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Senator Ted Cruz Praises Amateur Radio Operators for Emergency Preparedness |
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Senator Ted Cruz, in a strong pre-Memorial Day message
publicly highlighted the critical role that Amateur Radio Service volunteers play during disasters, praising and thanking ham radio operators who provide essential communications when storms and emergencies knock out power and cellular networks and communities are cut off.
Sen. Cruz observed that in these emergencies it is ham radio operators who step forward, bringing with them the tools, expertise, and the commitment to reconnect people when it matters most.
He noted this dedication was clearly demonstrated in 2017 when Hurricane Harvey’s catastrophic flooding devastated communities across Texas and that it was demonstrated again more recently in the horrific Camp Mystic floods.
He emphasized that as the Nation prepares for yet another summer storm season, ham radio’s role remains just as vital as ever.
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Stating that while future emergencies will come, Sen. Cruz pointed out that so would Amateur Radio — ready to respond, ready to serve, and to make a difference. He ended his statements, thanking ham radio for its courage and commitment, noting that Amateur Radio’s work strengthens our communities.
Senator Cruz is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. His comments align with the ARRL’s ongoing efforts to strengthen and protect Amateur Radio’s role in emergency preparedness and public service communications.
His comments also reflect growing Congressional recognition of the value Amateur Radio Operators bring to communities across the country. ARRL continues to advocate for legislation that protects and strengthens Amateur Radio’s role in emergency preparedness and public service communications.
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ARRL’s nationwide grassroots campaign supporting the bipartisan Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act
has generated more than 155,000 letters to members of Congress in support of H.R. 1094 and S. 459. The legislation seeks to ensure that Amateur Radio Operators can install and maintain effective outdoor antennas at residences where private land-use restrictions might otherwise prohibit them, helping communities maintain resilient emergency communications capabilities during disasters.
ARRL Legislative Committee Chairman and West Gulf Division Director John Robert Stratton, N5AUS, said the continued outreach effort has required “long hours on the ground and an uncountable number of personal meetings with Senators, Representatives, and their staffs” to raise awareness of the importance of Amateur Radio to our country.
“The most recent proof that those efforts have, and are, increasing Congressional support for Amateur Radio is evidenced by the decision of Chairman Cruz to publicly share his personal views on the value and importance of Amateur Radio to the Nation,” Stratton said.
ARRL encourages Amateur Radio Operators to participate in our letter writing campaign, located at www.arrl.org/HOA, in support of the Amateur Radio Emergency Preparedness Act and to share information about the public service role Amateur Radio plays in communities nationwide.
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Registration is Open for the 2026 ARRL National Convention in Huntsville |
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ARRL and the Huntsville Hamfest will host the 2026 ARRL National Convention and Huntsville Hamfest, August 21 - 23, in Huntsville, Alabama.
The convention will kick off on Friday, August 21, with a series of day-long ARRL Training Tracks and a National Convention Luncheon at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Huntsville.
Then join ARRL on Friday night for a very special National Convention Dinner under a full-size Saturn V rocket at the nearby U.S. Space & Rocket Center. Access to the museum is included along with dinner and special speakers.
Proceeds benefit the ARRL Education & Technology Program, and additional sponsorships are available.
Registration
is now open for Friday’s National Convention program. Registrants can select a Training Track (includes the luncheon) for $90. The National Convention Dinner at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center is $100, and includes dinner, museum, and a $25 tax-deductible donation to the Education & Technology Program. The National Convention Training Tracks are workshops providing an in-depth learning experience in one of the three Track topics. Attendees will select a Training Track when completing their online National Convention registration.
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Training Track #1: Mini Contest University. This marks the first time Mini Contest University (CTU) is coming to Huntsville. Registrants will learn from some veteran amateur radio contesters. This Mini CTU will appeal to new and veteran contesters alike who are looking to hone their skills. Presenters cover general contest operations, contesting skills, and many resources and tools to get more out of contesting. The Mini CTU Track Leader is Tim Duffy, K3LR. Presenters TBD. This training is sponsored by DX Engineering.
