Tech Net News 06-20-2020

original-3
I’m pretty, AND I’m important! Credit: Jeremy Sanders, Hermann Brunner and the eSASS team (MPE); Eugene Churazov, Marat Gilfanov (on behalf of IKI)

It’s the last weekend before Field Day! Are you ready? If you still need some hints, please check out the the “DARC Field Day 2020 Participation How We Can Have Fun” document that your fellow club members have been working on.

If your looking for some on-air fun to help you finish your Field Day preparations, there are a few events on the calendar. The West Virginia QSO Party gives you a chance to pick up a sometimes-difficult state, while the All-Asia DX Contest will let you try for a long, long-range contact or two. It’s not hard to reach Venezuela from the Dallas area, so you might want to check out The Battle of Carabobo International Contest, and if you love a noisy challenge on 160 meters this is one of the Stew Perry Top Band Challenge weekends.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 06-13-2020

May-30-2019-4-1612x981
Blue jays HATE paying for overdue books.

I’ve found one battery that will never come back from the dead, and wondering what to buy to replace it. How are your Field Day preparations going? That the DARC still has one more virtual forum coming up on June 18th to help us get ready for Field Day on our own, and we’re continuing to update our participation gude.

Lots of the bonus points that we used to take care of as a club are now available to you as an individual. For example, you can earn 100 points for sending a radiogram to the ARRL NTX Section Manager, and 10 points each (up to 100) for sending radiograms to your family and friends. Don’t know how? Get started at the website for our local traffic net.

There’s no Lecture and Lab this month, because of Field Day, but there’s still plenty you can do on and off the air. The contest calendar has plenty of small events and the second six-week series of the RSGB Hope QSO Party is still ongoing. The biggest event this weekend, though, is the ARRL June VHF Contest. It’s hot and sunny, so give six meters a try…or go even higher.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 06-06-20

060220_bb_maya_feat-1028x579
With a huge ceremonial platform and a complex of buildings, this ancient Maya site has been hiding in the jungle for millennia. Credit: Takeshi Inomata

Field Day is coming soon! I’ve been testing my inverters, taking inventory of my antenna supports, and running the May supply of gas out of my generator. But there’s lots more that all of us can do. Remember that the DARC still has one more virtual forum coming up on June 18th to help us get ready for Field Day on our own.

Lots of the bonus points that we used to take care of as a club are now available to you as an individual. For example, you can earn 100 points for sending a radiogram to the ARRL NTX Section Manager, and 10 points each (up to 100) for sending radiograms to your family and friends. Don’t know how? Get started at the website for our local traffic net.

The contest calendar for this week has a number of small events and a few that are a little bit larger, like the 10-10 International “Open Season” PSK Contest, the Kentucky QSO Party, and the second six-week series of the RSGB Hope QSO Party.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 05-30-2020

051320_SM_murder-hornets_feat-1028x579
It’s coming for us! Well, maybe. Credit: USDA.

I’ve been running late! It’s not easy to stop watching the video feed from SpaceX and from NASA TV today.

Our June 2nd, 2020, club meeting will feature a program written by Jerry Buxton, N0JY, and delivered by Tom Schuessler, N5HYP. Titled “AMSAT’s Future in the Microwave Bands” It will go into a little history on previous uses of microwaves on Amateur Satellites, look at what is being designed for the GOLF satellites and the design efforts to fulfill the ARISS International goal of putting Amateur Radio on the Lunar Gateway.

UPDATE: The DARC will also have two virtual meetings during June to talk about best practices and tips for Field Day. The first one is at 7:00 PM on Thursday, June 4th, and the second is at 7:00 PM on Thursday, June 18th.

The contest calendar is full of events which I have not read about, because space stuff is just so cool. Have a look, and remember that you might want to find small events to participate in to get ready for Field Day, like the Phone Fray or the ARRL June VHF Contest.

If you’re like me and have never participated in a Field Day on your own before, then Anthony Luscre, K8ZT would like to help by sharing a fun presentation with useful tips and links. He’ll be giving a live version of the presentation this Wednesday, June 3rd, at 7:00 PM Dallas time.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 05-23-2020

AB-Aurigae
At a little bright spot near the center, there just might be a planet being born. Credit: ESO/Boccaletti et al

Our June 2nd, 2020, club meeting will feature a program written by Jerry Buxton, N0JY, and delivered by Tom Schuessler, N5HYP. Titled “AMSAT’s Future in the Microwave Bands” It will go into a little history on previous uses of microwaves on Amateur Satellites, look at what is being designed for the GOLF satellites and the design efforts to fulfill the ARISS International goal of putting Amateur Radio on the Lunar Gateway.

