Author: k9hi

Youth

JOTA at Camp Sayer a Success!

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Rusty Moore, K1FVK, writes on the stars-radio list:

The Blue Hill Observatory Wireless Society hosted a successful Jamboree On The Air event at Camp Sayer in the Blue Hills Reservation on Saturday. Club President Steve Hillson, Tom Ulrich, Rusty Moore, Joe Fitzgerald, and John, Bree, Rhys and Tate Aldridge were all present to help. Also present were various law enforcement and security agencies (including MEMA) for a Scouting Explorer career day event.

We had full run of the covered pavilion overlooking the parking lot, and operated three stations: Steve and Rusty on SSB phone, and Tate running FT8. Tom handed out information packets and delivered a terrific introduction to the radio hobby to every group of Scouts as they arrived at the pavilion.

One of the most popular activities among the Scouts was our Morse code set-up consisting of a straight key with practice oscillator, and two wire-connected keys separated by 20 feet so that two Scouts could send code back and forth. John Aldridge and Joe Fitzgerald assisted with their code. The kids loved it.

Rusty kept tabs on the International Space Station and used a handheld Yagi to track the Station on three consecutive passes. Tate guided the antenna on the third pass.

The most memorable contact of the day was made between a young girl named Emily, who was visiting with her family, and PE1OAD/MM aboard a Dutch cargo ship out in the Atlantic! 

photo of K1MKD monitoring radio traffic from ISS
Tate K1MKD monitoring radio traffic from the ISS. Photo courtesy Rusty Moore, K1FVK

 

Young man getting response from a CQ
Rhys, Tate’s brother, getting a response to his CQ from a station in Newbern, NC. Photo courtesy Rusty Moore, K1FVK
Operating / Youth

JOTA Activity in Westford

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JOTA-JOTI logoAndy Stewart, KB1OIQ, is hosting Scouts for Jamboree On The Air on October 15 at his Westford QTH.

“If you are available, please listen on the 955 WB1GOF repeater from noon until 3 p.m. on Saturday.  I will have Scouts making calls around that time.  Also, if you are able to join us on an HF frequency, we can negotiate that on 955,” Andy writes.

Organization

New England Division Town Hall Meeting, October 19, 2022

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ARRL logoPhil Temples K9HI, our Assistant Directors, and I will hold our next New England Division Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, October 19th, at 7 p.m. ET. The purpose of the meeting will be to provide you with an ARRL update, get your thoughts on what we should be focusing on, and answer any questions you might have about the ARRL and what we are doing on behalf of ARRL members here in New England.

We plan to spend a good deal of our time together answering your questions. If you’d like to send us a question in advance, you can do so via an email to ab1oc@arrl.org, or you can just plan to ask your questions during the Town Hall Meeting.

We will hold our Town Hall Meeting via a Zoom Webinar. You can get your personal link to join the Town Hall Meeting via the following link (paste the link in your browser to register) –

https://bmailer.link/t/c/19a72def-6111-41b9-9f1f-1468ef847d0c/3a78cbaf-3abf-41fa-9c97-1c6ab3785620

We hope to see you on October 19th!

——————————————————————–
ARRL New England Division
Director: Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC
ab1oc@arrl.org
——————————————————————–

Clubs

N1NS: “A Little Bit About Forest Fires” at North Shore RA Hybrid Meeting, October 17, 2022

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North Shore Radio Association logoThe North Shore Radio Association will meet at the Peabody Municipal Light Plant auditorium, 201 Warren St Extension, in Peabody and online on October 17, 2022 at 7:00 PM.  We are going to try and do both on Zoom in person. This also allows us to have a speaker over Zoom.
 
This month: Barbara Dougan, N1NS, will be giving a talk on “A Little Bit About Forest Fires.” This presentation is a glimpse of the vast knowledge, skills, equipment and technology involved in wild land fire management. She gave this talk at HamXposition.   
 
