Falmouth ARA QRV for JOTA

Falmouth Amateur Radio AssociationThe Falmouth Amateur Radio Association will participate in the 61st annual Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) on Saturday, October 20, 2018. The JOTA event will occur at Falmouth’s Gus Canty Recreation Center at 790 Main Street, from 10 AM-5 PM.

FARA members hope to show all attendees (specifically any Scout–boy or girl) what ham radio has to offer and get them on the air.

Volunteers are needed to operate several stations as demos and to get folks on the air:

  • CW station
  • HF voice (SSB)
  • Digital (likely PSK31) with a big screen
  • 2m HT and/or mobile

For more information, visit http://www.falara.org/announcements/jamboreeontheairjotaoctober20.

Flea at MIT, Cambridge, October 21, 2018

Flea at MIT signFlea at MIT – October 21, 2018

*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************

Summary: Buy Sell SWAP    Ham Radio    Electronics Computers    9AM – 2PM  ***

!!!!  In our Traditional GARAGE  !!!!!  ****
          so come rain or shine or super heat the Flea is on !!!

*******************************************************************************
*******************************************************************************

Summary: Buy Sell SWAP    Ham Radio    Electronics Computers    9AM – 2PM

*** !!!!  In our Traditional GARAGE   !!!!  ****
         so come rain or shine or super heat the Flea is on !!!

*********  $1  buyers discount with hardcopy of this notice ********

COMPUTERS – ELECTRONICS – HAM RADIO – COMPUTERS – ELECTRONICS – HAM RADIO

                            FLEA all SUMMER at MIT
                         Sunday October 21, 2018
                                   9AM-2PM

Come to the city for a great flea – plenty of free parking.

        MIT’s  electronics and ham radio flea will take
        place on the third Sunday of each month this summer,
        April thru October.

        There is tailgate space for over 300 sellers!

        Buyers admission is $6  (you get $1 off if
        you’re lucky enough to have a copy of our ad)
        and sellers spaces are $20 for the first and
        $15 for each additional at the gate.

        Early Bird Buyers admission is $15, allows
        entry after the prepaid sellers ~ 7:15AM
        See registration form for season rate.

        The flea will be held at the corner of Albany and
        Main streets in Cambridge; right in the Kendall
        Square area from 9AM to 2PM, with sellers set-up
        time starting at 7AM.

        SEASON PASS + Advance Discounts

        A sellers discount season pass is available which
        offers a 30% discount. By prepaying you get a
        discount and earlier admission. See the registration form
        for full seller info.

        *** Attention Sellers ***
                Prepaid vendors.. Season Pass or monthly,
                will be admitted FIRST.
                Separate lines will form prior to gate opening
                for prepaid and nonprepaid vendors

        !! RAIN or SHINE !!  Have no fear of rain, a covered
        well illuminated tailgate area is available for all
        sellers (6’8″ clearance).

        Talk-in: 145.23- (PL 88.5) W1BOS/R  and
                 W1XM/R-449.725/444.725 (PL 114.8/2A).

        Sponsors: MIT Electronics Research Society
                  MIT UHF Repeater Association (W1XM)
                  MIT Radio Society (W1MX)
                  Harvard Wireless Club (W1AF)

        For more info / advanced reservations 617 253 3776

********** $1  buyers discount with hard copy of this notice ************

Mail the coupon below by the July 5th for advanced reservations.

           FLEA at MIT     2018 Rates

SELLERS

To use your spaces the named vendor MUST be present.
Rates include one admission per space.

Season Pass     $99 First Space – includes $70 for Cambridge Vendor Licenses
                  $70 Each additional space

Advance         $17 First space – includes $10 Cambridge Vendor License
                  $12 Additional Spaces
                        Must be received by the 5th of the month.

