a field organization of the National Association for Amateur Radio®
Youth activities in the section
Daniel Sheen, KC1EPN, writes:
The folks over at W1MX have been organizing an amateur radio class for high schoolers with Beaver Works at MIT for the spring. It starts on March 4th and we still have space for more people, I was wondering if any of your members know anyone who might be interested?
The signup link is here: https://mit-bwsi.formstack.com
Thanks.
From nediv.arrl.org:
Rob Leiden, K1UI, writes:
The Barnstable ARC (BARC) held its first Winter Field Day (WFD) at Boy Scout Camp Greenough in Yarmouth, MA this weekend. The Club and the Boy Scouts are working together to put a permanent amateur radio station at the camp. As part of the close relationship being forged with scouting, BARC (W1MA) set up a 2O station in the camp and manned it around the clock with a dozen volunteers. Since the Administration building was winterized with no heat or water, it was an ideal location for an outdoor experience including temporary heaters and bringing in water. Although the effort was smaller than BARC’s summer Field Day, setting up the antennas and operating in cold weather gave both old timers and newer operators valuable experience. Don, KT1OK (foreground) and Lem, W1LEM were finishing the operation on Sunday afternoon, logging a few last-minute contacts on 15 and 40 meters.
665 contacts were made on 5 bands using emergency power with stations as far away as Hawaii. BARC is taking every opportunity to showcase amateur radio at Camp Greenough that hosts camp outs to scouts from all over Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut.
Winter Field Day continues this effort that began with Jamboree on the Air last Fall and continues with WFD and the removal of trees in preparation for Eversource to install three donated poles for the permanent radio station antenna supports.
New England Sci-Tech will participate in Winter Field Day and also host a number of fun and educational activities on Saturday, January 28, 2023 from 2:00 to 9:00 PM at 16 Tech Circle in Natick, Massachusetts. “We will stay warm and take a points loss but still have fun! Non-licensed adults and children can get on the air with one of our control operators.”
The New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society will meet on-line and in-person on January 3, 2023 at 7 PM and feature: “Making Ferrite Toroid Baluns” by by John Portune, W6NBC.
Few hams have a clue of how to select a toroid and wind it to make a 1:1, 4:1 or 9:1 balun and the well-known radio books can be confusing. This presentation shows the three very easy steps to successful ferrite toroid design with very little math and a free on-line calculator.
Bio: John is a native of Los Angeles, CA and was first licensed in 1965. He has a Bachelor’s degree in physics from Oregon State University and, before he retired, was a broadcast television engineer and instructor. John is a ham magazine author and has published more than 25 articles to date in QST. He is active on HF, VHF, UHF – SSB, FM, digital modes, ham satellites and his other hobbies include steam railroading and pipe organs. John is married to KF6OEB and has three children and 12 grandchildren. John’s website is www.w6nbc.com
Members of the Algonquin Amateur Radio Club in Marlborough took time from their busy lives to chat with students at the Hudson High School over AARC’s 440 MHz repeater. The Hudson High School ARC is under new leadership: Lynda Chilton, KC1RWC, the HUD-TV Cable Access TV Director, and Troy Lefebvre, KC1RUC, of the school’s Business and Technology Department.
Outgoing club leader and W1HUD trustee Reed Prior, W1TF, is still involved supporting the new instructors through the transition.
“We had to store the equipment away as we work through the logistics of reconnecting the antenna to new location in the building. We hope to set it back up in the future but we have to discuss it at a later date,” says Lefebvre.
The students use a handheld Baofeng radio to make the contacts with the Algonquin ARC members.
Ken Horton, KA1GFN, the Algonquin ARC’s treasurer and newsletter editor, spoke to three or four students on Friday, December 9, 2022.
“They wanted to know how long I had been in Amateur Radio and how I become interested.”
Ken says one student also asked if he had any suggestions on the best way to learn Morse code.
“Not being a Morse code person, I couldn’t offer much as far as suggestions other than to practice.”
The students’ questions were not limited strictly to Amateur Radio,” reports KA1GFN.
“They also asked some questions on sports which I came up with the best answers that I could for not being a sports person. They asked which sport I liked watching the most; I don’t really watch sports but if were to watch any, it would be baseball. They asked what baseball team I like watching the best. Being from New England, it would be the Red Sox. I guess, though, the idea was to get them to talk.”
