Australian amateurs set to stake claim to 500Khz

The Wireless Institute of Australia (WIA) has announced plans to request the Australian Communications Authority (ACA) to establish an experimental amateur allocation at 500 kHz.

"The best way to do this is to establish a small slice of spectrum around 500 kHz--probably 495 to 510 kHz--as an Amateur Radio band," said WIA Director Glenn Dunstan, VK4DU. "The band would also provide a unique opportunity for experimentation with antennas, propagation, advanced
narrowband modulation techniques and receiver digital signal processing."

A former shipboard radio officer, Dunstan noted that 500 kHz was the international maritime Morse code distress frequency for most of the 20th century. Following the introduction of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) in 1999, 500 kHz use has declined rapidly, Dunstan said. China, the last official user of the frequency, plans to discontinue operation there next year.

Dunstan concedes that since 500 kHz remains allocated to the Maritime Service, gaining a permanent amateur foothold there is "some way off," but the WIA is hoping that Australian authorities will grant access to some spectrum there in the meantime for experimental use.

The ARRL and the RSGB have expressed some interest in a 500 kHz Amateur Radio allocation.

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) Region 1 and various US amateur long-wave groups also are actively pursuing experimental use of 500 kHz. Additionally, the IARU favors a worldwide Amateur Radio band at 135.7 to 137.8 kHz and is seeking support for such an allocation at World Radiocommunication Conference 2007.

Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The American Radio Relay League

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