Author: k9hi

Clubs / Operating

Wellesley ARS Parks On The Air Activation, K-2427, September 26, 2020

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Dan Brown W1DAN, writes:

[Wellesley Amateur Radio Society members] Steve Ciavarini, NQ1F, along with Rob Jaczko, WA1UMU, and Leandra Mac Lennan, AF1R, operated  Parks On The Air as K-2427 on Saturday September 26, 2020 at Cochituate State Park in Natick, MA.

After guidance from park rangers, Leandra set up her VHF Moxon beam antenna for 2m and a 20m Hamstick vertical; Rob set up his new Wolf River vertical with twelve 40-foot radials that Steve made, and Steve set up his home brew 6m beam he presented to WARS last week. Started operating around 3:30PM.

All in all, Rob and Leandra made around 60 contacts on 40M, 20M, and 2M, and one contact on 6M, which was absolutely dead.

The gang said it was good fun. Leandra wanted to do a POTA sometime, and when Rob invited she jumped at the chance. Leandra brought her Yaesu FT991 40AH battery, mini masts for the Hamstick and 2-meter Moxon antenna. Rob brought his Icom 7300, 20AH battery, and a Wolf River Coils antenna (https://www.wolfrivercoils.com). However there was a set of 50-foot radials with this antenna, which were all tangled up like a ball of twine. This took a frustrating hour to untangle, but once set up, the antenna was excellent on 40M.

Steve’s new 6-meter beam seemed to work, but the band was pretty dead as he found only one station in Manchester NH. The new beam was found to be directional–a good sign. In the meantime, Leandra worked Bill, N1WEN on 146.52.

On 20M, AF1R found another POTA station in CO, Rob said that that station later told them they were the strongest POTA station with the Wolf River antenna. Rob had a lot of success on 40M SSB with the antenna, which was stronger than the Hamstick.

Each station needs ten contacts to be “activated.” Leandra had nine with the hamstick, so she moved to the Wolf River antenna. Spotted on POTA website, then worked stations during a pileup that lasted for a half hour. During the last 30 minutes, Rob and Steve were taking gear down, as Leandra used the Wolf antenna, made 30 more contacts in 30 minutes. Leandra made about 40-50 contacts, while Rob made 32.

Rangers stopped by and said it was time to shut down as the park closes at 7 PM, so they ended operations about 6:30 PM.

Leandra noted they learned how to cooperate in making contacts more efficiently and that spotters on the POTA website helped.

This is a test run for a bigger WARS club COVID-safe event planned for this fall. Cochituate State Park closes on Columbus Day October 12 (https://www.mass.gov/locations/cochituate-state-park), so maybe we can do Callahan State Park in Framingham.

Photos courtesy Steve, NQ1F

A beautiful fall day at Cochituate State Park
COVID-Safe Operating Practice
First lesson learned from last POTA...never throw your radials in the car without first rolling them up. The three of us spent about an hour unknotting a tangled web of radials to get the Wolf River vertical deployed.
Leandra giving VHF a run on 2m & HF on 20m, but only made 9 contacts so Rob let her use the vertical--a pile-up on 40m!
Rob WA1UMU Burning up 40M

[Show slideshow]
Operating

Historic DX Test Tonight: WNJC, 1360 kHz, Washington Township, NJ, FT-8 Weak Signal Mode, September 26, 2020

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WNJC logoFrom Boston Area DXers mailing list:
 
Duke Hamann of WNJC has announced another weekly DX Test of WNJC 1360, including a historic first-ever test of the FT-8 mode during a medium-wave broadcast test.
 