Training Track #2: Emergency Communications Academy. Emergency Communications presenters will cover topics including Future Proofing ARES® — the ARRL Amateur Radio Emergency Service®, PACE planning, relationship building, digital communications, emerging technologies, and other topics designed to enhance your emergency communications knowledge and preparedness.
Participants will learn the skills and roles needed to become more effective volunteers.
Training Track #3: Salty Walt’s Portable Antenna Workshop. This workshop, led by Walt Hudson, K4OGO, with additional presenters, will feature practical information for portable antenna-building, deployment, and operating.
The rest of the celebration continues at the Huntsville Hamfest on Saturday and Sunday, August 22 – 23, at the Von Braun Center (South Hall), which is connected by sky bridge to the Embassy Suites. Known as “The World’s Friendliest Hamfest,” this air-conditioned all-indoor event attracts a large list of commercial exhibitors, notable forum presenters, flea market, youth activities, and W1AW America250 Special Event Station. Tickets for the Huntsville Hamfest
are sold separately and are available now.
For further details, visit the 2026 ARRL National Convention web page at www.arrl.org/expo and the Huntsville Hamfest website at hamfest.org.
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RAC Vice-President Brent Taylor, VY2HF, Silent Key |
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Brent Taylor, VY2HF [Photo courtesy of the Radio Amateurs of Canada] | | |
Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) Vice President Brent Taylor, VY2HF, became a Silent Key on May 21, 2026, at the age of 66.
RAC President Allan Boyd, VE3AJB/VE3EM, said the sudden loss of Taylor has deeply shocked the organization and the amateur radio community across Canada and beyond.
Taylor was first licensed in 1984 as VE1APG and received his partial HF privileges six months later after demonstrating successful CW operation.
One year later, he passed his Advanced examination and obtained the call sign VE1JH, a call he used for more than 20 years. After moving from New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island in 2007, he acquired the call sign VY2HF.
Taylor was widely respected for his dedication to amateur radio and his strong belief in supporting amateur radio organizations.
He helped grow the amateur radio community in Charlottetown, the capital and largest city of the province of Prince Edward Island.
In addition to the Radio Amateurs of Canada, Taylor was a member of the Charlottetown Amateur Radio Club, the International Repeater Group (NB), ARRL, the Radio Society of Great Britain, AMSAT, the National Radio Club, and the Canadian International DX Club.
“He was my rock within the organization,” said RAC President Boyd.
“We were a team. I knew Brent always had my back, and he knew I had his.
His death has come as a tremendous shock and represents a deep personal and organizational loss – not only of a trusted colleague, but also of a close friend.”
Continue reading this story on ARRL News.
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Amateur Radio in the News |
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“The art of ham radio” / The New Criterion (New Jersey) May 26, 2026 -- Drew Oliver, W1OLV.
“Echoes from the Rock exhibition marks 80 years of Ham Radio in Gibraltar” / The Gibraltar Chronicle (Gibraltar) May 27, 2026 -- The Gibraltar Amateur Radio Society.
“Highland Amateur Radio Association events” / The Highland County Press (Ohio) May 28, 2026 -- The Highland Amateur Radio Association.
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ARRL Live Events and Podcasts |
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On the Air LIVE
Join ARRL's Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, as he compares the most popular portable antennas, including the ubiquitous end-fed half-wave, random wire, linked dipole, and the 17-foot vertical. We will compare performance and packing tradeoffs and deployment requirements. Whether you are headed to a park, going on a hike, paddling a canoe, or just your backyard, this session will help you choose an antenna that fits the operating conditions. The livestream will air on the ARRL's learning center, learn.arrl.org, June 23rd at 8pm Eastern. Preregistration is required and can be accomplished through the learning center.
