Today I spent some time at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, NH. It was the dedication of a new ham radio station, with the call letters KA1SKY, which will be used as a hands-on exhibition about the radio spectrum, space, and the invisible magic that attracted many of us to science and electronics.

I spoke with two of the (many) people who made this happen, and my thanks to Dave McDonald and Michael Crestohl. We talked about how all of this came to be, and also some ideas for you, in case you want to duplicate their results in your own community.




Update!  Check out the Center's web page discussing KA1SKY at http://www.starhop.com/education-and-exploration/ka1sky.aspx

This fully functional HF/VHF/UHF/Satellite amateur radio station is a unique exhibit that demonstrates and uses a part of the electromagnetic spectrum. The radio allows voice transmission and Morse code on thousands of frequencies of various wavelengths. With the guidance of volunteer amateur radio operators, you can talk to other “hams” around the country as well as contact the International Space Station when it is in a favorable position. Communication with satellites in space is also possible in order to receive and make transmissions to other parts of the world.

We were delighted to hear about WSPR from Joe Taylor, K1JT. The passion that drives people to excellence is always here, but in this hobby we get to share and enjoy the fun, too! In fact, the WSPR project (pronounced like "whisper") would not even work unless other hams and SWLs joined in!

Listen to K1JT at Masscon

This year at Dayton, my friend and Official 99 Hobbies Field Correspondent Cal, WA1WOK made a quick recording of a conversation he had with Gordon West, WB6NOA. This one is a quick two minutes, but you can get an idea of the buzz in the background, and feel for the energy present at this event!

(photo: pacificon.org)

This is the fourth presentation that we listened to during the Masscon 2010 event in Westford, MA USA during the weekend of March 12-13, 2010.

Chuck Kitchin, N1TEV, presents "Updating Classic Regenerative and Super Regenerative Circuits" to an enthusiastic audience at Masscon. Part of the fun of this presentation, of course, is the associated materials presented via overhead projector. But you can get most of the content from the audio portion that we present here.

The advance materials described the talk like this:

Modern components allow Hams to modify the classic regenerative and super regenerative designs of the past. Ham radio experimentation is an excellent electronics teaching tool (as well as being FUN) and can lead to new discoveries in radio communications. This talk will cover the theory and modern applications of these classic circuits.

We are glad that they used the word "fun" because this presentation was great for so many reasons, and it really was fun, too!

Conference materials can be found here.

This is the second presentation that we listened to during the Masscon 2010 event in Westford, MA USA during the weekend of March 12-13, 2010.

The only way to appreciate the full effect was to be sitting in the audience. However, you can get an idea of what it was like if you listen to this, while watching the overhead slides from the talk, which are available from www.masscon.org.

Dave Siegrist NT1U and Bruce Beford N1RX discuss the design and construction and testing of RF filters.

Conference materials can be found here.

I was delighted to be in the audience during the Masscon 2010 event in Westford, MA USA during the weekend of March 12-13, 2010. My friend Scott Andersen, NE1RD, put the event together, and it represents over a year of planning and preparation by Scott and his staff.

The podcast you are about to listen to is one of the presentations given during this convention. The only way to appreciate the full effect was to be sitting in the audience. However, you can get an idea of what it was like if you listen to this, while watching the overhead slides from the talk, which are available from www.masscon.org.

There is something indescribable that happens when you have a room full of people who share a passion. Hopefully you will hear it.

Allison Parent, KB1GMX, presents at Masscon 2010.

You can view the slide show here while you listen to the presentation.

Conference materials can be found here.

Today I talked with Jeff Johnson, VK4XJJ on the phone about his cross-country walk.


He had ham radio along for the ride -- among other things.


Jeff was raising money for charity in the process of this 2,500 km "walkabout".




Show notes (many lifted from Jeff's site):

www.jeffswalk.com

eBook now available. Five months backpacking over 2,500kms across Oz with 5W FT-817nd US$5.

DeafBlind
Association (NSW) Inc.
www.dbansw.org.au

Other DeafBlind Links

Walking Club Links

Wireless
Institute of Australia

Magazines

Today I talked with Cal, WA1WOK about D*STAR. We discussed the past, present, and future of the hobby (AM, SSB, digital modes) and specifically how D*STAR fits in.


You can get in on the ground floor of this new part of amateur radio, if you want to. Listen in and you will get an idea of what to expect with this new mode, with the help of guys like Cal who can show you the ropes.

Show notes:

http://www.dstarusers.org
http://www.dstarinfo.com
http://www.washcoares.org/d-star/index.html
http://www.icomamerica.com/amateur/dstar/
Promotional video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8PYZOc9L9o
Cal's email address is his callsign at arrl.net

I talked to quite a few people at the Orlando Hamcation 2009, covering lots of ham radio subjects, as well as some not-so-technical things. What a great time, and in the winter sun! Kick back and enjoy this one. It's a little long, nearly 25 minutes, but close your eyes and pretend that you are in Florida.....

Show notes:

www.ten-ten.org
www.lidomounts.com
www.farcircuits.net
www.hamtestonline.com
Brenda's Catering

I stopped in Richmond, VA on the way to Florida, and visited the Richmond Frostfest 2009. It was a decent-sized hamfest held on the international raceway.

I talked to several very interesting people who have done some unusual things with ham radio. This was a lot of fun!


Show notes:

Dominion DX Group web site
ARRL listing for local clubs
K-9 Alert Search and Rescue Dogs, Inc
VA Dept. of Emergency Management - Terry's email addr
Zuni Maritime Foundation

Last November I spoke with Rich Mitchell, N3III about his award-winning article in QST in November, 2007. It is always memorable when you are speaking with someone who has such passion, and also who loves the hobby like this. This one was so much fun I couldn't stop. Run time is long.

Rich is http://www.qrz.com/n3iii
November article in QST (won the Cover Award for the month) (you may need to be an ARRL member to access this)
http://www.arrl.org/qst/2007/11/mitchell.pdf