Youth & STEM Outreach

BIG E Space Chat Leadership Team

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International Space Station

New England school students will be making live radio contact with an astronaut on the International Space Station from The BIG E during the week of September 26th – October 1st. The “BIG E Space Chat” is part of a program to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) educational activities and Amateur Radio learning activities for young people.

NEST Science Space Club for Youth flyer

New England Sci-Tech is sponsoring a 12-month STEM education program free of charge to all students grades 4 through 12 and Scouts in New England as part of the contact program. The program will provide hands-on learning about Space Science, Radio Communications, Electronics, Satellites, Rocketry, Astronomy, Amateur Radio, and more. Ten students participating in the Sci-Tech educational program will be chosen to make contact and chat live with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS) from the BIG E.

The contact and the associated educational program are a result of a partnership between The BIG E, New England Sci-Tech (a STEM education group in New England), Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS), Black Helicopter Creative LLC, the New England Division of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), and local Amateur Radio organizations.

Execution planning has been underway for some time, and we are pleased to announce the addition of Ray Lajoie AA1SE, ARRL Western Massachusetts Section Manager, to the contact leadership team. Ray will be responsible for working with the BIG E team and our content production partner Black Helicopter to set up, test, and facilitate the development and delivery of a pre-contact program.

Ray joins and rounds out the existing BIG E space chat planning team consisting of:

  • Bob Phinney K5TEC – Education Planning and Execution
  • Phil Temples K9HI – Publicity and Promotion
  • Ray Lajoie AA1SE – Venue and Program Planning and Execution
  • Fred Kemmerer AB1OC – ARISS Mentor

The BIG E planning team is being assisted by Dylann Keaney, President of Black Helicopter Creative LLC, Barbara Irby, KC1KGS, Dan Norman, N0HF, and Larry Krainson, W1AST, in planning what expect will be a major Amateur Radio event in New England. You can learn more about the BIG E space chat here.

Fred Kemmerer AB1OC
ARRL New England Division Director

Rhode Island STEAM Club “Making Its Own DX”

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N1ASA APRSA Rhode Island STEAM club is making its own kind of DX. The All Saints STEAM Academy (N1ASA) in Middletown, Rhode Island, is tracking its GPS/tracker balloon using APRS. As of mid-day June 8, it was located over Canada. 
 
“N1ASA’s GPS/tracker balloon survived the night and is reporting regularly Wednesday from 24,000 feet above Nova Scotia, heading at 24 MPH to the northeast,” according to a post today on the Newport County Radio Club’s Facebook page.
 
“Tuesday’s thick cloud cover which disrupted the production of solar power has thinned out. There’s no battery on board, just a ‘super capacitor’ to store enough power to run the 0.02-watt transmitter for 110 seconds every 10 minutes.” The package uses a 35-foot dipole antenna.
 
The group hopes the balloon will continue to remain airborne long enough to reach Europe. 

ARRL Kids Day, June 18, 2022

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ARRL Kids Day is on Saturday, June 18, and will run from 1800 UTC through 2359 UTC. It’s the perfect opportunity to introduce youngsters to the excitement of amateur radio. The exchange is the participant’s name, age, location, and favorite color. Sponsored by the Boring, (Oregon) Amateur Radio Club, Kids Day is held every year on the first Saturday in January and the third Saturday in June. More information is available at www.arrl.org/kids-day.