📅 Date: June 23, 2026
🕗 Time: 8 PM Eastern / 5 PM Pacific
👉 Register Now
| ⏪ Previously Recorded Sessions
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ARRL Audio News
Listen to ARRL Audio News, available every Friday. ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week's top news stories in the world of amateur radio and ARRL, along with interviews and other features. More info
| Listen on Blubrry
| Also available on iTunes and Apple Podcasts.
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On the Air
Sponsored by Icom
Get On the Ham Satellites!
ARRL Education Specialist Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, visits the podcast to discuss his May/June 2026 On the Air article “Equipment for Making Contacts Through an Amateur Radio Satellite” as well as the upcoming May 26 “On the Air Live” session he’ll be hosting on the same topic. More info
| Listen on Blubrry
| Also available on iTunes and Apple Podcasts.
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All of the presentation videos
from the HamSCI 2026 Workshop are now available in a playlist on the ARRL YouTube channel. The 9th annual HamSCI Workshop
was held in March and hosted by ARRL at Central Connecticut State University, bringing together the amateur radio and scientific research communities. There are 20 presentations in the playlist, including “a Python Data Analysis and Synthesis Toolbox for PSWS Doppler Data: A Time-of-Flight Case Study” (Griffiths, G.; Newell, S.; Elliott, P.; Turner, C.; Anderson, B.; Hauan, M.; Robinett, R.); “A NASA Research Mission to Study the Earth's Magnetic Tail” (Hartinger, M.; Millan, R.; Frissell, N.; Collins, K.; McGaw, D.G.), and “Radio Propagation Time Of Flight Measurements” (Frissell, N.; Newell, S.; Robinett, R.; Turner, C.; Griffiths, G.; Elliott, P.). Visit ARRLHQ on YouTube
to see the videos.
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The following America250 W1AW Portable Activations begin 0000z on Wednesdays, and end 2359z on Tuesdays (7 days total for each activation). See the complete schedule at www.arrl.org/america250-was.
05/27/2026 Colorado W1AW/Ø (host K1DDN)
06/03/2026 New Jersey W1AW/2 (host NP4H)
06/03/2026 Oregon W1AW/7 (host N7JI)
06/10/2026 Tennessee W1AW/4 (host W4CMG)
06/17/2026 Arkansas W1AW/5 (host K5DB)
06/17/2026 Nebraska W1AW/Ø (host KAØBOJ)
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The Suffolk County, New York, Legislature has designated June as “Amateur Radio Month.” The effort included members and officers of the Suffolk County Radio Club (SCRC), Radio Central Amateur Radio Club, Great South Bay Amateur Radio Club, Long Island Mobile Amateur Radio Club (LIMARC), and Peconic Amateur Radio Club.
The SCRC recently hosted an Amateur Radio Day event, where local town and county legislators and community members saw amateur radio in action.
Demonstrations featured Winlink, HF, VHF, UHF, Meshtastic and software-defined radios operating without relying on traditional infrastructure, showcasing the capabilities of both everyday and emergency off-grid communications.
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(Left to right) Bob Ciappa, WB2NFL; John W. Mishler, Ph.D., N3JWM; Daniel Garcia, W2DIY; Frank Moorhus, AA2DR; Legislator James Mazzarella; Richie Geraci, KD2NJA; ARRL Hudson Division Director and Suffolk County Radio Club (SCRC) Vice President Ed Wilson, N2XDD; SCRC President Dustin Finn, KE2EFX, and ARRL New York City-Long Island Section Emergency Coordinator Joe Shierer, KC2BZB. | | | |
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Open Positions at ARRL
Come join the headquarters staff of ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®! We are currently seeking qualified applicants for the following positions:
Membership Manager
RFI Lab Engineer
Public Relations and Outreach Manager
Full details may be found on the ARRL HR web page at www.arrl.org/careers.
ARRL is an equal opportunity employer.
