Category Archives: Field Day

Club and member activities related to the Nashua Area Radio Club’s Field Day operations.

Activities, Digital, Education and Training, Featured, Field Day, General, Newsletter, Space, Station Equipment

Field Day Satellites, VHF+ and Fox Hunting

We will have lots of great activities for folks who are interested in operating on the VHF and above bands at Field Day 2019. Here are some of the activities that we’ll be doing:

  • Satellite Contacts using a Portable Computer Controlled Satellite Stations
  • Weak Signal SSB, CW, and FT8 Contacts on 6m, 2m, and 70cm
  • Fox Hunting using Radio Direction Finding (RDF) to find hidden 2m Radio Transmitters
  • Satellite Station, VHF+ Station, and Fox Hunting Training

Satellites at Field Day

Field Day Satellites
Field Day 2019 Satellite Passes – Saturday

We will have a lot of great satellite passes during Field Day this year! The table above shows a summary for Saturday. Sunday passes are also very good! You can see view the passes and associated details in our 2019 Field Day Satellite Pass Book.

Field Day Satellites
Computer Controlled Satellite Station

We will be using a Computer Controlled Portable Satellite station which features the new Icom IC-9700 Transceiver.

Field Day Satellites
Portable Satellite Antennas

Our Portable Satellite Station uses circularly polarized yagis and an Az/El Rotator system to enable us to track and make contacts through LEO satellites. You can learn more about the station hardware and software here.

VHF+ Station

VHF+ Station
VHF+ Antenna System

We are planning a serious VHF+ effort at Field Day 2019. We will be putting up a dedicated 40 ft tower with yagis, low-loss feedlines, and preamps for the 6m, 2m, and 70cm bands.

Icom IC-9100 Transceiver

The VHF+ station will use an Icom IC-9100 Transceiver and will support all modes including FT8 Digital operation via WSJT-X.

Fox Hunting

Field Day Fox Hunting
Large N1FD Fox

We will have several “Foxes” out during Field Day 2019. Fox Hunting (locating hidden transmitters using Radio Direction Finding) is a great way sharpen your RDF skills and have fun.

Training, Training, Training

Field Day Training
Field Day Satellite Training

We will be offering training on all of these activities at the start of Field Day 2019. Training will begin at 11 am at the VHF+/Satellite Station Tent. We will cover Satellite Operating, VHF+ Operating, and Fox Hunting then.

Field Day Training
Fox Hunting Training at Field Day

It might be worth coming to Field Day 2019 just for the training – Don’t Miss It!

See you at Field Day!

Fred, AB1OC

 

Featured, Field Day, General, Newsletter, Station Equipment

Final Field Day Station Test

Field Day Station Test - CW
CW Station Heaven

What goes into an 11A Field Day? Well, for starters, 13 stations! We got together at AB1OC/AB1QB’s QTH a couple of weekends ago to set up ALL of our Field Day stations at once and test them together. Here’s a rundown of the final Field Day Station Test setup:

  • Three CW Stations
  • Three SSB Stations
  • Three Digital Stations
  • A 160m All Mode Station
  • A VHF+ All Mode Station for 6m, 2m, and 70cm
  • A “Free” Satellite Station
  • A GOTA Station

Each station has a Laptop Computer with one or more monitors running the N1MM+ logger in a networked configuration. We also had the Scoreboard computer (Anita’s Surface Pro) running for the test.

Jon, AC1EV took the lead on getting the CW stations set up and working. This was true “CW Heaven”!

Field Day Station Test - SSB
SSB Station Testing Fun

Scott, NE1RD spent the day sorting out our three SSB stations. We even got Voice Keying to work!

Field Day Station Test - Digital
Digital Station Testing

Dave, K1DLM and Charlie, W1CBD spent the day getting our three Digital Stations to work with four FlexRadio SDRs. Anita, AB1QB took care of our WSJT-X, RTTY, and PSK configurations for the Digital Stations. Dave also got the GOTA SDR station working in his “spare time”.

Field Day Station Test - 160m All Mode Station
160m All Mode Station Test

I spent my day working on the 160m All Mode and the VHF+ Stations. These stations were a challenge because they needed to run SSB, CW, and WSJT-X together with N1MM+. We finally found a software combination that worked for all of this.

Portable Satellite Station
Computer Controlled Satellite Station

Fortunately for me, our Portable Computer Controlled Satellite Station was already set up and ready to go. This is a Mac-based station and we’ll be transferring our satellite contacts into the N1MM+ Windows world via an ADIF file transfer.

160m All Mode Station Main N1MM+ Monitor

It took all of us pretty much an entire day (and most of an evening) to get all of this working correctly. In the end, we made a bunch of test contacts and confirmed that all 13 computers kept the correct logs and scores. With this done, we are all set for Field Day 2019!

Fred, AB1OC

CW and QRP, Featured, Field Day, General, Newsletter, On The Air

June 2019 Contest Notes

The beginning of June marks the unofficial start of Summer. There are still the various state QSO parties you can work (see Contest Calendar dot com), but the weather is finally nice! Wouldn’t you rather get out of your shack and operate in the great outdoors? June is a great month to operate VHF/UHF from a mountaintop, QRP portable from a picnic table, or with your friends on Field Day.

June Contests

ARRL June VHF Contest [1800Z June 8 to 0259Z June 10]

Exchange: Maidenhead grid square (RST is optional)

Go to the top of a mountain with your all-band, all-mode radio. I’ve done VHF contests QRP with an FT-817 (now being sold as the FT-818). These radios are not very economical with your batteries, but since I was driving to the top of the mountains when I did this I could bring all the power I wanted. No problem! Other radios such as the FT-857D offer the same all-band and all-mode features but have 100 watts.

I’ve always been partial to Icom radios (if I can’t use an Elecraft), so the IC-7000 was a go-to radio for me. Same deal with being something of a power-pig. But, if you’re operating from your car then you have no problem.

Finally, if you do have a hankering for Elecraft, the KX-3 can take an internal 2-meter module that allows you to run on both 6m and 2m. If you can’t bring a whole power plant worth of power with you then this is an excellent option.

ARRL Field Day [1800 June 22 to 2100Z June 23]

Exchange: 11A NH (“11 Alpha New Hampshire” on phone)

The NARS club is going all-out (again) this year planning an 11A. There is so much going on for this event that I won’t even try to give you a synopsis here. To catch up go to the Field Day page and see the fine article written by Fred.

I can’t emphasize enough how wonderful Field Day can be to someone a little tentative on the air. Field Day is a very relaxed event, and there will be a whole host of Elmers present that WANT you to get into the game. We will sit with you, explain everything, let you make some contacts, give suggestions and encouragement, and generally have fun because YOU are having fun!

Please come to the June main membership meeting, and the June Tech Night to receive the full orientation. If you can’t make those meetings, no worries. The point of the meetings is to help the members feel comfortable and informed (and safe) during the event. There will be additional instruction before on-air activities begin.

Until next time

This concludes the June contest notes. I hope all of you with a portable radio will try to get outside and make a few contacts. SOTA, POTA, and IOTA all have programs that reward the adventurous. Get out there and get a little sunshine!

Scott, NE1RD

Radio Amateurs Developing Skills Worldwide