Gate Admission  $20 First Space – includes $10 Cambridge Vendor License
                  $15 Additional Spaces
                      Admission is after the prepaid vendors

Early Bird Buyer -Admission after the prepaid vendor line is admitted. ~ 7:15AM
                ** You may not sell. **
                $15 per person at the gate.
                $70 Season Early Bird Buyer

   cut and return
**************************************************************************
FLEA at MIT 2018       Advance Space Application

   _____ 1st Season Pass @ $99   _____ Additional Season Spaces @ $70

   ____April    ____May    ____June   ____ July  ____Aug   ___Sept   ____Oct
          @ $17  for the first each month  + $12 each additional

   _____ Season Early Bird Buyer   @ $70   ** NB You may not sell. **

Name    ________________________     Call  __________        $ Included______

Address ________________________     Phone  __________     Make Check to
                                                                                       The MIT Radio Society
City  ____________________ State  _______  Zip  _______       PO Box 397082
                                                                                       Cambridge MA 02139
E-mail  _____________________________________________

*******************************************************************************
Steve Finberg                              W1GSL                              w1gsl@mit.edu
PO Box 82 MIT Br           Cambridge MA  02139-7082             617 258 3754
*******************************************************************************

SEMARA Antenna Work

Southeastern MA ARA logoDon Rosinha, WA1BXY, writes on the SEMARA mailing list:

This Sunday (October 14) we will start and hopefully finish the build of the new TH-11DX beam and 40-meter rotatable dipole that’s replacing the log periodic array on the tower. Anyone willing to lend a hand would be great. [We’re] in need of two sets of saw horses. Thanks in advance. 

Sturdy Memorial Hospital ARC to Commemorate 40th Anniversary

Sturdy Memorial Hospital ARCSturdy Memorial Hospital ARC members will operate special event station W1S to commemorate the club’s 40th anniversary on November 10, 2018 from 11 AM-10 PM and November 11, 2018 from 11 AM-5 PM. Everyone is welcome to operate from the club station.

“Please try to attend this meeting to volunteer your time to operate,” writes club secretary Ray Cord, K2TGX.  “Even if you are a Tech we will have a General or Extra to work with you. It is not a high pressure contest. We are just making contacts to celebrate our 40-year history. This is a great learning experience for HF operating. If you absolutely can’t make the [October 16] meeting please email me with the hours that you can operate.”

The club was formed in the aftermath of the Blizzard of 1978, when members with Sturdy Memorial Hospital served their community with emergency communications.

UPDATE: See https://www.qrz.com/db/w1s for times/modes of operation. 

MARS Members To Support Defense Department Radio Comms Readiness Exercise

Tom Kinahan, N1CPE, writes:

As part of this COMEX, MARS members will reach out to amateur radio operators (on October 24-26) for any information on real life infrastructure failures. We have been practicing this sort of reporting as part of both Western and Eastern Mass ARES nets. If there are any know local failures of infrastructure, defined as Power, Water, Medical, Sanitation, Communications or Transportation, just let the MARS operator know with information on your county name, or your zip code (which is easy to determine county name with). 

MARS operators will use non-internet connected VHF/UHF repeaters as well as 60 meter channel 1 in our area, to gather these reports.

MARS stations will be operating from Oct 22-26, but the participation of Amateur Radio operators is expected on Oct 24-26.

Amateur Radio operators are asked to monitor 60-meter channel 1 (5,330.5 kHz, USB) at 0001 UTC (8:01 PM ET) on October 24, for a high-power broadcast of updated information regarding this exercise and how the Amateur Radio community can participate.

Contact Tom Kinahan, N1CPE, with any questions.

See: http://www.arrl.org/news/mars-members-to-support-defense-department-radio-communication-readiness-exercise

Eastern Massachusetts Hospital Net for Saturday 10/6/18

Hello to All,

Net Control for the October 6, 2018 Eastern MA Hospital Net will be W1SSH, The South Shore Hospital Amateur Radio Club. The net will commence at the usual time of 10:00 AM using the following repeaters in the order listed and last approximately 1 hour.

1.Sharon 146.865 tone 103.5
2 Marshfield 145.390 tone 67.0
3.Bridgewater 147.180 tone 67.0
Simplex 147.42

The Net will then return to the Sharon Repeater for final comments and Net closing.