AB1OC ARISS Contact With Suffolk County, NY Boy Scout Group Can Be Heard Across New England, June 4, 2022

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AB1OC ARISS groundstationFrom ARISS:

June 2, 2022—Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) has received schedule confirmation for an ARISS radio contact between astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) and the Matinecock District Boy Scouts in Centerport, New York.  ARISS conducts 60-80 of these special amateur radio contacts each year between students around the globe and crew members with ham radio licenses aboard the ISS

The Boy Scouts of Matinecock District of Suffolk County Council, Boy Scouts of America (BSA), is located in New York on Long Island, and composed of about 52 units made up of youth ages 5-18 years. In addition to teaching youth outdoor skills, the BSA also puts a strong focus on STEM initiatives in several Cub Scout and Scouts BSA activities dealing with the sciences, robotics, engineering, and exploring all aspects of life. The venue provided for this ARISS contact is the Vanderbilt Museum & Planetarium in Centerport, New York, which has hosted events during the previous year in order to foster interest in space and space exploration for the scouts. During the year leading up to this contact, the scouts have been learning through STEM-based projects about the ISS missions, and amateur radio (including morse code practice).

This will be a telebridge Contact via Amateur Radio allowing students to ask their questions of Astronaut Kjell Lindgren, amateur radio call sign KO5MOS. Local Covid-19 protocols are adhered to as applicable for each ARISS contact. The downlink frequency for this contact is 145.800 MHZ and may be heard by listeners that are within the ISS-footprint that also encompasses the telebridge station.

The ARISS amateur radio ground station (telebridge station) for this contact is in Hollis, New Hampshire, U.S.. The amateur radio volunteer team at the ground station will use the callsign AB1OC, to establish and maintain the ISS connection.

The ARISS radio contact is scheduled for June 4, 2022 at 1:56 pm EDT (New York) (17:56 UTC, 12:56 pm CDT, 11:56 am MDT, 10:56 am PDT).

As time allows, students will ask these questions:

  1. What do you have to study after HS in order to have a career as an Astronaut?
  2. Could the ISS ever be self-sustaining and not need care-packages of food/water/oxygen from Earth?
  3. Are ISS teams only picked based on skills, or does NASA try to match personalities as well?
  4. How does the ISS stay safe from all the “space junk” floating around the Earth?
  5. Do you only do experiments in your field of expertise on the ISS or because of limited resources do you find yourself assisting others doing things you’re not as comfortable with?
  6. Is automated piloting better than manual piloting in terms of flight controls and docking?
  7. What one thing did you do as a young adult that you felt was your first significant step to becoming an astronaut?
  8. I’ve heard being in space can change you taste buds. Have you created any interesting or creative recipes to make space food taste better?
  9. How do they supply the ISS with constant oxygen?
  10. We saw a video of a gorilla suit prank on the ISS a few month ago. Has there been any other funny pranks?
  11. What jobs do you have to do on the ship?
  12. Do the astronauts get to bring something from home with them to space?
  13. I’ve heard astronauts from different countries will trade food. What country has the most popular dish on the ISS?
  14. In your personal opinion, what is the best and least best thing about being on the ISS?
  15. Can you swim in space when you’re floating?
  16. Can you feel the affects being in space has on your body? If so, what’s it like?
  17. Can you yo-yo upside down in space?
  18. Does the ISS have technology installed that could capture Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP)like the US Navy has recently? Have you seen anything up there that you can’t explain?
  19. What does it feel like to go to space?
  20. I read that there was once water on Mars. Where did all the water go?

ARISS logoAbout ARISS:

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). In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab-Space Station Explorers, Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) and NASA’s Space communications and Navigation program. 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. For more information, see www.ariss.org

Capital Area Kids’ Net

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Capital Area Kids' Net logoThe first session of the Capital Area Kids’ Net will take place on Sunday, May 22, at 7:30 pm. The target group for this net is elementary & middle school aged children who check in with an adult control operator, but any licensed amateurs are welcome to check in. The goal of the net is to provide a positive experience of amateur radio for kids in this age group with the hopes that they will want to further explore the hobby.

This will be a directed net where adult control operators will be asked to check in and say the first names of any children with them who wish to participate. Every week will feature a kid-friendly question to encourage a little more than just single word responses (The question on May 22 will be “What’s you favorite kind of pizza?”).

