“What’s Your Dream? RI-MA JOTA a Success”

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Photo of 2022 JOTA-JOTI patchThirty-two Scouts earned their Radio Merit Badge on this crisp fall day at collaborating Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) sites in Rhode Island at Camp Champlin and in Massachusetts at Camp Norse near the Cape. Multiple local radio clubs and Scout troops planned all year to make this a post-pandemic success. Team leads from the Newport County Radio Club (NCRC) were John Vecoli, KC1KOO; Doug Belcher, KC1NFL; and Mike Cullen, K1NPT. NCRC hams on site in RI included Jim Sendrak, KC1LYG; Henry Guzeika, W1GUZ; and Paul Fredette, K1YBE. Blackstone Valley Amateur Radio Club hams present included BVARC Club President Ken Trudel, N1RGK. The camping weekend event was a welcoming opportunity for youth to build confident self-leadership in this supportive hands-on learning community partnership between scouting and amateur radio.

As part of the Radio Merit Badge, the Scouts eagerly took turns getting on the air to talk with stations on all bands and modes. Not a shy bunch, the youth were eager to share their dreams and rag chew about overcoming challenges. Alex in 6th grade chatted on 2-meters with Mark about his dream of becoming a Disney Imagineer and exploring the secret tunnels he had read about. This sparked further conversations on air and off, including from hams who had worked on the tunnels as adult tech professionals. Everyone acknowledged Alex was someone with clear goals and the drive to follow through on his dreams. Another Scout with dyslexia was curious to hear about one ham’s son who had the same learning challenge and now worked at NASA – thanks in part to the always-curious, hands-on learning, right-size coaching that the ham community does so well. Another Scout leader asked the NCRC about following up with a VE session so a number of the new Radio Merit Badge Scouts in his troop could follow up on a new dream to achieve their own Tech license and call sign while still in high school. One 7th-grade Scout clearly had fallen in love with amateur radio, and his extended family of hams were encouraging him to get licensed soon to inherit his grandmother’s call sign! (Although maybe his mother or Scout sisters will take up that legacy first?) Stay tuned. For many youth, JOTA is a first introduction to never-imagined new pathways of belonging and exploration.

Many thanks to the whole village of radio operators who help build resilient networks for our shared future. Contributed by NCRC (RI) Club President Nancy Austin, KC1NEK.

NCRC JOTA
L-R: Paul Fredette, K1YBE; Jim Sendrak, KC1LYG; Caleb using DSTAR; Henry Guzeika, W1GUZ; Mike Cullen, K1NPT; Carol; John Vecoli, KC1KOO, JOTA Team Lead.
photo of KC1LYG at NCRC JOTA
Jim Sendrak KC1LYG mentoring two of the Scouts who passed their Radio Merit Badge at Camp Champlin in RI on Saturday October 15, 2022.

Connecticut Region 2 Simulated Emergency Test, October 22, 2022

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CT ARES logoThe ARRL SET (Simulated Emergency Test) 2022 is taking place in the CT Section next Saturday (10//22/2022).

All ARES Team Members in REGION 2 are invited to participate in this exciting event in North Haven.
– Check your listed CT ARES email for information.

Please go to ctaresregion2.org, Log-in, and Pre-Register for the SET 2022.in Region 2
– Registrations close this Wednesday night.

Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or problems with Pre-Registering.

Thank you.

—
73, Douglas Sharafanowich – WA1SFH
ARES District Emergency Coordinator (DEC)
Region 2 – Connecticut Section
email: wa1sfh “at” arrl “dit” net

Twin State Radio Club to Host JOTA Event, Enfield, NH, October 14-15, 2022

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JOTA-JOTI logoThe Twin State Radio Club will host a Jamboree On The Air event on October 14-15, 2022, at LaSalette on Route 4A  in Enfield, NH.  The location is next to the Shaker Museum on Lake Mascoma.