“We run a program that we call ‘Enrichment,'” says Troy Lefebvre. “Each day there is time allocated for academic support or enrichment which are fun topics for students to learn more about. We currently have ham radio enrichment on Fridays.”
KC1RUC says the ham enrichment topics have included:
“It is out hope, based on what we know now and our set up, to continue with the information listed above and expand as Lynda and I learn more. This coming summer, we hope get our General class licenses, revisit the equipment and antenna set up and expand the offering in the fall of 2023.”
Troy says the biggest challenge they face is “continuing to get good numbers for enrichment. They have been going down as of late, but of those that do come they are really interested. I would like to have a solid foundation throughout the year and ideally, have it in place for the fall.”
Hudson High School is a public school enrolling about 950 students in grades 8-12. It is located in the New England town of Hudson, MA, about 27 miles (43 km) west of Boston. We offer a broad general education curriculum, including about 155 elective courses to meet widely varying student interests.
The New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society will meet on-line and in-person on December 20, 2022 at 7 PM and feature: “A Low Power, Single Polarization, 144 MHz, Earth-Moon-Earth Amateur Radio Station: Physics, Engineering, and Operations” by Dr. William E. Keicher, KC1HTT.
Description: Successful amateur Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) communications is the most challenging project that an amateur radio operator can attempt. The goal of this presentation is to give the amateur radio enthusiast an idea of what is required to successfully model, build, and operate a QRP EME station. The KC1HTT 2 meter, QRP EME amateur radio station is described in detail. Included in this presentation are the physics of EME communications, communication system analysis, design, and hardware implementation. In addition, the JT65B communication mode, waveforms, and signal processing are described. Finally, EME operations are reported, including QSO planning, safety considerations, EME support web sites, six successful QSOs, and a signal-to-noise analysis of the QSOs. Plans are discussed for the next generation KC1HTT EME radio station.
Bio: Dr. William E. Keicher, KC1HTT, is a retired research electrical engineer. He worked at MIT Lincoln Laboratory from 1975 to 2012 and CBS Laboratories from 1973 to 1975. He served as an officer in the US Army Signal Corps from 1969 to 1977. His research specialties include laser and millimeter wave communications, laser, microwave and millimeter wave radar systems, and infrared and visible imaging systems. He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University’s Electrical Engineering Department BSEE (1969), MSEE (1970), Ph.D. EE (1974). Dr. Keicher’s amateur radio interests include HF DX chasing, VHF/UHF satellite communications, and VHF Earth-Moon-Earth communications.
The New England Weather Balloon Society is dedicated to the collaborative and iterative process of building and launching high altitude balloons to the edge of space to take instrumentation readings, record video footage, and conduct experiments. This club, hosted by New England Sci-Tech, brings together like minded tinkerers, engineers, and hams to work on exciting projects and launches. Open to all ages.
The Northeastern University Wireless Club is hosting a special meeting with the AeroNU Project Horizon project on November 3, 2022 at 7 p.m. in 503 Hayden (club space).
The club will discuss its upcoming collaboration with AeroNU. AeroNU is launching a CubeSat, and NUWC is supporting the construction of a VHF/UHF satellite ground station to be hosted in the NUWC club space. The team from Aero will be presenting on their work, and the communication systems onboard.
W1STR will be open and operating School Club Roundup on Thursday [October 20, 2022] from 7 pm to 9 pm and Friday [October 21, 2022] 6 pm to 8 pm, all are welcome to come and operate. New hams, youth, and anyone interested in ham radio will be able to operate this event on HF.
Bands:
All amateur bands except 60, 30, 17 and 12 meters are permitted.
Repeaters are not to be used. Only recognized simplex frequencies may be used. U. S. A. examples include 144.90-145.00; 146.49, .55, 58; and 147.42, .45, .48, .51, .54 and .57 MHz. The national calling frequency, 146.52 MHz, may not be used. Similar restrictions apply in other countries.