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Solar disk image courtesy of NASA/SDO, May 28, 2026 | | |
ARRL Solar Report May 28, 2026
Solar activity has remained at low levels this past week.
The largest event of the period was a C3.4 flare originating from Region 4446.
There are nine numbered regions on the visible disk.
Region 4452 showed notable growth and new flux emergence.
Region 4450 decayed to plage, though unassociated transitory pores were observed to its east and west.
Region 4443 decayed into a unipolar spot as it approached the west limb following the loss of its leading components.
Regions 4453, 4454 and 4455 were numbered during the period.
Far-side satellite imagery from Solar Orbiter indicates that Region 4455 is likely a large bipolar group with its trailing opposite-polarity spots still located behind the east limb and was numbered proactively due to its flaring potential.
All other regions either continued in slow decay or remained stable.
A faint, potentially partial-halo, coronal mass ejection (CME) first seen in LASCO C2 imagery on May 26 and subsequently in GOES/CCOR1 was analyzed. No obvious on-disk source exists. Modeling suggests a possible glancing blow at Earth on May 31. Additionally, narrow eruptions associated with flaring from newly numbered Region 4444 were seen in SUVI imagery but these features are well northward of the ecliptic plane with no Earth-directed components. No other Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs) were observed in available coronagraph imagery.
Solar activity is expected to be at low to moderate levels through May 30. There remains a chance for isolated M-class flares (R1-R2/minor-moderate) driven by the eruptive potential of the southeast sunspot groups and newly numbered Region 4454.
Solar wind parameters remained slightly elevated and possibly indicative of weak negative polarity coronal hole high-speed stream (-CH HSS)influences.
Solar wind speeds varied modestly between 350 and 425 km/s. The phi angle was predominantly in the negative sector (towards the Sun), though minor deviations were observed later in the period.
Solar wind parameters are expected to remain mildly enhanced due to weak coronal high speed stream (-CH HSS) influences through May 29. A return toward near-background, nominal conditions is anticipated by May 30.
The 10.7-centimeter flux: May 28 - 29, 140; May 30 - June 2, 145; June 3, 150.
Predicted sunspot numbers: May 28, 104; May 29, 98; May 30, 110; May 31, 93: June 1, 104; June 2, 98; June 3, 110.
For more information concerning radio propagation, visit
the ARRL Technical Information Service, read A Quick Guide to HF Propagation Using Solar Indices, and check out the Propagation Page of Carl Luetzelschwab, K9LA.
For customizable propagation charts, visit the VOACAP Online for Ham Radio website.
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May 30 - 31 -- CQ WW WPX Contest (CW)
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May 31 -- Romanian Diaspora SSB Contest (phone)
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June 2 -- ARS Spartan Sprint (CW)
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June 4 -- VHF-UHF FT8 Activity Contest-NA (digital)
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June 4 - 5 -- Walk for the Bacon QRP Contest (CW)
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June 4 -- NRAU 10m Activity Contest (CW, phone, digital)
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June 4 -- SKCC Sprint Europe (CW)
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June 5 -- HA3NS Sprint Memorial Contest (CW)
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June 6 -- Tisza Cup CW Contest (CW, phone)
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June 6 -- VK Shires Contest (CW, phone)
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June 6 - 8 -- PODXS 070 Club 3-Day Weekend Contest (digital)
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June 6 -- Wake-Up! QRP Sprint (CW)
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June 6 - 7 -- Kentucky QSO Party (CW, phone, digital)
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June 6 - 7 -- UKSMG Summer Contest (CW, phone, digital)
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June 6 - 7 -- IARU Region 1 Field Day (CW)
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June 6 - 7 -- RSGB National Field Day (CW)
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June 6 - 7 -- ARRL Int'l Digital Contest (digital - no RTTY)
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June 7 - 8 -- Atlantic Canada QSO Party (CW, phone)
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Remember to visit the ARRL Contest Calendar
for more events and information.