[Zoom conference information will be sent via the NSRA groups.io mailing list.  Contact Eric, KA1NCF, at ka1ncf -at- nsradio -dot- org to be added to the groups.io list.]
 
Clubs

W2APF: “DXing from the Other Side of the Pile-up” at the Nashoba Valley ARC Meeting, Pepperell, October 20, 2022

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Nashoba Valley ARC logoThe 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.

Clubs

WA1KLI: “Cybersecurity for the Radio Amateur” at Sci-Tech ARS Hybrid Meeting, October 11, 2022

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New England Sci Tech logoThe 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.

Technical

K1YUB to Present at 40th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium, October 21-22, 2022

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AMSAT logoPaul Graveline, K1YUB, of Andover, MA, will present at the 40th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium in Bloomington, Minnesota, on October 21-22, 2022. Paul will present in a session on the CubeSat Simulator.

The symposium will feature:

* Space Symposium with Amateur Satellite Presentations
* Operating Techniques, News, & Plans from the Amateur Satellite World
* Board of Directors Meeting open to AMSAT members
* Opportunities to Meet Board Members and Officers
* AMSAT Annual General Membership Meeting
* Auction, Annual Banquet, Keynote Speaker and Door Prizes !!

The Crowne Plaza Suites, 3 Appletree Square, Bloomington, MN, is centrally located between the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport, Mall of America, Minneapolis Zoo, and Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park. Crown Plaza Suites provides a complimentary scheduled shuttle to and from the airport.

Additional information about the 2022 AMSAT Symposium can be found at https://www.amsat.org.

Clubs / Operating

Cape Ann ARA Portable Operations Session, Rockport, October 15, 2022

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CAARA logoDean Burgess, KB1PGH, writes on the Cape Ann Amateur Radio Association mailing list:

Hello to all club members,

There will be a informal HF portable ops session next Saturday, October 15 starting at noon until the end of the day. The location will be in Rockport on the top of Hospital Hill, at the end of Summit Avenue—the same place field day was held. There will be hot dogs and hamburgers. This is a time for anyone who wants to set up any equipment to operate portable and to see some HF stations. Basically, we’re just hanging out, having some fun and playing radio.

The talk-in will be CAARA repeater 145.130 MHZ with a 107.2 PL tone. So far, the weather looks good; if it does rain, the rain date will be following Saturday, so monitor the repeater if you decide to go. Hope to see you there.

73,

Dean Burgess, KB1PGH and Jon Cunningham, K1TP

Operating

New Hampshire SOTA/POTA Activation, October 9, 2022

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Rusty Moore, K1FVK, writes on the STARS-radio list:

Lorena, KC1MWH, and I will be operating from the summit of Mount Kearsarge (elevation 2923′), northwest of Concord, NH tomorrow, Sunday, Oct. 9. We hope to be on the air before 11 a.m., starting on 20m SSB, to activate both summit W1/HA-010, and park K-4918. We’ll try 2m simplex (146.520) as well, using a handheld Yagi and listen for friends back in MA. Hope to see you OTA.

Rusty, K1FVK

Foxhunting / Operating

W1MJ Fox Hunt in Belmont, October 8-9, 2022

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Eliot Mayer, W1MJ, writes on the NEMassFoxhunters list at 10:01 AM on October 8, 2022:

Noah and I are leaving in a few minutes to deploy the W1MJ 5-watt fox.  Due to a busy schedule, this will probably our last deployment this month.

Inspired by avid hunter Jeff AC1JR, who was getting tired of the same old messages, I have updated the soundtrack a bit.  It now goes for 18 minutes before repeating, a 50% improvement over the previous 12 minute loop.

