trademark of Bob Bruninga in the USA.

EchoLink is a registered trademark of Synergenics, LLC in the USA.

For further information, please contact:
Advertising and Publicity, Strategic Corporate Planning Division, JVC KENWOOD Holdings,Inc.
Tel: +81-45-444-5306 Fax:+81-45-444-5319 E-mail: pr.qa@kenwood.co.jp Or contact your local Kenwood PR representative in your country

Monday Humor

Ever wonder why "abbreviated" is such a long word?

Working DX

Looks like today is a good day for DX. Listen for me on 20 and 40 meters.

National Day of Prayer

On May 6, 1982, Ronald Reagan offered these words: "Today, prayer is still a powerful force in America, and our faith in God is a mighty source of strength. Our Pledge of Allegiance states that we are 'one nation under God,' and our currency bears the motto, 'In God We Trust.' The morality and values such faith implies are deeply embedded in our national character. Our country embraces those principles by design, and we abandon them at our peril. Yet in recent years, well-meaning Americans in the name of freedom have taken freedom away. For the sake of religious tolerance, they've forbidden religious practice in the classrooms. The law of this land has effectively removed prayer from our classrooms. How can we hope to retain our freedom through the generations if we fail to teach our young that our liberty springs from an abiding faith in our Creator?"

History of the National Day of Prayer
1775 The First Continental Congress called for a National Day of Prayer.
1863 Abraham Lincoln called for such a day.
1952 Congress established NDP as an annual event by a joint resolution, signed into law by President Truman.
1988 The law was amended and signed by President Reagan, to be the first Thursday in May.
2010 U.S. District Judge Barbara B. Crabb ruled that the National Day of Prayer is "unconstitutional."

New Vertical Antenna

Have you ever heard of S9 Antennas? It was mentioned in one of the many Yahoo Groups that I am involved with.
My friend KI8UM will be purchasing one of the antennas soon and I will do a product review.

http://www.s9antennas.com/index.html

Monday Humor

A woman was standing nude, looking in the bedroom mirror. She was not happy with what she saw and said to her husband, "I feel horrible; I look old, fat and ugly. I really need you to pay me a compliment.' The husband replied, 'Your eyesight's perfect.'

Goings On

One of those weeks, ambulance ride to the hospital on Monday morning, more doctors and test and lots of sleep. Waiting on surgery date to be rescheduled, should know by Monday afternoon. I am hoping the Red Wings will give me a win tonight.

Follow me on FaceBook and Twitter.

Monday Humor

My wife sat down on the sofa next to me as I was flipping channels. She asked, 'What's on TV?'I said, 'Dust.'

Amateur Radio Software.

This is the software that our local club (MAARC) was using during the MiQP Contest yesterday. N3FJP's Amateur Radio Software
I think I may purchase it. It was simple to use and made contesting easier when having to log contacts.

MiQP

Went to the MAARC clubhouse for the Michigan QSO Party today. Had a great time and made several contacts. MAARC logged about 190 QSOs and thirty some counties.

We had brats with many fixings for dinner. Great time.

Working DX

Working DX on 20 & 40 meters. CQ, CQ, CQ

INCOMING CME

Decaying sunspot 1060 delivered a parting shot on April 8th. The active region's magnetic field erupted, sparking a B3-class solar flare and hurling a faint coronal mass ejection (CME) almost directly toward Earth. Geomagnetic disturbances are possible when the cloud arrives on April 11th or 12th.

source

Asteroid to pass near Earth

A recently discovered small asteroid will pass by the Earth today but poses no risk of striking. The orb will come just 395,000km from Earth - a hair's breadth away in astronomical terms. At its closest, it will be closer to Earth than our Moon is. The asteroid, approximately 22 meters wide, was discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey. It came nearest to Earth at about 9am EST today. Space officials said the "fly-by" is closer than most, although not especially rare. "Fly-bys of near-Earth objects within the moon's orbit occur every few weeks."

M 7.7, Northern Sumatra, Indonesia

The last earthquake above 7.5 on Richter scale:

Location: M 7.7, northern Sumatra, Indonesia
Magnitude: 7.7
Date-Time: 06 Apr 2010 22:15:02 GMT
Details