Reception reports can be sent to Duke at: kc2dux@duxpond.com
 
The test will be in two parts:
 
WNJC DX TEST PART ONE 0000 EDT-0100 EDT (0400-0500 UTC)
 
The test begin late tonight starting at midnight on the East Coast of the United States. Late Saturday/Early Sunday, 9/27 at 0000 EDT (0400 UTC) and initially air the same Morse code IDs, jingles, sweep tones, telephone off-hook sounders and other test material. This time, however, WNJC will use a backup antenna tower that has never been used before. It is located on a site the station has leased for 30 years. The land owners have refused to renew the lease as they want to develop the land, so the station will lose this tower site in 6 months. Power will be 1250 watts and the antenna pattern will be non-directional.
 
This should provide a good opportunity for the test to be received in Europe.
 
WNJC DX TEST PART TWO 0100 EDT-0200 EDT (0500-0600 UTC)
 
The second part of the test is really exciting.
 
Duke Hamann will be testing for a second hour using the amateur radio mode FT-8, developed by Joe Taylor, K1JT, a Nobel Prize winning astrophysicist.
 
FT-8 is a “sound card mode” where you simply input audio from your receiver into your computer’s sound card, then use software to process that audio digging out weak signals in the noise. How well does it work? Using the software and the audio from your receiver, you can decode signals that are as much as -24db below the noise.
 
This means if you’re on the West Coast, and ordinarily you think you would have no chance of hearing the WNJC Test, tonight you may be able to put a new station in your logbook. In fact, worldwide reception may be possible using the FT-8 mode.
 
Chief Engineer Duke Harman explains:
 
“It will be a one-way transmission every 15 seconds for 1 hour calling “CQ WNJC FM29.″ I am going to try to do it Sunday at [0100-0200 EDT] 0500-0600 UTC. The audio frequency will vary between 200 Hz and 4000 Hz in 200 Hz increments over a five minute period then repeat.
 
(200, 400, 600, 800, 1000 Hz, etc.) All you would need to do is tune your radio to 1360 in AM mode, connect to your computer and receive. Looking forward to doing this unique test!
 
HOW TO RECEIVE FT-8
 
There are a ton of resources on the Internet for hams who want to get started in FT-8. It’s one of the most popular ways for hams to communicate. Whatever you read, simply substitute the word “receiver” for transceiver. Ignore anything about transmitting, calling CQ, etc. We won’t be transmitting—just listening.
 
An audio cable to run from your receiver’s headphone or line out jack to your computer is helpful. But for many folks make FT8 work fine using a microphone placed near the speaker of their radio. Portable radios may work great too. No fancy SDR or communications receiver needed.
 
Best bet is to set it up now and test it during the day on the ham bands. The most popular frequencies for FT8 (so you can test your ability to receive) are: 14.071 mHz (20 Meters) USB
 
Search for YouTube videos. Tons of help on the web. But don’t wait, test our your receiver and computer today in order to be ready tonight for this historic test.
 
 
73,
 
Les Rayburn, N1LF
121 Mayfair Park
Maylene, AL 35114
EM63nf
Clubs

K1TH: “CQWW J3A YCCC Contest Operation” at K1USN Radio Club, September 29, 2020

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From K1USN Radio Club Happenings, September 25, 2020:
 
Mark your calendar for our next K1USN Zoom session this upcoming Tuesday, Sept 29th @ 7:30 PM.
 
This session will feature a presentation by Tom – K1TH from Plymouth. Tom will be talking about his experience as a participant in the 2000 CQWW contest as part of the YCCC (Yankee Clipper Contest Club) J3A Team in Grenada.
 
If you have already been receiving K1USN Zoom invitations, you will receive one this Sunday for the Tuesday session. We ask that you do not share the invitation details with others, but instead tell anyone who is interested in attending to send an e-mail request to me ( k1rv@arrl.net ) and I will add them to the K1USN Zoom list.
 
 
Foxhunting / Operating

KD1D Fox is on the Loose Again, September 25, 2020

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Alan Hicks, KD1D, writes on the NEMass Fox Hunters List at 3:36 PM on September 25, 2020:

The Fox attempted to go out last week, but was seized by a fever* and went home.

Newly energized, the Fox is on the air as of 1445 EDT on Friday September 25, 2020.  I expect to bring him home again on Monday morning 9/28. 

