After the resolution of the recent 60 meter CODAR situation on the East Coast, the ARRL noted an earlier report by John Terrell, N6LN, of Palos Verdes, California. Terrell described CODAR activity on the 12 meter band, from 24.93 to 25.058 MHz. Since it appeared likely it was originating on the West Coast -- possibly near Orange Section Official Observer Coordinator Dan Welch, W6DFW -- ARRL Field and Regulatory Correspondent Chuck Skolaut, K0BOG, contacted Welch for assistance.

With assistance from Richard Saunders, K6RBS -- an Official Observer from Mission Viejo, California -- Welch determined the CODAR transmissions were originating from an installation operated by the University of Southern California. “Dan contacted Burt Jones, a Professor of Research in the Marine Environmental Biology Department, and Lab Manager Matthew Ragan,” Skolaut explained. “The folks at USC were glad to cooperate and they promptly moved the transmitter frequency out of the amateur band.”

Jones, a former radio amateur, told the ARRL that he was glad that he was notified of the problem and was happy that it could be resolved quickly. “In many ways, we are on the same team, in the sense of using the radio technology to address multiple kinds of issues,” he said. “The ARRL and the Amateur Radio community provide a substantial benefit to society that I think the general public doesn’t fully appreciate. Our HF radar network serves multiple issues, from understanding basic science to facilitating search and rescue operations, as well as managing responses to environmental disasters, such as last year’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.”

Skolaut said that it is reassuring to realize individual interests can be served harmoniously with cooperation in use of the frequency spectrum: “Our thanks to Dan, the Official Observer program and the USC team for bringing this situation to a good conclusion.”