Author: k9hi

On October 22, 2022, members of the New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society and the Wellesley Amateur Radio Society went on a field trip to the Chatham Marconi Maritime Center (CMMC). 

According to its website, the “CMMC is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2002. The Center occupies two buildings on the 11.3-acre, ten-building campus which comprised the former Marconi-RCA Wireless Receiving Station, once the busiest ship-to-shore station in the United States and a significant military installation during World War II.”

The New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (NEST) will meet on-line and in-person on October 25, 2022 at 7 PM and feature: “Overview of FT8” by Yuri Botnar, KC1LNQ. 

Description: This presentation will provide an overview of FT8 with a focus on Yuri’s experience setting it up on a Windows computer with two radios, the IC7300 and the µBITX.  FT8 can be an extremely effective mode for operating for individuals in housing situations with limited options for antennas, such as condominiums, as is the case for Yuri. FT8 is one of eleven different protocols of modes offered by WSJT-X V2.5.  WSJT-X is a popular computer program designed to facilitate basic amateur radio communication using very weak signals. The first four letters in the program name stand for “Weak Signal communication by K1JT,” Joseph H Taylor, Jr. while the suffix “-X” indicates that WSJT-X started as an extended branch of an earlier program, WSJT, first released in 2001. Bill Somerville, G4WJS, Steve Franke, K9AN, and Nico Palermo, IV3NWV, have been major contributors to development of WSJT-X.

Bio: Yuri became interested in radio at age 13 in the city of Orgeev, Moldova.  His interests were in building/repairing receivers and transmitters rather than in QSOs. Yuri graduated with a Master’s in Radio Communication in Odessa, Ukraine. He started his career as an electrical engineer at a power distribution company in Chisinau and worked his way up to senior positions there.  Since 1994 Yuri has worked as an Electrical Design Engineer for a company in Beverly, MA designing power supplies for numerous industrial/scientific applications.  Yuri was granted a patent for developing a “Precision Voltage Regulator for Capacitor-Charging Power Supply.”

The next Wellesley Amateur Radio Society Zoom meeting on Tuesday, October 18, 2022 at 7:30 PM will feature Derek, AK1WI, who will introduce us to filters! STARS folks will join us too!

[WARS President Dan Brown, W1DAN, will email a Zoom meeting invite link before the meeting.]

The next general meeting [of the Nashoba Valley Amateur Radio Club] will be held on October 20, 2022, in person at the Pepperell Community Center, 2 Hollis Street, Pepperell, MA 01463. No Zoom simulcast is scheduled.

The guest speaker will be Thaire Bryant, W2APF. The title of presentation will be “DXing from the Other Side of the Pile-up”. You are cordially invited.

The New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (NEST) will meet on-line and in-person on October 11, 2022 at 7 PM and feature “Cybersecurity for the Radio Amateur” by John Tarbox, WA1KLI. 

Cybersecurity is a hot topic with many companies being hacked and personal data being exposed. Hams can help protect themselves by taking simple precautions and being diligent. Particular concerns for hams are radios that they put on the internet for remote operation and Wi-Fi enabled devices. The unique needs of hams will be addressed. STARS members are encouraged to share their own approaches to ham cybersecurity in the meeting and to come prepared with questions about ham-specific cybersecurity.

John has been a ham since the 1960s and holds an Amateur Extra license. He has an MS in Computer Information Systems with a concentration in Cybersecurity from BU and has been Adjunct Faculty at York County Community College. John’s email address is WA1KLI@arrl.net.