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Travis – KE8LTL
ARRL Field Day is this coming Saturday and Sunday (June 26, 27)
ARRL Field Day is this coming Saturday and Sunday (June 26, 27)
Once again, XWARN and DARA will join forces to set up several stations at the Beavercreek Twp Fire Dept at Dayton-Xenia Rd and Orchard Lane. Set up will begin at 9:00 AM on Saturday and the on-air portion of the event begins at 2PM local. The scale of the operation will be based on how many people show up to help set up. We can always use more people than show up for tear down. If you are able to help with this, try to arrive around 11AM Sunday. We are allowed to operate until 2PM, but if no one shows up to help before noon, we will pull the plug and begin cleaning up.
Restrict parking to the East end of the complex and in the grass down the hill next to the access road that runs South from the station. There is also parking on Beaver Park Dr across Orchard Lane from the site. DO NOT park next to the fire station.
We are tentatively planning to have a picnic Saturday evening, hoping to eat around 5:30. We will provide burgers and hot dogs, but everyone should bring food to share. “Potluck” Be sure to bring a chair for each person in your party. (Friends and family are welcome).
Our focus is on education and trying things that teach us what works and what doesn’t. If you have never been on HF, if you have a radio that you want to try out, if you just want to come out and get involved, this is the event for that. We are NOT serious contesters, but rather, we make contacts to prove that we have a system that works. Last year, we were third nationally in class 3F, so we must do a few things right. We do chase the bonus points–we could definitely use a few more youth operators (do not need to be licensed). If you are reluctant to actually talk into the microphone, but want to be involved, we’ll put you to work logging.
It’s still a bit too far in the future to be accurate, but the weather forecast for the weekend is not good. We will set up and operate rain or shine, but we will shut down if lightning is observed.
Come on out to Field Day. And bring a chair!
Build an End-Fed Half-Wave Antenna From a Kit
Build an End-Fed Half-Wave Antenna From a Kit
Project by Frank Bontenbal, PA2DKW
Process photos by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R
Please note: This kit is available from ARRL. ($69.95)
The original assembly instructions are available from the manufacturer, HF Kits.
To help new hams prepare for the exciting world of HF opening up during Cycle 25, ARRL has partnered with HF Kits to bring you this easy-to-build four-band antenna kit: an end-fed half-wave (EFHW) antenna. Unlike the dipole antenna, which is comprised of two quarter-wavelength wires and fed at its center, the EFHW is a half-wavelength antenna with the coaxial cable for your transceiver attached at one end. It has become popular with portable operators because it’s very simple in its construction and deployment. This antenna, which works on 10, 15, 20, and 40 meters, has a very high impedance of around 2,500 Ohms. The kit includes the parts needed to construct a 49:1 impedance matching network, which will transform the impedance to 50 Ohms, which will suit most transceivers. This article details the construction of the transformer.
Amateur Radio Gearing Up for Another Active Atlantic Hurricane Season
[UPDATED 2021-05-26 1340 UTC] The Atlantic Hurricane Season, which starts on June 1, promises to be a busy time for amateur radio volunteers on the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) to report ground-level storm conditions in real time for use by National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecasters, and for SKYWARN volunteers, many of whom are hams. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has forecast a likely range of 13 to 20 named storms (winds of 39 MPH or greater), of which six to ten could become hurricanes (winds of 74 MPH or greater), including three to five major hurricanes (Category 3, 4, or 5, with winds of 111 MPH or greater) expected. NOAA projects these ranges with a 70% confidence level.
“2021 is looking to be another active season,” said HWN Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV. “We can only hope we don’t have a repeat of 2005 or 2020. The sea surface temperatures throughout the normal areas of tropical cyclone activity are already near or just above 80 °F, just what storms like. The current forecast for 2021 is on the high side. The adjusted average is 14 named storms, with seven hurricanes and three of those at Category 3 or stronger.”
When activated, the HWN operates on 14.325 MHz during daylight hours and on 7.268 MHz after dark. When required, however, the net will use both frequencies simultaneously.
The net’s primary mission is to disseminate tropical cyclone advisory information to island communities in the Caribbean, Central America, along the US Atlantic seaboard, and throughout Gulf of Mexico coastal areas. It collects observed or measured weather data from participating radio amateurs in storm-affected areas as well as any post-storm damage reports and passes that information along to forecasters at the National Hurricane Center via its amateur radio station, WX4NHC. The HWN typically activates whenever a storm system has achieved hurricane status and is within 300 statute miles of a populated landmass — although this can vary according to the storm’s forward speed and intensity or at the request of NHC forecasters.
http://www.arrl.org/news/view/amateur-radio-gearing-up-for-another-active-atlantic-hurricane-season