CLUES:
– The Fox’s new den is on Westford Conservation Trust Land. (Check them out – they have great maps!)

– The initials of the site remind me of what broke Ralphie’s glasses in “A Christmas Story.”

– One of the parking areas bears the surname of  the lead guitarist for a band  whose first name is the same as a “luxury” model Cadillac  (1976-1996) and whose  last name is a computer famous for not being a PC.

– The same parking area also bears the name of a famous residence  in the UK and the trail is located between two  local residences, numbered 15 and 17.

– An alternate parking area is at 180° + the part of the candle that you light (and from which light emanates) + a symmetrical round 2 dimensional shape.

– You should be able to hear the signal from Rt. 225

Send me a private email to kd1d@arrl.net for additional hints.
Happy hunting and 73 de KD1D

*(The fever was caused by the point of the security eye screw puncturing the insulation on the power cord from the battery to the SqwalkBox module.  Considerable magic smoke was emitted from the power circuit, but the transmitter survived.  The screw now has a blunt end and the power cord has a 1/2 amp fuse.)

Operating

NE1PL QRV from USS Massachusetts, September 19, 2020

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NE1PL QSL cardRick Emord, KB1TEE, wites:

The [Uncommon Service to Naval Radio] Group, NE1PL, will be operating today on the USS Massachusetts–two HF stations and one 2-meter station on the Massasoit Amateur Radio Association’s  repeater, 147.180, PL 67, from 1000-1600. Come on the air and give us a shout.

[Located in Battleship Cove in Fall River, the USS Massachusetts (BB-59), known as “Big Mamie” to her crew members during World War II, was a battleship of the second South Dakota class. She was the seventh ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the sixth state, and one of two ships of her class (along with her sister Alabama) to be donated for use as a museum ship. Massachusetts has the distinction of having fired the US Navy’s first and last 16-inch (406 mm) shells of the war. -ed.]
All

Bill Burden, WB1BRE, Silent Key

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Bill Burden, WB1BREPast New England Division Director Bill Burden, WB1BRE, of Strafford, Vermont, died on July 29. An ARRL Life Member, he was 84. Burden served as ARRL New England Division Director from 1992 to 1996. Prior to that, he was New England Division Vice Director (1991 – 1992) and New Hampshire Section Manager (1985 – 1991). He served as the emergency management director for the Town of Strafford. A graduate of Lowell Tech with a degree in electrical engineering, Burden worked for Lockheed-Sanders, retiring in 1991. -ARRL Letter, September 17, 2020

Emergency Communications / Licensing Education & Training

HamXposition / New England ARES Academy Schedule

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(Updated October 1, 2020)

 

The first-ever New England Division ARES Academy, originally scheduled for the Division Convention in November, will instead be held over a period of several weeks in October via Zoom. There are five Basic Track classes for those just getting started, and more advanced classes and workshops for those who already have the basics. One-hour classes will be held on weeknights from 7:30 to 8:30, and two-hour workshop sessions will be held Saturday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00.

A big benefit of the on-line schedule is the opportunity to take every single class and workshop instead of having to pick and choose. Weeknight class participants will be able to ask questions and interact with the instructor via chat. The two-hour Saturday workshops are designed to be even more interactive. Academy Instructors are all recognized experts in their subject area.

The NE-ARES Academy is an outgrowth of the successful NH-ARES Academy program that ran at the NH State Fire Academy for eight years. The program’s goal is to offer both basic and advanced skills training based in ARRL ARES training standards.

We plan to continue this program at the Convention once the pandemic is over, in hopes that building a standardized base of training across New England will enhance our ability to provide better local emergency communications, and an effective ARESMAT (ARES Mutual Assistance Team) response across the region, and beyond.

NE ARES Academy Schedule(All classes will be conducted online using Zoom) 

Academy coordinator Dave Colter, WA1ZCN, was the original editor and principal author of ARRL’s Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Course series in the early 2000s, and creator of the original NH-ARES Academy. He is currently ASEC-Training for NH-ARES.

