Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
©2012-2013 SARA [email protected]
F O U N D E D 1 9 3 0 K 2 A E R E P E A T E R S
SCHENECTADY AMATEURRADIO ASSOCIATION, INC.
"SERVICE THROUGH AMATEUR RADIO"
SA R A N EWSSSA R A NA R A N EWSEWS
April, 2013
President's ColumnJim K2PK
The second "R" in "ARRL" is the word "relay," a re-flection of our roots in amateur radio. In the yearsshortly after 1900 the commercial telegraph com-panies relayed coast-to-coast messages from oneoperator to another across the country because ofthe lack of a single end-to-end electrical connec-tion. Amateurs in the early years also took to re-laying messages between operators over longdistances because of the limited range of theirequipment. There are stories still circulated aboutamateurs beating the commercial operators' timegetting a message across the land.
The goal of the radio amateur was to be able tocommunicate from here to there without any pub-lic/commercial medium in between. This abilitytoday to communicate over significant distanceswithout a commercial link in between is still thebasis of our usefulness in emergency communica-tions. Our flexibility and resourcefulness allow usto function when all else has failed. The rejuvena-tion of ARES in Schenectady County bears testi-
General Meeting, April 8th, 2013 at 7 PM, Niskayuna High School Little Theatre
http://www.k2ae.org/
Computer Modem - Ham ConversionsDavid Galletly, KM2O
SARA Meeting on Moday, April 7, 2013 features apresentation by David Galletly KM2O. He will betalking about converting computer modems, toUHF Amateur band data transmitters.
David is Section Emergency Coordinator for theEastern New York section of the ARRL.
He is a Field Instructor and Field Examiner foremergency communications as well as a VE. Daveis an active contester and DXer holding DXCC,WAS, WAZ and IOTA awards.
He is a member of the Hudson Valley Contesters &DXer's and the Albany Amateur Radio Association.
Cancellations: If Niskayuna High School cancelsevening classes and activities the SARA meetingwill normally also be cancelled and possiblyrescheduled. Listen in on the SARA 147.060 re-peater for meeting status information and whetherit is to be rescheduled.
Continued on Page 3
S A R A N EWSS A R A NS A R A N EWSEWS
2
SARA Board MeetingMarch 13, 2013
Attendance: Board Members President James Stew-art, K2PK, Vice President Craig Wood, W2XAD Secre-tary Dan Fiorillo, KC2MER, Treasurer Tim Long, W2UIDirector Hal Post AK2EBoard Meeting called to order 7:00 pm, by PresidentJim Stewart.
Secretary's Report: given and accepted as published. Treasurer's Report: Given and acceptedNew Members: No new Members this month, BUT,Rick Manocchi, KR1CKM has earned his Extra ClasslicenseBusiness: The SARA News will no longer be sent tomembers that are not current on dues status.Discussions on seeking nominations for Officers andBoard members for this coming yearAlso spoke of the need for members to nominate amember for this years Broughton Award.Feel free to nominate someone who you feel is de-serving of the award.Repeater: No activity this month..Programs: Dave Galletly, KM2O, will give a presenta-tion of DATA transmissions on the Amateur Bands. Considering a NWS Skywarn program in the future. Nominating Committee: A reminder that Board Offi-cers/Members Elections are held in June. Club mem-bers will be contacted in an attempt to findindividuals to run for the offices.New Business It is that time of the year to beginthinking about Field Day. Need members-or non-members to assist with the many task in completingthe Field Day, such as, planning, getting equipment tothe site, food, setup, operations and teardown.
Spoke with Niskayuna School's night program coor-dinator about utilizing a different room where it wouldbe easier for members to access, but was unable toaccommodate us at this time.
Mary Hobart, K1MMH Secretar of the ARRL Founda-tion has requested that the SARA Board consider in-creasing the amount of money provided in theBroughton Scholarship. The board members agreedto increase the Scholarship Award from $1,000. to$2,000, realizing that college cost have increasedover the years. This amount will continue unlessfunding begins to shrink, due tomarket conditions.
Meeting adjourned at 7:55 PMSubmitted by Secretary Dan Fiorillo, KC2MER
Board meetings are open to SARA members. Boardmeetings are held on the 2nd Wed. of each month atLT's, located in the Shop Rite Plaza on Balltown Road.
Regular Club Meetings: 7 PM on the First Monday ofthe Month at the Niskayuna High School, corner ofBalltown Road and Nott Street Extension. If school isclosed on that Monday, the regular meeting will takeplace on the following Monday.
For Sale:Item #28 Cubex - Mark IV series MX IV - PT3,Mark IV PT5, also as p/o of Mantis 40 series. Partsare outside on side of house w/documents
Judy Corbett, widow of my friend Ed, W2HFN, needsto get rid of this beauty of an antenna. I've seen theantenna when it was fairly new on top of a tower. Itnow sits, disassembled, on the ground next to Judy'shouse in Clayton, NY.
See http://www.cubex.com/mantis.htmhttp://www.cubex.com/mark.htm
It may be available at no cost. Whoever claims itwould have to retrieve it. I would travel with you inyour vehicle to Clayton (about 20 mi. from Water-town). Contact me if you're interested. If you're notinterested for yourself, please spread the wordBob Raffaele, W2XM
S A R A N EWSS A R A NS A R A N EWSEWS
3
mony that we still serve a purpose.
