Section Newsletter — ARRL Santa Clara Valley — March 1, 2026
Electronics Flea Market (EFM) – Saturday March 14, 2026 at West Valley
College
IMPORTANT: The flea market is moving to lot 2 on Saturdays.
The Electronics Flea Market (http://www.electronicsfleamarket.com/) is
held in parking lot 2 of the West Valley College in Saratoga from 6:00AM
until noon.
EFM Buyer parking in lot 2 is free for this event. If you park in a
different lot be sure to have a college parking permit ($3) on your
dashboard.
There is a farmers market operating in lot 3 on the same day. You might
want to check that out while you are there.
We hope to see you all there. Please pass along this email to your
friends so they can be a part of this over 50 year old activity. Bring
your friends with you. This EFM is held in parking lot 2 at West Valley
College, in Saratoga.
***
Do you want to volunteer for Amateur Radio Support for the Big Sur
International Marathon?
If you do, please email: Jeff Ackerman—KG6UYZ at kg6uyz@gmail.com for
a volunteer form.
Event: Big Sur International Marathon
Area of operation: Big Sur to Carmel, CA
Event Date: 4-26-2026
Race Start Time: 0645 hrs (Approximate)
Race End Time: 1230 hrs (Approximate)
Volunteer Start Time at Position: 0500 hrs (Approximate)
Positions Volunteers Staff: Mile/Aid Stations , SAG & Other positions as
requested by BSIM.
Positions assigned by event coordinator —
What do the positions’ duties encompass:
SAG: Five Sag operators will ride co-pilot with a driver and vehicle
provided by the Marathon that travel the course picking up runners that
cannot finish the race for various reasons. Runners picked up by a SAG
are dropped off at various drop points along the course. SAG operators
and SAG drivers will work together to navigate the course to pickup
runners, pickup assignments are dispatched out by Net Control. Sag
operators do not drive the vehicle; the SAG will come with a driver.
Mile / Aid Station: Operators are placed at one of 13 or 14 different
Mile / Aid Stations where they will be responsible for reporting any
kind of race traffic that needs to make its way back to Net Control.
Such information could be major medicals, minor injuries, runner
pickups, rogue vehicles on the course, or any other vital info that may
need to get passed back to Net Control or another Mile / Aid position or
SAG vehicle.
Equipment Requirements:
SAG: Operators should bring a mobile radio (dual band) with an
accompanying magnetic-mount antenna and cigarette lighter plug.
Operators should also bring a portable radio with good batteries to use
as a backup radio or when you’re out of the SAG vehicle. In the event
you should have to operate off of a portable radio in the vehicle please
bring an adapter cable to connect the mobile radio magnetic-mount
antenna to your portable.
Mile / Aid Stations: Operators can operate mostly off portable radios.
There are a few spots in which portable radio operation does not work or
will have bad coverage. A mobile/base radio is also encouraged if
available.
Mile/Aid station operators will be able to drive to their location on
course and park their vehicle at the location. Portable radios should
have good batteries that can last long enough for the duration of the
event, bringing a spare charged battery is always encouraged.
Food: A buffet style breakfast will be provided early Sunday Morning,
To-go lunches will be provided for volunteers venturing out onto the
course. A Marathon Volunteer-Base wide BBQ is provided to all volunteers
of the Marathon after the race finishes, the volunteer BBQ is available
until food runs out.
Volunteers will also receive a Big Sur International Marathon Volunteer
T-Shirt at check in. More information is available and can be requested
from Jeff—KG6UYZ at the email address listed above.
***
FCC Requires That FRN Contact Information Be Updated Within Ten Days of
a Change / 02/20/2026
ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® reports that the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted changes to its rules to
require that every holder of an FCC Registration Number (FRN) update
their contact information in the CORES system (email and postal
addresses) within ten business days of a change.
Because every FCC licensee—including amateur radio operators—must
have an FRN to file applications, this requirement applies to all
licensed amateurs. FRN contact information is handled separately and
apart from contact information related to a license in the License
Manager System. Both records must be kept up-to-date, and each requires
a separate update.
Until now, no specific deadline existed for updating FRN or license
contact information. Instead, the amateur rules at sections 97.21 and
97.23 provide that a license may be suspended or revoked “if FCC
correspondence is returned as undeliverable because of an incorrect
address/email.” These provisions remain in effect as well as the
10-day deadline applicable to FRN information.
If your FRN information is current and has not changed, no immediate
action is required, but you must adhere to the 10-day rule for future
changes. It is recommended to periodically check both the CORES and
License Manager Systems to ensure contact information is accurate, even
if no changes have occurred.
The new deadline (section 1.8002(b)(2) of the Commission’s Rules)
became effective on February 5 as part of a proceeding that was limited
to further constraining robocalls. Although the proceeding focused on
robocall issues, the 10-day update requirement applies broadly to all
FRN holders. On February 6 the FCC confirmed in a Public Notice that the
new deadline applies to all FRN holders. The amendment replaces language
adopted in 2001 that required FRN holders to keep their contact
information up-to-date but had not imposed a deadline for doing so.