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Upcoming ARRL Conventions and Major Events |
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ARRL Section, State, and Division Conventions (next 60 days)
Search the ARRL Hamfest and Convention Database at www.arrl.org/hamfests to find events in your area.
June 5 – 7 | SEA-PAC, hosting the ARRL Northwestern Division Convention, Seaside, Oregon
June 13 | Knoxville Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Tennessee State Convention, Knoxville, Tennessee
June 14 | BreezeShooters Hamfest, Computer and Electronics Show, hosting the ARRL Western Pennsylvania Section Convention, Butler, Pennsylvania
June 19 – 20 | Flagstaff HamFest, hosting the ARRL Arizona Section Convention, Flagstaff, Arizona
July 11 | SVARC Hamfest, hosting the ARRL North Dakota Section Convention, Minot, North Dakota
July 17 – 19 | Glacier Waterton Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Montana Section Convention, Essex, Montana
July 25 | ARRL South Dakota State Convention, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
July 25 | ARRL West Virginia State Convention, Sutton, West Virginia
August 1 | ARRL Maine State Convention, August, Maine
Save the Date
Join ARRL at these Division Conventions and other major events throughout the year.
Beginning in the fourth quarter, this list will also include significant events scheduled for the following year.
June 26 – 28, 2026 | HAM RADIO, International Amateur Radio Exhibition, Friedrichshafen, Germany
August 7 – 8 | Shreveport-Bossier Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Delta Division Convention, Shreveport, Louisiana
August 13 – 16 | Northeast HamXposition, hosting the ARRL New England Division Convention, Marlborough, Massachusetts
August 15 | Cincinnati Hamfest, hosting the ARRL Great Lakes Division Convention, Owensville, Ohio
August 21 – 23 | Huntsville Hamfest, hosting the 2026 ARRL National Convention, Huntsville, Alabama
August 28 – 30 | Wyoming HamCon, hosting the ARRL Rocky Mountain Division Convention, Casper, Wyoming
October 9 – 10 | SPARK-CON 2026, hosting the ARRL Midwest Division Convention, Sedalia, Missouri
October 10 | North Star Radio Convention, hosting the ARRL Dakota Division Convention, Brooklyn Park, Minnesota
October 16 – 18 | Pacificon, hosting the ARRL Pacific Division Convention, San Ramon, California
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Submissions for the ARRL Letter and ARRL News can be sent to news@arrl.org. -- John E. Ross, KD8IDJ, ARRL News Editor
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ARRL -- Your One-Stop Resource for Amateur Radio News and Information
Join ARRL or renew today!
No other organization works harder to promote and protect amateur radio. Membership supports benefits, services, programs, and advocacy to help you get (and stay) active and on the air. Membership includes access to digital editions of all four ARRL magazines: QST, On the Air, QEX, and NCJ.
Listen to ARRL Audio News, available every Friday.
The ARRL Letter is available in an accessible format, posted weekly to the Blind-hams Groups.io
email group. The group is dedicated to discussions about amateur radio as it concerns blind hams, plus related topics including ham radio use of adaptive technology.
NCJ -- National Contest Journal. Published bimonthly, features articles by top contesters, letters, hints, statistics, scores, NA Sprints, and QSO parties.
QEX -- A Forum for Communications Experimenters. Published bimonthly, features technical articles, construction projects, columns, and other items of interest to radio amateurs and communications professionals.
Free of charge to ARRL members...
Subscribe
to the ARES Letter (monthly public service and emergency communications news), the ARRL Contest Update (biweekly contest newsletter), Division and Section news alerts, and much more!
Find ARRL on Facebook! Follow us on Threads, X, and Instagram.
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The ARRL Letter is published Thursdays, 51 times each year. ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their profile at www.arrl.org/opt-in-out.
Copyright © 2026 American Radio Relay League, Incorporated.
Use and distribution of this publication, or any portion thereof, is permitted for non-commercial or educational purposes, with attribution.
All other purposes require written permission.
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