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The following is a press release from Helioclock:

Helioclock to Debut at Huntsville Hamfest: A New All-in-One Next Generation Situational Awareness Display with live SDR

Reno, NV. August 17, 2026.

Helioclock, a new dedicated live dashboard appliance built for amateur radio operators, EOC’s
NOC’s Civil Defense and others will make its public debut at the ARRL National
convention/Huntsville Hamfest, August 22–23, 2026.

The product brings live HF band conditions, space weather, contest information, and a wide range of
real-time situational data feeds together on a single always-on screen: no juggling browser tabs, no
subscription required. Fully automated operation 24/7/365 designed explicitly to have no single point
of failure risk.

Further, Helioclock now features a real-time integrated SDR (Software Defined Radio) interface that
serves as a standalone all-band receiver, plus offers NCDXF beacon monitoring for real-time band
conditions.

New: Live RTL-SDR Integration

Helioclock’s newest release adds full support for the popular RTL-SDR USB dongle, turning any
Helioclock display into a live, all-band software-defined radio receiver right alongside its propagation
and space weather data. Operators get an on-screen waterfall, frequency tuning, and demodulation
controls (AM, FM, SSB, and more) with no separate SDR software, no second screen, and nothing
extra to buy.

See It in Huntsville

Helioclock will be shown live at the Huntsville Hamfest, August 22–23, 2026, at booth #V55.
Attendees can see Best Band Now running against live band conditions in real time and talk with the
developer that built it. Ready-to-run systems, bootable SD cards for Raspberry Pi 4/5 platforms, and
Live USB devices will be available for purchase at the show.

A Stunning Shack Display Built Around Real Time Data, Not Guesswork

The centerpiece is Helioclock’s signature “Best Band Now” feature. Rather than reducing complex
propagation data down to a single “best guess,” Helioclock now presents every open or marginal HF
band on a live, continuously ranked leaderboard, similar to a golf leaderboard, so operators can see
exactly how each band stacks up and why.

Each band’s score is intelligently analyzed from real DX cluster and Reverse Beacon Network spot
activity, and if equipped with an SDR USB RTL-SDR dongle, real time beacon DX measurements. All
are weighted by frequency and available headroom below the Maximum Usable Frequency, so a
band with genuinely strong evidence can never be quietly outranked by a band with only a handful of
spots. A band must hold the #1 ranking continuously for 20 minutes before it’s marked CONFIRMED;
until then it displays LEADING with a live countdown, so operators can watch a band call developing
in real time rather than reacting to a single flip.

Plus, a per-band “Band Scope” graph shows the last 60 minutes of activity for every band at a glance,
and every column on the leaderboard with plain-language explaining exactly what it means and how
it’s calculated. Full transparency, nothing hidden behind a black-box verdict.

More Than DX and Propagation

Beyond Best Band Now, Helioclock’s next generation screen brings together:

• Stunning photorealistic maps of the world and CONUS that change with seasons.
• Live contest calendar and DX information. Grey line, solar flux, and imagery.
• Wildfire, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, air quality, live camera site feeds, news and weather bulletin feeds. Configurable with local alerts too.
• Live NEXRAD Radar, Satellite imagery, forecasts, data tracks, and more.
• Financial markets (major indices, favorite stocks, plus gold and silver).
• Tides for coastal stations, sea surface temperature, and hurricane/tropical storm tracking.
• Over 40 active live features can be arranged on-screen and displayed on a multiple screen slideshow so you never miss a beat. See the features at helioclock.com.
• PTT/ON-AIR banner, code practice, electronic references, even TV test patterns for SSTV!
• Supports optional Software Defined Radio (SDR) using the popular RTL-SDR USB devices for automated band testing or use as your own listening receiver with on-screen control.
• All of it updates continuously in the background, giving operators one glanceable display for “what’s happening right now” on the bands and around them. Helioclock can drive multiple big screen TV’s at 4K or 2K directly while at the same time supporting remote browser connections.

Flexible, Low-Cost Hardware

Helioclock is designed to run on whatever hardware a ham shack already has or wants to add cheaply:

• A dedicated small-form-factor x86 mini PC (Intel N100 at 4GB class hardware or better)
• Raspberry Pi model 4 and 5 (2GB minimum, 4GB recommended.)
• A bootable Live USB stick that turns most existing spare PC’s/laptops built in the last decade into a Helioclock display without touching its installed OS.
• Ready to run appliances are also available.

Helioclock was built because every operator I know has five browser tabs open just to answer one question: what band should I be on right now? This puts the real evidence in front of you instead of a black-box guess.” “Plus, I wanted a modern, polished, real-time display that gives a solid next generation modern look and feel that runs completely unattended. — Anthony Watts, KA9NWM, creator, Helioclock

Availability

More information, screenshots, features, and a live interactive demo are available at helioclock.com.

Media Contact:
Anthony Watts, KA9NWM contact@helioclock.com 530-570-8434

Source: Helioclock

​ Amateur Radio Daily

Amateur radio operators in western New York and other northeastern states have an opportunity to help track an educational balloon. Drew Deskur, KA1M, Director of the Kopernik Observatory, a public observatory and informal STEM education center in Vestal, New York, said the balloon was expected to be launched August 19 at 10 AM Eastern (1400 UTC) with Automatic Packet Reporting System (ARPS) an… American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources Read More

Weekly Highlights and Forecast, August 17, 2026, by NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center:

Solar activity ranged from very low to low levels throughout the
period. No R1 (Minor) or greater events were observed. The largest
flare was a C8.2/Sn at 16/1928 UTC from Region 4506. An associated
CME was observed in LASCO C2 imagery following the C8.2 flare, but
analysis is ongoing in order to determine an…

American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources Read More

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The following is a message from the Alabama Contest Group:

K4A will once again keep K4 America the 9/11 We do Remember on air special event. The Alabama Contest Group is doing this for the 6th year.

I know most of us remember it like it was yesterday… but it has been 25 years since the towers fell, the Pentagon was damaged, and heroes brought the plane down in PA to prevent further attacks.

From September 9th through 13th, volunteer operators will take shifts to contact amateurs on the air. We want to hear your memories of that tragic day. And if you want to remember someone lost on that day, we’d be honored to help with that tribute naming them and having a pause on the air. 9/11 and the victims will not be forgotten.

A special QSL will be issued. Stories, memories, and victims mentioned on the radio will be collected and included in the Alabama Contest Group and the Smoke Signals newsletter.

For information about the special event, contact Bob (WA1FCN) wa1fcn@charter.net.

Would YOU like to be one of “The K4A 9/11 Crew” as an operator? A simple e-mail to wa1fcn@charter.net will get you going.

Source: Alabama Contest Group

​ Amateur Radio Daily

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AMSAT Canada (AMSAT-CA) has begun offering membership options to further its mission to support amateur radio in space. Those interested in supporting AMSAT-CA through membership can learn more about membership benefits (PDF).

AMSAT-CA promotes, develops, and supports Amateur Radio in space, including via human-made and natural satellites (e.g., the Moon), space stations and planets, and related experiments, as well as new developments in technology, methods and techniques.

AMSAT-CA is expected to play a significant role in the futureGEO geostationary satellite project potentially covering portions of North America.

Source: AMSAT-CA

​ Amateur Radio Daily

ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio® reports that amateur radio operators in Colombia are providing significant communications support following the major earthquake and aftershocks that struck the country on August 10, 2026. The death toll has reportedly exceeded 200 people, with many more still missing, and major damage is reported to buildings and infrastructure.

International Ama…

American Radio Relay League | Ham Radio Association and Resources Read More