The net will take place every Sunday evening at 7:30 pm on the KA1OKQ repeater in Pembroke, NH (147.225 MHz, minus offset, 100Hz tone) and is sponsored by the Capital Area Repeater Society. This repeater has a fairly wide coverage area, so please help us spread the word!

If you would like to receive email announcements about this net, please send me a note at n1ji@arrl.net.

73,
Jock Irvine, N1JI
 
 

Project “Big E” Receives Approval for Hosting an ARISS Contact!

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Larry Krainson, W1AST, writes on the Project Big E list:

I just received word that the Big E Booth’s application for an ARISS [Amateur Radio on the International Space Station] contact has been APPROVED! 

We’re working closely with New England Sci-Tech President Bob Phinney, K5TEC, and our New England Division Director Fred Kemmerer, AB1OC, to make this happen.

We’re very excited as you all should be too!

There is still much to plan and put in place.

But a great way to start your Sunday!

[For more information about the Amateur Radio presence at the Big E, and to get involved, see <https://nediv.arrl.org/2021/01/10/amateur-radio-booth-proposed-for-the-big-e-in-2022/>.]

Amateur Radio Activities at CONNJAM, May 14, 2022

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Connecticut Section Youth Coordinator Douglas Sharafanowich, WA1SFH, writes:

CONNJAM 2022 is less than  3 Weeks Out. Saturday – May 14, 2022 7 am – 4 pm

Ham Radio Volunteers Wanted to “Share the Magic”

Here is a great opportunity for you to be part of a team effort that will showcase a variety of Amateur Radio Activities to Scouts of all levels at their BIG Camporee in Orange.

CONNJAM happens only once every 3 or 4 years, and is sponsored by the BSA Connecticut Yankee Council. They are expecting about 2,500 scouts to attend, and we need your help to run a variety of Amateur Radio Activities for them. In fact, for most scouts, this will be their first time being exposed to Amateur Radio.

SHARE THE MAGIC

2 Ways to Volunteer:  On-Site + Off-Site

On-Site Volunteer Activities

  • Amateur Radio Direction Finding (aka: Fox hunting).
  • Teach scouts the basics and send them off to find the Lost Patrol (Fox hunting experience required)
  • Morse Code
  • Teach scouts how to send their name in CW
  • Very Easy. If you can say “DIT” and “DAH”, demonstrate the CW Practice Key (provided), and have a Beginner / “Novice” level knowledge of Morse Code, then you qualify.
  • 2 VHF/UHF GOTA Stations
  • Need Hams to help scouts have an ON THE AIR conversation with other stations.

Off-site Volunteer Activity (VHF/UHF FM and DMR)

  • Operate from Home/Mobile/Portable
  • Sign up to take a 1 hour Shift
  • Monitor local Repeaters from Norwalk to Killingworth and have short conversations with scouts.

Available 1 Hour Slots

Morning:    9 am, 10 am, 11 am     Afternoon: 1 pm,  2 pm,  3 pm
Let me know which time slot works best for you. (ConnJamHam@gmail.com)

Having Amateur Radio activities at CONNJAM 2022 is going to be a lot of fun!
Whether you are On-Site or Off-Site, you will have the opportunity to “Share The Magic” of Amateur Radio and “Excite” the imagination of many Scouts… possibly planting the seed for them getting their license.

To JOIN US, please contact me at my Event Email Address:
ConnJamHam@gmail.com

Thank you.

—
73, Douglas Sharafanowich – WA1SFH

Amateur Radio Coordinator – CONNJAM 2022

ConnJamHam@gmail.com

New England STEM/Youth Meeting, April 20, 2022

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Dan Norman, N0HF, Assistant Director for Youth and STEM Outreach, will moderate a Zoom meeting on Wednesday, April 20 at 7 PM EST (~1.5 hrs) to discuss: youth involvement in clubs and other organizations, thoughts and comments on what is working and what plans and ideas people have.

