News From The IRTS

IRTS 2 Metres Counties Contest
The IRTS 2m Counties Contest will take place Sunday
28th August 2011. The closing date for the
submission of the log to the contest manager is 27th
September 2011.
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IRTS SSB Field Day
The IRTS SSB Field Day takes place Saturday 3rd
September and Sunday 4th September 2011. The closing
date for the submission of the log is October 4th 2011.
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GI HF Conference
The West Tyrone Amateur Radio Club (WTARC) Omagh are
holding a HF Conference on Saturday 20th August 2011.
This Conference comes following the very successful
DigiCon 09 Conference back in September 2009.
A range of speakers from around GI, EI and G will be in
attendance to share their various perspectives on
aspects of HF operation. There will also be in
attendance Traders such as, Tyrone Amateur Electronics
(TAE) and JBT (Jim Bob) along with exhibits from the
RSGB and the IRTS.
The Event is supported by Practical Wireless, TAE, JBT,
IRTS and RSGB. So come along for what will be a Fun Day
Out for all the family. The town of Omagh has a range
of top class shopping along with a wide range of other
tourist attractions
http://www.omagh.gov.uk/culture_leisure_and_tourism/
We look forward to seeing you there. For details of the
Venue etc go to http://wtarc.co.uk/GIHFConference.aspx
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London 2012’s critical communications ready for service
Airwave, the leading provider of critical voice and
data communications to public service organisations in
the UK, has announced that the private mobile radio
(PMR) service infrastructure for the London 2012
Olympic and Paralympic Games is ready for service. The
PMR network, named Apollo, will provide voice
communications for over 18,000 staff and volunteers
from the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and
Paralympic Games (LOCOG) during the 2012 Games. Apollo
has been purpose-built to provide mobile radio to all
London 2012 competition venues from the Olympic Park
itself to sites across the country from Glasgow and
Manchester to Coventry and Weymouth. The stand-alone
network is now ready for operation and will be used by
Games staff and volunteers, from stewards and security
personnel to anti-doping officials, from now until
December 2012. ( Source:southgatearc.org)
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RSGB Amateur Radio survey released
The results of the RSGB Amateur Radio survey are now
available. It shows the Amateur population is
continuing to age with a typical RSGB member now being
about 65. The survey also shows that just 1.97% are
women and only 0.88% classify themselves as being from
an ethnic group other than White or White British a
figure closer to 13% might have been expected.
(Source:Southgatearc.org)
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Space shuttle Atlantis: Highlights of the final mission

Space shuttle Atlantis: Highlights of the final mission

The space shuttle Atlantis has landed back on Earth, ending the shuttle programme's last-ever mission.



The spacecraft touched down at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on Thursday, bringing an end to America's 30-year shuttle programme.



The crew of commander Chris Ferguson, pilot Doug Hurley and mission specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim spent almost 13 days in space.



BBC News draws together some of the highlights of the shuttle's historic final journey.