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President's Letter

Jonathan Pearce, WB2MNF

April 2026

The snow has finally melted, the Clubhouse is open again, and Club activities are returning to normal! We're still occasionally battling high winds that force us to lower the HF antennas, but everyday operations are back on track.

Clubhouse Activities and DMR/YSF Talk Group Updates : The March Tech Saturday Forum session on “The Magic of WSJT” drew about 15 members and was a big success. Several stayed afterward to ask follow-up questions about SDR usage and related topics. This in-person session nicely complemented Steve Farney W2SEF’s recent Zoom presentations on actually operating FT8 and other WSJT-X modes, giving members a well-rounded understanding of both the underlying technology and its practical use.

On Saturday, March 21, 2026, we held a DMR refresher for members wanting to review the basics, explore new features, and update their radio configurations. The main goal was to encourage more participation on our Club DMR talk group and the KD2LNB repeater at Rowan University. We also highlighted the cross-mode connectivity of Yaesu System Fusion (YSF) that Vinnie Sallustio N4NYY, Tony Starr K3TS, and Herb Dyer KT2Y regularly use to connect from different locations - showcasing the power of digital modes to bridge distances and link systems seamlessly.

VHF Station Progress : Now that the weather is conducive to outdoor work the VHF tower crew (Al Arrison KB2AYU, Frank Romeo N3PUU, and John O'Connell K2QA along with Earl Moore KC2NCH) put in a couple of long afternoons at the Clubhouse. Last weekend they drilled new holes in the floor in the VHF/UHF/Satellite Room and installed individual plastic conduit pipes to route coax and rotator cables from the VHF and satellite towers. This upgrade replaces the old single large pipe that previously carried everything into the VHF room. The new setup provides more separate pathways for cables, helps keep pests out, and offers better protection from outdoor temperature extremes. This past weekend they installed a large box at the base of the 89 foot microwave tower that will house power and network adapters as well as the connections to the feedlines going into the Clubhouse. All of this work supports our larger ongoing project to fully install and activate the VHF/UHF antenna systems.

Upcoming Tech Saturday - Basic Skills Session : Tech Saturday Forums continues to be one of our most popular activities, and we’re expecting strong attendance for the next few sessions. On Saturday, April 4, 2026, Chris Prioli AD2CS will lead a hands-on “Basic Skills” class focused on building connectors correctly. Participants will assemble PowerPole connectors (and similar types) plus a proper PL-259 jumper cable, with Chris sharing all the best techniques and pro tips. Note : This session is already full, but if there’s enough additional interest, we can schedule a repeat.

GCARC WSPR Network Project Launches in May! : Starting in May, we’re kicking off an exciting group project : building and operating personal WSPR transmitters to study propagation. Each participant will construct a small WSPR beacon for various HF bands (whatever bands you already have antennas for, or 30 meters if you’ll need to build a new antenna - or 10 meters for Technician licensees - using a Raspberry Pi and a TAPR “Hat” board. You’ll take your setup home to run from your own antenna - or we can help you build one. Once operational, we’ll monitor global reception reports on PSK Reporter and compare results across stations with regular reports on the Skunkworks website. This project will include multiple Saturday Tech Sessions covering the WSPR process, assembling the devices, antenna design and propagation, and will provide a common thread for learning about many aspects of ham radio HF operation. Look for the full announcement on the GCARC WSPR Network webpage.

Pushing the Technical Envelope : While Tech Saturdays remain a Club favorite, choosing topics that appeal to a broad audience can be challenging. In the coming months, we’d like to experiment with a few more advanced, specialized sessions that may attract a smaller group but help expand the Club’s technical knowledge and capabilities. Possible ideas include :

Amateur DATV experiments on 70 cm
Using the Discovery dish for radio astronomy or Inmarsat reception
Exploring higher-end SDR platforms such as Hermes or Adalm-Pluto
Advanced DMR techniques like direct calling or single-frequency repeaters

We’ll be gathering feedback and may schedule some of these as separate (non-Tech Saturday) events for those who want to dive deeper. Stay tuned!

73 de Jon WB2MNF

Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Full Pink Moon - Tuesday, April 1, 2026 @ 2213 Hours

This Moon heralded the appearance of the “moss pink” (Phlox subulata), also called wild ground phlox or creeping phlox - one of the first spring wildflowers. With spring thaws come the Algonquin Breaking Ice Moon and the Dakota Moon When the Streams are Again Navigable. When spring growth appears, so does the Budding Moon of Plants and Shrubs (Tlingit) and Moon of the Red Grass Appearing (Oglala). Animals returning to the area inspired the Lakota name Moon When the Ducks Come Back. Certain Dakota peoples chose the

name Moon When the Geese Lay Eggs. Other names are Broken Snowshoe Moon (Anishinaabe), Frog Moon (Cree), and Sugar Maker Moon (Western Abenaki). Appearing either in April or May, Sucker Moon (Anishinaabe) refers to a time to harvest sucker fish, which return to streams or lake shallows to spawn. According to legend, now is the time when this fish comes back from the spirit world to purify bodies of water and the creatures living in them. (This name may also be applied to the February Moon, to honor the sacrifice of the sucker fish in order to feed the Anishinaabe peoples, helping them to survive the winter.).

Old Farmer’s Almanac - www.almanac.com