Suggested HF Frequencies:
Phone (MHz): 1.855-1.865; 3.850-3.880; 7.225-7.255; 14.250-14.280; 21.300-21.330; 28.440-28.460
CW (MHz): 1.800-1.810; 3.530-3.540; 7.030-7.040; 14.030-14,.040; 21.130-21.140; 28.130-28.140
More details at: https://www.arrl.org/school-club-roundup
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!
Andy 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.
George Allison, K1IG, writes on the PART of Westford mailing list:
West Springfield, MA—The BIG E Space Chat was an unqualified success. Many hours of planning and effort went into making the ISS contact a reality.
Thirteen young STEM students who are taking space science workshops at New England Sci-Tech in Natick, Mass., were given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity on Tuesday, September 27, 2022 to ask questions of International Space Station pilot Bob Hines, KI5RQT, orbiting 260 miles above the earth via a ground station in Belgium. Held in The BIG E Arena, a large entertainment venue, the event garnered much news and television coverage at the fair which attracts 1.5 million people during its 17-day run. It was an out of this world experience for the students from across New England.
Following several informative videos, hundreds of people who gathered in the arena, along with a national audience watching via YouTube live stream, heard from: Gene Cassidy, Eastern States Exposition CEO; David Minster, ARRL CEO; Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC; and Bob Phinney, K5TEC. The pre-contact show was choreographed down to the minute in order to assure a smooth transition leading to the contact itself.
At approximately 2:30 PM ET, the audience heard astronaut Bob Hines, KI5RQT, reply to the ARISS ground station, ON4ISS:
“Oscar November Four India Sierra Sierra, this is Oscar Romeo Four India Sierra Sierra. Over.”
Over a dozen questions were asked by the youths and answered.
“The space station has to be flying over one of our ground stations… this one happened to be in Belgium,” said Bob Phinney, President of New England Sci-Tech. He told Springfield Channel 22 News, “The time had to be perfect. So the students got exactly ten minutes to get up and talk.”
“All the new opportunities that there are about new discoveries, new planets, and even new life,” said 11-year-old Harish Sathishkaumar.
Jack Warren told 22 News, “What fascinates me the most is the unknown…. There is just so much to learn!”
“The best thing about this work is that we probably changed one or two lives today,” said Fred Kemmerer. “The biggest takeaway from this momentous day; always to reach for the stars.”
The following day, Bob Hines tweeted this message from the ISS:
The BIG E Space Chat team consisted, in part, of:
Third-parties involved in making the effort a success included: the production company Black Helicopter, Limited; the BIG E Marketing team, and Eastern States Exposition CEO Gene Cassidy; NASA; and Amateur Radio on the International Space Station.
Several ARRL Headquarters staff from Newington, Connecticut attended the event including: ARRL CEO David Minster, NA2AA; Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1W, Director of Public Relations and Innovation; and Steve Goodgame, K5ATA, ARRL Education and Learning Manager.
At the conclusion of the contact, the youths were presented with certificates confirming their contact with Bob Hines aboard the ISS, signed by David Minster, NA2AA; Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC; and Bob Phinney, K5TEC.
Along with “Space Chat,” NESci-Tech is conducting a 12-month educational space science program that includes:
You can learn more about New England Sci-Tech’s educational space science program by visiting their website.
A recording of the pre-contact show and ARISS space station contact can be viewed on the NESci-Tech YouTube channel at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdxnD8uF8t0.
Tom Ulrich, KC1OCY, writes on the Boston Amateur Radio Club mailing list:I’m working with the Blue Hill Observatory Wireless Society and the local Scout council to organize a JOTA event on October 15 at their base camp in Milton; more info to come soon. I’m hearing word that local troops may be planning their own JOTA events that day as well.
Nico Bezzerides, KC1PNP, writes on the STARS-radio mailing list:
I just saw this (https://public.nrao.edu/news/
—
“Following a generous grant from Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), the National Science Foundation‘s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) will soon launch a two-year project to engage BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ students in learning about the electromagnetic spectrum and the excitement of amateur— also called ham— radio. The new project, Exploring the Electromagnetic Spectrum (EMS), is expected to offer its first student-facing trainings in January 2023.
ARDC selected EMS because of NRAO’s proven track record in supporting underrepresented minority students in the sciences by combining mentoring and instruction from content experts with best practices in equity.
