SKYWARN Recognition Day UPDATE!

[Note: Prior arrangements MUST be made with KD1CY for entry to NWS Taunton Offices – W1MPN]
Hello to all…
The following is a modified plan for SKYWARN Appreciation Day participation
due to the major storm that is expected to impact the region. Right now, the
Blue Hill Observatory station will still particpate as planned. NWS Taunton
plans have been modified to be as follows:
Here is an update on NWS Taunton participation for SKYWARN Recognition
Day based on the SKYWARN Activation that will occur on that day.
QSL Cards will be done this year. You must send a SASE with your QSL
card in order to receive a QSL card for contacting NWS Taunton during
SKYWARN Appreciation Day. We are using the Boston Amateur Radio Club’s
mailing address and it as follows:
Skywarn Recognition Day (MQE) &/or (BOX)
c/o Boston Amateur Radio Club
PO Box 15585
Boston, MA 02215
*If you worked both W1BOS/MQE & WX1BOX, Please send 2 QSL’s & 1 SASE
Here is a schedule of where WX1BOX operations will be on 2 Meters and
440 MHz for both Friday Night and Saturday:
Friday December 5th, 2003 Schedule of Roving Operations for 2 Meters
and 440 MHz
7:00-7:30 PM 146.970-Paxton Repeater
7:30-8:00 PM IRLP link to the Wilbraham Repeater and then possibly to an
IRLP reflector.
8:00-8:30 PM 146.655-Falmouth Repeater
8:30-9:00 PM 147.000-Dartmouth Repeater
9:00-9:30 PM 145.230-Boston Repeater
9:30-10:00 PM 146.760-Scituate RI
10:30-11:00 PM 147.195-Attleboro Repeater
At this time, we plan to terminate operations one hour early to save
resources for the most significant part of the storm which is expected
Saturday into Sunday.
Saturday December 6th, 2003 Schedule of Roving Operations for 2 Meters and
440 MHz.
The schedule of being on various repeaters has been pre-empted due to the
potential for roving to various repeaters for storm reports. If you make
contact with us directly, we will honor QSL’s and log the contacts but we
cannot honor the previously set schedule as we may need reports from
repeaters at different time than the previous schedule. We appreciate
everyone’s understanding here and we thank all of you for your continued
support of SKYWARN including for this latest major storm.
Here is the HF Schedule. Friday Night’s Schedule is unchanged except to
shave one hour off the expected time we will be at NWS Taunton. For Friday
Night from 9-11 PM, we will guard near the 3943 KHz 75 Meter ARES/RACES
liaison frequency. For Saturday, we have made 40 Meters the primary band for
much of the daylight hours and 20 Meters the secondary band. On 40 Meters,
we will guard near or on the 7245 KHz ARES/RACES frequency.
Friday December 5th, 2003:
7-9 PM: Primary Band: 20 Meters Secondary Band: 75 Meters
9 PM-11 PM: Primary Band: 75 Meters Secondary Band: 20 Meters
Saturday December 6th, 2003:
7 AM-Noon: Primary Band: 40 Meters Secondary Band: 20 Meters
Noon-5PM: Primary Band: 40 Meters Secondary Band: 20 Meters
5-7 PM: Primary Band: 75 Meters Secondary Band: 20 Meters
We appreciate everyone’s support during this major winter storm and have
modified our plans to be as accomodating as possible to thank the SKYWARN
Spotters in the region as best as possible. We would like to thank everyone
for their past support and their support for this latest storm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Southeast Massachusetts ARES District Emergency Coordinator
SEMARA ARES Emergency Coordinator
Pager #: (508) 354-3142
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 1-800-445-2588 Ext.: 72929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://users.rcn.com/rmacedoThe fifth annual SKYWARN Recognition Day (SRD) will take place this year on Saturday, December 6, 2003. This is the day that Amateur Radio operators visit National Weather Service (NWS) offices and contact other operators around the world.
The purpose of the event is to recognize Amateur Radio operators for the vital public service they perform during times of severe weather, and to strengthen the bond between radio amateurs and their local National Weather Service office. The event is co-sponsored by the American Radio Relay League and the National Weather Service.