NET Protocol: Please wait for Net Control to ask for Check-ins. When asked to check in please use the standard net check in procedure which is: Here is.., un-key, wait 3 seconds to check for doubling, then give yours or your facilities call sign, your first name, and your facility’s name.

We extend an invitation to any health care facility or EOC of any city or town that is served by one of the participating hospitals to join the Net. We also extend an invitation to any RACES or ARES member to check in during the NET.

Any hospital wishing to join the net that needs assistance with equipment or personnel should contact us at ssharc@gmail.com. We can assist you with getting your location on the air.

We are always looking for groups or organizations to try their hand at Net Control. If you are interested please contact us at the email address listed above. Our goal is to rotate Net Control throughout the year among as many groups as possible.

We thank the repeater trustees for their generosity in allowing us to conduct the monthly nets and the use of their systems in an actual event. The following list of repeaters are available for our use. Only a few systems are used each month with the selection of those used made by Net Control for that month.

Attleboro 147.195 tone 127.3 (Sturdy Memorial Hospital)
Belmont 145.430 tone 146.2
Boston 145.230 tone encode 88.5 tone decode 100.0
Bridgewater 147.180 tone 67.0
Danvers 145.47 tone 136.5
Dartmouth 147.000 tone 67.0
Fall River 146.805. tone 67.0
Falmouth 147.375 tone 110.9
Mansfield EMA 446.925 tone 100.0
Mansfield 147.015 tone 67.0
Marshfield 145.390 tone 67.0
Norwood 147.210 tone 100.00
Plymouth 146.685 tone 131.8
Salem 146.88 tone 118.8
Sharon 146.865 tone 103.5
Weymouth 147.345 tone 110.9 (South Shore Hospital)
W. Bridgewater 146.775 dcs 244
Wrentham 147.09 tone 146.2

We look forward to hearing you all on the Net.

Respectfully,

South Shore Hospital Amateur Radio Club – W1SSH
55 Fogg Road, Box 42
South Weymouth MA 02190

W1HFN Fox Deployed, Littleton, October 4, 2018

Barry Fox, W1HFN, writes on the foxhunting list at 12:52 PM on October 4, 2018:

At 12 noon today, Thursday, Oct 4th, I deployed the fox in the George and Lucy Lapp Conservation land off Newtown Road in Littleton. The frequency is 146.565, constantly running, and a voice ID of 20 seconds every minute. NO PI within a 100 ft diameter circle of the hide.

Good luck!

“Chip” Cohen, W1YW, To Receive RCA’s Lee de Forest Award

Belmont inventor and entrepreneur Nathan “Chip” Cohen, W1YW, of fractal antenna and cloaking technology fame, will receive the Radio Club of America’s Lee de Forest Award for “significant contributions to the advancement of radio communications.” The award’s namesake, de Forest, is credited with inventing the Audion vacuum tube as an amplifier in radio circuits. De Forest also popularized the word “radio” in the US, in favor of the European term “wireless.”  [Details]

New England Sci-Tech Technician Course, Natick, October 13-14, 2018

New England Sci Tech logoFor junior high and high school students, homeschool students, and adults interested in wireless communications and electronics, this fast-paced, two-day course will get you ready to take the Amateur Radio TECHNICIAN license exam.

Topics range from the science of radio electronics to the FCC rules governing the radio spectrum. Some preliminary reading and study is necessary to get the best results from this course. Material will be sent a few days before the course.

The TECHNICIAN level course runs on Saturday, 9 am – 4 pm and Sunday, 9 am to noon., followed by the FCC Technician exam at noon, at New England Sci-Tech, 16 Tech Circle, Natick.

Included with course fee: printed handouts, lecture study guide, license fee if tested at our location, a guest pass to the NEAR/STARS Radio Room and radio club meetings for 2 months, and free coffee, tea, or hot chocolate during the course. Advance registration and payment required.

For more information and to register, visit <https://www.nescitech.org/product/weekend-technician-class/>. For questions, e-mail bobphinney at nescitech.org or call 508-720-4179.