As a part of NRAO’s broader impacts-focused SuperKnova
Amateur radio provides a hands-on entry point to understanding the radio spectrum and its practical uses, including communications, astronomy, and community emergency infrastructure and response. Early support and engagement with amateur radio has the potential to create pathways for students to a future career or lifelong hobby in the sciences. The $315,123 ARDC grant will allow NRAO to develop and execute the program for two cohorts of students. It will also result in the development of a nine-month EMS curriculum that will be freely available to school groups, community clubs, and educational institutions.
NRAO Director Tony Beasley said, “Amateur radio continues to be incredibly important to the nation and global communications, and NRAO is excited to be working with ARDC to bring a new generation and diverse communities to the field.”
73
Nico, KC1PNP
The New England Sci-Tech Amateur Radio Society will meet on-line and in-person on July 26, 2022 at 7 PM and feature: “Cubes in Space: Testing Vibrational Energy Harvesting on a Sounding Rocket” by Max Kendall, W0MXX. As part of its educational offerings for youths, New England Sci-Tech now offers an Entrepreneurship Club on Saturdays 9 AM-noon.Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC, writes on nediv.arrl.org:
New England school students will be making live radio contact with an astronaut on the International Space Station from The BIG E during the week of September 26th – October 1st. The “BIG E Space Chat” is part of a program to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) educational activities and Amateur Radio learning activities for young people.
New England Sci-Tech is sponsoring a 12-month STEM education program free of charge to all students grades 4 through 12 and Scouts in New England as part of the contact program. The program will provide hands-on learning about Space Science, Radio Communications, Electronics, Satellites, Rocketry, Astronomy, Amateur Radio, and more. Ten students participating in the Sci-Tech educational program will be chosen to make contact and chat live with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) from the BIG E.
The contact and the associated educational program are a result of a partnership between The BIG E, New England Sci-Tech (a STEM education group in New England), Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS), Black Helicopter Creative LLC, the New England Division of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), and local Amateur Radio organizations.
Execution planning has been underway for some time, and we are pleased to announce the addition of Ray Lajoie AA1SE, ARRL Western Massachusetts Section Manager, to the contact leadership team. Ray will be responsible for working with the BIG E team and our content production partner Black Helicopter to set up, test, and facilitate the development and delivery of a pre-contact program.
Ray joins and rounds out the existing BIG E space chat planning team consisting of:
The BIG E planning team is being assisted by Dylann Keaney, President of Black Helicopter Creative LLC, Barbara Irby, KC1KGS, Dan Norman, N0HF, and Larry Krainson, W1AST, in planning what expect will be a major Amateur Radio event in New England. You can learn more about the BIG E space chat here.
Fred Kemmerer AB1OC
ARRL New England Division Director
Two students from New England Sci-Tech have team projects that will be part of a NASA rocket payload, according to New England Sci-Tech President Bob Phinney, K5TEC.
Their experiments were delivered to NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility and integrated into the nose cone last week. According to idoodlEDU CEO Amber Agee-DeHart, “The launch is scheduled [to launch on June 23, 2022] sometime between 5:30-6:00 AM EDT. Right now the forecast calls for partly cloudy skies that morning with light winds.”
To view the SR-8 launch (NASA RockOn/RockSat-C mission) on Thursday, 23 June 2022 starting around 05:20 EDT, visit NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility YouTube channel: <https://www.youtube.com/user/NASAWallops/featured>. Streaming will begin 20 minutes before launch. You can also view it on the www.cubesinspace.com homepage.
idoodlEDU Inc., is a501.c.3 charitable organization and responsible for business development and fostering strategic partnerships. idoodleEDU designs programs, curriculum and tools to help teachers and students around the world discover and harness their creative intelligence and to engage in more meaningful and richer learning experiences in preparation for a globally connected, knowledge and skills-based economy.
New England Sci-Tech is a non-profit STEM+ education center and makerspace in Natick, Massachusetts, dedicated to project-based, hands-on learning for youth and families across the New England community.
UPDATE:
NASA launch at Wallops
Launch now on Friday, June 24 at 5:30 AM -4GMT EDT
See @cubesinspace on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for more updates
www.cubesinspace.com for live streaming on Friday or NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility YouTube channel
Best regards,
Bob Phinney, K5TEC, President
New England Sci-Tech Inc.