 

Operating

New England Wireless & Steam Museum Yankee Steam-up Special Events Operation

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Massie Wireless Station "PJ"
Massie Wireless Station “PJ”

A special events operation from the New England Wireless and Steam Museum’s Yankee Steam-up will take place on October 3, 2020 from 1300-2000Z.  Look for N1EPJ on the following frequencies: 3.558, 14.058, 7.25, 14.258. QSL to: Massie Wireless Club, N1EPJ, PO Box 883, East Greenwich, RI 02818.

From the N1EPJ QRZ page:

The station was built in Point Judith, Rhode Island, in 1907 and is the oldest surviving working wireless station in the world. It is now part of the New England Wireless and Steam Museum.

The Massie Wireless Station provided communications to steamboats that traveled between New York City and New England cities. In 1983 the wireless station was moved to the New England Wireless and Steam Museum at 1300 Frenchtown Road in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, to avoid demolition. The wireless station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

The Massie Wireless Station is in the process of being re-activated with its new callsign, N1EPJ. The new callsign itself is significant as the station’s original callsign was “PJ” (Point Judith), which became the station’s nickname.

From www.newsm.org:

Yankee Steam-Up 2020 will be held on Saturday, October 3, 2020. Due to Covid-19 concerns, Steam-Up will be exclusively on our YouTube channel this year. We’d prefer to see you all in person, but we do hope this allows enthusiasts from all over the world access our wonderful collection for the first time.

We’ll be posting new videos leading up to October 3rd. Watch below or visit the museum’s YouTube channel. Please like and share with your friends. Check back often for more information or send us a message letting us know what you’d most like to see. Contact us.

 

Licensing Education & Training

Nashua Area Radio Society’s “Ham Bootcamp” at the Virtual Northeast HamXposition, November 7, 2020

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[As a part of the Northeast HamXposition‘s virtual activities (Saturday evening banquet and New England ARES Academy), the Nashua Area Radio Society is offering “Ham Bootcamp” online this year.]

 

From the Nashua Area Radio Society website:

Ham Bootcamp includes a series of demonstrations and tutorials designed to help newly licensed Technician, General, and Extra class license holders get on the air and use their amateur radio license. It is also a great opportunity for prospective hams who are interested in seeing what the hobby has to offer.

Our Bootcamp activities are provided online via a series of sessions geared towards Technicians and prospective Hams and General class licenses and higher Hams. Bootcamp participants will find all of this material interesting and fun no matter what their focus or license level.

We are continuing to provide our Bootcamp program during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are providing Ham Bootcamp in an online format using Zoom. Our online Ham Bootcamp program is available to all licensed and prospective Hams in North America. Please contact us to sign up for our next online Ham Bootcamp via email to membership@n1fd.org.

Repeaters and VHF/UHF Session Activities

  • Putting together a Station for Repeaters – How to pick an HT or  Mobile Radio and an Antenna
  • Radio Programming Tutorial
  • Getting started with EchoLink
  • Making Contacts and Joining a Repeater Net
  • Getting Started with Amateur Radio Satellites
  • Getting started with Fox Hunting

HF Session Activities

  • Putting together an HF Station for SSB, CW, and Digital
  • Picking and putting up an HF Antenna, Feedline, and Ground
  • Operating on the HF bands using SSB Voice
  • Software and setup for Logging Contacts via your computer
  • Getting started with WSJT-X and FT8 Digital
  • Finding DX and QSL’ing – Getting them in the log and confirmed

… and more!

Virtual Ham Radio Shopping Trip

  • Join us for a guided tour of all of the gear and goodies that are available to build or expand your station.
  • Ask questions and get answers from NARS experts on what gear might be best for your situation.
  • We provide the Virtual Shopping Trip via a follow-on Zoom session shortly after Bootcamp. Information on how to join us for this event will be shared at our next Bootcamp session.