New England Sci-Tech General-Class Course, Natick, December 8-9, 2018

New England Sci Tech logoFor junior high and high school students, homeschool students, and adults who already have a Technician level license, this fast-paced, two-day course will get you ready to take the GENERAL license exam. Topics range from the science of radio electronics to the FCC rules governing the radio spectrum.  Some preliminary reading and study is necessary to get the best results from this course. Material will be sent approximately a week before the course.

The GENERAL level course runs Saturday, 9 am – 5 pm and Sunday, 9 am to noon, followed by the FCC General exam at noon, at New England Sci-Tech, 16 Tech Circle, Natick.

Included with course fee: printed handouts, lecture study guide, license fee if tested at our location, a guest pass to the NEAR/STARS Radio Room and radio club meetings for 2 months, and free coffee, tea, or hot chocolate during the course. Advance registration and payment required.

For more information and to register, visit <https://www.nescitech.org/product/weekend-general-class/>. For questions, e-mail bobphinney at nescitech.org or call 508-720-4179.

 

Eastern Massachusetts ARES Net for October – Monday 10/1/18 at 830 PM on MMRA Network

Hello to all…

We will be continuing our monthly ARES Net in October. The monthly ARES Net for October is Monday the 1st, at 8:30 PM on the MMRA Repeater system. For frequencies that will be linked into the ARES Net on the MMRA Network, please see the following link from the MMRA web site detailing the repeaters that will be linked in through Hub 1:

http://www.mmra.org/repeaters/repeater_index_by_linkstate.html

We look forward to your participation and remember, we are always looking for Net Controls to run the ARES Net.

As part of our relationship with MARS and our own situational awareness gathering we will be asking for any known infrastructure issues that you are aware of. The information must either be personally observed, or obtained “over the air” via amateur radio. Items considered to be infrastructure include but are not limited to: electrical power, water, medical facilities, sanitation, communications, and transportation. Examples of failure would be: small or large area power failure, water main breaks, hospitals’ ER closed, sewage issues, TV/radio station off the air (including public safety), interstate highway or major road closed. No known issues are just as important as reporting failures.

Additionally we are interested in relay of any weather information from airport ATIS/ASOS stations that you can directly receive via radio. These stations broadcast continuously in the 120.000 – 138.000 MHz frequency range using amplitude modulation. Information from the ATIS should include airport, temperature, altimeter (barometer), wind, precipitation, and visibility.

A list of stations with their frequencies and a map can be found at: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/weather/asos/?state=MA
A brief introduction to ATIS can be found at: https://www.vatsim.net/pilot-resource-centre/general-lessons/understanding-atis

We will have several interesting announcements for the net that evening and we look forward to everyone’s participation. Updates will be posted via email and on the Eastern Massachusetts ARES Web Site at http://ema.arrl.org/ares

Thanks for your continued support of ARES!

Rob Macedo, KD1CY
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator

Operation Equinox – Portable HF Ops Event Update – 9/28/18

Cape Ann ARES Emergency Coordinator KA1BTK-Gardi Winchester II, writes:

All:

‘Operation Equinox’ is definitely taking on a life of its own! From it’s humble beginnings as a suggestion that we try setting up a CAARA member’s new portable antenna mast to an event almost as big as Field Day itself, it has blossomed in just five days! The ideas have come down so fast that I just can’t keep up with administering it! With the numbers of people who are informed and planning to attend, I doubt making many QSOs are going to be likely.

But that is not what it’s all about!

As of right now, the basic plan is for a portable equipment test and set-up practice of our (your) remote emergency communications response plans, on a more individual level, as opposed to Field Day exercises that run more at a club level. We’ve been ‘dodging the bullet’ as of late, and the latest hurricane, Florence, was certainly a big Red-Flag. There are still areas of the Carolinas and Virginia that are relying on Amateur Radio communications for life support.

Are YOU ready?