“We will be monitoring 146.52,” reports the event’s organizer, Ray Chaffee, WA1ORT. “Help setting up the tower trailer on Friday would be appreciated. I will need one operator from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday. More [volunteers] are needed for Saturday. I hope to have a station on the air between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.”

Ray also reports that fox hunts will be conducted four times each day using two hidden foxes. 

“It should be a good weekend. Please email me if available.”

Ray can be contacted at Rechafe@outlook.com.

Blue Hills Observatory Wireless Society, W1BHO, QRV for JOTA, Milton, MA, October 15, 2022

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JOTA-JOTI logoTom Ulrich, KC1OCY, writes on the Boston Amateur Radio Club mailing list:

As you likely have already heard, on October 15, the Blue Hills Wireless Society (BHO-WS) and the Scouts BSA Spirit of Adventure Council will hold a Jamboree-on-the-Air (JOTA) event at the council’s New England Base Camp in Milton (MA). The event will take place 10 AM-4 PM, and is open to all scouts, leaders, family members, and interested hams. We will operate under the BHO-WS callsign, W1BHO. Local scout troops may be operating their own individual JOTA stations that day as well.

If you’re interested in making contact with scouts nearby and far away, tune into the frequencies suggested by the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association (https://k2bsa.net/scout-frequencies/) and listen for “CQ JOTA”!

If you have any questions about the BHO-WS event, please contact me directly.

73,
Tom Ulrich KC1OCY

K1YUB to Present at 40th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium, October 21-22, 2022

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From ema.arrl.org:

Paul Graveline, K1YUB, of Andover, MA, will present at the 40th Annual AMSAT Space Symposium in Bloomington, Minnesota, on October 21-22, 2022. Paul will present in a session on the CubeSat Simulator.

The symposium will feature:

* Space Symposium with Amateur Satellite Presentations
* Operating Techniques, News, & Plans from the Amateur Satellite World
* Board of Directors Meeting open to AMSAT members
* Opportunities to Meet Board Members and Officers
* AMSAT Annual General Membership Meeting
* Auction, Annual Banquet, Keynote Speaker and Door Prizes !!

The Crowne Plaza Suites, 3 Appletree Square, Bloomington, MN, is centrally located between the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport, Mall of America, Minneapolis Zoo, and Nickelodeon Universe Theme Park. Crown Plaza Suites provides a complimentary scheduled shuttle to and from the airport.

Additional information about the 2022 AMSAT Symposium can be found at https://www.amsat.org.

Ham Assistance Requested: YuKanRun Around Cape Ann Half Marathon, Gloucester MA – October 16, 2022

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Fred Beaulieu, WA1ESU writes:

We are looking for operators to staff the YuKanRun Around cape Ann Half Marathon. on October 16, 2022 Gloucester MA

Please be on Location at your Check Point by 8:30 am. Start Time: 9:00am The O’Maley Middle School 32 Cherry St.

Gloucester, MA 01930 School is closed – no entry
Please let us know if you can staff a communications check-point for the event so I can plan staffing positions for the event.

While CAARA’s repeater performance has greatly improved the northern regions of this course may still experience some difficulty with communications especially with low-powered HTs, so we’ll be looking for higher powered equipment to staff those areas

Please let us know what type of equipment you plan to use (ie: Mobile; HT; ¼-Wave Mag-Mount; OEM Rubber-Duck; etc.) so we have a better idea of where to locate you along the event course per the potential of your equipment.

The course will be open and supported By CAARA. for Four hours .Runner safety is everyone’s top priority.
Local EMT crews and ambulances will be available for three hours to help.