Articles About Ham Bootcamp

Are you interested in learning more about our Ham Bootcamp program? We’ve written quite a few articles about Bootcamp here on our Blog. You can read them via this link. Also, check out the article about a recent Ham Bootcamp at the New England HamXposition.

Ham Bootcamp has also been featured in the October 2020 edition of QST Magazine. You can view the article here.

Sign Up for Ham Bootcamp

Don’t miss this twice a year opportunity to learn more about Amateur Radio, improve your station, expand your skills, and get on the air.

Our Fall 2020 Ham Bootcamp session will be held online via Zoom on Saturday, November 7th from 10 am – 6 pm Eastern Time.

See you at Ham Bootcamp! You can contact us to sign up for our next Ham Bootcamp via email to membership@n1fd.org.

Support Ham Bootcamp

The Nashua Area Radio Society provides many training and skills development activities for new Hams and Young People. We also have many programs to enable folks young and old alike to join the Amateur Radio service. Please consider supporting our programs and our work by making a donation via the GoFundMe campaign which follows.

Clubs

W1PJE: “A History and an Inside Tour of NIST Station WWV,” Nashoba Valley ARC Meeting Online, September 17, 2020

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Bruce Blain, K1BG, writes:

The Nashoba Valley Amateur Radio Club’s September meeting is TOMORROW, Thursday, September 17th at 7:30 PM. This meeting will be conducted via WebEx. Meeting details are below. Thanks to Jim Hein N8VIM and Medtronics for the WebEx conference.

The September meeting will feature Phil, W1PJE, speaking on “A history, and an Inside Tour, of NIST Station WWV”. This is sure to be an interesting talk.

Thanks and 73. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Bruce, K1BG 

978-772-2773 or bruce.blain@charter.net

[Contact Bruce, K1BG, for WebEx conference meeting details.]
Clubs

K1BG: “CW Academy” at Quannapowitt RA Meeting Online, September 17, 2020

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QRAQRA September online meeting:  “CW Academy” by Bruce Blain, K1BG, September 17, 2020 at 7 PM.

Bruce will talk about this very successful program and how it is introducing large numbers of hams to the joys of CW.  If you have wondered about getting into CW, thought “I can never do that!”, or know someone who might be interested in learning Morse code,  this presentation is for you!

Meetings are held on the third Thursday of each month, September through June. All are invited and holding an Amateur Radio license is not required.  [For Zoom meeting details, email Bob Reiser, AA1M at aa1m -at- yahoo -dot- com.]

Emergency Communications

Northern Florida ARES Requests Clear Frequencies for HF Nets

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QST de W1AW 
ARRL Bulletin 23  ARLB023
From ARRL Headquarters 
Newington CT  September 16, 2020
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB023
ARLB023 Northern Florida ARES Requests Clear Frequencies for HF Nets

Northern Florida Section Emergency Coordinator Karl Martin, K4HBN, is requesting that stations not directly involved in the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) response to Hurricane Sally please avoid 3.950 MHz (primary) and 7.242 MHz (backup).

ARES has activated in four Northern Florida counties. Shelters are open, and power and telecommunications outages are widespread, Martin reports.

NNNN
/EX

Emergency Communications

5-MHz Interoperability Channels Designated for Wildfires and Hurricane Sally Response

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From ARRL Web:

09/15/2020 – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has announced that two 60-meter channels have been made available, as necessary, for interoperability between US Government stations and US amateur radio stations involved in emergency communications related to the wildland firefighting response in California, Oregon, and Washington, and to Hurricane Sally. These interoperability channels will remain active until the need for these channels no longer exists:

  • Channel 1 — primary voice traffic 5332 kHz channel center, 5330.5 kHz USB voice
  • Channel 2 — digital traffic 5348 kHz channel center, 5346.5 kHz USB with 1.5-kHz offset to center of digital waveform.