Numerous requests for clarification from non-robocaller interests led
the FCC to issue a Public Notice on February 6 (see also PDF) clarifying
that fines imposed on those subject to the robocall rules for not
keeping contact information up-to-date do NOT apply to licensees such as
radio amateurs, but that the 10-day deadline does apply to all FRN
holders.
See the following resources for updating FRN and license information.
FCC Tutorial on updating FRN information:
https://apps.fcc.gov/cores/html/Update_FRN_Information.htm
ARRL information on how to update license information:
https://www.arrl.org/call-sign-renewals-or-changes
For assistance, call the FCC FRN Help Desk: (877) 480-3201 (available 8
AM to 6 PM ET).
***
The ARRL Solar Update, 02/27/2026
Spaceweather.com for February 27 reports about a minor CME hurling
towards Earth.
Solar activity remains at low levels due primarily to C-class flares
just beyond the SE limb near S21. The largest was a C5.3 flare on
February 25. On the visible disk, an approximate 5-degree filament
eruption was observed centered near S08W27 with an associated C2.6
flare.
The eruption was accompanied by a Type II radio sweep (595 km/s) and
possibly two related coronal mass ejections (CMEs), first observed in ST
A COR2 imagery beginning on February 25. Two CMEs were observed off the
NE and E limbs in the imagery. However, SOHO/LASCO C2 imagery only
showed the northerly CME. Analysis of the CMEs is in progress.
Solar activity is likely to remain at low levels with a slight chance
for isolated M-class activity (R1-R2/minor-moderate), as the bright
regions currently seen at the east limb rotate onto the visible disk.
Solar wind parameters continued to show Coronal Hole High Speed Stream
(CH HSS) influence. Solar wind speed ranged from 530-650 km/s.
Conditions are likely to return to nominal levels as High Speed Stream
activity wanes.
Weekly Commentary on the Sun, the Magnetosphere, and the Earth’s
Ionosphere, February 26, 2026, by F. K. Janda, OK1HH:
“Between February 22 and 24, there was not a single spot on the solar
disk, which last happened less than four years ago. The maximum of the
25th cycle is behind us, while the years 2024-2025 can be considered the
years of cycle maximum.
“At the same time, the Sun is in a key phase of reversing its magnetic
field. This process is a natural part of the 11-year solar cycle,
usually occurring asymmetrically (the northern and southern hemispheres
of the Sun may reverse at slightly different times, with the process
taking several months). The magnetic field in the polar
regions of the Sun gradually weakens until it completely breaks down and
reforms with the opposite polarity.
“The next eleven-year solar minimum (the transition between the current
25th and future 26th cycles) is expected in 2030-2031, when the Sun’s
magnetic field will stabilize again and the star will enter a quiet
period.
A more precise date for the minimum will only be possible to determine
at the end of the decade based on the
current development of sunspots.
“During the first week of March, solar activity should gradually
increase and then decrease in the following week. Changes in the
intensity of the solar wind will have the greatest impact on the
development of shortwave propagation conditions. For prediction of these
changes, it is recommended to monitor the position and area of coronal
holes and, in particular, solar flares that will be located near their
edges.
“This can be monitored excellently at https://www.solarham.com/, for
example, and even professionals will confirm that you will find
everything you need here to understand the causes of ongoing events and
for operational practice. In addition, we can monitor the local effects
in the ionosphere in detail especially thanks to ionospheric digisonde
stations, dozens of which are available on the internet!”
Active periods are likely, with a chance for G1 (Minor) storm levels, on
February 28 to March 1, due to the anticipated arrival of a CME that
left the Sun on February 25.
The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected
to reach high levels on March 3, and then on March 6 to 8 due to
anticipated influence of multiple recurrent coronal holes.
The latest report from Dr. Tamitha Skov, WX6SWW, can be found on YouTube
at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SoYfTnrudc .
The Predicted Planetary A Index for February 28 to March 6 is 5, 5, 5,
5, 5, 15, and 15, with a mean of 7.9. Predicted Planetary K Index is 2,
2, 2, 2, 2, 4, and 4, with a mean of 2.6. 10.7-centimeter flux is 122,
122, 125, 125, 125, 125, and 130, with a mean of 124.9.
For more information concerning shortwave radio propagation, see
http://www.arrl.org/propagation and the ARRL Technical Information
Service web page at, http://arrl.org/propagation-of-rf-signals. For an
explanation of numbers used in this bulletin, see
http://arrl.org/the-sun-the-earth-the-ionosphere . Information and
tutorials on propagation can be found at, http://k9la.us/ .
Also, check this:
“Understanding Solar Indices” from September 2002 QST.
***
73 until next month.
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