News
WKHS Makes International Contact with Amateur Radio:
by AB7RG 2024-11-07Broadcasting students at Kent County High School in Worton, Md., extended the reach of their voices beyond their radio station's distance, making contact with people throughout the country and around the globe. Chris Singleton, broadcasting teacher and manager of the high school's radio station 90.5 FM WKHS, introduced students to amateur (ham) radio on Monday, Oct. 21. With an antenna mounted in one of the back parking lots at the high school and less 100 watts of power, the students made more than 33 contacts -- all without the assistance of the internet. "It was really cool seeing the students' faces light up when they each made their first contact, which reminded me of my own experience with this almost 40 years ago," Singleton said. Amateur radio allows people to connect around the world via air waves. There are no internet, cell tower or other connections required. While often thought of more as a hobby, ham radio is also an important means of maintaining communication should disaster strike.
Almonte ARC Donates $1K to Almonte Civitan Accessible Family Playground:
by AB7RG 2024-11-06The Almonte Amateur Radio Club (AARC) recently donated 1,000 dollars to the Almonte Civitan Accessible Family Playground -- an Almonte Civitan Club (ACC) project. The AARC's executive and membership unanimously decided the ACC project was worthy of a donation. In the past, the AARC has supported the Almonte General Hospital and Fairview Manor. Amateur Radio, more commonly known as ham radio, is a popular hobby and service that brings people, electronics and communications together. People use ham radio to talk across town, around the world and more -- all without the internet or cellphones.
Meet the Ham Radio Enthusiasts Who Help Keep NY Marathon Running Smoothly:
by AB7RG 2024-11-04By any metric, the New York Marathon is an immense production. The 50,000-plus runners who are starting the race on Sunday November 3 make this the world's largest marathon. Their route will take them through all five of the city's boroughs, from the starting line on Staten Island up through Brooklyn and Queens, across the Queensboro Bridge to Manhattan’s Upper East Side, north into the Bronx and then back down along the east side of Central Park to the finish line in the Park itself. Ensuring that the whole thing goes off without a hitch is a remarkable feat of organization. The race relies on a small army of volunteers, who do everything from staffing the water stations at every mile marker and making sure runners don't get lost to offering medical expertise. Perhaps more than anything else, though, coordinating an event with so many moving pieces requires reliable, efficient communications. Volunteers play a critical role here, too, including one very specific group: local amateur radio (or "ham radio") operators.
Ham Radio System Donated and Installed at the Fire Hall:
by AB7RG 2024-11-02A century-old technology has been added to Petersburg's fire hall for emergency communication when all else fails. Amateur radio -- or ham radio -- is a form of two-way radio communication that allows specially licensed operators to communicate over long distances using radio frequencies reserved for non-commercial use. Think walkie-talkie, but much more powerful. Depending on the equipment and frequency range, ham radio operators can communicate with neighboring communities, countries on the other side of the world, or even space. Ham radio is both a hobby for the electronically-inclined and serves as a reliable communication resource. Using specific "nets" -- designated frequencies -- licensed ham radio operators can socialize with other hobbyists as well as help out during emergencies by keeping communities in touch when regular communication goes down.
Thames Enthusiast Goes Ham for Amateur Radio:
by AB7RG 2024-11-06Calling CQ -- a ham radio enthusiast is seeking like-minded people in Thames to form a new club. Alex Makinson is never spotted around town without a handheld radio or four at his belt. The 34-year-old is well-known around Thames, having featured on the TV show Down For Love last year. He has been a fan of all things electronic for most of his life, but his special interest is amateur radio, also known as ham radio.
Encourage Youngsters to Get On the Air in December:
by AB7RG 2024-11-05Youngsters on the Air month is fast approaching and the RSGB would love you to take part in this annual event. Special call sign GB24YOTA will be active throughout December. Whether you are an individual, club, school or social group, this is a fantastic opportunity to host the call sign with the aim of getting youngsters active on the amateur bands. The Society would love to see scouts, guides and cadet groups taking part too.
Scranton Professor Awarded $1.8 Million NSF Grant:
by AB7RG 2024-11-03The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a 1.8 million dollar collaborative grant to Nathaniel Frissell, Ph.D., associate professor physics and engineering at The University of Scranton, to provide sophisticated atmospheric measuring equipment to a nationwide network of ham radio enthusiast and citizen scientists that he developed. Dr. Frissell will serve as the lead principal investigator of the collaborative grant and will work with colleagues at Case Western Reserve University, the University of Alabama and the New Jersey Institute of Technology. The grant will further the collective data gathering capabilities of the Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation project led by Dr. Frissell. The enhanced capabilities to collect data on the Earth's ionosphere for this project builds on the HamSCI Personal Space Weather Station network of licensed amateur radio operators who have helped measure the effects of weather in the upper levels of Earth's atmosphere through a 1.3 million dollar NSF funded project previously awarded to Dr. Frissell.
Mysteries of RF:
by AB7RG 2024-11-02Not long ago I was awakened at six in the morning by a strange alien voice emanating from my bedside radio. Yes, how quaint to have a bedside radio! This one happens to be a Tivoli Audio model that came out around 20 years ago. It has an analog AM/FM tuner, line input, and a remote speaker for stereo. Ironically, all it’s used for now is playing white noise for sleeping (via a Sonos Connect). The voice came right over the white noise. Demonic possession? If you listen to the audio file, here, you might think so, but it was actually my neighbor, who is an amateur radio (ham) operator. This had happened once before and is similar to what I remember from my days playing music, when radio chatter from taxis or delivery trucks would blurt out of guitar amplifiers.