Frequencies may be modified or added to by FEMA Region 10 for their area or operations due to existing 5-MHz/60-meter interoperability plans for their region.

Amateur radio is secondary on the 5-MHz band and should yield to operational traffic related to wildland firefighting and hurricane response. Although the intended use for these channels is interoperability between federal government stations and licensed US amateur radio stations, federal government stations are primary users and amateurs are secondary users.

The Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) is following FEMA’s lead on the interoperability channel designations for the wildfire and hurricane response. Army MARS Program Manager Paul English, WD8DBY, says he has alerted all MARS members of the FEMA channel designations and MARS members are prepared to support response efforts as needed.   

Clubs

Boston ARC Business Meeting Online, September 17, 2020

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Boston ARC logoDoc Kinne, KE1ML, writes on the Boston Amateur Radio Club mailing list:
 
Here is the Zoom Meeting ID and Password for Thursday’s 7:30 PM Meeting. As mentioned, this will largely be a business meeting, and we hope to discuss future ideas and thoughts as to what we want to do as a club and how.
 
===========================================
 
Topic: Sept BARC Zoom Meeting
Time: Sep 17, 2020 07:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
 
[For Zoom meeting information, email Doc Kinne, KE1ML at ke1ml@arrl.net.]
Clubs

Northeastern Wireless Club Meets Online, September 24, 2020

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From the NUWC mailing list, September 16, 2020

Welcome Back! Fall 2020 Kickoff

Thursday September 24th, 6-7 PM on Teams

Welcome back to all of our returning members, and also to all of our new members! Despite a really unusual time for us all, especially coming into this fall, Wireless Club is starting back up. This semester we will still be having general meetings, workshops, discussions, and more! 

Our first meeting is this Thursday, September 24th. We will be introducing new members to the club and sharing a few details about the upcoming semester and what events and opportunities we are preparing for you. We’ll send another email out next week with a link to join the meeting. Hope to see you all there!

Clubs

WBØIXV: “Morse Code 101 and 201” at Billerica ARS, October 7, 2020

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Andy Wallace, KA1GTT, writes on the Billerica Amateur Radio Society‘s website:

Folks, I am very happy to announce we will have a distant guest speaker for our Zoom meeting [on October 7, 2020 at 7 PM].

A few weeks ago, I was thinking about trying to promote CW in our club and introduce it to members who have never tried it. Google gave me a path to David O’Farrell’s presentations Morse Code 101 and 201. Dave was first licensed as KN7YXO in 1963 (at 15). He was a telegraph operator for the Northern Pacific Railway, holds Amateur Extra and Commercial General Radio Operator licenses, and loves CW! He is also the Treasurer of the Estes Valley Amateur Radio Club in Estes Park, Colorado.

Part of the reason I think BARS should talk more about CW is some of our newer Technician members may not know how much fun they could have with it. Did you know Techs have 650 kHz of CW band space on HF in the 80, 40, 15, and 10 meter bands? (They only get 200 kHz of SSB on 10!) Did you know there are apps and online resources to learn Morse code? And that receiving and sending apps and computer programs exist to help you out? Transceiving CW can be done with much simpler equipment than SSB or even a 2m FM HT. It also cuts through interference and local electrical hash better – you’ll make more contacts. Knowing how to understand CW opens up a whole world of fun operating. The FCC dropped the CW requirement for licensing but you will have a BALL knowing it – just ask any Novice licensee!

Dave sent me a sneak preview of his presentation and it is super. He goes through some very interesting history of Morse code, and digs deep into how to learn it properly. If you already know CW, you will still learn something here. We’ll have time for Q&A and I am sure Dave will elaborate on concepts so anyone new to this world will understand what they will be in for.

Please help me show appreciation for David making time – several time zones away – to present to our club. Let’s have a great turnout for CW 101 and 201.

We 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.

I am looking forward to “seeing” many of you Wednesday 10/7/20.

Andy

KA1GTT

President, Billerica Amateur Radio Society