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Fred WA1ESU

YuKanRun Around Cape Ann Communications Team.
Gloucester, Mass
Last Updated: 10/9/2022 11:37 PM
Event date: Sunday, October,16, 2022
On Location: 8:30 AM
Starts: Half Marathon Run = 9:00 AM
Freq: W1GLO 2-meter Repeater 145.130 – PL:107.2 Back up Simplex 146.505 

YuKanRun Around Cape Ann Communications Team.
Gloucester, Mass
Last Updated: 10/9/2022 11:37 PM
Event date: Sunday, October,16, 2022
On Location: 8:30 AM
Starts: Half Marathon Run = 9:00 AM
Freq: W1GLO 2-meter Repeater 145.130 – PL:107.2 Back up Simplex 146.505

 

If you are interested in helping, please contact Fred WA1ESU by email  wa1esu@comcast.net    or calling 978-423-9710

NH Simulated Emergency Test, November 5, 2022

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ARES logoDave Colter, WA1ZCN, writes on the Twin State Radio Club mailing list:

The annual Simulated Emergency Test (SET) is on the first Saturday in November in NH. It’s intended to be our annual full-scale exercise of plans and systems across the entire Section/state. We begin at 8 AM and usually wind up between 1 and 2 PM. This year’s SET is based on a big hurricane, since it’s the most likely large-scale disaster we’re likely to experience in NH. It will be a simplex/HF only exercise. Repeaters won’t be used. We also encourage field station setups – even from your own backyard. One assumption is that any storm bad enough to require ARES support will probably take down our regular antennas, so it’s going to be an ad hoc operation.

One critical item I neglected to mention – every message MUST contain the words “this is an exercise”, and that phrase should also accompany any transmission that could be mistaken as real by a casual listener, as well as periodically during operations.

Simplex operation presents some interesting and fun challenges in our rather lumpy state. The goal is to send Situation Reports (SITREPS) to the State Emergency Operations Center liaison station in Concord, and handle any return message traffic. Clearly, we don’t have good simplex paths to Concord, so we use hilltop relay stations. The Concord liaison will likely be on Woods Hill in Bow. We’ve identified 2000’ Bly Hill in Newbury, NH that can reach Concord pretty easily. It’s accessed from Rt 103A. There is a turn-around at the summit I’ve used in the past for a discrete mobile relay station.

The first order of business will be determining who can hear whom so that relays can be organized. Then we can start generating SITREPS (in the form of weather/damage reports – a suggested form will be forthcoming) and passing them along to Concord. It’s likely to be chaotic, but that’s the nature of ad hoc operations and disasters. Work-arounds will be essential.

We can use both digital and manual (voice) methods to send the forms. Digital is preferred for accuracy and speed, and we use the very popular NBEMS suite of software, the core of which is Fldigi, a versatile sound-card digital modes app that’s also good for day to day use. The other key app in the suite is Flmsg, the message forms utility. There is a good tutorial on the NE ARES Academy channel, and some good (but need updating) beginner’s guides on the NH-ARES website.

We also use a system called Winlink, with a sound-card app called Winlink Express, which allows for email access through servers around the world. Its primary value is for sending and receiving internet email messages, but it can be used for ham-to-ham email via the same servers, and peer-to-peer connections between stations. Winlink email server access is only available via HF from our area. The most difficult bit of getting set up for Winlink is getting your computer to control your radio, but after that it’s pretty easy. Computer control isn’t essential, but it’s far faster. This is too big a topic for this email, so watch the video.

Both NBEMS and Winlink Express can be used on either HF or VHF/UHF, and certain NBEMS modes can be used on repeaters.

Manual voice messages using the RadioGram and radio version of the FEMA ICS-213 General Message Form require specific knowledge. Luckily, there is also a good video on this on the NE ARES Academy channel.

NBEMS – www.w1hkj.com Groups.IO page: https://groups.io/g/nbems

Winlink – www.winlink.org Groups.IO page: https://groups.io/g/winlink

George N1GB’s NH-ARES digital modes info site: https://www.gblakesl.net/N1GB/N1GB_ARES.html Loads of information on NBEMS and Winlink here.

