Amateur Radio News and Notes 4/24/2026

In the log this week* SteppIR Communication Systems to Return to the Amateur Radio Market* MVARC Breakfast and Meeting Tomorrow 4/25/2026* MVARC Nets on the Air* What’s happening with DX? * Solar Activity Update* Upcoming Contests* Interesting Online Radio Content As always, links to all referenced content can be found in the show notes, or at our Substack at mvarc.substack.com. Thanks for reading Amateur Radio News and Notes. Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.SteppIR Communication Systems to Return to the Amateur Radio MarketSteppIR Communication Systems, maker of remotely tunable Yagi-Uda antennas announced they are returning to the amateur radio market. SteppIR announced their departure from the amateur market in June of 2025 to focus on their commercial customers. In their most recent announcement they say that they will be able to return many of their amateur products to the market with warranty support and services in place. They have also teased new products on the horizon and reduced prices. Along with the return of Cushcraft and Hy-Gain last week, the amateur radio antenna market is regaining a lot of options for operators looking for more gain. More information can be found at https://consumer.steppir.com/MVARC Breakfast and Meeting Tomorrow 4/25/2026Photo Courtesy Corey KN4YZYTomorrow, Saturday, April 25, 2026, is the date of our next monthly breakfast. As usual we will meet up at 8 AM in the IHOP at 7694 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, Virginia for great conversation, camaraderie, and breakfast too. We have been having a great turn out in the last few months and there is always room for you to join in the fun. After the breakfast we have our monthly in-person meeting will be held at 10:30 AM at the Gerry Hyland Government Center, at 8350 Richmond Highway in Alexandria, Virginia where our speaker will be Nick AJ4YB who will be talking to us about the club’s repeater with a look at the current facilities and a bit of history as well. We hope to see you there.MVARC Nets on the Air* 2 Meter FM Net: Tuesdays at 7 PM [146.655/- MHz (141.3 Hz PL Tone) ] * 2 Meter Digital Net: Immediately Follows 2 Meter FM Net [146.655/- MHz C4FM] * MVARC Slow Speed CW Roundtable: Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 AM [3.565 MHz CW]* MVARC Cherry Tree Net: Saturday and Sunday at 8:30 AM [3.920 MHz LSB]What’s Happening with DXThere will be a lot of DX on the air this week. Stations on the air include Marquesas Islands (TX9W), Bermuda (VP9KF), Gambia (C5B, C5C), Comoros (D60DX), Central Kiribati (T31TTT), Minami Torishima (JG8NQJ/JD1), Colombia (HK3JCL), and South Orkney Islands (LU1ZA).A calendar of DXpeditions can be found at https://dxnews.com/calendar/ Solar Activity UpdateAs we go to press the Solar Flux Index (SFI) was 128 and the estimated sunspot number was 71 with 4 numbered sunspot regions visible from Earth. Over the last week the SFI has increased. Solar activity has been at high levels in the last 24 hours. The geomagnetic field has been at quiet to unsettled levels in the last 24 hours and the Kp index reached 3 yesterday. The solar wind peaked at 496 km/s. Solar activity is predicted to be at moderate levels with a slight chance of X-class flares today through Sunday. The geomagnetic field is forecast to be at quiet to unsettled levels today, at quiet to active levels levels Saturday, and quiet to minor storm levels on Sunday. The chance of solar radiation storms at the S1 or greater level is at 10% today through Sunday. R1 to R2 radio blackouts are likely today with a predicted probability of 55% today and a 60% chance predicted on Saturday and Sunday. R3 or greater blackouts are possible with a 10% chance predicted today and a 15% chance predicted Saturday and Sunday. It remains a fantastic time for amateurs to get on the air and work the world. Good sources of real-time solar information include https://www.spaceweatherlive.com/ and https://solarham.com/. A good overview of conditions can be found at https://dx.qsl.net/propagation/. To see D-layer absorption data and associated radio blackouts, visit https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/d-region-absorption-predictions-d-rap. To see real-time Maximum Usable Frequency (MUF) and Critical Frequency (foF2) information from radiosonde data, visit https://prop.kc2g.com/. Upcoming ContestsThis weekend brings the Tipalayo DX Contest, the SP DX RTTY Contest, the UK/EI DX Contest on CW, QRP to the Field, the Helvetia Contest, the Nebraska QSO Party, the Florida QSO Party, the UA1DZ Memorial Cup, the Samuel Morse Memorial Contest, and the BARTG Sprint 75. As always the K1USN SSTs, MSTs, and CWTs will also be on the air. The full contest calendar with events and exchanges can be found at https://www.contestcalendar.com/weeklycont.phpInteresting Online Radio ContentColin MM0OPX shows us how he packs and prepares for portable operations - Kevan 2E0WMG goes for a paddle by kayak and shows us his maritime mobile antenna setup while operating on an island - Craig KM6LYW shows us new features in the beta version of DigiPi - Gabe KL1FI shows us how he received SSTV signals from the International Space Station - Hayden VK7HH talks about used radios and potential pitfalls to look out for - Mike K8MRD takes a look at the Sky Hook and the Pod for vertical antennas - Adam K6ARK and Mark KD7DTS have some “Type 2 Fun” on a very challenging SOTA activation - Bobby W6IWN takes a look at the Chameleon CFM34 carbon fiber mast - Adam K6ARK and Mark KD7DTS activate Edgar Peak for an ATNO SOTA activation - Dugbo KD7DUG takes us along for an SOTA activation and asks where amateur radio will take you - Josh KI6NAZ takes a look at the W0AEZ batteries for Icom rigs - Callum M0MCX shows us his 160 meter vertical antenna project - Forrest KI7QCF shows the Spooltenna Ultra antenna in action - Ara N6ARA gives an extensive behind the scenes of how he built his April Fools Day Retro Rig - Stuart VE9CF talks about reciprocal licensing issues between the US and Canada - Patrick KJ7SZU of Geochron does a head to head comparison of the performance of their different products - Steve KM9G shows the All in One Cable for digital modes - That’s it for this week.Best 73,EdN2EC This is a public episode. 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