The ability to communicate independently of com-mercial media is also the root of what makes ourhobby so fascinating. It is me and my equipmenttalking to other people and their equipment withonly physics in between. A couple of experienceson 6 meter CW point out the fascination and thrillof our trying to squeeze the most out of the physicsof wave propagation.
There is a mode called transequatorial (TE) propa-gation involving the F layer of the ionosphere nearthe equator that allows VHF communication be-tween low latitudes in the northern hemisphereand low latitudes in the southern hemisphere. It isoften reported in the VHF columns of "QST" and "CQ"magazines. TE propagation does not reach this farnorth, but it is occasionally possible to couple intoTE from up here by means of a sporadic E (Es) link.I had never experienced it until last September'sARRL VHF Contest. On 6 meter CW I heard the let-ters PY very weakly. Getting my attention, I listenedon the frequency and a few minutes later he cameup weakly, but copyable even with a halo antenna.After a brief QSO he was gone, not to be heardagain. The VHF columns later reported TE on mul-tiple occasions last fall, so that had to be what itwas. Interestingly, the same station in Niteroi,Brazil, was the one that gave me my first 160 meterQSO with Brazil many years ago.
On another VHF contest a few years ago a 6 meterCW signal popped out of nowhereóin strong, thengone just as fast like a random meteor burst. All Iheard was the grid square hundreds of miles away.A few minutes later he popped in again. A quickexchange of grid squares and he disappeared as
Continued From Page 1 fast as he appeared. I never heard him again. Asnear as I could tell from what else was going onpropagation wise it was a random meteor burst.For both of these QSO's we exchanged QSL cardsso the contacts were real.
Natural curiosity leads into fascination to learnwhat is really going on in between stations forQSO's like this, and by extension the behavior ofthe physical world around us. One of the magazinepropagation columns recently referred to the bire-fringence of the ionosphere. This property of theionosphere has been known to physicists and en-gineers for many decades. Maybe the long wordscares the topic out of most amateur writing on theionosphere, but it explains some of what we ob-serve with HF communication. But that is a topicfor another month, and maybe a future SARA talk(without the mathematics and long words).
A Reminder from Your Editor: Please send me your articles, pictures and com-ments for SARA News. My email addresses [email protected] or [email protected] you have articles or pictures in paper form,please send them to me at: Antje Dirksen-Post,P.O.Box 31, Sodus NY 14551.
I will gladly scan them into digital form and addthem to SARA News.
Of Interest to HAMs
We have previously published the three web ad-dresses for W2XM's Exam-prep Jepperdee games,one for each level of amateur radio license. A sec-ond Technician-level game is available now; bothPowerPoints are available at:
http://www.arrl.org/tech-prep-resource-library
Board Of DirectorsPres: James Stewart K2PK [email protected] 399-1867VP: Craig Wood, W2XAD, [email protected], 370-5224Sec: Dan Fiorillo KC2MER [email protected] 356-3595Treas: Tim Long, W2UI, [email protected] 399-7454
DirectorsHal Post AK2E [email protected] 306-6817Al Kozakiewicz, AB2ZY [email protected] 604-4128Frank Simon, WB2PUH, [email protected], 477-5255Ken Day, K2DAY [email protected], 858-2056
Standing CommitteesSARA News: Antje Dirksen-Post N2OMA,
[email protected], 315-483-0524Elmer: Tim Long, W2UI, [email protected], 399-7454Antenna Party: Tim Long, [email protected],399-7454K2AE Trustee: Hal Post AK2E [email protected] 381-6817Rptr: Scott Krone N2YCA [email protected] 273-1610RFI/TVI: Rudy Dehn W2JVF [email protected] 372-6139Public Service Events: Ken Clikeman AA2CW
[email protected] 861-6825VE Team: Al Kozakiewicz, AB2ZY [email protected] Exam Registration (518) 604-4128
S A R AS A R AS A R ASchenectady Amateur Radio Association, Inc.
Regular Dues $20.00 $________
Spouse $5.00 $________
Student $5.00 $________
Repeater Donation $________
Initiation Fee $5.00* $________
Name _____________________________ Call _________
E-mail______________________________________________
Street ______________________________________
City _____________________ State ____ Zip _______
Phone ______________________________
ARRL ______ RACES ______ ARES ______ MARS______
Send to SARA, PO Box 449, Schenectady, NY 12301July, 2012 through June, 2013
MEMBERSH I PAPPLICATION/RENEWAL FORM
Status ON AIR ON AIR OFF AIR ON AIRBand 6-Meters 2-Meters 1.25-Meters 70-CentimetersUser TX 52.570 MHz 147.660 MHz 222.460 MHz 449.200 MHzUser RX 53.570 MHz 147.060 MHz 224.060 MHz 444.200 MHz
SARA/K2AE Repeaters
Schenectady County Emergency NetBand Repeater Time NCS70cm 444.200Mhz+ 1:00 PM Raleigh K2RI2m 147.060Mhz+ 1:30 PM Raleigh K2RI75m 3953KHz 2:00 PM TBA
Schenectady County Emergency NetSARA members act as Net Control Stations for the Schenectady County Emergency Net (SCEN) on Sunday af-ternoons. The nets are open to all amateurs; ARES RACES membership is not required to participate. The pur-pose of the nets is to train, pass any traffic that you might have and any announcements of general interest.