NEDECN and MVARA Mesh Network Link Up in NH

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Jay, K1EHZ and Bill, NE1B, report NEDECN (New England Digital Emergency Communications Network)  has signed a collaboration agreement with the Merrimack Valley Amateur Radio Association (MVARA).

Under this agreement NEDECN provides space on its towers, where feasible, for MVARA microwave mesh network equipment. 
 
MVARA has operated a microwave network in Manchester (NH) for 3 years.
It connects Elliot Hospital, Catholic Medical Center, Manchester EOC and
Manchester Radio Group. As an IP-based network, it can carry most services
the internet provides.

An MVARA 5GHz link between Crotched Mt and Mt Uncanoonuc is now passing DMR traffic from the Crotched Mt repeater to the Mt Uncanoonuc repeater site. Traffic is then routed to the internet via an NEDECN 5GHz link between Mt Uncanoonuc and Bow, NH that has been in place since 2016.
 
First suggested by Steve Berry, N1EZ, following a New England Division Town Hall, this cooperation between NEDECN and ARES Mesh systems offers digital repeater operators backup internet linking and the capability for remote monitoring of the sites and ARES Mesh networks with high sites for further expansion.
 
This achievment represents a significant accomplishment towards the goal of creating a New England-wide emergency communications system that includes  commercial system-independent linking.
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Western Mass. Train & Test Group Technician Course Online Starts October 18, 2022

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The Western Massachusetts Train and Test group will be conducting a Technician license course starting October 18. This course will run on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7PM to 9 PM for 6 weeks via Zoom. The course is free and you will need to purchase the ARRL technician’s manual which is available at the ARRL.org website or on Amazon.

If you are interested in joining the course, please email Ken, WB8PKK, at backhoeken@yahoo.com. See also the course registration link: https://forms.gle/z3f4So956H3gpNBGA.

 

W.Mass. ham radio course flyer

Window Open for Accepting ARISS Education Proposals – ARISS News Release No. 22-52

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ARISS logoOct 3, 2022 — The Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Program is seeking formal and informal education institutions and organizations, individually or working together, to host an Amateur Radio contact with a crew member onboard the ISS.  ARISS anticipates that the contact would be held between July 1, 2023 and December 31, 2023. Crew scheduling and ISS orbits would determine the exact radio contact dates. To maximize these radio contact opportunities, ARISS is looking for organizations that will draw large numbers of participants and integrate the contact into a well-developed education plan.

The deadline to submit a proposal is November 13, 2022.

Proposal information and more details such as expectations, proposal guidelines, and the proposal form can be found at https://ariss-usa.org/hosting-an-ariss-contact-in-the-usa/. An ARISS Introductory Webinar session will be held on October 13, 2022, at 8:00 PM ET.  The Eventbrite link to sign up for the webinar is: https://ariss-proposal-webinar-fall-2022.eventbrite.com.

The Opportunity

Crew members aboard the International Space Station will participate in scheduled Amateur Radio contacts. These radio contacts are approximately 10 minutes in length and allow students to interact with the astronauts through a question-and-answer session.

An ARISS contact is a voice-only communication opportunity via Amateur Radio between astronauts and cosmonauts aboard the space station and classrooms and communities. ARISS contacts afford education audiences the opportunity to learn firsthand from astronauts what it is like to live and work in space and to learn about space research conducted on the ISS. Students also will have an opportunity to learn about things such as satellite radio communication, wireless technology, and radio science. Because of the nature of human spaceflight and the complexity of scheduling activities aboard the ISS, organizations must demonstrate flexibility to accommodate changes in dates and times of the radio contact.

Amateur Radio organizations around the world with the support of NASA and space agencies in Canada, Japan, Europe and Russia present educational organizations with this opportunity. The ham radio organizations’ volunteer efforts provide much of the equipment and operational support to enable communication between crew on the ISS and students around the world using Amateur Radio.

Please direct any questions to ariss.us.education@gmail.com.

About 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.

Media Contact:

Dave Jordan, AA4KN
ARISS PR