He’s invited several guest speakers who will share their involvement and experiences.

“We have a great group of dedicated youth leaders across New England to learn from,” writes Dan.  “I look forward to meeting you.”

For Zoom details, contact dan at n0hf@nediv.arrl.org. 

Important Message from ARRL VEC

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ARRL logoImportant Message from ARRL VEC

By Maria Somma, AB1FM, ARRL VEC Manager

The FCC released a Public Notice on March 23, 2022, stating that the amateur radio application fees, including those associated with Form 605 application filings, would become effective on April 19, 2022. The Federal Communications Commission’s authority to impose and collect fees is mandated by Congress.

The $35 application fee, when it becomes effective on April 19, will apply to new, renewal, and modification applications that request a new vanity call sign. The fee will be per application.

Administrative updates, such as a change of name, mailing or email address, and modification applications to upgrade an amateur radio licensee’s operator class*, will be exempt from fees. (*this new information was just confirmed by FCC staff on Tuesday, March 29.)

VECs and Volunteer Examiner (VE) teams will not have to collect the $35 fee at exam sessions.

Once the FCC application fee takes effect, new applicants will pay the $15 exam session fee to the ARRL VE team as usual and pay the $35 application fee directly to the FCC by using the CORES FRN Registration system. VEC and VE team licensing procedures will not change.

When the FCC receives the examination information from the VEC, it will email a link with payment instructions to each qualifying candidate. The candidate will have 10 calendar days, from the date of the application file number being issued, to pay. After the fee is paid, and the FCC has processed an application, examinees will receive a second email from the FCC with a link to their official license or, in very rare instances, an explanation for why the application was dismissed or denied. The link will be valid for 30 days.

Per usual procedures, examinees that pass multiple exams at one session, will have one application transmitted to the FCC reflecting the highest-level license class earned. Again, our procedures will not change. The new license candidates will have an extra step before the license is issued. VE teams can point candidates to our FCC Application Fee webpage. Our new ARRL VEC CSCEs also include information about the application fee and points candidates to the webpage. The FCC rule pertaining to CSCEs will not change. CSCE credit will continue to be valid for 365 days, starting from the date of issuance.

For VE teams holding exam sessions the weekend before April 19, the FCC advised that applications not received by the FCC before April 19 will be subjected to the fee. The ARRL VEC urges teams to upload sessions via our documents upload page to get your sessions to us as quickly as possible. Assuming the FCC electronic batch filing (EBF) system is functioning properly on Monday, April 18, the VEC staff will work to get these to the FCC before April 19. Email the VEC department at VEC@arrl.org for the upload instructions.

Additionally, the FCC stated that the fee for applications processed and dismissed will not be refundable. This includes vanity requests where the applicant does not receive the requested call sign. However, returned applications that are missing information will not require an additional fee, if the missing information is submitted to the FCC within the proper amount of time.

Youth Licensing Grant Program

Anticipating the implementation of the fee in 2022, the ARRL Board of Directors, approved the ARRL Youth Licensing Grant Program in July 2021. Under the program, ARRL will cover a one-time $35 application fee for license candidates younger than 18-years old for tests administered under the auspices of the ARRL Volunteer Examiner Coordinator (ARRL VEC). Qualified candidates also would pay a reduced exam session fee of $5 to the ARRL VEC. ARRL is finalizing details for administering the program.

Further news and instructions will follow as the FCC releases them. Details for the ARRL Youth Licensing Grant Program will be posted when available. For additional information, visit the resources below.

ARRL VEC Application Fees webpage:

arrl.org/fcc-application-fee

ARRL News Story: arrl.org/news/new-amateur-radio-license-applications-fee-to-become-effective-april-19-2022

FCC CORES Video Tutorials: fcc.gov/licensing-databases/fcc-registration-system-cores/commission-registration-system-video-tutorials

FCC Registration Help: apps.fcc.gov/cores/publicHome.do?help=true