The contest calendar is perhaps a bit quieter than usual this weekend, but there are two interesting events going on: The Day of the YLs contest, and the Strange Antenna Challenge. Get on out there and electrify your fence, your bird feeder, or your downspouts!

Continue reading

Tech Net News 05-16-2020

800px-Casuarius_unappendiculatus_-Northern_Cassowary_-oblique_front
This deadly bird is prettier than most! Hint—don’t feed it. Credit: en.wikipedia.org

Coming up just one week from today, this month’s lab will focus on the Winlink radio e-mail software, which is both fun and useful in an emergency. Served agencies just love to use email when they can, and Winlink is a way to get it through.

The contest calendar has plenty of operating possibilities even if there’s nothing famous. The RSGB Hope QSO Party is continuing, and there are some unusual events like the Portuguese Navy Day contest and a CW event to honor the King of Spain.

In amateur radio news, a new release candidate for WSJT-X has been released. It offers improved decoding speed and reliability, so you should give it a try.

The ARRL reports that the amateur radio transponder on Huskysat-1 is now open for use, offering an inverting transponder with VHF up and UHF down.

UPDATE: Gus, W5GUS, mentions that next (Memorial Day) weekend will feature the Strange Antenna Challenge, where your goal is to make HF contacts using debris you might find after a natural disaster, not the usual wire or pipe antennas. It’s time to get out your toughest old antenna tuner and load up a tomato cage!

Continue reading

Tech Net News 05-09-2020

Artist’s impression of the triple system with the closest blac
Two stars orbiting the center of mass they share with a hidden, nearby black hole. Credit: ESO

I’m sorry that I’m late posting my news today…Erin and I got to install some bees in a hive at our house! We were distracted this afternoon.

Our club will continue to hold virtual Lecture and Lab events. This month’s lab will focus on the Winlink radio e-mail software, which can be very useful both for fun and in an emergency. Radiograms work, and sending them is a good skill…but served agencies just love to use email when they can.

The contest calendar for this week is full of little sprint events, which are great if you have a chance to try one. The RSGB Hope QSO Party continues, and if you want an electrifying contest experience, you could try out the Contest Volta RTTY contest, sponsored by the Associazione Radioamatori Italiani.

And one quick tip: if you want to quickly check the time in UTC, just use https://time.is/UTC. You can also use their front page to check if your computer’s clock is reasonably correct.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 05-02-2020

Andrey Atuchin 230544_web
Look out dinosaurs, I will eat your eggs! Credit: Denver Museum of Nature and Science/Andrey Atuchin

Sadly, my first two announcements tonight are negative: Ham-Com 2020 has become Ham-Com 2021, and the DARC club VE session at the Business Jet center continues to be canceled until the public health situation improves. However, JJ, N5IMS, has sent me word of at least one examiner conducting on-line exams.

If we can’t meet up in person, there still are plenty of chances to get on the air. The Hope QSO Party is continuing, and serious VHF contesters will probably already have heard about the Araucaria World Wide VHF Contest, just as the CWers among us know about the 10-10 International Spring CW weekend. For more casual operators like me, there are QSO parties for the 7th call area, Indiana, Delaware, New England, and even Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Continue reading

Tech Net News 04-25-2020

1920px-Guglielmo_Marconi_1901_wireless_signal
Happy 146th Birthday! Credit: en.wikipedia.org

I don’t have any major club announcements today. Be sure to watch this website and the club Facebook page for updates about upcoming activities.

And unfortunately, I goofed up this morning and missed the Lecture and Lab. But, if you participated, please share what you did and learned. Have you tried a new digital mode today?

The contest calendar is offering plenty of was to have fun while you stay at home this weekend. In fact, did you know there’s an award for contacting “stay home” amateur stations? The RSGB Hope QSO party is still going on, and the 10-10 International Spring Digital QSO Party is trying to add excitement to the 10-meter band. The Florida QSO Party is also this weekend, and it offers a unique bonus opportunity: the chance to spell LOVEBUG with special event callsigns.

Continue reading