Traditionally, hams have assisted the National Weather Service during times of severe weather by providing real-time reports of severe events and storm evolution. “You simply can’t put a price tag on it”, says Scott Mentzer (N0QE), organizer of the event and Meteorologist-In-Charge at the NWS office in Goodland, Kansas. “The assistance that radio amateurs provide to the NWS throughout the year is invaluable”.
SKYWARN Recognition Day this year will be held from 0000 UTC to 2400 UTC on December 6, 2003. Scott Mentzer, the creator and promoter of the event, strives to involve more NWS offices and Amateur Radio operators each year. In 2002, participants logged nearly 23,000 QSOs during the 24-hour event. Last year nearly 70 countries were contacted. To learn more about this year’s event, check out the NOAA Web site:
http://hamradio.noaa.gov/. This site includes a link to a list of participating National Weather Service offices and their call signs.
Questions concerning this event can be directed toLarry Boyd, K0ILB, at larry.boyd@noaa.gov.
– –Thanks to David Floyd, N5DBZ,
Warning Coordination Meteorologist,
NWS Goodland, Kansas
david.l.floyd@noaa.gov
An announcement on SKYWARN Recognition Day also appears in November, 2003, QST, p. 90, and at the
SRD site Web page.


Norwood ARC offers Amateur Radio Emergency Communication Course Exams each third Thursday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at the Norwood Civic Center. Pre-registration is required. See http://www.norwood-arc.org/newscarrier/newscarrier.htm for details.
The Billerica ARS One-Day Technician class on Saturday, November 15 was a complete success, according to BARS Treasurer Bruce Anderson, W1LUS. The five class participants successfully completed the class and were licensed at the end of the day.
Bob, W1RH writes on the CEMARC mailing list:
As many of you are aware, from Friday at 7 PM through Saturday at 7 PM is SKYWARN Recognition Day. It is unclear whether the storm will have a significant impact on SKYWARN Recognition Day activities at this time. This will be monitored as the storm track becomes more certain. We ask that all Amateurs who plan to contact us during SKYWARN Recognition Day give us current sky condition, snowfall total and temperature (if possible) during SKYWARN Recognition Day as we rove the various repeaters on the schedule we listed on our SKYWARN Newsletter. If we need to go into Activation mode, we will shift into that mode and attempt to notify the various SKYWARN Repeaters with a brief announcement that we are shifting into Activation mode or request Net Controls to come up on frequency and state that we have shifted from SKYWARN Recognition Day mode to SKYWARN Activation mode. Since we will already be active at NWS Taunton with Ops, Ops will be utilized if needed for this storm.
All SKYWARN Spotters and Amateur Radio SKYWARN Spotters and Coordinators should continue to closely monitor the progress of this storm. The next coordination message will be posted by 11:30 PM this evening. Below is the NWS Taunton Hazardous WX Outlook and Special WX Statement and the NWS Taunton Area Forecast Discussion:
Bill, N1QPR wrote on mmra-list:
K1ARC American Red Cross Emergency Training Net
The Southeastern MA ARA activated ARES on Monday, December 1, 2003 in response to a widespread power outage that extended from the Plymouth area to Provincetown, Cape Cod and the Islands, extending roughly from Dartmouth/Westport eastward across much of South Coastal Massachusetts. [
Hello to all…
Several clubs in Eastern Massachusetts have been acknowledged for their contributions via the League’s Sectrum Defense “Honor Roll” in the recent November, 2003 QST. The defense includes “special campaigns for WRC-03 and against Broadband over Power Lines (BPL).”
Falmouth’s Emergency Operations Center will soon have a wire antenna for 40- and 80-meter operation installed by Falmouth Amateur Radio Association, according to FARA president Bob Courtemanche, N1WAT. The wire antenna will complement an existing dual band antenna, according to Courtemanche. “Also, the Mashpee Fire Chief would like a list of people who would be available to help with emergency communiations in Mashpee,” noted N1WAT.
Several Boston-area 2 meter and 440 MHz repeaters are scheduled to be down for maintenance this weekend, prompting concern from at least one active SKYWARN member.
Pi, K1RV wrote: