Club Member News
An Assortment Of Tips, Tricks, Hints, & Observations By GCARC Members
Aurora Borealis In New Jersey?
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Yes! In the early evening of October 10, 2024, many of your fellow Club members, friends, and neighbors here in Southern New Jersey saw something in the sky many of us had not seen there before - an outbreak of Aurora Borealis! I would have totally missed it, if not for a text message at 7:45pm from Frank Romeo, N3PUU (thank you Frank!)
As soon as I got the message, I raced outside and looked North, but disappointingly, did not see anything. The sky was not dark, appearing to me as washed out with moonlight and lights from a nearby sports stadium. So I called Frank, asking for help. I was told he was actually seeing them stronger in the South West instead North, so I turned to look down the street in that direction (not the direction I was expecting for “northern lights”). Sure enough, yes, there did seem to be something there. Clicking a few pictures on cell phone in night mode in that direction confirmed what I was seeing, making it obvious. Aurora Borealis in New Jersey - there they were! Anyone else see them that evening?
This has not been the only lower latitude aurora displays this year. Back in May 2024, a number of large solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in quick succession directed towards Earth created what some have called the strongest displays of auroras on record in the past 500 years. Though quite visible in Seattle, unfortunately, the skies were cloudy here in NJ so we missed seeing that one. Here in October, to a slightly lesser extent, Earth was treated to lower latitude aurora again, but this time with clearer skies in NJ. Which begs the question - will there be a chance to see them again? Maybe. NASA and NOAA issued a joint statement on October 15 declaring the sun is now in its solar maximum period, which could last for the next year. So for about the next year, there might be a chance. We’ll have to wait and see!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Yes! In the early evening of October 10, 2024, many of your fellow Club members, friends, and neighbors here in Southern New Jersey saw something in the sky many of us had not seen there before - an outbreak of Aurora Borealis! I would have totally missed it, if not for a text message at 7:45pm from Frank Romeo, N3PUU (thank you Frank!)
As soon as I got the message, I raced outside and looked North, but disappointingly, did not see anything. The sky was not dark, appearing to me as washed out with moonlight and lights from a nearby sports stadium. So I called Frank, asking for help. I was told he was actually seeing them stronger in the South West instead North, so I turned to look down the street in that direction (not the direction I was expecting for “northern lights”). Sure enough, yes, there did seem to be something there. Clicking a few pictures on cell phone in night mode in that direction confirmed what I was seeing, making it obvious. Aurora Borealis in New Jersey - there they were! Anyone else see them that evening?
This has not been the only lower latitude aurora displays this year. Back in May 2024, a number of large solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in quick succession directed towards Earth created what some have called the strongest displays of auroras on record in the past 500 years. Though quite visible in Seattle, unfortunately, the skies were cloudy here in NJ so we missed seeing that one. Here in October, to a slightly lesser extent, Earth was treated to lower latitude aurora again, but this time with clearer skies in NJ. Which begs the question - will there be a chance to see them again? Maybe. NASA and NOAA issued a joint statement on October 15 declaring the sun is now in its solar maximum period, which could last for the next year. So for about the next year, there might be a chance. We’ll have to wait and see!
A No-Holes Radio Installation
By Karl Frank, W2KBF I often hear Radio Amateurs on the air who operate from their vehicles using 5-watt HTs with stock rubber antennas. This only works well if they are within few miles of a repeater and I understand the reluctance to drill holes in the vehicle for a better installation. When it was time to replace my venerable Mercury Marquis with a newer vehicle, I took on the challenge of installing my 50-watt Yaesu dual band radio without drilling of holes or doing anything else that would void the factory warranty on my new vehicle. Here is my solution : The biggest challenge is to get power to the radio. Ideally, we want to take power directly from the 12 volt starter battery, but this requires running wires thru the firewall. Some vehicles may provide a suitably located rubber grommet, but I was out of luck. After poking around under the hood, crawling under dashboard until my back hurt and watching a few YouTube videos I could not find a good way to route wires to the battery for power. Therefore, I decided to mount a storage battery inside the passenger compartment of my vehicle and use an accessory outlet to maintain a charge. My Yaesu FTM-400 draws about 10 A when transmitting with full power so I needed a battery that could handle that current. After considering several battery chemistries, I selected a 15 Ah LiFePO4 battery pack from Powerwerx (shown to the right in the orange plastic box). A carabiner attaches to a tie point in the rear of my vehicle and keeps the battery box in place. A 3 Amp step-up mobile charger for LiFePO4 batteries (from Paradan Radio) attaches to the battery box with Velcro and plugs into a nearby accessory outlet, keeping the battery charged. This accessory outlet provides power only when the vehicle is running so there is no danger of depleting the starter battery. This battery/charger combination is free of ripple and the LiFePO4 battery will stay charged as long as I spend more time listening than transmitting. |
Mounting the Radio : The FTM-400 has a removable control head, so I purchased a cup holder mount from Lido that places the controls in a convenient location. The body of the radio is mounted with Velcro to the carpeted floor behind the driver and front passenger seats. From this low position, the radio is unlikely to become a dangerous flying object. The stock microphone cable was too short to reach the radio from the driver’s position so I routed an extension cable thru the center arm rest. So far, I have not found the need to mount a speaker near the control head.
The antenna solution was easy (maybe too easy) : A thru-glass model from Larsen. I have used these for years with new vehicles when I did not want to drill holes or use mag mounts. The disadvantage these days is that many contemporary vehicles, including mine, have tinted windows and the composition of the window tint may affect antenna efficiency. Still, it is better than using a rubber duckie antenna inside the car.
Observations :
I like the cup holder mount from Lido and can recommend it for mounting radio control heads. I had concerns that the GPS receiver in the control head would not find satellites when mounted this low, but it has been working OK. The LiFePO4 battery and charger were expensive, but work well. One significant drawback is that LiFePO4 batteries cannot be charged when the temperature goes below freezing, so I may have to switch to a Sealed Lead Acid battery before Winter or swallow my DIY pride and pay someone with relevant expertise to route wires thru the firewall.
The thru-glass antenna was a disappointment. After using it for about a month, I placed a Larsen mag mount antenna on the center of my roof and found that the mag mount antenna works much better. The RG-58 coax is routed thru my tailgate without being crushed so I still have a good no-holes installation.
Have I described a great radio installation? No, it is a compromise but it is much better than driving around with just a 5-watt HT. I hope that some of these ideas will be useful to people who are reluctant to install mobile radios in their vehicles.
The antenna solution was easy (maybe too easy) : A thru-glass model from Larsen. I have used these for years with new vehicles when I did not want to drill holes or use mag mounts. The disadvantage these days is that many contemporary vehicles, including mine, have tinted windows and the composition of the window tint may affect antenna efficiency. Still, it is better than using a rubber duckie antenna inside the car.
Observations :
I like the cup holder mount from Lido and can recommend it for mounting radio control heads. I had concerns that the GPS receiver in the control head would not find satellites when mounted this low, but it has been working OK. The LiFePO4 battery and charger were expensive, but work well. One significant drawback is that LiFePO4 batteries cannot be charged when the temperature goes below freezing, so I may have to switch to a Sealed Lead Acid battery before Winter or swallow my DIY pride and pay someone with relevant expertise to route wires thru the firewall.
The thru-glass antenna was a disappointment. After using it for about a month, I placed a Larsen mag mount antenna on the center of my roof and found that the mag mount antenna works much better. The RG-58 coax is routed thru my tailgate without being crushed so I still have a good no-holes installation.
Have I described a great radio installation? No, it is a compromise but it is much better than driving around with just a 5-watt HT. I hope that some of these ideas will be useful to people who are reluctant to install mobile radios in their vehicles.
My First Parks-On-The-Air (POTA) Activation
By Stan Slachetka, WA2JRZ
By Stan Slachetka, WA2JRZ
This was my first attempt at a Parks-On-The-Air (POTA) activation while on a recent vacation in upstate New York. I was attempting to activate Sampson State Park (US-2133) located on the east shore of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York. My gear included a Xiegu G90 transceiver running 20 watts sideband on 20 meters into a Buddipole vertical antenna. Power was provided by a 9Ah Bioenno LiFePo4 battery. Sampson State Park consists of 2,000 acres and is the site of a former U.S. Navy training facility used during World War II. The site was subsequently transferred to the U.S. Air Force and was used as a basic training facility during the Korean War. The New York State Park System acquired the site after the base closed, opening Sampson State Park in 1963. In addition to its various camping, boating, and recreation amenities, the park includes a |
military museum highlighting its history and honoring the Navy and Air Force servicemen that were garrisoned and trained at the site.
Poor band conditions limited me to five contacts and therefore it could not be counted as a formal activation based on POTA rules. However, I had a great time and will use this experience to help me in future successful POTA activations.
Poor band conditions limited me to five contacts and therefore it could not be counted as a formal activation based on POTA rules. However, I had a great time and will use this experience to help me in future successful POTA activations.
Rowan University Rocket Launch
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Below is a link to the official video from the rocket that the Rowan University students launched at the 2024 Spaceport America Cup in New Mexico on June 17 - 22, 2024. Among other functions it was carrying two radios with which GCARC Club members assisted. The first was the telemetry radio that operates on 70cm and sends data to a ground-based station, which needed an antenna designed for it. After a long Saturday AM Clubhouse discussion several months ago it was decided that the best design would be a vertical half-wave dipole that Chris AD2CS constructed. In addition, Club members assembled a 5.8 GHz video transmitter to be installed in the rocket along with a ground-based receiver that would output HDMI to event officials.
The telemetry unit apparently worked flawlessly; it's not clear if the video unit was successful. But the YouTube video linked below shows most of the flight, including the deployment of the drogue parachutes (the mains also opened successfully). The Rowan team has some additional video that they'll show when they present at one of our monthly meetings.
Congrats to that team and thanks for letting us join in in the project.
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxLr2G68K7cCOu4ZYE8g_gVj1kaFfedyUX?si=oaqsBtglppPp3bRk
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Below is a link to the official video from the rocket that the Rowan University students launched at the 2024 Spaceport America Cup in New Mexico on June 17 - 22, 2024. Among other functions it was carrying two radios with which GCARC Club members assisted. The first was the telemetry radio that operates on 70cm and sends data to a ground-based station, which needed an antenna designed for it. After a long Saturday AM Clubhouse discussion several months ago it was decided that the best design would be a vertical half-wave dipole that Chris AD2CS constructed. In addition, Club members assembled a 5.8 GHz video transmitter to be installed in the rocket along with a ground-based receiver that would output HDMI to event officials.
The telemetry unit apparently worked flawlessly; it's not clear if the video unit was successful. But the YouTube video linked below shows most of the flight, including the deployment of the drogue parachutes (the mains also opened successfully). The Rowan team has some additional video that they'll show when they present at one of our monthly meetings.
Congrats to that team and thanks for letting us join in in the project.
https://youtube.com/clip/UgkxLr2G68K7cCOu4ZYE8g_gVj1kaFfedyUX?si=oaqsBtglppPp3bRk
Robinson Crusoe Island DXpedition QSL Cards
By Bob Pantazes, W2ARP
Now that the Robinson Crusoe Island DXpedition is QRT, there is one more function that is needed. Filling the request for a QSL card. This mission was handled by the South Jersey DX Association of Tuckerton, NJ.
Club President Bob Schenck, N2OO and his wife Beth, KF2BQ received the QSL cards and also the ClubLog request for a card.
The DXpedition had 3 calls, CB0ZA, CB0ZEW and CB0ZW. They wanted to insert the cards to the recipient in one envelope, to save on postage. Beth, a retired teacher came up with the best way to accomplish this task. First all of the QSL cards were checked in the log and then a label was printed for the QSOs. Then the labels were sorted on the recipients call in three batches one for each of the CB0 calls.
Now how did they accomplish inserting up to 3 cards into one envelope. They had three assembly lines consisting of 3 club member volunteers in each line. The first person had the most labels and would apply the label to a card, pass it to the next person who would check the labels for the second call to see if the person worked the DXpedition a second time. If so, a label would be put on the correct QSL card and passed to the third person to do the same with the last call. Then all the QSLs would be sent to the next room where the team stuffed the mailing envelopes with cards, sponsor’s inserts, weighed, and applied proper postage.
They printed over 10,000 labels for the +100,000 QSOs. Robinson Crusoe Island is part of the Juan Fernandez Island chain that is 400 miles off the coast of Chile. The DXpedition ran from February 10 to 24, 2024.
The next time you receive a QSL card from a large DXpedition please think of the team members that put the entity on the air and then the team that got you your QSL for DXCC credit.
By Bob Pantazes, W2ARP
Now that the Robinson Crusoe Island DXpedition is QRT, there is one more function that is needed. Filling the request for a QSL card. This mission was handled by the South Jersey DX Association of Tuckerton, NJ.
Club President Bob Schenck, N2OO and his wife Beth, KF2BQ received the QSL cards and also the ClubLog request for a card.
The DXpedition had 3 calls, CB0ZA, CB0ZEW and CB0ZW. They wanted to insert the cards to the recipient in one envelope, to save on postage. Beth, a retired teacher came up with the best way to accomplish this task. First all of the QSL cards were checked in the log and then a label was printed for the QSOs. Then the labels were sorted on the recipients call in three batches one for each of the CB0 calls.
Now how did they accomplish inserting up to 3 cards into one envelope. They had three assembly lines consisting of 3 club member volunteers in each line. The first person had the most labels and would apply the label to a card, pass it to the next person who would check the labels for the second call to see if the person worked the DXpedition a second time. If so, a label would be put on the correct QSL card and passed to the third person to do the same with the last call. Then all the QSLs would be sent to the next room where the team stuffed the mailing envelopes with cards, sponsor’s inserts, weighed, and applied proper postage.
They printed over 10,000 labels for the +100,000 QSOs. Robinson Crusoe Island is part of the Juan Fernandez Island chain that is 400 miles off the coast of Chile. The DXpedition ran from February 10 to 24, 2024.
The next time you receive a QSL card from a large DXpedition please think of the team members that put the entity on the air and then the team that got you your QSL for DXCC credit.
2024 Dayton Hamvention
By Robert Pantazes, W2ARP
Greene County Fairgrounds in Xenia Township, Ohio. The theme this year is “Expanding our Community”. The community is Amateur Radio groups showing a non-ham the hobby, helping them get licensed and the most important, Mentoring them. There was over 150 exhibitors and hundred of private people selling every type of radio gear. I am sure you could find a rig from your youth being displayed.
The biggest news was Flex Radio introducing the 8000 series radio. The 8000 has more computing power to open up more features.
By Robert Pantazes, W2ARP
Greene County Fairgrounds in Xenia Township, Ohio. The theme this year is “Expanding our Community”. The community is Amateur Radio groups showing a non-ham the hobby, helping them get licensed and the most important, Mentoring them. There was over 150 exhibitors and hundred of private people selling every type of radio gear. I am sure you could find a rig from your youth being displayed.
The biggest news was Flex Radio introducing the 8000 series radio. The 8000 has more computing power to open up more features.
The Hungry Frog Eats Again!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
After a seven year wait, and with a depressingly high 60% chance of obscuring clouds, who would make a seven hundred mile drive to get a chance to see the hungry frog eat again? Guilty as charged! And it was worth it.
Hungry frog? Some might recognize that as a reference to an article titled “When the Frog Eats It” published in the October 2017 CrossTalk. That was from the last time a total eclipse crossed the USA. This time, the path of totality would be crossing through many states. But the big problem would be that this was in springtime, when historically most of those states would be under cloud cover, not a good viewing weather forecast. So, where to go to chase this one?
Originally thinking of Texas, even a full year before the event it was hard to find an affordable hotel anywhere near the path of totality. Then long range weather forecasts started to come in anticipating the possibility of heavy clouds and storms in Texas for April 8 of this year. That would not be good. So we started to look at other states, like Indiana, which we were familiar with having to gone to school together there. What sealed the deal, so to speak, was when we got invited to a friend’s backyard wedding on April 8 near Indianapolis, Indiana, that would be in the path of totality. We looked at it this way; even if the clouds were to mess up the eclipse viewing, at least we’d have the fun of a wedding! And with that, it was decided. We had our eclipse viewing destination. The road trip was on!
Instead of driving straight out to Indianapolis, we decided to stop in overnight in the Dayton area and check out the United States Air Force Museum there. This was after seeing Jon Pearce WB2MNF’s pictures he shared from there last year. And glad we did. It has so much in it. If any Club members are heading out to Dayton for the Hamvention, you might be interested in checking it out too. It is free admission!
On eclipse day, we used back roads to get to the house where the wedding was going to be held. It turned out to be a great weather day. From where we were at just north of Indianapolis, there was a thin high layer of cirrus clouds, but they were mostly transparent. Thankfully, we would not be blocked out from seeing the total eclipse. The simple back yard wedding ceremony started with friends and family, just as the moon began to slip over the sun. The ceremony was very nice, and we hung out afterwards with about a half hour still to go until totality. The bride and groom had solar glasses for everyone, along with plenty of food and drinks for all of us to enjoy as we hung out on the deck awaiting the total eclipse.
There was an excitement in the air as the minutes ticked down toward totality. We noticed the air getting cooler, and the wind dying down. Colors around us began to darken and change. Bees which had been buzzing enjoying the spring flowers all seemed to go back home. Glancing up through the solar glasses, we could see the sun turning into what looked like a finger nail clipping. The clipping got smaller, and smaller, until suddenly we were in totality! When it happened, there was cheering from cheering from neighbors and other watching from all over town. The glasses could now safely come off! Wow! There was a dark hole in the sky with glowing all around it right where the sun was supposed to be. How amazing was this!
We were in the moment, trying to enjoy it all. Compared with 7 years ago, this time the moon seemed bigger, and the time in totality seemed longer - maybe because the moon was closer to Earth than before? Whatever the reason, we were blessed with more than 3 wonderful minutes of totality from where we were at this time.
Looking up, around the edges of the moon, we could see what looked like red flares on the lower side of the disk. We speculated these must be some kind of solar flares high enough above the sun’s surface to not get blocked by the moon for us to see. The skies were now dark around the eclipsed sun.
To our wonder, planets were now visible. Someone was first able to point out Venus on one side of the sun, and then a little further away on the other side, Jupiter. How amazing was that!
We were so caught up in what we were seeing that I actually forgot to try and take any pictures until it was almost over. And then they didn’t turn out that good. I’d practiced manual focus, f-stop, and shutter speed settings ahead of time knowing that the brightness of the corona would wash out any attempts with auto settings. But in the excitement of the moment, I accidentally forgot to take off the auto settings. Oops! Seeing in person was that amazing.
All too soon, totality was over. The solar glasses went back on for those who wanted to follow the return of the sun. Over the next hour the sun returned to full strength, but in truth, watching the return was kind of anti-climatic. The real show had been the getting to and being in totality.
The party continued for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. As great as the wedding was, and as great as the total eclipse was, there was now growing anticipation for the next big event of the day. For many in attendance who were Purdue grads, that event would be watching Purdue in the NCAA basketball finals that evening on TV. Though that didn’t turn out the way we’d hoped, all in all, it really had been a great day. And got us talking about “the next one”. These things can be addictive. If you’ve not experienced totality, it’s worth it. So when is the next one?
For those of us in the US, I hear we might have to wait until August of 2045. That is unless you’re willing to do some international travel. In which case, might not to have to wait so long. It looks like there’s one in August of 2026 crossing Greenland to Spain with a couple minutes of totality, and then what might be an amazing one with over 6 minutes of totality that crosses over Luxor Egypt in 2027. Here’s wishing clear skies to all that go chasing!
Is hard to take good pictures during totality. Here are two of my attempted pictures taken April 8, 2024 from Indianapolis, Indiana
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
After a seven year wait, and with a depressingly high 60% chance of obscuring clouds, who would make a seven hundred mile drive to get a chance to see the hungry frog eat again? Guilty as charged! And it was worth it.
Hungry frog? Some might recognize that as a reference to an article titled “When the Frog Eats It” published in the October 2017 CrossTalk. That was from the last time a total eclipse crossed the USA. This time, the path of totality would be crossing through many states. But the big problem would be that this was in springtime, when historically most of those states would be under cloud cover, not a good viewing weather forecast. So, where to go to chase this one?
Originally thinking of Texas, even a full year before the event it was hard to find an affordable hotel anywhere near the path of totality. Then long range weather forecasts started to come in anticipating the possibility of heavy clouds and storms in Texas for April 8 of this year. That would not be good. So we started to look at other states, like Indiana, which we were familiar with having to gone to school together there. What sealed the deal, so to speak, was when we got invited to a friend’s backyard wedding on April 8 near Indianapolis, Indiana, that would be in the path of totality. We looked at it this way; even if the clouds were to mess up the eclipse viewing, at least we’d have the fun of a wedding! And with that, it was decided. We had our eclipse viewing destination. The road trip was on!
Instead of driving straight out to Indianapolis, we decided to stop in overnight in the Dayton area and check out the United States Air Force Museum there. This was after seeing Jon Pearce WB2MNF’s pictures he shared from there last year. And glad we did. It has so much in it. If any Club members are heading out to Dayton for the Hamvention, you might be interested in checking it out too. It is free admission!
On eclipse day, we used back roads to get to the house where the wedding was going to be held. It turned out to be a great weather day. From where we were at just north of Indianapolis, there was a thin high layer of cirrus clouds, but they were mostly transparent. Thankfully, we would not be blocked out from seeing the total eclipse. The simple back yard wedding ceremony started with friends and family, just as the moon began to slip over the sun. The ceremony was very nice, and we hung out afterwards with about a half hour still to go until totality. The bride and groom had solar glasses for everyone, along with plenty of food and drinks for all of us to enjoy as we hung out on the deck awaiting the total eclipse.
There was an excitement in the air as the minutes ticked down toward totality. We noticed the air getting cooler, and the wind dying down. Colors around us began to darken and change. Bees which had been buzzing enjoying the spring flowers all seemed to go back home. Glancing up through the solar glasses, we could see the sun turning into what looked like a finger nail clipping. The clipping got smaller, and smaller, until suddenly we were in totality! When it happened, there was cheering from cheering from neighbors and other watching from all over town. The glasses could now safely come off! Wow! There was a dark hole in the sky with glowing all around it right where the sun was supposed to be. How amazing was this!
We were in the moment, trying to enjoy it all. Compared with 7 years ago, this time the moon seemed bigger, and the time in totality seemed longer - maybe because the moon was closer to Earth than before? Whatever the reason, we were blessed with more than 3 wonderful minutes of totality from where we were at this time.
Looking up, around the edges of the moon, we could see what looked like red flares on the lower side of the disk. We speculated these must be some kind of solar flares high enough above the sun’s surface to not get blocked by the moon for us to see. The skies were now dark around the eclipsed sun.
To our wonder, planets were now visible. Someone was first able to point out Venus on one side of the sun, and then a little further away on the other side, Jupiter. How amazing was that!
We were so caught up in what we were seeing that I actually forgot to try and take any pictures until it was almost over. And then they didn’t turn out that good. I’d practiced manual focus, f-stop, and shutter speed settings ahead of time knowing that the brightness of the corona would wash out any attempts with auto settings. But in the excitement of the moment, I accidentally forgot to take off the auto settings. Oops! Seeing in person was that amazing.
All too soon, totality was over. The solar glasses went back on for those who wanted to follow the return of the sun. Over the next hour the sun returned to full strength, but in truth, watching the return was kind of anti-climatic. The real show had been the getting to and being in totality.
The party continued for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. As great as the wedding was, and as great as the total eclipse was, there was now growing anticipation for the next big event of the day. For many in attendance who were Purdue grads, that event would be watching Purdue in the NCAA basketball finals that evening on TV. Though that didn’t turn out the way we’d hoped, all in all, it really had been a great day. And got us talking about “the next one”. These things can be addictive. If you’ve not experienced totality, it’s worth it. So when is the next one?
For those of us in the US, I hear we might have to wait until August of 2045. That is unless you’re willing to do some international travel. In which case, might not to have to wait so long. It looks like there’s one in August of 2026 crossing Greenland to Spain with a couple minutes of totality, and then what might be an amazing one with over 6 minutes of totality that crosses over Luxor Egypt in 2027. Here’s wishing clear skies to all that go chasing!
Is hard to take good pictures during totality. Here are two of my attempted pictures taken April 8, 2024 from Indianapolis, Indiana
Busted Callsigns From A Talk By Anthony Luscre, N8ZT
Contributed By Bill Mollenhauer, N2FZ
When the other station gets your callsign wrong, we refer to it as a Busted Callsign. With the many issues in radio communication (QRM, QRN, Fading Signals, etc.), this has been an ongoing issue since the beginning of Amateur Radio. These problems can be compounded by poorly configured radios (mic gain, compression, etc.) and poor operator practices (improperly sent CW, over-driving mic, poor choices of phonetics, etc.). The following charts are from - “Accurately Copying Callsigns Can Make a Difference in Contest Outcomes” - Tim Shoppa, N3QE, February 2022 CQ Magazine.
Contributed By Bill Mollenhauer, N2FZ
When the other station gets your callsign wrong, we refer to it as a Busted Callsign. With the many issues in radio communication (QRM, QRN, Fading Signals, etc.), this has been an ongoing issue since the beginning of Amateur Radio. These problems can be compounded by poorly configured radios (mic gain, compression, etc.) and poor operator practices (improperly sent CW, over-driving mic, poor choices of phonetics, etc.). The following charts are from - “Accurately Copying Callsigns Can Make a Difference in Contest Outcomes” - Tim Shoppa, N3QE, February 2022 CQ Magazine.
These results were for standard NATO/ITU Phonetics. On-air observations suggest the rates are much higher when using many nonstandard phonetics, especially with non-English language-speaking operators.
NTS 2.0 Update
By Dave Sheppard, W2PAX
Coming via Southern Florida Section Traffic Manager and GCARC Club member Dave Sheppard, W2PAX, the following is an update on the NTS 2.0 initiative from Marcia Forde, KW1U. We will continue to bring you these updates as we receive them from the NTS 2.0 committee.
“It has been three months since my last update to you. Summertime with folks taking vacations has slowed us down a bit but we continue to make progress. You no doubt saw the article in QST July 2023 issue regarding NTS. This was a first in quite a while, but definitely not the last. We have been invited to contribute more articles in the future. NTS was also featured in the July/August issue of On the Air magazine.
One of the priorities on most folks' minds is the Net Directory. We have made progress, providing documentation on requirements and wire frames (they tell me this is how we want it to look). We are waiting on the IT folks at ARRL, but unfortunately so are a number of other groups. We're remaining patient and optimistic.
As many have seen, the website www.nts2.arrl.org has gone live and has been recently updated to show the work of several of the implementation teams. Go to the tab "Standards and Procedures" .and find four items currently listed.
1) NTS 2.0 Traffic Delivery Standards : We have seen traffic take from hours to days to weeks for delivery, and occasionally no delivery at all. Emergency folks expect their messages to be delivered within 30 minutes, while other priorities are less strict. We felt it important to set standardized guidelines for the various priorities of messages which you will find here.
2) Numbered Texts : You probably saw a few months ago an expanded list of numbered texts provided by RRI. These additional texts are primarily for welfare traffic and as with the old ARL numbered texts are meant to shorten a message and therefore transmission time. RRI refers to these as RRC texts rather than ARL texts. To avoid confusion we have agreed to keep the old text numbers the same for either ARL or RRC, while adopting the RRC text numbers and adding one additional text which is to be used with the HXD handling instruction. In short, whether you see ARL or RRC in the check and the beginning of the text the standardized text will be the same. The one addition made by NTS 2.0 teams is ARL FORTY ONE which standardizes the method for reporting the HXD. This will greatly simplify summarizing test traffic results as well as general tracking. We anticipate this to ultimately be an online process. This radiogram is to be used similarly to other numbered texts with blanks. After noting the ARL number in the text, just add the information required in the blanks in that order, nothing more.
3) HX Handling Instructions : The familiar ones are still there to be used by the originator for the benefit of the delivering station, or in the case of HXD, all stations handling a given message. We have added two more - HXI and HXR. Since we have been asked to be able to relay agency forms such as the ICS-213, it is critical that we can deliver this form to the appropriate personnel in the form to which that person is accustomed. Yet to relay any message through NTS it is also critical that we have certain information such as is included in the standard preamble of header of a radiogram. Therefore we have provided for an "envelope" in which to send this agency form. This "envelope" is a radiogram in which is "encapsulated" an agency form. More on this later. The HXI handling instruction indicates to a delivering station that this "envelope" or radiogram must be removed and its contents delivered to the recipient in an ICS-213 form, exactly as was sent by the originator. The HXR handling instruction provides greater assurance to the originator that the addressee has that form in his/her hands. It differs from the HXC in which the delivering ham often says the message was "delivered" yet it may have been via an identified voicemail or email. In today's world where most folks don't respond to those they don't know, this definition of "delivery" has been relaxed somewhat. For routine traffic this can be acceptable, but for emergency or priority traffic it is not.
4) Using Radiograms To Pass Agency Forms : This section gives detailed information on how to use the agency form encapsulated radiogram along with a data dictionary. Training documentation is being developed. Expect to see future tests carried out throughout NTS using this form. Just to put some minds at ease, ICS-213 and other agency forms will NOT replace the standard radiogram. NTS will continue to use the radiograms we are all familiar with. However we do need to become familiar with relay of these emergency forms in the event it is ever needed. Tests will be carried out from time to time.
5) Many of you are familiar with the ARES Letter, the ARRL Letter and others made available to those who opt to receive them. We will soon be seeing a monthly NTS Letter as well. We anticipate keeping folks informed on the work of the NTS 2.0 project. We also want to hear from all of you about special NTS activities in your sections, anything you think would be of interest to traffic handlers in other parts of the country, similar to what you see in the ARES Letter - any exercises, drills, SET's, training events, etc. Without your input we won't have much of a newsletter. Please let me (Marcia, [email protected]) know if you or someone in your section would be willing to provide us with articles from time to time. We need you!
Thanks to all of you for your leadership and support of NTS. We have all enjoyed traffic handling over the years and are excited now about the interest on the part of our national organization in finding purpose and value in this program we continue to enjoy.”
By Dave Sheppard, W2PAX
Coming via Southern Florida Section Traffic Manager and GCARC Club member Dave Sheppard, W2PAX, the following is an update on the NTS 2.0 initiative from Marcia Forde, KW1U. We will continue to bring you these updates as we receive them from the NTS 2.0 committee.
“It has been three months since my last update to you. Summertime with folks taking vacations has slowed us down a bit but we continue to make progress. You no doubt saw the article in QST July 2023 issue regarding NTS. This was a first in quite a while, but definitely not the last. We have been invited to contribute more articles in the future. NTS was also featured in the July/August issue of On the Air magazine.
One of the priorities on most folks' minds is the Net Directory. We have made progress, providing documentation on requirements and wire frames (they tell me this is how we want it to look). We are waiting on the IT folks at ARRL, but unfortunately so are a number of other groups. We're remaining patient and optimistic.
As many have seen, the website www.nts2.arrl.org has gone live and has been recently updated to show the work of several of the implementation teams. Go to the tab "Standards and Procedures" .and find four items currently listed.
1) NTS 2.0 Traffic Delivery Standards : We have seen traffic take from hours to days to weeks for delivery, and occasionally no delivery at all. Emergency folks expect their messages to be delivered within 30 minutes, while other priorities are less strict. We felt it important to set standardized guidelines for the various priorities of messages which you will find here.
2) Numbered Texts : You probably saw a few months ago an expanded list of numbered texts provided by RRI. These additional texts are primarily for welfare traffic and as with the old ARL numbered texts are meant to shorten a message and therefore transmission time. RRI refers to these as RRC texts rather than ARL texts. To avoid confusion we have agreed to keep the old text numbers the same for either ARL or RRC, while adopting the RRC text numbers and adding one additional text which is to be used with the HXD handling instruction. In short, whether you see ARL or RRC in the check and the beginning of the text the standardized text will be the same. The one addition made by NTS 2.0 teams is ARL FORTY ONE which standardizes the method for reporting the HXD. This will greatly simplify summarizing test traffic results as well as general tracking. We anticipate this to ultimately be an online process. This radiogram is to be used similarly to other numbered texts with blanks. After noting the ARL number in the text, just add the information required in the blanks in that order, nothing more.
3) HX Handling Instructions : The familiar ones are still there to be used by the originator for the benefit of the delivering station, or in the case of HXD, all stations handling a given message. We have added two more - HXI and HXR. Since we have been asked to be able to relay agency forms such as the ICS-213, it is critical that we can deliver this form to the appropriate personnel in the form to which that person is accustomed. Yet to relay any message through NTS it is also critical that we have certain information such as is included in the standard preamble of header of a radiogram. Therefore we have provided for an "envelope" in which to send this agency form. This "envelope" is a radiogram in which is "encapsulated" an agency form. More on this later. The HXI handling instruction indicates to a delivering station that this "envelope" or radiogram must be removed and its contents delivered to the recipient in an ICS-213 form, exactly as was sent by the originator. The HXR handling instruction provides greater assurance to the originator that the addressee has that form in his/her hands. It differs from the HXC in which the delivering ham often says the message was "delivered" yet it may have been via an identified voicemail or email. In today's world where most folks don't respond to those they don't know, this definition of "delivery" has been relaxed somewhat. For routine traffic this can be acceptable, but for emergency or priority traffic it is not.
4) Using Radiograms To Pass Agency Forms : This section gives detailed information on how to use the agency form encapsulated radiogram along with a data dictionary. Training documentation is being developed. Expect to see future tests carried out throughout NTS using this form. Just to put some minds at ease, ICS-213 and other agency forms will NOT replace the standard radiogram. NTS will continue to use the radiograms we are all familiar with. However we do need to become familiar with relay of these emergency forms in the event it is ever needed. Tests will be carried out from time to time.
5) Many of you are familiar with the ARES Letter, the ARRL Letter and others made available to those who opt to receive them. We will soon be seeing a monthly NTS Letter as well. We anticipate keeping folks informed on the work of the NTS 2.0 project. We also want to hear from all of you about special NTS activities in your sections, anything you think would be of interest to traffic handlers in other parts of the country, similar to what you see in the ARES Letter - any exercises, drills, SET's, training events, etc. Without your input we won't have much of a newsletter. Please let me (Marcia, [email protected]) know if you or someone in your section would be willing to provide us with articles from time to time. We need you!
Thanks to all of you for your leadership and support of NTS. We have all enjoyed traffic handling over the years and are excited now about the interest on the part of our national organization in finding purpose and value in this program we continue to enjoy.”
New To Me!
By Bill Mollenhauer, N2FZ
If you have worked any special events stations in the US you are familiar with the calls used. Sometimes they are the regular issued calls like K3XXX or WA5XXX that belong to a ham who is putting on the Special Event. Other times the call can be a special issued call from the FCC that is good for a limited amount of time. These calls are 1X1 like W6X for the Route 66 Event. In other parts of the world, they can be different. They could be a normal length call or a longer call.
I like to work special events stations and a couple of nights ago I was listening to 20M at about 2:45 AM and heard a pretty fast station at about 35-40wpm. The station was working callers one after the other and at that a speed it is above my ability, so I have to get the call in pieces.
After a bit I had it figured it out to VI2HARG. Well maybe VI is India since I knew India was VU. I was puzzled at the suffix of HARG because I had never heard of a 4 letter suffix so I kept listening to make sure I had it right. Aha, the H is a 5. At that speed I have trouble with S, H, and 5, so now I have VI25ARG.
Now I listened again to make sure, and I thought the G was maybe P. With all the atmospheric noise and the weak signal, it was hard to tell but after a couple more rounds of him working stations I had pretty much decided the call was VI25ARG. Anyway, I was not going to let him get away, so I worked him and got a signal report figuring I would straighten it out later.
After working the station, I looked up VI25ARG on QRZ. No such luck although it did say it sounded like an Australian station. VI is new to me as an Australian prefix. The double number is not new. I have even worked 3 number stations.
Now where do I go. I was always thinking I was hearing something between the R and G. Maybe it was an E.
Ok now I have VI25AREG. Typing that call into QRZ gets me the Amateur Radio Experimenters Group and the 25th anniversary of their organization. The next day I used their link to club log and found I am in the log!
By Bill Mollenhauer, N2FZ
If you have worked any special events stations in the US you are familiar with the calls used. Sometimes they are the regular issued calls like K3XXX or WA5XXX that belong to a ham who is putting on the Special Event. Other times the call can be a special issued call from the FCC that is good for a limited amount of time. These calls are 1X1 like W6X for the Route 66 Event. In other parts of the world, they can be different. They could be a normal length call or a longer call.
I like to work special events stations and a couple of nights ago I was listening to 20M at about 2:45 AM and heard a pretty fast station at about 35-40wpm. The station was working callers one after the other and at that a speed it is above my ability, so I have to get the call in pieces.
After a bit I had it figured it out to VI2HARG. Well maybe VI is India since I knew India was VU. I was puzzled at the suffix of HARG because I had never heard of a 4 letter suffix so I kept listening to make sure I had it right. Aha, the H is a 5. At that speed I have trouble with S, H, and 5, so now I have VI25ARG.
Now I listened again to make sure, and I thought the G was maybe P. With all the atmospheric noise and the weak signal, it was hard to tell but after a couple more rounds of him working stations I had pretty much decided the call was VI25ARG. Anyway, I was not going to let him get away, so I worked him and got a signal report figuring I would straighten it out later.
After working the station, I looked up VI25ARG on QRZ. No such luck although it did say it sounded like an Australian station. VI is new to me as an Australian prefix. The double number is not new. I have even worked 3 number stations.
Now where do I go. I was always thinking I was hearing something between the R and G. Maybe it was an E.
Ok now I have VI25AREG. Typing that call into QRZ gets me the Amateur Radio Experimenters Group and the 25th anniversary of their organization. The next day I used their link to club log and found I am in the log!
Jim Wright, N2GXJ : Here is an audio clip from the 2023 13 Colonies Special Event with Darrell Neron, AB2E operating as K2I. This is what I was hearing at my house here in NJ while Darrell was also in NJ representing New Jersey.
Special Event Stations On The Air In August!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Did you know this is the 100 year celebration of President Calvin Coolidge’s Inauguration? Me neither. That is until I started looking at a list of special event radio stations being set up for the month of August!
Turns out, former President Coolidge’s first inauguration was performed in Plymouth Notch, VT by his father, a justice of the peace, after the sudden death of President Warren G Harding. And a bunch of Hams in the Plymouth Notch area this year have gotten together and secured the special event callsign “W1C” to use on the air to celebrate the event! They say they’ll be on the air on August 3, 2023 from the VT Coolidge Historic Site, and on August 5 & 6 at Coolidge State Park to combine to activate for POTA weekend at the Park. How about that!
Want to share in the celebration of the US Coast Guard’s 233rd Birthday? There’s an on-air celebration by the USCG CW Association honoring that. Look for K1CQ and friends Aug 4-5 from Port Angeles, Washington. I was actually in Port Angeles in the fall last year. It was great place to use as base camp to explore parts of Olympic National Park. Really beautiful part of our country if you can ever get out to see it. Small world!
Want to get in on some of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway action this year? W9IMS will be active Aug 7-9 for the Brickyard 400 - race #3 this year. I’ve had good luck on voice in the past getting them. Look for them around 7.245 MHz or 14.245 MHz. If you have not seen a W9IMS QSL card before, they are collector’s items. I will definitely be trying to get this one to complete the sweep for this year to get the certificate in addition to the glossy cards! Do look at https://www.qrz.com/db/w9ims to see what I am talking about. They do these cards right.
Ever hear of International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend? You have now! It’s held on the 3rd weekend of August every year. That’s August 19 and 20 of this year. The entrants list for this year already has 250+ entries signed up from all over the world! More details, including the list of Lighthouses here : https://lighthouse-weekend.international How many will you catch?
Of course, there’s more. Have you heard about the Route 66 On The Air event in September? Yup, it is exactly what you think! Stations with special event callsigns from “W6A” in Santa Monica, CA more than 2000 miles all the way to “W6U” in Illinois will be on the air Sept 9-17. Don’t miss ‘em!
How’d I find out about all these? https://www.arrl.org/special-event-stations. They’re also listed on page 90 of the August edition of QST. They often have QSL cards available. Where to QSL to get one is listed for each event at that same link.
Have fun!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Did you know this is the 100 year celebration of President Calvin Coolidge’s Inauguration? Me neither. That is until I started looking at a list of special event radio stations being set up for the month of August!
Turns out, former President Coolidge’s first inauguration was performed in Plymouth Notch, VT by his father, a justice of the peace, after the sudden death of President Warren G Harding. And a bunch of Hams in the Plymouth Notch area this year have gotten together and secured the special event callsign “W1C” to use on the air to celebrate the event! They say they’ll be on the air on August 3, 2023 from the VT Coolidge Historic Site, and on August 5 & 6 at Coolidge State Park to combine to activate for POTA weekend at the Park. How about that!
Want to share in the celebration of the US Coast Guard’s 233rd Birthday? There’s an on-air celebration by the USCG CW Association honoring that. Look for K1CQ and friends Aug 4-5 from Port Angeles, Washington. I was actually in Port Angeles in the fall last year. It was great place to use as base camp to explore parts of Olympic National Park. Really beautiful part of our country if you can ever get out to see it. Small world!
Want to get in on some of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway action this year? W9IMS will be active Aug 7-9 for the Brickyard 400 - race #3 this year. I’ve had good luck on voice in the past getting them. Look for them around 7.245 MHz or 14.245 MHz. If you have not seen a W9IMS QSL card before, they are collector’s items. I will definitely be trying to get this one to complete the sweep for this year to get the certificate in addition to the glossy cards! Do look at https://www.qrz.com/db/w9ims to see what I am talking about. They do these cards right.
Ever hear of International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend? You have now! It’s held on the 3rd weekend of August every year. That’s August 19 and 20 of this year. The entrants list for this year already has 250+ entries signed up from all over the world! More details, including the list of Lighthouses here : https://lighthouse-weekend.international How many will you catch?
Of course, there’s more. Have you heard about the Route 66 On The Air event in September? Yup, it is exactly what you think! Stations with special event callsigns from “W6A” in Santa Monica, CA more than 2000 miles all the way to “W6U” in Illinois will be on the air Sept 9-17. Don’t miss ‘em!
How’d I find out about all these? https://www.arrl.org/special-event-stations. They’re also listed on page 90 of the August edition of QST. They often have QSL cards available. Where to QSL to get one is listed for each event at that same link.
Have fun!
Remembering Stan
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ Here is a reprise of an article from the June 2017 Crosstalk, followed by an update. From the June 2017 Crosstalk “Eyeball QSO (part 2)” In the May 2017 Crosstalk, you may have noticed a simple article called “eyeball QSO”, and the question “have you had any eyeball QSOs recently?” This month, I would like to give an update. About a month ago, I found out I was going to be traveling on business to Gdansk, Poland. Gdansk is located in the North of Poland, near the Baltic Sea. I’ve never been to Poland before, and don’t speak the language. My uncle |
didn’t help my anxiety over the trip either when he suggested I look out the window when the plane landed to see if I could see the Russian fleet. Yes, the Russian border was going to be less than 50 miles away.
That’s when I thought of Amateur Radio. Like you, I keep a log of my DX radio contacts. Surely, there’s a contact or two that I’ve had with Poland, and perhaps with someone from this area? I’d had five contacts with stations in Poland, and thanks to QRZ.com, found one of those contacts was in the Gdansk area a few years ago. There was an email address listed with the entry. So, with nothing to lose, I set about sending an unsolicited email. Who knew if I would get a reply?
Hello Stan, SQ2NNN,
Thank you for our contacts back when 10 meters was good! The reason for this email is that finally I get to travel to Poland for business. I will be in Gdansk area week of May 8, 2017. It would be an honor to meet you in person after having had contact on radio! Just to say brief hello. Would you be interested?
Thank you,
73,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
The very next day, I got a positive reply, asking me to give info day before, and he might be able to welcome me to their small radio club, SP2KDS. Wow!
Fast forward one month, and there I was, in Poland, in a hotel lobby, waiting with a copy of an eQSL card from 2012 in my hand, waiting for someone I’d never met before, in a city over 4,000 miles from my NJ home. But it was all good. Stan was great, and though he doesn’t get a chance to speak English very often, his English was very good, and we had great conversation. He graciously offered to take me to visit a place called Westerplatte. I agreed. Westerplatte is a former military area that is the site where, on September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, which led Britain and France to declare war on Hitler’s Nazi state in retaliation. Westerplatte is where World War II started in Europe.
On the drive there, Stan showed me the radios in his car, which included a CB radio, which he tells me is popular for finding out where the traffic problems (speed traps) might be. We drove out past the shipyards, where Lech Walesa rose from being an electrician, to being a co-founder of Solidarity, eventually to preside over Poland’s transition from communism, as the country’s elected President.
A 2023 update :
In December last year, I was feeling a “bit nostalgic”, and went to look up Stan’s postal address on QRZ so I could mail him an old-school snail-mail Christmas card. When I did, I was stunned to see the words there “reported silent key”. This could not be. What happened? I started doing Google searches, and with the help of Google Translate, eventually found this reference (translated), along with a picture, that I recognized as him.
On June 5, 2021, Stanisław Gurniewicz, a competitor, organizer, commander of navigation rallies, died at the age of 63. Always smiling, kind, not refusing to help. Co-creator of the rules for route descriptions used in navigational and tourist car rallies. The Main Commission of Popular Sports and Tourism expresses its sincere condolences to the family and relatives
Such sad news. But I still did not know what happened. It began to eat away at me. So I started looking to try and find someone in Poland that knew him that might have more information. Stan had taken me to visit his radio club, and meet some of the guys there in Gdansk. So again, with help of QRZ, started reaching out via email, to any hams from the area that might have been in the club, or know him with more information. Last month, I received a reply.
Hello Jim!
Stanislaw died of covid 19. I had a few years break from the hobby. I don't know the details. More information can be provided: SQ2RGB, SP2HAV and SP2IPT.
73! Marcin SQ2BXI
So there it was. This great man, who survived the soviet occupation of Poland, who watched history unfold with the rising of Solidarity, who greeted me as a fellow ham with open arms and good will, done in by Covid. F-ing Covid. So unfair. Such a shame. Rest in peace, my friend Stan. Thank you for sharing your joy of this great radio hobby with me. You will always be remembered.
That’s when I thought of Amateur Radio. Like you, I keep a log of my DX radio contacts. Surely, there’s a contact or two that I’ve had with Poland, and perhaps with someone from this area? I’d had five contacts with stations in Poland, and thanks to QRZ.com, found one of those contacts was in the Gdansk area a few years ago. There was an email address listed with the entry. So, with nothing to lose, I set about sending an unsolicited email. Who knew if I would get a reply?
Hello Stan, SQ2NNN,
Thank you for our contacts back when 10 meters was good! The reason for this email is that finally I get to travel to Poland for business. I will be in Gdansk area week of May 8, 2017. It would be an honor to meet you in person after having had contact on radio! Just to say brief hello. Would you be interested?
Thank you,
73,
Jim Wright, N2GXJ
The very next day, I got a positive reply, asking me to give info day before, and he might be able to welcome me to their small radio club, SP2KDS. Wow!
Fast forward one month, and there I was, in Poland, in a hotel lobby, waiting with a copy of an eQSL card from 2012 in my hand, waiting for someone I’d never met before, in a city over 4,000 miles from my NJ home. But it was all good. Stan was great, and though he doesn’t get a chance to speak English very often, his English was very good, and we had great conversation. He graciously offered to take me to visit a place called Westerplatte. I agreed. Westerplatte is a former military area that is the site where, on September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, which led Britain and France to declare war on Hitler’s Nazi state in retaliation. Westerplatte is where World War II started in Europe.
On the drive there, Stan showed me the radios in his car, which included a CB radio, which he tells me is popular for finding out where the traffic problems (speed traps) might be. We drove out past the shipyards, where Lech Walesa rose from being an electrician, to being a co-founder of Solidarity, eventually to preside over Poland’s transition from communism, as the country’s elected President.
A 2023 update :
In December last year, I was feeling a “bit nostalgic”, and went to look up Stan’s postal address on QRZ so I could mail him an old-school snail-mail Christmas card. When I did, I was stunned to see the words there “reported silent key”. This could not be. What happened? I started doing Google searches, and with the help of Google Translate, eventually found this reference (translated), along with a picture, that I recognized as him.
On June 5, 2021, Stanisław Gurniewicz, a competitor, organizer, commander of navigation rallies, died at the age of 63. Always smiling, kind, not refusing to help. Co-creator of the rules for route descriptions used in navigational and tourist car rallies. The Main Commission of Popular Sports and Tourism expresses its sincere condolences to the family and relatives
Such sad news. But I still did not know what happened. It began to eat away at me. So I started looking to try and find someone in Poland that knew him that might have more information. Stan had taken me to visit his radio club, and meet some of the guys there in Gdansk. So again, with help of QRZ, started reaching out via email, to any hams from the area that might have been in the club, or know him with more information. Last month, I received a reply.
Hello Jim!
Stanislaw died of covid 19. I had a few years break from the hobby. I don't know the details. More information can be provided: SQ2RGB, SP2HAV and SP2IPT.
73! Marcin SQ2BXI
So there it was. This great man, who survived the soviet occupation of Poland, who watched history unfold with the rising of Solidarity, who greeted me as a fellow ham with open arms and good will, done in by Covid. F-ing Covid. So unfair. Such a shame. Rest in peace, my friend Stan. Thank you for sharing your joy of this great radio hobby with me. You will always be remembered.
RCA RT2770 Home Theatre Receiver Repair
By Mike Thompson, KG4JYA
http://mikeasphere.blogspot.com
These days it would seem as if every product were manufactured with an engineered lifespan. I find this particularly true with cheaper electronics. Parts and components of a unit typically fail at what seems suspiciously close to mere weeks after a warranty period has ended. For some, this equates to the slow sad procession of obsolete electronics to the curb on trash night. To others like me, it lends an opportunity to open a unit up to see if something could be repaired or at least harvested for parts.
Case in point, my father gave me an old surround sound decoder he no longer wanted. I had purchased him a sound bar which better suits his needs and he simply wanted to discard the old decoder. I had asked him if it worked, and he said that it did but that it made a “funny noise”. Not deterred, I took it home and opened it up.
Once the cover was off, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Typically, the first thing I look for is any signs of stress or wear on the components. None of the capacitors looked swollen and there were no observable burn marks or loose solder joints. So, at first glance everything seemed ok.
The next thing I did was hook the speakers up, apply power to the DUT (device under test) and then listen for or smell if anything seemed out of place. No sparks, or smoke erupted when power was applied. Furthermore, nothing seemed to burn or smell different. The speakers had a very slight hiss to them when the volume was turned up, so nothing with them sounded like a “funny noise”.
There was, however, a guttural whirling that emanated from the DUT. On closer inspection it appeared that the fan was struggling to spin. “Ahh this must be the problem!”, I thought. That seemed like a simple enough fix. Maybe even a quick blast of air could remedy things.
I popped the fan out of the DUT and gave it a good blast of air. I noted that as per the label the fan ran on 12 volts, so I decided to hook it up to a power supply to ensure that the fan was still in working order. I dialed up the voltage on the power supply and the fan snapped to life with vigor. It ran a little loud, but it moved the air just fine. I was confident that the issue had been resolved and replaced the fan in the DUT.
Upon testing, the fan performed in the same manner I had originally observed. It struggled to spin. This led me to believe that somehow the board was not providing the voltage necessary to turn the fan.
I disconnected the fan and read the voltage with a multimeter at the connection point. It was a little over 8 volts. “Well, that is not 12 volts so that HAS to be the problem.”, I thought to myself.
At this point I was a little over my head. Somewhere, I imagined there had to be bad components buried in the complex circuitry of the DUT. I searched with no success to find a schematic. I attempted to look at the traces on the board to get some sense of where to look next. Ultimately, I just started to randomly probe around looking for 12 volts on the board.
When none of this worked, I decided to enlist the help of fellow Club member Chris Prioli, AD2CS. He informed me that he would be happy to take some time and look at my problem.
More often than not, there is always something going on at the Clubhouse every Saturday. Whether it is a Tech Saturday presentation, the satellite station flexing its muscles on the newest satellite deployed or restoring the Clubhouse to better than former glory. The activity there is both welcoming and productive. This was the perfect place to meet up with Chris, and to get some use out of the Clubhouse’s test bench.
I met up with Chris early on Saturday morning and after a few moments of discussing Chris’ latest project we moved to the test bench to diagnose my issue. I explained the problem that the DUT was experiencing to him. He then did a quick search for a service manual to no avail. We also removed the board in question and did a visual examination, nothing seemed out of place.
Next, we hooked the DUT up to the test benches’ isolated AC power supply. This was an interesting piece of test equipment that isolates any circuit powered by it from AC mains. It also had the ability to adjust the voltage so that a user can slowly increase the voltage up to the recommended value. The DUT powered up normally and when turned on via the front panel switch, the fan began to intermittently spin.
Up to this point the steps taken were nearly identical to what I had performed in my earlier analysis. Chris, however, took a different approach when he checked the voltage being delivered to the fan. Instead of using a multimeter he opted to use the oscilloscope instead. I asked about this and he informed me that the “scope” could give us much more information about the voltage than merely its value. For instance, it can tell us if it is flat or alternating in any form over time. For the DUT it appeared that the voltage was a flat DC value a little more than 8 volts. This led us to believe that the voltage being delivered was probably not the issue since it was constant, with little to no ripple in it.
Chris had me remove the fan again, and he visually inspected it. “Look here.”, he said to me while spinning the fan blades with his finger. He continued, “The fan does not spin smoothly, there is some resistance”, while flipping the power switch of his custom battery eliminator. This is a piece of test equipment that Chris had built of his own design. It allows a user to flip through a series of DC test voltages that are common battery voltages. We started low at 1.5 volts and gradually increased. The fan started to intermittently turn at around 8 volts and finally started spinning consistently around 12 volts.
Then it occurred to me that DC fans should ideally start spinning with low voltage and gradually get faster, NOT run intermittently. It seems like an obvious enough thought, but it had indeed eluded me, with my limited experience in troubleshooting. So, my original impression that the fan was the issue was correct and Chris agreed.
Rather than order a new fan, Chris wanted to see if we could restore the operation of the fan under test. He peeled off the label on the back of the fan to expose the electronics and bearing. He then used component cleaner and compressed air to dissolve and blow out any dirt in the moving parts. Finally, we hooked the fan up to a voltage source to get it spinning and we applied oil to the bearing. Now the fan spun smoothly as soon as voltage was applied. We reinstalled the fan and the DUT now had no issues.
There were a couple of different ways that I could have addressed the problem. I could have scraped the unit for parts, or I could have merely ordered a new fan, waited for its arrival and installed it. Either would have worked out for me, but I feel that it would have wasted the opportunity to learn and collaborate with fellow enthusiasts.
After all, isn’t that what being in a Club is all about?
By Mike Thompson, KG4JYA
http://mikeasphere.blogspot.com
These days it would seem as if every product were manufactured with an engineered lifespan. I find this particularly true with cheaper electronics. Parts and components of a unit typically fail at what seems suspiciously close to mere weeks after a warranty period has ended. For some, this equates to the slow sad procession of obsolete electronics to the curb on trash night. To others like me, it lends an opportunity to open a unit up to see if something could be repaired or at least harvested for parts.
Case in point, my father gave me an old surround sound decoder he no longer wanted. I had purchased him a sound bar which better suits his needs and he simply wanted to discard the old decoder. I had asked him if it worked, and he said that it did but that it made a “funny noise”. Not deterred, I took it home and opened it up.
Once the cover was off, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Typically, the first thing I look for is any signs of stress or wear on the components. None of the capacitors looked swollen and there were no observable burn marks or loose solder joints. So, at first glance everything seemed ok.
The next thing I did was hook the speakers up, apply power to the DUT (device under test) and then listen for or smell if anything seemed out of place. No sparks, or smoke erupted when power was applied. Furthermore, nothing seemed to burn or smell different. The speakers had a very slight hiss to them when the volume was turned up, so nothing with them sounded like a “funny noise”.
There was, however, a guttural whirling that emanated from the DUT. On closer inspection it appeared that the fan was struggling to spin. “Ahh this must be the problem!”, I thought. That seemed like a simple enough fix. Maybe even a quick blast of air could remedy things.
I popped the fan out of the DUT and gave it a good blast of air. I noted that as per the label the fan ran on 12 volts, so I decided to hook it up to a power supply to ensure that the fan was still in working order. I dialed up the voltage on the power supply and the fan snapped to life with vigor. It ran a little loud, but it moved the air just fine. I was confident that the issue had been resolved and replaced the fan in the DUT.
Upon testing, the fan performed in the same manner I had originally observed. It struggled to spin. This led me to believe that somehow the board was not providing the voltage necessary to turn the fan.
I disconnected the fan and read the voltage with a multimeter at the connection point. It was a little over 8 volts. “Well, that is not 12 volts so that HAS to be the problem.”, I thought to myself.
At this point I was a little over my head. Somewhere, I imagined there had to be bad components buried in the complex circuitry of the DUT. I searched with no success to find a schematic. I attempted to look at the traces on the board to get some sense of where to look next. Ultimately, I just started to randomly probe around looking for 12 volts on the board.
When none of this worked, I decided to enlist the help of fellow Club member Chris Prioli, AD2CS. He informed me that he would be happy to take some time and look at my problem.
More often than not, there is always something going on at the Clubhouse every Saturday. Whether it is a Tech Saturday presentation, the satellite station flexing its muscles on the newest satellite deployed or restoring the Clubhouse to better than former glory. The activity there is both welcoming and productive. This was the perfect place to meet up with Chris, and to get some use out of the Clubhouse’s test bench.
I met up with Chris early on Saturday morning and after a few moments of discussing Chris’ latest project we moved to the test bench to diagnose my issue. I explained the problem that the DUT was experiencing to him. He then did a quick search for a service manual to no avail. We also removed the board in question and did a visual examination, nothing seemed out of place.
Next, we hooked the DUT up to the test benches’ isolated AC power supply. This was an interesting piece of test equipment that isolates any circuit powered by it from AC mains. It also had the ability to adjust the voltage so that a user can slowly increase the voltage up to the recommended value. The DUT powered up normally and when turned on via the front panel switch, the fan began to intermittently spin.
Up to this point the steps taken were nearly identical to what I had performed in my earlier analysis. Chris, however, took a different approach when he checked the voltage being delivered to the fan. Instead of using a multimeter he opted to use the oscilloscope instead. I asked about this and he informed me that the “scope” could give us much more information about the voltage than merely its value. For instance, it can tell us if it is flat or alternating in any form over time. For the DUT it appeared that the voltage was a flat DC value a little more than 8 volts. This led us to believe that the voltage being delivered was probably not the issue since it was constant, with little to no ripple in it.
Chris had me remove the fan again, and he visually inspected it. “Look here.”, he said to me while spinning the fan blades with his finger. He continued, “The fan does not spin smoothly, there is some resistance”, while flipping the power switch of his custom battery eliminator. This is a piece of test equipment that Chris had built of his own design. It allows a user to flip through a series of DC test voltages that are common battery voltages. We started low at 1.5 volts and gradually increased. The fan started to intermittently turn at around 8 volts and finally started spinning consistently around 12 volts.
Then it occurred to me that DC fans should ideally start spinning with low voltage and gradually get faster, NOT run intermittently. It seems like an obvious enough thought, but it had indeed eluded me, with my limited experience in troubleshooting. So, my original impression that the fan was the issue was correct and Chris agreed.
Rather than order a new fan, Chris wanted to see if we could restore the operation of the fan under test. He peeled off the label on the back of the fan to expose the electronics and bearing. He then used component cleaner and compressed air to dissolve and blow out any dirt in the moving parts. Finally, we hooked the fan up to a voltage source to get it spinning and we applied oil to the bearing. Now the fan spun smoothly as soon as voltage was applied. We reinstalled the fan and the DUT now had no issues.
There were a couple of different ways that I could have addressed the problem. I could have scraped the unit for parts, or I could have merely ordered a new fan, waited for its arrival and installed it. Either would have worked out for me, but I feel that it would have wasted the opportunity to learn and collaborate with fellow enthusiasts.
After all, isn’t that what being in a Club is all about?
10 Meters Is Back!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
For those who play on HF, it’s hard not to notice the excitement on 10 meters recently. What’s going on? Well, it seems we’ve just hit a 9 year high in the sunspot counts, as cycle 25 continues to trend above predictions, and that helps, a lot!
Back in January of 2020 I wrote a CrossTalk piece titled “2020 Vision” (catchy title, right?). Back then, we were counting “spotless days”, and longingly looking forward to turning the tide of the current sunspot drought. Mind you, this was near the bottom of the solar cycle. And all we could do was look forward to any indication of having actually having bottomed out. But, there was hope.
In August of 2020, there appeared in CrossTalk a controversial article titled “Newer Solar Cycle 25 Forecast Runs Counter To Consensus” based on a recently published technical paper. This was a very contrarian paper, where it was suggested that the experts could be wrong, based on a new way of looking at solar history’s “termination events”. Using historical observations of these events in a novel analysis, it was suggested that cycle 25 could actually turn out to be quite strong, boldly predicting “…Sunspot Cycle 25 will have a magnitude that rivals the top few since records began. This outcome would be in stark contrast to the community consensus estimate”. By their own admission, that is not what the experts were saying. Yet, as a Ham, I wanted to believe. Could they turn out to be right? For the remainder of 2020, we were left hoping, only dreaming of what the future might hold for long distance contacts on 10 meters.
By the time we got to July of 2021, we’d just had Field Day, and we could begin to tell that there was something good going on. Call it another hint that the prediction could be wrong. In a July 2021 CrossTalk article titled “Ready To Kick This Solar Cycle Into High Gear?”, we took a look at data showing where we might be in Cycle 25, compared to the predictions. But all of this early stuff was really still all just predictions. We did not know.
Now, we are there. Now, there is no question. Now, we know. Sunspot counts are trending ahead of predictions, and 10 meters is back! And the fun is likely to continue, as the max continues to not be expected until late 2024, or maybe 2025. Of course, to tell if those peak predictions remain true or not, history shows up we will have to wait until it is over, and then look back. When it is over, only then will we have “2020” hindsight. But forget about that. Let us refocus and live in the present! A current snapshot is shown below. For latest updates, go to : https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression .
Enjoy the ride!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
For those who play on HF, it’s hard not to notice the excitement on 10 meters recently. What’s going on? Well, it seems we’ve just hit a 9 year high in the sunspot counts, as cycle 25 continues to trend above predictions, and that helps, a lot!
Back in January of 2020 I wrote a CrossTalk piece titled “2020 Vision” (catchy title, right?). Back then, we were counting “spotless days”, and longingly looking forward to turning the tide of the current sunspot drought. Mind you, this was near the bottom of the solar cycle. And all we could do was look forward to any indication of having actually having bottomed out. But, there was hope.
In August of 2020, there appeared in CrossTalk a controversial article titled “Newer Solar Cycle 25 Forecast Runs Counter To Consensus” based on a recently published technical paper. This was a very contrarian paper, where it was suggested that the experts could be wrong, based on a new way of looking at solar history’s “termination events”. Using historical observations of these events in a novel analysis, it was suggested that cycle 25 could actually turn out to be quite strong, boldly predicting “…Sunspot Cycle 25 will have a magnitude that rivals the top few since records began. This outcome would be in stark contrast to the community consensus estimate”. By their own admission, that is not what the experts were saying. Yet, as a Ham, I wanted to believe. Could they turn out to be right? For the remainder of 2020, we were left hoping, only dreaming of what the future might hold for long distance contacts on 10 meters.
By the time we got to July of 2021, we’d just had Field Day, and we could begin to tell that there was something good going on. Call it another hint that the prediction could be wrong. In a July 2021 CrossTalk article titled “Ready To Kick This Solar Cycle Into High Gear?”, we took a look at data showing where we might be in Cycle 25, compared to the predictions. But all of this early stuff was really still all just predictions. We did not know.
Now, we are there. Now, there is no question. Now, we know. Sunspot counts are trending ahead of predictions, and 10 meters is back! And the fun is likely to continue, as the max continues to not be expected until late 2024, or maybe 2025. Of course, to tell if those peak predictions remain true or not, history shows up we will have to wait until it is over, and then look back. When it is over, only then will we have “2020” hindsight. But forget about that. Let us refocus and live in the present! A current snapshot is shown below. For latest updates, go to : https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression .
Enjoy the ride!
What’s on your “Top 10” list this year as part of your lifelong ham radio learning adventure?
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Top 10 lists are not new. I’m used to seeing other people’s Top 10 lists. They’re easy to read and even easier to disagree with. Making one for yourself, though, for what you want to do this year, is a little harder. Ever try and do this? I’ll challenge you with trying to make one based on this question :
What is on your personal top 10 list of things of things you would put on your own “check-off” list to do or learn about in ham radio for this year? Pause for a moment. Can you even come up with 5? It’s not that easy, is it?
What prompted this? Well, we just passed the 10th anniversary of the publication of Dan KB6NU’s e-book “21 Things to Do After You Get Your Amateur Radio License”, which came out around the time I joined our club. It has been a while since I first saw this list. I remember being overwhelmed, at first. It is a 21 item list, after all, not a top 10 one, and I had so much to learn (and still do)!
Anyway, seeing this list again got me to wondering, how would I score against this list today? And if I was making a “to do” list today, would I put any of these things on it? So I took a look. Surprisingly, at least for me, even though this list is 10 years old, it was very well written. It stands the test of time well, even today. Here’s the list. How would you score your own progress?
One thing became obvious to me while I was “scoring” myself against the list was just how much I owe to being part of GCARC for the learning and opportunities I’ve had on my continuing Ham Radio learning adventure. Sorry to get all nostalgic on you reading this, but 10 years can seem like a lot, until it has passed, and then it seems like just a blink of an eye. Quite amazing, actually. That list, which was so daunting and intimidating when I first saw it, now reads to me more like a “did” list than a “to do” list!
Which brings me back to the title of this article, the need to come up with an answer for what’s on my/your “top 10” check-off list for this year’s ham radio learning adventure. How about a list like this for this year? (in no particular order)
Any other suggestions, anyone? What would you put on your list for this year?
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Top 10 lists are not new. I’m used to seeing other people’s Top 10 lists. They’re easy to read and even easier to disagree with. Making one for yourself, though, for what you want to do this year, is a little harder. Ever try and do this? I’ll challenge you with trying to make one based on this question :
What is on your personal top 10 list of things of things you would put on your own “check-off” list to do or learn about in ham radio for this year? Pause for a moment. Can you even come up with 5? It’s not that easy, is it?
What prompted this? Well, we just passed the 10th anniversary of the publication of Dan KB6NU’s e-book “21 Things to Do After You Get Your Amateur Radio License”, which came out around the time I joined our club. It has been a while since I first saw this list. I remember being overwhelmed, at first. It is a 21 item list, after all, not a top 10 one, and I had so much to learn (and still do)!
Anyway, seeing this list again got me to wondering, how would I score against this list today? And if I was making a “to do” list today, would I put any of these things on it? So I took a look. Surprisingly, at least for me, even though this list is 10 years old, it was very well written. It stands the test of time well, even today. Here’s the list. How would you score your own progress?
- Join a club - did this, thank you GCARC!
- Join the ARRL - did this, left for a while, but am back now!
- Find an Elmer – did this, found not one, but many. Thank you GCARC!
- Buy a radio – did this, starting with an HT and then an old IC7000 for HF (still have it)
- Get on the air – did this, repeaters at first
- Set up a shack – did this. And still adding stuff (of course, right?)
- Buy some tools – did this. Still doing this
- Buy a digital multimeter (DMM) – I think I got mine for free from a Club member
- Build an antenna – did this. Started simple with a balun and some wires to make a dipole, but it counts!
- Build a kit – did this. Got a “tuna can” CW xmit kit after seeing one at a Club presentation on QRP
- Go to a hamfest – did this, thank you GCARC!
- Learn the lingo – still learning
- Subscribe to mailing lists, blogs, and podcasts – did this, still fun to find new ones
- Upgrade to General – did this, then Extra, thank you GCARC!
- Go to Field Day – did this, thank you GCARC!
- Learn Morse Code – still learning, with a re-sparked interest, thanks to (GCARC) Tony’s Morse Code class!
- Get to know your (ham) neighbors – IMHO best part of the hobby. Not just those with us today, but for those who are not who helped me so much along the way these past 10 years, including Doug Gehring WA2NPD, Jim Mollica K2OWE, Gene Wallace N2IMK, Charlie Sketchley K2PQD, Tom Cusack KC2THO, Joe Everhart N2CX, Ken Newman N2CQ, Ray Schnapp WB2NBJ, Urb LeJeune W1UL, Ray Martin W2RM, and others. RIP, my friends, so blessed to have been able to know you. You’ll never be forgotten.
- Buy QSL cards – did this. Still got a pile left. Want one?
- Join SkyWarn, ARES, or RACES – did this
- Participate in a contest – did this, still doing this (sometimes from the W2MMD Clubhouse)
- HAVE FUN! – still learning too!
One thing became obvious to me while I was “scoring” myself against the list was just how much I owe to being part of GCARC for the learning and opportunities I’ve had on my continuing Ham Radio learning adventure. Sorry to get all nostalgic on you reading this, but 10 years can seem like a lot, until it has passed, and then it seems like just a blink of an eye. Quite amazing, actually. That list, which was so daunting and intimidating when I first saw it, now reads to me more like a “did” list than a “to do” list!
Which brings me back to the title of this article, the need to come up with an answer for what’s on my/your “top 10” check-off list for this year’s ham radio learning adventure. How about a list like this for this year? (in no particular order)
- Giving back to hobby
- Help teach a license prep class
- Be a presenter for a program at a GCARC Club meeting
- Operate at least once as NCS on ARES/RACES net
- Participate as VE in grading tests at a license testing session
- Volunteer to a Club office or committee
- Help a fellow ham get on air with HF (e.g. at field day this year)
- Amateur Satellite – make at least one contact via repeater on an “FM bird”. Stretch goal : Hear self on sideband through an inverting bird
- Morse Code – make at least 3 on-air Morse code contacts. Stretch goal : Log at least one contact at the CW table at field day
- Fox hunt – participate in at least 2 Club fox hunts. Stretch goal : Get to be the “fox” who hides the transmitter for others to find
- DXCC – get at least 2 new countries added to my confirmed DXCC list at LoTW, any bands
Any other suggestions, anyone? What would you put on your list for this year?
The following article by Peter Doherty KC1HHO, posted to the Eastern Massachusetts Section ARRL website on December 22, 2022, has been adapted with permission.
Why Not Send a Radiogram Today?
By Dave Sheppard, W2PAX - Net Manager, Southwest Florida Traffic Net
Amateur Radio operators need not be involved with the National Traffic Service (NTS) to send or receive radiograms. Official Relay Stations (ORS), as well as stations in training, can “originate” your messages and get them into the traffic system. This can easily be done by finding out who a local ORS is and sending them your message via email, snail mail or even in person (think club meetings). This station will also communicate back to you any replies that your message generates. Best of all it’s all free of charge!!
So what kind of messages could be sent? Holiday greetings to family or friends, confirmations of QSO’s, notifications of awards or certifications from your club or special event, thank you messages. Any legal traffic, recommended to be 25 words or less (but not required). Some NTS messages can be incorporated into brevity codes that reduce the word count (think ‘ARL’ numbered messages). An ORS will be able to work with you to make it happen.
The ominous possibility of communication infrastructure being compromised is another reason to rely on the NTS to get your message through. The time is now to establish a trusting relationship with your local NTS stations and gain experience so that you’ll be better prepared for the future.
Incorporating radiograms into your personal or club radio activities will provide another facet to the hobby. Once you’ve experienced the effectiveness of sending radiograms you’ll be amazed. Thousands of Amateur Radio operators participate in this system and you can too.
To get started utilizing the NTS resources in your local area, contact your Section Traffic Manager.
(**NOTE: THE LAST PARAGRAPH ORIGINALLY READ “To get started utilizing the NTS resources in your local area, contact Dave Sheppard W2PAX at [email protected], and visit https://fmarc.net/swftn.” I am willing to help anyone that wants to get involved with traffic handling, and my contact information can certainly be provided. However, since I am in Florida, I may not be the best source of help for those in South Jersey.)
Steven Bromhead, KB2RTZ, is the ARRL SNJ Section Traffic Manager.
Editor’s Note : Dave Sheppard, W2PAX, is a new member of our Club and the “unofficial” Florida correspondent for CrossTalk Magazine.
Why Not Send a Radiogram Today?
By Dave Sheppard, W2PAX - Net Manager, Southwest Florida Traffic Net
Amateur Radio operators need not be involved with the National Traffic Service (NTS) to send or receive radiograms. Official Relay Stations (ORS), as well as stations in training, can “originate” your messages and get them into the traffic system. This can easily be done by finding out who a local ORS is and sending them your message via email, snail mail or even in person (think club meetings). This station will also communicate back to you any replies that your message generates. Best of all it’s all free of charge!!
So what kind of messages could be sent? Holiday greetings to family or friends, confirmations of QSO’s, notifications of awards or certifications from your club or special event, thank you messages. Any legal traffic, recommended to be 25 words or less (but not required). Some NTS messages can be incorporated into brevity codes that reduce the word count (think ‘ARL’ numbered messages). An ORS will be able to work with you to make it happen.
The ominous possibility of communication infrastructure being compromised is another reason to rely on the NTS to get your message through. The time is now to establish a trusting relationship with your local NTS stations and gain experience so that you’ll be better prepared for the future.
Incorporating radiograms into your personal or club radio activities will provide another facet to the hobby. Once you’ve experienced the effectiveness of sending radiograms you’ll be amazed. Thousands of Amateur Radio operators participate in this system and you can too.
To get started utilizing the NTS resources in your local area, contact your Section Traffic Manager.
(**NOTE: THE LAST PARAGRAPH ORIGINALLY READ “To get started utilizing the NTS resources in your local area, contact Dave Sheppard W2PAX at [email protected], and visit https://fmarc.net/swftn.” I am willing to help anyone that wants to get involved with traffic handling, and my contact information can certainly be provided. However, since I am in Florida, I may not be the best source of help for those in South Jersey.)
Steven Bromhead, KB2RTZ, is the ARRL SNJ Section Traffic Manager.
Editor’s Note : Dave Sheppard, W2PAX, is a new member of our Club and the “unofficial” Florida correspondent for CrossTalk Magazine.
ARRL Membership Commission Program
By Chris Prioli, AD2CS
As some of you may already know, the ARRL has upped the ante on one of their long-standing programs, the Affiliated Club Membership Commission program. What this means to us is that we as an Affiliated Club have access to an improved revenue stream that costs us nothing but a little bit of paperwork and cooperation. The Membership Committee will handle the paperwork, but we do need the cooperation of all Club members to make this a reality.
Here is how it works. The ARRL will pay a commission to the GCARC for every new ARRL membership and for every ARRL membership renewal that is processed through the Membership Commission program. The payments are at a rate of five dollars for each renewal and fifteen dollars for each new membership application submitted. This could equate to a sizable income for our Club if everyone cooperates.
All that you have to, as an existing ARRL member, is to renew your League membership via a renewal form that the GCARC Membership Committee will provide to you, completing the form and returning the form with the renewal payment to our Membership Committee. We will then bundle all of the applications received in a given month and submit them to the ARRL together with a special cover form competed by the Membership Committee. The ARRL will then send a check for the agreed commission amount to our Club. Renewals can be submitted as much as sixty days before expiration. If you are unsure of your expiration date, drop me an email and I can tell you when your ARRL membership expires.
As a tentative new member… and 36% of our membership does not currently belong to the ARRL… the process is similar. Our Membership Committee will provide you with a League membership application, which you will then complete and return to us together with your payment. We will then submit those applications together with the required cover form to the ARRL, who will again send a check for the commission to our Club.
If you are not currently an ARRL member, I strongly recommend that you join the League. The ARRL is our - Amateur Radio’s - ONLY voice in Washington when it comes to lobbying for the hobby and protection of Amateur Radio against encroachment by other interests. We NEED to support the ARRL in order to protect our chosen hobby, and they are quite effective and successful in their efforts to protect and promote Amateur Radio.
Many of you will be renewing your ARRL memberships anyway, so why not do it through this program and let GCARC benefit a little bit from your renewal?
By Chris Prioli, AD2CS
As some of you may already know, the ARRL has upped the ante on one of their long-standing programs, the Affiliated Club Membership Commission program. What this means to us is that we as an Affiliated Club have access to an improved revenue stream that costs us nothing but a little bit of paperwork and cooperation. The Membership Committee will handle the paperwork, but we do need the cooperation of all Club members to make this a reality.
Here is how it works. The ARRL will pay a commission to the GCARC for every new ARRL membership and for every ARRL membership renewal that is processed through the Membership Commission program. The payments are at a rate of five dollars for each renewal and fifteen dollars for each new membership application submitted. This could equate to a sizable income for our Club if everyone cooperates.
All that you have to, as an existing ARRL member, is to renew your League membership via a renewal form that the GCARC Membership Committee will provide to you, completing the form and returning the form with the renewal payment to our Membership Committee. We will then bundle all of the applications received in a given month and submit them to the ARRL together with a special cover form competed by the Membership Committee. The ARRL will then send a check for the agreed commission amount to our Club. Renewals can be submitted as much as sixty days before expiration. If you are unsure of your expiration date, drop me an email and I can tell you when your ARRL membership expires.
As a tentative new member… and 36% of our membership does not currently belong to the ARRL… the process is similar. Our Membership Committee will provide you with a League membership application, which you will then complete and return to us together with your payment. We will then submit those applications together with the required cover form to the ARRL, who will again send a check for the commission to our Club.
If you are not currently an ARRL member, I strongly recommend that you join the League. The ARRL is our - Amateur Radio’s - ONLY voice in Washington when it comes to lobbying for the hobby and protection of Amateur Radio against encroachment by other interests. We NEED to support the ARRL in order to protect our chosen hobby, and they are quite effective and successful in their efforts to protect and promote Amateur Radio.
Many of you will be renewing your ARRL memberships anyway, so why not do it through this program and let GCARC benefit a little bit from your renewal?
What A Ham Detected On VLF With Earth Probe Antenna!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Every once and a while, something comes along in this hobby that just makes you stop for a moment and say what, you can do that? How about using ground spikes or underground antennas for LF and VLF reception. How’s that?
I had no idea this was a thing, and that there are Facebook groups with over 1000 members (enthusiasts even) experimenting with such weird antennas. But there are! There are people out there chasing DX on low frequencies using the Earth’s crust as part of a waveguide to detect distant transmitters. Check out https://www.facebook.com/groups/earthprobes and https://www.facebook.com/groups/VLF.ULF.ELF.
As quoted in an article posted at https://www.rtl-sdr.com/building-an-underground-earth-probe-antenna-for-0-14-mhz-tx-rx. “At first everyone made fun of me, the professionals called me crazy and today with more than seven hundred members, we installed underground antenna systems and the results are there”
What kind of results? Apparently, these ground spike and underground antenna designs have been around and have been studied for some time. And on October 9, 2022, a ham used receptions from his Earth probe antenna to confirm a gamma ray burst from outer space. How’s that? https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2022/10/17/powerful-gamma-ray-burst-made-currents-flow-in-the-earth.
Question for readers of Crosstalk - have any of you experimented with Earth probe antennas, or done any DX yet on either of the far-below-HF 135kHz or 472kHz ham bands? I’d be interested in hearing about your experiences.
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Every once and a while, something comes along in this hobby that just makes you stop for a moment and say what, you can do that? How about using ground spikes or underground antennas for LF and VLF reception. How’s that?
I had no idea this was a thing, and that there are Facebook groups with over 1000 members (enthusiasts even) experimenting with such weird antennas. But there are! There are people out there chasing DX on low frequencies using the Earth’s crust as part of a waveguide to detect distant transmitters. Check out https://www.facebook.com/groups/earthprobes and https://www.facebook.com/groups/VLF.ULF.ELF.
As quoted in an article posted at https://www.rtl-sdr.com/building-an-underground-earth-probe-antenna-for-0-14-mhz-tx-rx. “At first everyone made fun of me, the professionals called me crazy and today with more than seven hundred members, we installed underground antenna systems and the results are there”
What kind of results? Apparently, these ground spike and underground antenna designs have been around and have been studied for some time. And on October 9, 2022, a ham used receptions from his Earth probe antenna to confirm a gamma ray burst from outer space. How’s that? https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2022/10/17/powerful-gamma-ray-burst-made-currents-flow-in-the-earth.
Question for readers of Crosstalk - have any of you experimented with Earth probe antennas, or done any DX yet on either of the far-below-HF 135kHz or 472kHz ham bands? I’d be interested in hearing about your experiences.
Not So Fast!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
You’ve seen charts like this one, from N0NBH.com, showing current solar conditions along with a prediction of HF Conditions. But not so fast! Compare here the listed HF condition of “poor” for 40 meters, vs what I was actually seeing on FT8 on 40 meters. Poor? Maybe not! Just goes to show, there’s no substitute for turning on the radio and seeing for yourself!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
You’ve seen charts like this one, from N0NBH.com, showing current solar conditions along with a prediction of HF Conditions. But not so fast! Compare here the listed HF condition of “poor” for 40 meters, vs what I was actually seeing on FT8 on 40 meters. Poor? Maybe not! Just goes to show, there’s no substitute for turning on the radio and seeing for yourself!
Historical Lunar RCA TV Camera
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
As a former employee of RCA Camden, it was fun to discover this historical lunar mission RCA TV camera during a recent trip to visit the Smithsonian’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum out by Dulles airport. Looking forward to our upcoming club trip to visit the RCA museum at Rowan!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
As a former employee of RCA Camden, it was fun to discover this historical lunar mission RCA TV camera during a recent trip to visit the Smithsonian’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum out by Dulles airport. Looking forward to our upcoming club trip to visit the RCA museum at Rowan!
Post Cards From Space - ISS Pictures - December 30, 2021
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Manually, I have to tune the dial to compensate for the doppler shift. Starting at 145.803 and then ending at 145.797. Being there at right time is part of the fun! I was a little late on the manual frequency change for the Doppler shift, so got a static bar, but otherwise, this one received pretty good. I bet the RX at the Clubhouse has an impressive collection by now. Can't wait to see them to compare. Pictures from space - kind of fun! Wish this earlier one had come out better, I like the rover picture!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Manually, I have to tune the dial to compensate for the doppler shift. Starting at 145.803 and then ending at 145.797. Being there at right time is part of the fun! I was a little late on the manual frequency change for the Doppler shift, so got a static bar, but otherwise, this one received pretty good. I bet the RX at the Clubhouse has an impressive collection by now. Can't wait to see them to compare. Pictures from space - kind of fun! Wish this earlier one had come out better, I like the rover picture!
QSL Card with International Space Station and Award
By Doug Dersch, KD2VQA
I received a QSL card from communicating with the International Space Station and an e-mail with the text and images below.
Hello KD2VQA
This ARISS SSTV event is dedicated to "Present ISS Space Agency Contributions to Lunar Exploration, Past, Present and Future.” The SSTV slides provide some historical context to several missions, some not well known, that significantly contributed to Lunar Exploration either from a technology or scientific perspective. General intention of the ARISS SSTV slides is to provide aspects to the observers that may not be known before and could offer a base for own investigations on space history.
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and amateur radio.
Greetings - Slawek SQ3OOK,
ARISS SSTV Award Manager
By Doug Dersch, KD2VQA
I received a QSL card from communicating with the International Space Station and an e-mail with the text and images below.
Hello KD2VQA
This ARISS SSTV event is dedicated to "Present ISS Space Agency Contributions to Lunar Exploration, Past, Present and Future.” The SSTV slides provide some historical context to several missions, some not well known, that significantly contributed to Lunar Exploration either from a technology or scientific perspective. General intention of the ARISS SSTV slides is to provide aspects to the observers that may not be known before and could offer a base for own investigations on space history.
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics topics. ARISS does this by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities take part in hands-on learning activities tied to space, space technologies, and amateur radio.
Greetings - Slawek SQ3OOK,
ARISS SSTV Award Manager
Small Station VHF Contesting :
Since the Clubhouse is currently without VHF antennas, several members operated the January VHF contest from their own QTH in order to submit for a club aggregate score. John K2QA, Mike K2MRP, and Frank N3PUU teamed up and ran a cobbled together limited multi-operator station from N3PUU's workshop. Needing a second antenna for the second operating position, N3PUU assembled a quick and dirty 6 meter Moxon which netted the team a total of 97 QSOs on 6 meters. The team also completed an additional 110 contacts on a combination of 2 meters and 70 cm. While this was far from a big gun station, it was a great example of what is possible on VHF with a very modest setup. Fun was had by all!
Since the Clubhouse is currently without VHF antennas, several members operated the January VHF contest from their own QTH in order to submit for a club aggregate score. John K2QA, Mike K2MRP, and Frank N3PUU teamed up and ran a cobbled together limited multi-operator station from N3PUU's workshop. Needing a second antenna for the second operating position, N3PUU assembled a quick and dirty 6 meter Moxon which netted the team a total of 97 QSOs on 6 meters. The team also completed an additional 110 contacts on a combination of 2 meters and 70 cm. While this was far from a big gun station, it was a great example of what is possible on VHF with a very modest setup. Fun was had by all!
Special Projects and the GCARC Budget
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Each January, the Club establishes a budget for the Club, to balance planned expenses against planned income for the upcoming year. Once this budget is approved at the February General Membership Meeting, the Club then controls expenditures within the approved budget.
The question often comes up, is there is a way to approve items during the year that were not recurring or normal items included in the budget at the start of the year? The answer is yes. As stated in Article V, Section 2 of the Club’s Constitution,
“no expenditure shall be incurred by the Board of Directors greater than the individual line items in the annual budget, nor shall the total amount of the annual budget be exceeded except by the express consent of a majority vote of the general membership.”
It is that last except clause that provides the answer as to how. Basically, if you want to spend for something above what is already in the annual approved budget, you have to get a vote on it at a general membership meeting.
There are examples of such approvals having been voted on and approved in recent history. Examples that come to mind include funding and approvals for :
Those were examples all involving unbudgeted improvements at the Clubhouse. But not all special projects have to involve the Clubhouse. Do you have a special project or activity idea that you would champion for the Club? If you do, please share it with us. Others might find it to be a great idea also, and with enough grass roots support, might be willing to work with you to get it funded and worked on. You’ll never know unless you ask.
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Each January, the Club establishes a budget for the Club, to balance planned expenses against planned income for the upcoming year. Once this budget is approved at the February General Membership Meeting, the Club then controls expenditures within the approved budget.
The question often comes up, is there is a way to approve items during the year that were not recurring or normal items included in the budget at the start of the year? The answer is yes. As stated in Article V, Section 2 of the Club’s Constitution,
“no expenditure shall be incurred by the Board of Directors greater than the individual line items in the annual budget, nor shall the total amount of the annual budget be exceeded except by the express consent of a majority vote of the general membership.”
It is that last except clause that provides the answer as to how. Basically, if you want to spend for something above what is already in the annual approved budget, you have to get a vote on it at a general membership meeting.
There are examples of such approvals having been voted on and approved in recent history. Examples that come to mind include funding and approvals for :
- Project : New Toilet
- Project : New Air Conditioner
- Project : Generator Refurbishment
- Project : Clubhouse Lightning Protection
Those were examples all involving unbudgeted improvements at the Clubhouse. But not all special projects have to involve the Clubhouse. Do you have a special project or activity idea that you would champion for the Club? If you do, please share it with us. Others might find it to be a great idea also, and with enough grass roots support, might be willing to work with you to get it funded and worked on. You’ll never know unless you ask.
August QSO Today Virtual Hamfest
By Mary Delemarre, W2TDS
For $10 I attended the virtual QSO Today Hamfest at https://qsotoday.vfairs.com on August 14 & 15, 2021. It was money well spent. Plus, for the next month I have access to all of the session recordings. I am a new ham so what interested me will not interest a seasoned veteran of 30 + years. I have my Technicians license, and I have started studying to get my General. I have a Yaesu 857D radio that I use occasionally on 2M. My radio is capable of far more, but I need other antennas for that. Sadly, my elmer has passed away, so I am figuring things out by research and asking the occasional question on the 2M Rag Chew Nets. So when I saw for $10 I could learn about antennas and what to do with my Technician license other than listen to repeaters, I was all in.
I was curious about contesting so I attended Contesting, The Second Step, by Gary Sutcliffe W9XT. Two things I learned was to get a very comfortable chair and to have good logging software that you are familiar with. It is not recommended to use your logging software for the first time during a contest. He recommended the chairs gamers use since they are designed to be comfortable for gamers to sit in for many hours. I currently use a paper log, but want to switch to an electronic log. So next up was listening to a session on Amateur Radio Logging Software by Anthony Luscre K8ZT. He also has a website that is packed full of information at http://www.k8zt.com. He recommended listening/reading reviews of various logging programs on YouTube and at http://www.eham.net. Most of the logging programs are windows based, but one or two run on a Mac. My old MacAir now can run Windows 10 so I can experiment with digital modes. When I get some free time I plan on trying out a few of the logging programs. I first need to do some research to down-select from the dozen or so I learned about.
My favorite session was Technician Licensees, Life Beyond Local Repeaters by Anthony Luscre K8ZT. It talked about a bunch of topics that were interesting to a newbie like me - try something besides repeaters. Try simplex, contesting, fox hunting, satellites, digital mode, and EchoLink. Well I have tried EchoLink?? Try different bands such as 6M, where technicians have full privileges (all modes and frequencies) for the entire band. He also discussed antennas. I will need to read up a lot more on antennas. I have a lot to learn. The full presentation materials are at http://tiny.cc/qte-bt.
The last presentation I watched was the Youth In Ham Radio by Carole Perry WB2MGP. The kids selected were amazing. They have passed their General and Amateur Extra licenses and they weren't even in High School yet! They participate in field day, do morse code, etc. usually as part of a school club.
I highly recommend attending the virtual hamfest - for $10 - it is a bargain. I love to learn new things and I learned a lot and have notes and links that will keep me busy learning for the foreseeable future.
By Mary Delemarre, W2TDS
For $10 I attended the virtual QSO Today Hamfest at https://qsotoday.vfairs.com on August 14 & 15, 2021. It was money well spent. Plus, for the next month I have access to all of the session recordings. I am a new ham so what interested me will not interest a seasoned veteran of 30 + years. I have my Technicians license, and I have started studying to get my General. I have a Yaesu 857D radio that I use occasionally on 2M. My radio is capable of far more, but I need other antennas for that. Sadly, my elmer has passed away, so I am figuring things out by research and asking the occasional question on the 2M Rag Chew Nets. So when I saw for $10 I could learn about antennas and what to do with my Technician license other than listen to repeaters, I was all in.
I was curious about contesting so I attended Contesting, The Second Step, by Gary Sutcliffe W9XT. Two things I learned was to get a very comfortable chair and to have good logging software that you are familiar with. It is not recommended to use your logging software for the first time during a contest. He recommended the chairs gamers use since they are designed to be comfortable for gamers to sit in for many hours. I currently use a paper log, but want to switch to an electronic log. So next up was listening to a session on Amateur Radio Logging Software by Anthony Luscre K8ZT. He also has a website that is packed full of information at http://www.k8zt.com. He recommended listening/reading reviews of various logging programs on YouTube and at http://www.eham.net. Most of the logging programs are windows based, but one or two run on a Mac. My old MacAir now can run Windows 10 so I can experiment with digital modes. When I get some free time I plan on trying out a few of the logging programs. I first need to do some research to down-select from the dozen or so I learned about.
My favorite session was Technician Licensees, Life Beyond Local Repeaters by Anthony Luscre K8ZT. It talked about a bunch of topics that were interesting to a newbie like me - try something besides repeaters. Try simplex, contesting, fox hunting, satellites, digital mode, and EchoLink. Well I have tried EchoLink?? Try different bands such as 6M, where technicians have full privileges (all modes and frequencies) for the entire band. He also discussed antennas. I will need to read up a lot more on antennas. I have a lot to learn. The full presentation materials are at http://tiny.cc/qte-bt.
The last presentation I watched was the Youth In Ham Radio by Carole Perry WB2MGP. The kids selected were amazing. They have passed their General and Amateur Extra licenses and they weren't even in High School yet! They participate in field day, do morse code, etc. usually as part of a school club.
I highly recommend attending the virtual hamfest - for $10 - it is a bargain. I love to learn new things and I learned a lot and have notes and links that will keep me busy learning for the foreseeable future.
It Couldn’t Happen Again, Could It?
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ 100 years ago, the entire signal and switching system of the New York Central Railroad below 125th Street was put out of operation, followed by a fire in the control tower at Fifty-Seventh Street and Park Avenue. What was to blame for this? A New York Times article from the time blamed a sunspot for this mischief. For sure, the sun must have uncorked a good one, and the Earth was in its path. Theater goers exiting their shows that evening were surprised to be treated to an overhead light show as the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis, danced overhead, brighter than the lights of New York City. |
You can read all about it in old newspaper reports from the period, an example being :
http://www.solarstorms.org/NewsPapers/d1921a.pdf
Could what happened those 3 days back in 1921 happen again? And what if it did?
Some say we’ve been lucky. Our modern technology today might not take too well to a large Earth directed solar coronal mass ejection (CME). There has been speculation over the years as to what might happen, if a big Earth-facing CME were to happen again, and example being :
https://spaceweatherarchive.com/2020/05/12/the-great-geomagnetic-storm-of-may-1921
A most disturbing potential consequence of such an event in 2021 could be the loss of GPS satellites. What I did not realize is, that despite its name that includes the word “position” in it, today’s reliance on GPS that would be most disrupted would not be related to location. It would be related to time.
This critical time is used for precise synchronization of communication systems, including wireless telephone and data networks, by financial networks (including those used by your favorite ATM machine), credit card transactions, and other critical infrastructure. You can read more about this at
https://www.gps.gov/applications/timing
The point being that even a “minor” short term disruption to the GPS satellite system from an Earth-directed CME could have a wide reaching and lingering effect on our commerce and our lives. The potential impact is not a hypothetical exercise.
Dan Glass from The Atlantic magazine described in 2016 some of the problems that have already been seen with GPS time errors, from accidental events (human error), to deliberately introduced errors (jamming, and spoofing). You can read about this at :
https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/06/what-happens-if-gps-fails/486824
Included in the article is a mention of a large CME that exploded from the sun in July 2012, estimated to be as strong as the CME that is suspected as causing the 1859 Carrington Event. Why did we not hear of it? It was not Earth-directed. It blew off in a different direction, and thus missed Earth.
Could it happen again? Sure. But there’s not that much we can do about it. When it comes to large Earth-directed CME, fingers crossed for continued good luck!
GCARC In Club Competition
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
On the weekend of January 16-18, 2021, GCARC participated in the ARRL's January VHF/UHF contest as a team as part of the affiliated club competition. Some Club members operated from the Clubhouse under the W2MMD callsign. Others operated from their home stations under their own callsigns for a combined Gloucester Co ARC club score.
Al KB2AYU writes "Great job on the contest (at the Clubhouse) from Frank N3PUU, John K2QA, Mike K2MRP. It was another last minute rush to get everything set up. I certainly wasn't expecting to beat last year's score, which we did by over 10,000 points. Some of those points were from having a new band (1296MHZ) ". Home station contributors included Chris KC2IEB, Sheldon K2MEN, Mark KK2L, Bruce KB2LBU, and Jim N2GXJ.
As was the case last year, we'll have to wait until later this year when the ARRL publishes results to see how well we did. Indications so far is that we might have done quite well!
Way to go GCARC!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
On the weekend of January 16-18, 2021, GCARC participated in the ARRL's January VHF/UHF contest as a team as part of the affiliated club competition. Some Club members operated from the Clubhouse under the W2MMD callsign. Others operated from their home stations under their own callsigns for a combined Gloucester Co ARC club score.
Al KB2AYU writes "Great job on the contest (at the Clubhouse) from Frank N3PUU, John K2QA, Mike K2MRP. It was another last minute rush to get everything set up. I certainly wasn't expecting to beat last year's score, which we did by over 10,000 points. Some of those points were from having a new band (1296MHZ) ". Home station contributors included Chris KC2IEB, Sheldon K2MEN, Mark KK2L, Bruce KB2LBU, and Jim N2GXJ.
As was the case last year, we'll have to wait until later this year when the ARRL publishes results to see how well we did. Indications so far is that we might have done quite well!
Way to go GCARC!
Attention Club Members - Morning 2M Rag Chew Net
By Steve Farney, WB2VFJ
Starting on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 @ 1100 Hours, I will be conducting a weekly Morning 2 Meter Rag Chew Net on 147.180 MHz and Echo Link : W2MMD-R.
This will be a trial net for the entire month of January. If there is about the same participation as the Thursday Night 2 Meter Rag Chew Net, we will continue into the next month.
The reason for this experiment is that the repeater is very lightly used during weekdays. I rarely hear anyone on the repeater during the week during daylight. When I first earned my ticket in late 1978, morning and evening rush hours and lunch time was packed on the repeater. There was anywhere up to 20 members on air at any given time. That was back in the days of “phone patches” and before cell phones (boo to cell phone’s impact on our hobby). Our Club pays for the electric to keep the repeater operational so I would like to try to utilize that Club benefit more efficiently.
I would welcome help from any Club members in accomplishing this project. Just let me know if you would like to help (e-mail address below).
Thanks in advance for your assistance.
73
Steve
WB2VFJ
sef001 <at> comcast <dot> net
By Steve Farney, WB2VFJ
Starting on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 @ 1100 Hours, I will be conducting a weekly Morning 2 Meter Rag Chew Net on 147.180 MHz and Echo Link : W2MMD-R.
This will be a trial net for the entire month of January. If there is about the same participation as the Thursday Night 2 Meter Rag Chew Net, we will continue into the next month.
The reason for this experiment is that the repeater is very lightly used during weekdays. I rarely hear anyone on the repeater during the week during daylight. When I first earned my ticket in late 1978, morning and evening rush hours and lunch time was packed on the repeater. There was anywhere up to 20 members on air at any given time. That was back in the days of “phone patches” and before cell phones (boo to cell phone’s impact on our hobby). Our Club pays for the electric to keep the repeater operational so I would like to try to utilize that Club benefit more efficiently.
I would welcome help from any Club members in accomplishing this project. Just let me know if you would like to help (e-mail address below).
Thanks in advance for your assistance.
73
Steve
WB2VFJ
sef001 <at> comcast <dot> net
My First Virtual Hamfest
By Mary Delemarre, KD2PLH
I attended QSO Today’s virtual hamfest on August 8 & 9. It was fantastic and it was free. The organizers used a platform to make the experience unique and informative.
Not to worry if you missed it, you can still sign up to experience the virtual platform and view the more than 60 recorded presentations and the vendor booths. The virtual hamfest platform will be open until September 9th.
By Mary Delemarre, KD2PLH
I attended QSO Today’s virtual hamfest on August 8 & 9. It was fantastic and it was free. The organizers used a platform to make the experience unique and informative.
Not to worry if you missed it, you can still sign up to experience the virtual platform and view the more than 60 recorded presentations and the vendor booths. The virtual hamfest platform will be open until September 9th.
You can see the schedule/agenda here to see if any of the topics are of interest to you :
https://bit.ly/2EthbrE
To login go to https://qsotoday.vfairs.com. It should look like Figure 1. Login using the same email that you used to register. No password is needed. That is also where you register.
After you login you will see something like the image in Figure 2. Using your mouse, click on the building with the ICOM flag to go inside for the hamfest. It is using some virtual reality effects so you feel as if you are flying inside the building.
Once inside a popup window appears and Eric Guth 4Z1UG gives an overview of the Hamfest. It is less than 7 minutes long and gives a very good overview of what there is to see & do. I recommend it even if you are looking at the hamfest for the first time after August 9th.
Figure 3 is the Lobby. Using your mouse click on the Exhibits Hall area to see vendors and Auditorium to see the presentations.
After clicking on Auditorium, click on the Presentations in the center of the screen (see Figure 4). It takes you to the 4 tracks of presentations. Click on the agenda to see all the different topics : https://bit.ly/3l8d7ho. It opened in a separate tab on my computer.
What I enjoyed :
1. Keynote Address : COVID-19 : Amateur Radio’s Impact On Problem Solving To Create A Global Response To The Pandemic - Dr. Scott Wright, K0MD
Summary : The presentation was about COVID-19 and how some hams were involved with making convalescent plasma available. It was nice to get the facts about COVID-19 from a doctor. It was well presented and eye opening. It is the first item in track 1.
I discovered that the presentations are shared on Youtube. The link for the keynote is : https://youtu.be/QcsMpduoqpA, if you would like to check it out. I hope it starts at the beginning. I was experimenting with the link and seems to pick up where I left off.
2. Youth in Ham radio presentation : https://youtu.be/AQcM59B0ga0
Summary : It is the first item on day 2 (August 9) in track 3. I did not hear Carole speak, when I joined the kids were talking. They were very extremely impressive and gave their take on how to interest youth in ham radio - new technologies like Satellites. The items below are from their summary.
· Carole Perry, WB2MGP, travels the USA supporting the activities of youth in amateur radio through the support of the Radio Club of America.
· Highly Flying Kids With High Altitude Balloons (HAB) - Jack McElroy, KM4ZIA
· Citizen Science : HamSCI And The Personal Space Weather Station Project - Frances Bonte, KE8HPA
· 5 Fun Things for Youth to Do With Ham Radio - Ben Wagner, AD8FQ; Bernadette Wagner, KE8LWO; and Agnes Wagner, KE8LWP
· Getting Girls Involved In STEM, Specifically Amateur Radio! - Audrey McElroy, KM4BUN
· How To Be A Great Contester - Connor Black, W4IPC
To see the Vendors, click on Exhibit Hall from the Main Lobby.
The information for the Exhibit Hall (see Figure 5) said there were 45 booths, but I was only able to view the booths of the top sponsors : ICOM, Elecraft, GigaParts, RT Systems, FlexRadio, RFinder, DX Engineering, RigExpert, and NCG Company. While writing this article, I was able to figure out how to see the rest of the booths. Below the main exhibitors on the right hand side is the Exhibitors Index. I am not sure the total is still 45 booths after the event, 25 seems to be what is still there.
https://bit.ly/2EthbrE
To login go to https://qsotoday.vfairs.com. It should look like Figure 1. Login using the same email that you used to register. No password is needed. That is also where you register.
After you login you will see something like the image in Figure 2. Using your mouse, click on the building with the ICOM flag to go inside for the hamfest. It is using some virtual reality effects so you feel as if you are flying inside the building.
Once inside a popup window appears and Eric Guth 4Z1UG gives an overview of the Hamfest. It is less than 7 minutes long and gives a very good overview of what there is to see & do. I recommend it even if you are looking at the hamfest for the first time after August 9th.
Figure 3 is the Lobby. Using your mouse click on the Exhibits Hall area to see vendors and Auditorium to see the presentations.
After clicking on Auditorium, click on the Presentations in the center of the screen (see Figure 4). It takes you to the 4 tracks of presentations. Click on the agenda to see all the different topics : https://bit.ly/3l8d7ho. It opened in a separate tab on my computer.
What I enjoyed :
1. Keynote Address : COVID-19 : Amateur Radio’s Impact On Problem Solving To Create A Global Response To The Pandemic - Dr. Scott Wright, K0MD
Summary : The presentation was about COVID-19 and how some hams were involved with making convalescent plasma available. It was nice to get the facts about COVID-19 from a doctor. It was well presented and eye opening. It is the first item in track 1.
I discovered that the presentations are shared on Youtube. The link for the keynote is : https://youtu.be/QcsMpduoqpA, if you would like to check it out. I hope it starts at the beginning. I was experimenting with the link and seems to pick up where I left off.
2. Youth in Ham radio presentation : https://youtu.be/AQcM59B0ga0
Summary : It is the first item on day 2 (August 9) in track 3. I did not hear Carole speak, when I joined the kids were talking. They were very extremely impressive and gave their take on how to interest youth in ham radio - new technologies like Satellites. The items below are from their summary.
· Carole Perry, WB2MGP, travels the USA supporting the activities of youth in amateur radio through the support of the Radio Club of America.
· Highly Flying Kids With High Altitude Balloons (HAB) - Jack McElroy, KM4ZIA
· Citizen Science : HamSCI And The Personal Space Weather Station Project - Frances Bonte, KE8HPA
· 5 Fun Things for Youth to Do With Ham Radio - Ben Wagner, AD8FQ; Bernadette Wagner, KE8LWO; and Agnes Wagner, KE8LWP
· Getting Girls Involved In STEM, Specifically Amateur Radio! - Audrey McElroy, KM4BUN
· How To Be A Great Contester - Connor Black, W4IPC
To see the Vendors, click on Exhibit Hall from the Main Lobby.
The information for the Exhibit Hall (see Figure 5) said there were 45 booths, but I was only able to view the booths of the top sponsors : ICOM, Elecraft, GigaParts, RT Systems, FlexRadio, RFinder, DX Engineering, RigExpert, and NCG Company. While writing this article, I was able to figure out how to see the rest of the booths. Below the main exhibitors on the right hand side is the Exhibitors Index. I am not sure the total is still 45 booths after the event, 25 seems to be what is still there.
KPW
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Do you like to operate your radio outdoors, but on contest days, well, the super stations always seem to win? Wouldn’t it be nice if someone would take a bulldozer and level the playing field between the big guns and smaller stations, to give everyone a fair chance at winning in a big global contest? Impossible you say?
Well here’s the deal, the social science of amateur radio, Fox Mike Hotel, has come up with what might be a new concept in radio sport designed to do just that. It is designed to level the competitive playing field between the “Big Guns” and the “Little Pistols”. It’s an intriguing concept, making this more about radio sport than radio gear. And as this is the inaugural launch of this new contest, you have the chance to be part of it, with a chance to make history. Do you dare to give it a try?
So, what’s KPW? KPW stands for Kilometers Per Watt, which will be the base scoring metric for each contact. As described by the contest organizers, using KPW as a base scoring metric, along with multipliers that favor lower power, more difficult modes, and operating portable, it’s like a golf handicap index, used to equalize the opportunity for all players to win when they have unequal ability to play on courses with varying levels of difficulty. With KPW, the further the contact (measured by maidenhead grid square differences in the exchange), and the less power you used to make the contact (used to divide the distance), the higher the base score is for that contact.
Let’s try an example. If you made a contact with KC9ZO in EN51, which is 737 Miles (1186 KM) away from us here in Southern New Jersey (FM29), and you did it with a Kilowatt (1000 Watts), your score for that contact would be 1186/1000 = 1.18 points. However, if you made that same contact using 100 watts, your score for that contact would be 1186/100 = 11.8 points, ten times more. Taking it a step further, if you made that same contact using just 5 watts, you score for that contact would be 1185/5 = 237 points, quite a bit more!
Then comes the multipliers. Those using a more difficult transmission mode, like phone, receive a higher multiplier than those using CW and digital. There are additional multipliers for you operating a portable station, and even more if the contact you just made was with another portable station. Crazy! This does really change the playing field for this contest!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Do you like to operate your radio outdoors, but on contest days, well, the super stations always seem to win? Wouldn’t it be nice if someone would take a bulldozer and level the playing field between the big guns and smaller stations, to give everyone a fair chance at winning in a big global contest? Impossible you say?
Well here’s the deal, the social science of amateur radio, Fox Mike Hotel, has come up with what might be a new concept in radio sport designed to do just that. It is designed to level the competitive playing field between the “Big Guns” and the “Little Pistols”. It’s an intriguing concept, making this more about radio sport than radio gear. And as this is the inaugural launch of this new contest, you have the chance to be part of it, with a chance to make history. Do you dare to give it a try?
So, what’s KPW? KPW stands for Kilometers Per Watt, which will be the base scoring metric for each contact. As described by the contest organizers, using KPW as a base scoring metric, along with multipliers that favor lower power, more difficult modes, and operating portable, it’s like a golf handicap index, used to equalize the opportunity for all players to win when they have unequal ability to play on courses with varying levels of difficulty. With KPW, the further the contact (measured by maidenhead grid square differences in the exchange), and the less power you used to make the contact (used to divide the distance), the higher the base score is for that contact.
Let’s try an example. If you made a contact with KC9ZO in EN51, which is 737 Miles (1186 KM) away from us here in Southern New Jersey (FM29), and you did it with a Kilowatt (1000 Watts), your score for that contact would be 1186/1000 = 1.18 points. However, if you made that same contact using 100 watts, your score for that contact would be 1186/100 = 11.8 points, ten times more. Taking it a step further, if you made that same contact using just 5 watts, you score for that contact would be 1185/5 = 237 points, quite a bit more!
Then comes the multipliers. Those using a more difficult transmission mode, like phone, receive a higher multiplier than those using CW and digital. There are additional multipliers for you operating a portable station, and even more if the contact you just made was with another portable station. Crazy! This does really change the playing field for this contest!
There are some big backers behind this portable operations challenge too.
See https://foxmikehotel.com/challenge/ for more details. This is the real deal. Seriously, being a first ever for this contest, nobody really knows what will happen. Keep the weekend of October 3 and 4 open. You’ve got a month to plan for this. You get to pick which 8 hours contiguous window within the 48 hours you choose to operate - also part of the challenge! We don’t get chances to be in on the inaugural run of a contest like this very often. You’ve got a chance to make history here! Do you dare to give it a try? |
When Are Solar Conditions Going To Pick Up Again For HF Radio Communications?
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Here is an interesting link from NOAA that provides an interactive chart of the current solar cycle :
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
Here is an interesting link from NOAA that provides an interactive chart of the current solar cycle :
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression
As described on the "details" tab :
"The forecast comes from the Solar Cycle Prediction Panel representing NOAA, NASA and the International Space Environmental Services (ISES). This amounts to the ‘official’ forecast for the solar cycle. The Prediction Panel forecasts the sunspot number expected for solar maximum and has predicted Cycle 25 to reach a maximum of 115 occurring in July 2025. The error bars on this prediction mean the panel expects the cycle maximum could be between 105-125 with the peak occurring between November 2024 and March 2026."
When Two Hobbies Collide...Comet Hunting!
By Dan McCormick, KD2TUS
I am a new ham as of April and was lucky to sit in on one of the virtual VE Sessions with a club from New England and I am now a new Technician. For those who don’t know, we’ve had a great morning show of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE).
Being new to the GCARC Club, I haven’t been to any in person meetings yet. Seeing that Clubhouse was on such a big field, this makes for a perfect spot to view objects low to the horizon and Comet Neowise (Neowise for short) is just that; rising only about 6 degrees high.
Astronomy has been a hobby of mine for a long time and I am part of a few area clubs. Neowise is one of those comets that has been putting on a great show. For those who don’t know, Neowise is the name of the space-telescope that discovered the comet.
The NEOWISE mission was spun off of the WISE mission. WISE ran out fluids and could no longer operate at extremely low temperatures. When this happened, the mission was repurposed to look for asteroids and every now and again will find a comet. This is how Neowise came about. These missions are funded by NASA's Planetary Science Division.
Not too often do comets become ‘naked eye’ meaning you need no astronomical aid to view them. Neowise was discovered back in March as the pandemic was coming to fruition. By the way, that’s where the ‘ 2020 F3’ designation comes from - 2020 (year discovered), F designates the second half of March and 3 is the 3rd comet discovered for that month.
You are able to spot comet Neowise around 4:35am in the North East sky. Look for the bright star Capella and the comet will be to the bottom left of this star.
I have yet to observe a comet and I couldn’t think of a better one to start with! Neowise is still hanging around early morning if you are up before the Sun however chances to see it are reducing. It is projected to last the remaining of the month (July). This comet could potentially brighten up during the early evening sky in the North West direction after sunset through midnight before going below the horizon at the time of writing this article. Although comets are very unpredictable, projections have the comet to fade after the 22 of July. If you are at all curious about Neowise or would like to observe it, feel free to shoot me an email [email protected].
73 and Clear Skies!
By Dan McCormick, KD2TUS
I am a new ham as of April and was lucky to sit in on one of the virtual VE Sessions with a club from New England and I am now a new Technician. For those who don’t know, we’ve had a great morning show of comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE).
Being new to the GCARC Club, I haven’t been to any in person meetings yet. Seeing that Clubhouse was on such a big field, this makes for a perfect spot to view objects low to the horizon and Comet Neowise (Neowise for short) is just that; rising only about 6 degrees high.
Astronomy has been a hobby of mine for a long time and I am part of a few area clubs. Neowise is one of those comets that has been putting on a great show. For those who don’t know, Neowise is the name of the space-telescope that discovered the comet.
The NEOWISE mission was spun off of the WISE mission. WISE ran out fluids and could no longer operate at extremely low temperatures. When this happened, the mission was repurposed to look for asteroids and every now and again will find a comet. This is how Neowise came about. These missions are funded by NASA's Planetary Science Division.
Not too often do comets become ‘naked eye’ meaning you need no astronomical aid to view them. Neowise was discovered back in March as the pandemic was coming to fruition. By the way, that’s where the ‘ 2020 F3’ designation comes from - 2020 (year discovered), F designates the second half of March and 3 is the 3rd comet discovered for that month.
You are able to spot comet Neowise around 4:35am in the North East sky. Look for the bright star Capella and the comet will be to the bottom left of this star.
I have yet to observe a comet and I couldn’t think of a better one to start with! Neowise is still hanging around early morning if you are up before the Sun however chances to see it are reducing. It is projected to last the remaining of the month (July). This comet could potentially brighten up during the early evening sky in the North West direction after sunset through midnight before going below the horizon at the time of writing this article. Although comets are very unpredictable, projections have the comet to fade after the 22 of July. If you are at all curious about Neowise or would like to observe it, feel free to shoot me an email [email protected].
73 and Clear Skies!
Kerberos SDR Direction-Finding Development at the Clubhouse
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Most of you are probably familiar with software-defined radios - the USB sticks that can receive radio signals from AM broadcast into the microwave region using your computer to process the signal. Well, a bunch of smart guys have stuck four of those things into one case, connected them together, and built a "Kerberos” radio that can do a lot of cool stuff. K2QA and I each bought one, and I took it out to the Clubhouse this week for some development.
I'm specifically interested in its application in direction finding, first as an interesting development project and also to put the fear of God into N2GXJ and other fox hunters that technology was about to overwhelm skill in hidden transmitter hunts. And while that fear of God is still far off, it looks like this stuff is going to work.
The idea behind Kerberos direction finding is to put several antennas in a line and see which one receives the radio signal first. The first antenna to receive the signal is the closest to the single source; hence it points out the direction from which the signal is originating. As you can imagine, with radio signals moving at the speed of light the timing difference between two relatively close antennas is miniscule, but the developers have actually worked this out and the software can discern this difference. The Kerberos radios were developed as a Kickstarter project and are packaged in a box. The software runs on a Raspberry Pi computer, which because of the high CPU load of running 2 SDR radios, I encased it in a heat sink enclosure with two fans on it, similar to that used on the GOES satellite receiver that also has a high CPU load. Figure 1 shows only 2 antennas connected; the radio is powered by a USB-C connection and the Pi by a standard mini-D connector.
By Jon Pearce, WB2MNF
Most of you are probably familiar with software-defined radios - the USB sticks that can receive radio signals from AM broadcast into the microwave region using your computer to process the signal. Well, a bunch of smart guys have stuck four of those things into one case, connected them together, and built a "Kerberos” radio that can do a lot of cool stuff. K2QA and I each bought one, and I took it out to the Clubhouse this week for some development.
I'm specifically interested in its application in direction finding, first as an interesting development project and also to put the fear of God into N2GXJ and other fox hunters that technology was about to overwhelm skill in hidden transmitter hunts. And while that fear of God is still far off, it looks like this stuff is going to work.
The idea behind Kerberos direction finding is to put several antennas in a line and see which one receives the radio signal first. The first antenna to receive the signal is the closest to the single source; hence it points out the direction from which the signal is originating. As you can imagine, with radio signals moving at the speed of light the timing difference between two relatively close antennas is miniscule, but the developers have actually worked this out and the software can discern this difference. The Kerberos radios were developed as a Kickstarter project and are packaged in a box. The software runs on a Raspberry Pi computer, which because of the high CPU load of running 2 SDR radios, I encased it in a heat sink enclosure with two fans on it, similar to that used on the GOES satellite receiver that also has a high CPU load. Figure 1 shows only 2 antennas connected; the radio is powered by a USB-C connection and the Pi by a standard mini-D connector.
The optimal antennas for this arrangement is four antennas arranged in a line with the antennas placed 1/3 to 1/2 wavelength apart, so for 2 meter reception I glued four large washers to a 6 foot 1x2 and stuck 4 mag mount verticals onto the washers. This gave me a set up like the one in Figure 2.
As you can see, the Kerberos radio and Raspberry Pi are connected to AC power, which obviously limits their portability, but I'm envisioning powering them with USB battery packs in actual operation. The Pi communicates with the computer through a Wi-Fi connection and a web browser and can be located away from the radios. All of the processing occurs in the Pi, so the computer doesn't need to be particularly powerful and could probably be replaced by an iPad or some other more portable device.
The direction of the signal sources displayed on the computer on a line graph, with the peak of the line indicating the direction of the signal, as shown in Figure 3.
The direction of the signal sources displayed on the computer on a line graph, with the peak of the line indicating the direction of the signal, as shown in Figure 3.
In testing within the Clubhouse using a HT as the signal source I could definitely see the peak of the curve move as I walked around the table, but couldn't completely correlate it with the location of the HT. These radios are subject to signal reflection, much of which probably occurs within the Clubhouse. I need to do some testing outside when the weather is more conducive, but at least these initial tests are promising. Hopefully, before the end of summer, we’ll have one of these on an actual fox hunt. So if you see a couple of guys walking around with a long piece of wood on a fox hunt, you’ll know what’s happening.
Kudos to Kenny Denson, WB2P
Single-Op Unlimited, Low Power There was more turnover in this category than in any other. Only three call signs from last year’s Top Ten appear in the box again this year - WB2P, KK7AC, and KØNEB. It also happens that they’re the only ones that also made the grade in 2016 and 2015! Congratulations to WB2P, who topped the category this time after finishing in the top five in 2015, 2016, and 2017. Ken’s 70k margin over the 2nd place finisher, VE3PJ, was the largest in any category. His 3830 post gives some insight into his strategy: “This was my first Sweepstakes that I did not worry about |
the sweep and just tried to run as much as possible. Being low power, it was a lot easier to hold a run freq on 80m than 40m on Saturday. And after most of the big guns on Sunday moved from 20 to 40, I was able to have a solid run on 20m.” His >900 QSOs on 80 and 20 meters would’ve won the category by themselves.
In contrast, KS4AA operated only on 40 meters (“I thought there was a single-band category...oh well!”), snagged all but one multiplier (never found a VO station), and still made the top five! Not unexpectedly in times of poor propagation, the scores in the low power categories take a bigger hit. Last year’s Top Ten SOULP scores ranged from 207k to 85k, this year they spanned 186k to 70k.
Article Credit : ARRL November Sweepstakes, Phone, 2018 Results - www.arrl.org
In contrast, KS4AA operated only on 40 meters (“I thought there was a single-band category...oh well!”), snagged all but one multiplier (never found a VO station), and still made the top five! Not unexpectedly in times of poor propagation, the scores in the low power categories take a bigger hit. Last year’s Top Ten SOULP scores ranged from 207k to 85k, this year they spanned 186k to 70k.
Article Credit : ARRL November Sweepstakes, Phone, 2018 Results - www.arrl.org
AREDN LAN Party
By John Zaruba Jr, K2ZA
On October 14, 2018 several members gathered at the Clubhouse for an AREDN LAN party. AREDN is the Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network and this was a follow-on activity to the Tech Saturday October 6th presentation by Randy Smith WU2S of the AREDN Project.
Several Ubiquiti Nanostation devices were upgraded to become AREDN nodes. There were experiments performed to further understand the mechanics of building both infrastructure and ad hoc mesh networks. Range tests were performed at various places on the 4H fairgrounds to get a feel for the performance of the devices.
John O’Connell K2QA, Jon Pearce WB2MNF, John Zaruba Jr K2ZA, and Michael Covaleski N2MMC were in attendance.
By John Zaruba Jr, K2ZA
On October 14, 2018 several members gathered at the Clubhouse for an AREDN LAN party. AREDN is the Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network and this was a follow-on activity to the Tech Saturday October 6th presentation by Randy Smith WU2S of the AREDN Project.
Several Ubiquiti Nanostation devices were upgraded to become AREDN nodes. There were experiments performed to further understand the mechanics of building both infrastructure and ad hoc mesh networks. Range tests were performed at various places on the 4H fairgrounds to get a feel for the performance of the devices.
John O’Connell K2QA, Jon Pearce WB2MNF, John Zaruba Jr K2ZA, and Michael Covaleski N2MMC were in attendance.
Existing FT8 mode will become obsolete this year
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
What is changing?
The super popular WSJT-X software package is getting a major update this December. As part of this update, the messaging formats for FT8 and MSK144 protocols are being changed. These changes allow for more bits per message, and greater error correction on those bits for even better weak signal performance, along with some other improvements. However, these new message formats are not compatible with the versions in use today. An early version is in beta testing now. Here’s what you need to know.
How does this affect me?
If you are a digital modes contester, hold onto your hat! As described in the October 17 quick start guide for experienced users, “these changes enable new message formats for efficient, robust QSOs in North American VHF contests, European VHF contests, ARRL Field Day, and the ARRL RTTY Roundup”. I’ll let that sink in for a minute.
It was just last month, in the October 2018 Crosstalk article titled “Where’d Everybody Go?” that the undeniable influence FT8 is having on our hobby was discussed. One of the last questions asked was “How about an FT8 field day mode?” Well, there it is! FT8 just became contest mode capable, and this is all blessed by the ARRL. I’d expect to see some “FT-8” mode only contests springing up soon. Love it or hate it, FT8 continues to innovate, grow, and evolve. Let’s see where this goes from here. Hey 2019 Field Day chairman, sign me up to operate a field day digital mode station now!
By Jim Wright, N2GXJ
What is changing?
The super popular WSJT-X software package is getting a major update this December. As part of this update, the messaging formats for FT8 and MSK144 protocols are being changed. These changes allow for more bits per message, and greater error correction on those bits for even better weak signal performance, along with some other improvements. However, these new message formats are not compatible with the versions in use today. An early version is in beta testing now. Here’s what you need to know.
How does this affect me?
If you are a digital modes contester, hold onto your hat! As described in the October 17 quick start guide for experienced users, “these changes enable new message formats for efficient, robust QSOs in North American VHF contests, European VHF contests, ARRL Field Day, and the ARRL RTTY Roundup”. I’ll let that sink in for a minute.
It was just last month, in the October 2018 Crosstalk article titled “Where’d Everybody Go?” that the undeniable influence FT8 is having on our hobby was discussed. One of the last questions asked was “How about an FT8 field day mode?” Well, there it is! FT8 just became contest mode capable, and this is all blessed by the ARRL. I’d expect to see some “FT-8” mode only contests springing up soon. Love it or hate it, FT8 continues to innovate, grow, and evolve. Let’s see where this goes from here. Hey 2019 Field Day chairman, sign me up to operate a field day digital mode station now!
Example ARRL Field Day exchange mode being added to FT8
I’m not interested in contesting with FT8. Do I need to update my current software?
Yes. The new and old versions of the protocols are not interoperable. The version 1.x protocols in use today are going to be obsolete. The current 1.9.1 version of FT8 and MSK144 will no longer be supported. It’s not a stretch to predict that by year’s end, if you want to have QSOs in FT8 with most anybody, you’ll need to be on the new 2.0 version or you’ll have next to nobody left to have contacts with.
To be fair, most, but not all the improvements involve contesting. There are other improvements in the new version non-contesters may benefit from as well. For example, it is described that the WSPR decoder has better sensitivity now by about 1 dB. For FT8, symbol rates and occupied bandwidths are the same as before, but decoding sensitivity is slightly improved and false decode rates are described as being significantly lower. To help you search for, and catch that rare missing DX, color highlighting of decoded stations now lets you identify missing DXCC entities on a per-band basis. Additional color codings can now let you know if the station is an active LoTW user or not, using information automatically downloaded from the ARRL web site, to improve your odds of picking a station likely to confirm your QSL.
Can I participate in beta trials of the 2.0 version while it is still in development?
Yes. On-air testing with the new protocols started in September. You may already have noticed some strange new signals on the waterfall during this testing period at the high end of the current FT8 watering holes. Look for them near 7.078 and 14.078 MHz on your radio dial. You can participate in the trial period by downloading the latest release candidate (rc) for WSJT-X 2.0 from the official website: https://physics.princeton.edu/pulsar/k1jt/wsjtx.html. See the quick start guide for experienced users linked from that site for more details associated with configuring the software for 77-bit messages and for special operating activities.
When is the official switch over when we need to be on the new version?
The release of a generally available (GA) version is scheduled for December 10, 2018. By design, this release schedule makes WSJT-X 2.0 usable for the ARRL sponsored January 5-6 RTTY Roundup and January 19-21 VHF Sweepstakes.