This year’s version of the CUWS Societies Fair leaflet is now available for download here. The leaflet gives useful background information on the society and some of our recent events. If you’re interested in finding out more about CUWS, this is essential reading!

GB75UW was a special event station celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Cambridge University Wireless Society’s callsign, G6UW. Between 1 December 2007 and 28 December 2007, a total of 1,700 QSOs were made. If you need to QSL, please bear in mind that all QSOs will automatically receive a QSL card. For direct QSLs, please route to G7VJR (see qrz.com).

The Cambridge University Wireless Society was founded in 1920 and its original members included Professor Sir Ernest Rutherford (now known for his work on nuclear physics but originally a radio researcher) and Professor EV Appleton (known for his discovery of ionospheric layers, made while he was a CUWS member). Other members have included Dr J.A. Ratcliffe (ionospheric researcher), Professor Sir Maurice Wilkes G5VF (ionospheric researcher and builder of EDSAC, the first practical stored program computer), Dr JB Gunn (inventor of the Gunn Diode), and Professor Sir Martin Ryle G3CY (Astronomer Royal and inventor of aperture synthesis radio astronomy techniques). Professors Rutherford, Appleton and Ryle are all Nobel Prize winners.

CUWS members made substantial contributions to the development of radar and other key technologies during World War 2 and have since played many leading roles in British industry and academia. Cross fertilisation of ideas in the British scientific establishment is evidenced by Professor Ryle’s citing of Professor Wilkes’s contribution to the use of computing in radio-astronomy in Cambridge.

CUWS is one of the last university amateur radio clubs active on a regular basis in the United Kingdom, and is a source of practical training for the RCF/Ofcom radio exams for university members and the public, as well as an active HF DX and contest club.

This is a new feature for the website designed to encourage a little competition between members and to see how people are doing chasing new countries.

The figures given are worked totals as peoples’ confirmed totals often depend quite greatly on how long they have been active and how much has been invested in direct QSLing. Unless otherwise stated, these figures were correct as of 20th January 2007.

Anyone else wishing to be included in the table, please e-mail me your totals and I will include them. I will publish new totals every three months or so depending on interest and activity.

*G7VJR’s logging program does not provide individual mode totals.