On Air:  October 8 (today) 11:00 AM, or sooner, until October 9 (tomorrow) at 5:00 PM

Frequency:  147.54 MHz

Location:  Lone Tree Hill Conservation Area, Belmont, MA

Trail Map:  https://www.belmont-ma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif6831/f/file/file/lone_tree_hill_trail_map.pdf

Parking Lot (Goggle Maps): https://goo.gl/maps/Sst4rV3L4s1AGLQ27

The parking lot is close to the Rock Meadow parking lot, but on the opposite side of the street.  It is a paved lot.

Licensing Education & Training

Boston ARC to Resume Volunteer Exams

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Boston ARC logoJoe Chapman, NV1W, writes on the Boston ARC mailing list:

We are finally resuming BARC volunteer exams after the pandemic. The  next exam session will be held on Tuesday, October 18, at 7:30 pm at the Artisans Asylum in Allston. For more information, see
https://www.barc.org/barc-exam-sessions/. For directions to the Artisans Asylum, see https://www.barc.org/directions-to-artisans-asylum-allston/. For more information, contact me directly at nv1w@arrl.net or 617-267-6349.

You must register for the exam session at least one day in advance, either with me or Jim Clogher, N1ICN, at n1icn@arrl.net. We cannot accept walk-ins.

ARRL accredited VEs: I welcome and appreciate your participation and help. Please let me know if you intend to attend so that I can let you know of any changes or if we have to cancel the session.

73,

Joe Chapman NV1W / ARRL Volunteer Exam Liaison, Boston Amateur Radio Club

Clubs

W1UE: “A Contesting Intro” at Algonquin ARC Meeting, October 13, 2022

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AARC logoThe next [Algonquin Amateur Radio Club] meeting will be held in­ person on October 13 at 7:30 pm in the library of the 1st Lt. Charles W. Whitcomb Middle School, 25 Union Ave, Marlboro, MA. Enter from Agoritsas Drive next to police station and use Door #1 at rear of building.

The speaker for the October 2022 meeting will be Dennis, W1UE, on the topic “A Contesting Intro.” The presentation will cover :

• What is Contesting?
• What do you need to contest?
• How can you contest?
• Strategies for Contesting

Youth

PART of Westford Planning for JOTA

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JOTA-JOTI logoGeorge Allison, K1IG, writes on the PART of Westford mailing list:

The annual Scouting Jamboree-On-The-Air (JOTA) is the largest Scouting event in the world, and is held in the third full weekend in October. This year, it will be held October 14-16, 2022.
 
The local Westford Scout troop has several Scouts (and parents) who are interested in participating in the JOTA and pursuing the Radio Merit Badge and possibly an amateur radio license. If any PART members would be able to host a up to four Scouts and parents for a few hours during JOTA at your home station and making some contacts, please send me an email (k1ig@arrl.net) and let me know your availability.
 
73,
George K1IG
Clubs

K5TEC: “New England Sci-Tech STEM Program” at Billerica ARS Meeting Online, October 5, 2022

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Billerica ARS logoThe next BARS Zoom meeting on Wednesday, October 5 will feature Bob Phinney, K5TEC, President of Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society (STARS). Join Bob Phinney, K5TEC, as he describes his STEM program at New England Sci-Tech in Natick.

Bob and his team just sponsored a highly successful ARISS Space Station contact at The BIG E multi-state fair in Springfield, MA on September 27. The event garnered much news and television coverage at the venue which attracts 1.5 million people during its 17-day run.

A dozen lucky students in Bob’s program got to ask questions of International Space Station pilot Bob Hines, KI5RQT, via a ground station in Belgium. Along with “Space Chat,” NESci-Tech is conducting a 12-month educational space science program that includes: 

  • Amateur Radio License Course
  • Model Rocketry workshops
  • Air-Powered Rocketry
  • Introduction to Basic Electronics
  • Introduction to Arduinos Electronics
  • Public Telescope Nights
  • Morse Code Introduction
  • Elementary Mathematics for Modeling Rocket Flight

Bob Phinney has a winning formula for engaging young people—and their parents—in an exciting program that has seen youths design payloads for high-altitude balloons and even NASA rockets! Come and hear how he does it.

