WASHINGTON — That scrambled picture during the football game might not be your old TV’s fault, at least not this weekend.

Officials from the Defense Media Center announced that viewers of American Forces Network television may experience brief programming interruptions due to the fall "sun outage" period, which began Tuesday.

The interference occurs twice a year as AFN satellites eclipse the sun. Solar radiation can overwhelm broadcast signals, causing broadcast outages lasting up to 30 minutes.

The most severe outages are expected to occur between now and Oct. 8, although problems could linger until Oct. 14. The outages may occur throughout the day, even after sunset, as signals are bounced from satellite to satellite around the globe.

In addition, AFN’s Web sites are scheduled to go offline this weekend for scheduled maintenance.

The pages will be down from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tokyo time on Saturday, and from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. Sunday.

No walk-ins at naval hospital Oct. 10CAMP LESTER, Okinawa — Patients will not be able to walk in Oct. 10 or make appointments for that date at the U.S. Naval Hospital Okinawa and its branch clinics due to a command function, hospital officials said.

Appointments already scheduled for that date will remain in place, and the Emergency Department will still be available, officials said.

For more information, contact the appropriate clinic or the hospital’s public affairs office at DSN 634-7294.

Allied changes Japan access numberAllied Telesis has changed the auto attendant telephone number callers from Japan must use to get through to people on Yokota Air Base.

The new number is 03-4580-0135, the company said in an e-mail to customers Thursday.

Allied, the commercial phone, internet and cable television provider for the base, recently switched carriers for its phone service after a problem blocked all incoming calls to the base for nearly two weeks.

Court upholds ruling permitting dredging

Tokyo High Court, in upholding a lower court decision, on Wednesday rejected Yokosuka residents’ efforts to stop dredging work at Yokosuka Naval Base, according to the residents’ lawyer.

Nine residents, including fishermen and peace activists, had filed an administrative lawsuit demanding withdrawal of Yokosuka city’s acceptance, as port manager, of the Japanese government’s plan to dredge 600,000 cubic meters of sediment from Piedmont Pier.

The group plans to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court, according to the residents’ lawyer, Masahiko Goto.

The work was needed to berth USS George Washington, the first U.S. Navy nuclear-powered aircraft carrier deployed to Japan. The work has been completed and the carrier arrived in Yokosuka on Sept. 25.

Camp Fuji to host Martial Arts Expo 2008A variety of Japanese martial arts will be exibited at Camp Fuji’s third annual Martial Arts Expo on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Big Guns Gym.

Taiko drummers and traditional dancers also will perform. Food vendors and a display of katana swords will be on hand.

Gates open at 8 a.m. Large bags, backpacks, coolers, weapons, skateboards, bicycles, pets, alcohol and bottles are prohibited. For more information, call 224-8488 or e-mail fujisports@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org.

Center to host Hispanic heritage workshopOSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — An Hispanic heritage educational workshop is set for noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Osan’s McPherson Community Center, Building 916.

Activities include storytelling, readings, discussions of Hispanic-American cultural figures, as well as arts and crafts for children. The event is free.

Call Staff Sgt. Danette Soltero at DSN 784-6717 for more information.

Osan Firefighter Challenge seeks teamsOSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — Sign-ups are continuing through Monday at the base fitness center for the Oct. 10 Firefighter Challenge athletic completion.

The competition will be held in conjunction with National Fire Prevention Week. Team events begin at 1 p.m. and include such things as dragging a 60-pound dummy 100 feet and dragging a length of fire hose 100 feet.

The winning team will face off in the finals against a team of firefighters from the base fire department.

Fire trucks will be displayed, "Sparky the Fire Dog" will make an appearance, and hot dogs and beverages will be served.

Osan fitness center to host competitionOSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — Osan’s fitness center will hold athletic events starting at 8 a.m. Saturday in celebration of National Volkssport Month. A 5-kilometer run/walk, 20-kilometer bike ride and 10-kilometer run are scheduled. Events start at the fitness center.

Cable TV channel expects signal outagesPYEONGTAEK, South Korea — The Morale, Welfare and Recreation cable TV channel at Camp Humphreys will experience temporary signal outages through Oct. 15 because of the fall equinox.

The outages can range from five to 20 minutes at a time. Call DSN 753-7659 for more information.

Humphreys opens youth hoops sign-upsPYEONGTAEK, South Korea — Registration for youth basketball at Camp Humphreys is under way until Nov. 14.

Parents whose children are interested in playing basketball can visit Youth Services in Building 570 or call DSN 753-8507 for more information.