Category Archives: Youth Activities

Articles and other information about Ham Radio activities for young people. Our youth activities include GOTA events, our High Altitude Balloon project, help getting licensed and more.

Featured, General, Newsletter, Space, Youth Activities

HAB 3 Update

April 30, 2018 Fred Kemmerer

HAB 3 Update: We have been working with four schools this winter and spring in preparation for the HAB 3 launch in the next few weeks. The schools are:

Hudson Memorial School, Hudson, NH
World Academy, Nashua, NH
Bishop Guertin High School, Nashua, NH
Merrimack High School, Merrimack, NH

HMS Students on the air during HAB Session

HAB Instruction

Hudson Memorial School and World Academy are new to the HAB program – we have been giving weekly sessions to the students on the science behind the HAB. This year, we added a new topic to the curriculum, Space Communications which has proved to be popular.

Advanced HAB Program

The other 2 schools, Bishop Guertin High School and Merrimack High School have been through the HAB curriculum in the past. We have developed a new program involving kit building and CW that has proven to be very popular.

We have hosted kit builds with both schools to build the Pixie 40 m QRP kit. There was great interest from both schools in the kit build and all kits were built successfully.

Bishop Guertin High School Students building Pixie Kit

The 2nd part of the activity is a CW competition. Teams of 2 students compete in a competition at each school. They use their Pixie kits with Keys connected to send a message to their teammate. The team that copies the CW most accurately in the least time wins the prize, which is an Oscilloscope kit and another Pixie kit. We have held the competition with the students from Merrimack High School and it was a great success and all students, teachers and NARS members who elmered them had a great time!

MHS Morse Code Competition Winners — Merrimack High School Morse Code Competition Winners

We also helped 3 students from Merrimack and Bishop Guertin High Schools to earn their Tech Licenses during our Spring Tech License Class.

HAB 3 Launch Plans

The HAB 3 Launch will happen on a Saturday or Sunday over the next few weeks. We are watching the jet stream and launch predictions and will schedule it on a day where the conditions look good. Stay tuned to the website for more info when the date is scheduled.

Education and Training, Featured, General, Newsletter, Youth Activities

HAB School Kit Builds

February 27, 2018 Anita Kemmerer

We have started our HAB-3 program and we are working with 4 schools who will be part of the launch. Two of the schools, Bishop Guertin High School and Merrimack High School have been through the preparation sessions before. To expand their involvement with STEM activities, the Nashua Area Radio Society has hosted kits builds at both schools.

Fred, AB1OC Elmers the BGHS Kit Builders

The first kit build was held earlier this month with 6 students from Bishop Guertin High School. They built the 40 meter Pixie Kit QRP radio, the same one the NARS built a year or so ago.

The students did a great job once they learned to solder and enjoyed the kit build.

Bishop Guertin Students Build the Pixie Kit

The students are also learning morse code and there will be a morse competition in future sessions at both schools, using the Pixie kits built by the students.

Merrimack High School Students build the Pixie kit

Last Friday, 5 club members were Elmers to 18 students at Merrimack High School, who also built the PIXIE kit. Thanks to Bill, AB1AV, Niece, KA1ULN, Mike, K1WVO, Jamey, AC1DC , Tom, AB1NS, and Fred, AB1OC for helping the kids to have a successful kit build.

Merrimack High School Students Building the Pixie Kit

All of the teachers and students had a great time and learned a lot during the kit build. They are looking forward to the morse code competition.

Anita, AB1QB

Education and Training, Featured, General, Newsletter, Youth Activities

Spring 2018 Technician License Class

February 26, 2018 Anita Kemmerer

We held our first license class of 2018 this past weekend. It was a Technician License Class and it was a huge success. We had a total of 16 students in the class, including 3 high school students from Bishop Guertin High School and Merrimack High School – the two schools who participated in our High Altitude Balloon projects. There was also a teacher in the class from Hudson Memorial School, who will be participating in HAB-3.

We had a great set of students – they all were well prepared and did great on their exams. All 16 students earned their Tech Licenses and one of the students also earned his General!

Thanks to all of our instructors and VEs who made this possible. The Tech Class instructors were Abby, AB1BY, Jamey, AC1DC, Fred, AB1OC, Brian AB1ZO, Wayne, AG1A, and Burns, WB1FJ.

Satellite Station 3.0

This class also marked the debut of Satellite Station 3.0, which meets the specs to support ISS Crew Contacts.

In addition to classroom study, we provided many demos and gave the students an opportunity to get on the air and make Satellite contacts using the station above. Students also had the opportunity to make HF Contacts using a Flex Maestro, which connected over the internet to the station at the AB1OC/AB1QB QTH.

Our next license class will be the General Class, which will be held on March 24th and 25th. We will hold the Extra Class on April 27 – 29. To register, visit our Class Information Page.

Many of our students also joined the Nashua Area Radio Society after they passed their exams. Please say hello to the new members and congratulate them at our next meeting.

Anita (AB1QB)

HAB Instruction

Advanced HAB Program

HAB 3 Launch Plans

Satellite Station 3.0

Radio Amateurs Developing Skills Worldwide