BARS will announce the link to join the Zoom meeting before the meeting, but it will be posted to the BARS email list and should not be shared outside our Club. Are you on the email list? If not, please send an email to bars-subscribe@w1hh.org and then simply reply to the robot response from the server and you will be subscribed. Observing our Zoom meeting requires only a web browser and headphones/speakers. You do not need a webcam or microphone unless you want to speak or be seen. Before our meeting date, please go to https://zoom.us/test and see if it will function for you. If you have problems, we can try to assist – feel free to ask questions on the BARS email list. We are looking forward to “seeing” many of you on Wednesday 10/5 here at 1900 ET.

Public Service

Algonquin ARC Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day Report, October 1, 2022

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On Saturday, October 1, 2022, [the Algonquin Amateur Radio Club] supported the bi-annual joint Hudson-Marlborough Household Hazardous Waste Collection event.   This was our fourth event utilizing the larger layout at the Easterly Treatment Plant.   The volume for this event was lower than past ones.  Even though some cards were queued up as early as 7 AM, the lines remained relatively short.  By 10 AM, cars were flowing though the collection points with minimum delay.  During the first hour the cars per hour rate was about 10% faster than last session’s first hour.  So the efficiency of the process continues to improve.  After the first hour the rate dropped only because the volume of cards had dropped.  Last spring we processed 451 cars.  This session the number was 322.

The weather was cool in the 50s (F) with off and on light rain.  We had a smaller support team but with the smaller volume everything flowed smoothly.

Notes:    The Hazardous Waste column also includes cars that had electronics

Thanks for the leadership of Ted Scott, Marlborough DPW and his team; Joe Leatham, Katlyn Miller, and Alex Szczepaniak.   Also for the support from Eddie St Louis from the Hudson Heath Department.

Thanks to the following volunteers from the Marlborough Emergency Management Team and the Algonquin Amateur Radio Club who managed the flow of cars:
Ann Weldon KA1PON
Frank McInnis K1IX
Paul Zompetti
Ed Fitzgerald K1DIN
George Conrad N1ABC
Eric Williams KV1J

Eric Williams
Communications Officer – Marlborough EMA
(ref  EMA hours: 26   ARES hours: 20)

1Oct2022

Clubs

WO1E: “Contesting with FT8 and FT4” at Framingham ARA Hybrid Meeting, October 6, 2022

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Framingham ARA logoJohn Iwuc, KB1VXY, writes on the Framingham Amateur Radio Association mailing list:
 
You are invited to our next [Framingham Amateur Radio Association] meeting to be held at the main Framingham Public Library [on October 6, 2022] at 7 pm (note time change).
 
This meeting will be a hybrid zoom meeting with in-person meeting at the Costin Room in the main Framingham Library located on Lexington Street. There is a parking lot next to the building. The meeting will start at 7 pm.
 
Register by Zoom even if you will attend live so we can have an accurate count.
 
Members will receive a zoom invitation.  Non-members may request an invitation by sending an email to John president@w1fy.org.
Foxhunting / Operating

The K1MJC Fox is Out, September 30, 2022

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Mike Cormier, K1MJC, writes on the NEMassFoxHunters list at 4:37 PM on September 30, 2022:

Yes, the K1MJC Fox is out.

I put it out today, Friday, and it will be picked up late afternoon Sunday.

The fox is in somewhere in an area within the Beaverbrook reservation north; it’s a 15 milliwatt fox transmitting on 146.565 MHz. 

I’m hearing rumblings from Eliot [W1MJ] saying that his fox may also be put out sometime this weekend as well; his is a five watt fox, and on a different frequency. He’ll let you know that detail when and if he puts it out. You could end up with a “twofer” this weekend!

One of the maps on this page would prove useful!

https://walthamlandtrust.org/trail-guides/

Happy hunting!

Mike C. 73!