So, come and bring your Go-Kits and exercise your emergency operations plans and test your equipment for readiness, Check out the plans of other Hams and maybe get some new and fresh ideas. Help us show the public what Ham Radio can do for their safety and well-being, and show newer Hams what the craft holds with higher license grades.

While there has been very little time to plan for this event, we’re sort of ‘winging-it’ this year. But, that works a bit in our favor, as a real emergency will give very little time to prepare and may give a more accurate assessment of our responses. Plans and possibilities for future events are endless!

Hope to see you there!

Operation Equinox:
Sunday, September 30th
12:00 Noon until 5:00PM +
Hospital Hill, Top of Summit Ave.
Rockport, MA, 01966

Semper Paratus! & 73’s ___________________#\____

Gardner H. Winchester II, KA1BTK, ARRL EC Cape Ann

“The most important tool for disaster recovery is communication”.
gardiw2@gmail.com
http://www.google.com/profiles/gardiw2

SEMARA Flea Market, October 6, 2018

SEMARA Flea Market flyerThe SEMARA Flea Market 2018 will be held on Saturday, October 6, 2018 at the SEMARA Clubhouse located at 54 Donald Street, Dartmouth, MA.  The event will be held rain or shine from 9:00 AM to 12 noon, with vendor setup beginning at 8:00 AM.  There is handicapped parking and access available.  Over the air talk-in will be on the SEMARA 147.000 repeater.  We will also be conducting a VE exam session inside the clubhouse at 10:30 AM for anyone interested in obtaining or upgrading their amateur radio license.

For more information, please contact us at (508) 997-7070 or hamfest [at] semara [dot] org.

Portable HF Ops Event

Cape Ann ARES Emergency Coordinator KA1BTK-Gardi Winchester II, writes:

Who:  All Amateur Radio Operators:

What:  Portable HF Operations and equipment exercise.
When: Next Sunday, September 30th (Weather permitting) from about 12:00 Noon – 5:00 or 6:00 PM
Where: Hospital Hill, at the top of Summit Avenue (through the stone pillars) in Rockport, MA, 01966
Why:  Fellowship, practice, making sure your go-bag plans are complete and all of your equipment is functional, and a whole host of reasons!
Come and join fellow Hams in exercising and testing your equipment and plans, and have fun walking all over one another in a remote area!  Hospital Hill is a large field area and Dog Park (Yes, bring your pets) that we have been using as our portable operations base for some time.  We have running permission to operate from there.  There are some nice hiking and walking trails to explore and beautiful vistas to see from up on the hill!  There is no power so bring a generator or hook into your vehicle power.

Please pass this along!

 
Semper Paratus!  &  73‘s  ___________________#\____
 
Gardner H. Winchester II, KA1BTK, ARRL EC Cape Ann
 
“The most important tool for disaster recovery is communication”.
 

Cape Cod ARES Participates in Falmouth Public Safety Fair

Cape Cod ARES District Emergency Coordinator WQ1O-Frank O’Laughlin writes:

I felt just well enough to attend the Falmouth Emergency preparedness/Safety fair day here on Cape Cod to support my new ARES ADEC Henry Brown K1WCC who headed up the event for the Falmouth ARES area of the Cape Cod and Islands ARES District. I was pleased to see the aluminum case kit that I built for him a few years back and the cooler based kit he personally built. I only brought my small camera bag radio kit. It was well attended and organized by Assistant Falmouth EMD Kim Strohm. Several Falmouth ARES folks were there. It was nice to see Henry get interviewed by Falmouth TV. It was also great to see our partners such as CERT, MRC, CC DART, Red Cross, DCR, public safety, MEMA, NWS and many others at the public safety fair.

Display of Cape Cod ARES Go Kits at the Falmouth Public Safety Fair
Close-up of Cape Cod ARES Go Kit
Close-up of Cape Cod ARES Go-Kit
Close-up of a Cape Cod ARES Go-Kit

 

Cape Cod ARES Assistant District Emergency Coordinator, K1WCC-Henry Brown being interviewed on Falmouth Cable Access Television