We were up on Mt. Washington here in New Hampshire this past weekend and we decided to use the SOTA activation as a test for our upgraded Simple Portable Satellite Station. It turned out that the station was also a great SOTA and Grid Square Activation station for terrestrial contacts…
The Nashua Area Radio Society did our Mt. Washington SOTA activation this past weekend. Jamey, AC1DC put together a great trip to the summit again this year. We used the SOTA as an opportunity to test our upgraded simple portable satellite station.
Portable Station on Mt. Washington
The station performed very well making some 75 contacts during our activation. We confirmed that the station worked well for FM satellite contacts and also verified the operation of the computer controls to enable us to make contacts through linear satellites.
We were surprised to find that the station also worked extremely well for 2m terrestrial contacts. We were able to work many mobile and base stations using 2m FM. We also worked quite a few stations using 2m SSB. The flexibility of the simple portable antenna system that is part of the updated station made this very easy to do.
The link above contains some information about how the upgraded station is put together and what we learned during our initial test.
View from Mt. Washington Summit
We had near-perfect weather on the Summit for our SOTA activation. All in all, it was a great day!
Interest and Excitement around HamXposition @ Boxboro are building! The event will take place on September 6th – 8th in Boxboro, Massachusettes. You can learn more about HamXposition here.
The Nashua Area Radio Society will be hosting several activities and displays at HamXposition this year. Our planned activities include:
NEW! Ham Bootcamp Program – a hands-on activity to help folks get on the air and build their stations
Our Ham Expo Display featuring information and hands-on activities you can do with Amateur Radio
A Kit Building Activity featuring a choice of two different kits
Multiple Get On The Air Stations including an HF Remote GOTA station and an on-site Satellite GOTA station
You can learn more about HamXposition and our activities there at the HamXpostion website.
Ham Bootcamp
A First HF Contact at Ham Bootcamp
We have created a program that we call Ham Bootcamp to help recently licensed and upgraded hams to get on the air. We are making this program available to up to 100 HamXpostion attendees on a first-come-first-served basis.
Our Bootcamp program will run from 9 am to noon on Saturday, September 7th in the Federal Room. Bootcamp will feature tracks for both Technician and General class license holders. It is also a great place for folks who are not yet licensed to learn more about Amateur Radio and how to get on the air.
Our Bootcamp program will include:
How to make a contact and join a repeater net
Putting together an HF station
Radio, antenna, and feed line choices
Getting started with FT8 and digital modes
Exchanging QSL cards
Learning Morse code
Tips on upgrading
Introduction to ham radio kit building
Handheld radio programming tutorials
Ham Bootcamp is free. Participants will receive discount certificates for a kit build at the show and for purchase of Ham Radio Gear from Ham Radio Outlet.
Our Ham Radio Expo will feature a total of 10 hands-on exhibits about activities that you can do with Amateur Radio. Our display will include:
Information on Licensing and Ham Radio Skill-Building Activities
Ham Radio Communications via Satellites and the ISS
High-Altitude Balloons carrying Amateur Radio
Radio Direction Finding (Fox Hunting)
DXing and HF Station Construction
Portable Operating
Field Day and Emergency Communications
Ham Radio Kits and Computers
Learning and using Morse Code
and more!
70 cm Ground Plan Antenna
Our kit building activity will feature a choice of two kits that you can build at HamXposition. In addition to the popular Morse Tutor kit, will also have a 70 cm Ground Plane Antenna kit available at the show.
Kit Builder and Mentor at HamXposition
We will have tools and mentors available to help you build your kit at HamXposition.
HF Remote GOTA Station – Visitor Operating the N1T Special Event Station
Our Remote HF GOTA Station will be back again this year. Visitors can use it to make HF contacts around the world. You can also help to operate our N1T Special Event Station. This is a great way to learn about DXing and speak with other Hams in the USA and around the world!
Computer Controlled Satellite Station at HamXposition
We will also have a Computer-Controlled Satellite Station on-site. The station will feature the new Icom IC-9700! It will also use an automated antenna system to track satellites in space. Visitors can use the station to learn about satellite communications and to talk to other Hams through a satellite in space.
Get Your HT Programmed At HamXposition
Kenwood TH-D74 HT
We will be offering an HT programming service at HamXposition. Programming software and cables will be available to program the following popular FM HTs:
Icom – ID-31A and ID-51 Models
Kenwood – TH-D72 and TH-D74
Yaesu – FT60, FT65, and FT70
BaoFeng – UV-5R and BF-F8HP
TDXOne – TD-Q8
We will help you to create and load a custom list of repeaters into your HT that are available near your home QTH.
HamXposition Forum Presentations
NARS Forum Presentation, Dan AC1EN Presenting
It has been a very active year for the Nashua Area Radio Society. We will be sharing some of the fun in two Forum Presentations at HamXposition:
A Recent Local School ISS Crew Contact Time/Place: 1 pm in the Cotillion Room
The Nashua Area Radio Society worked with the Hudson (NH) Memorial School to plan for and execute and ISS crew contact this past year. Join us for an overview of this project including information about what goes into planning, preparation, and execution. The presentation will feature a video of the students talking with astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor abroad the ISS. The talk will highlight the STEM learning aspects of the project.
The Journey to 2019 Club of the Year
Time/Place: 2 pm in the Cotillion Room
The Nashua Area Radio Society was recently honored as the Dayton Hamvention (R) 2019 Club of the Year for its work in bringing new people into the Amateur Radio service and providing mentoring and STEM learning opportunities for young and old. Members will discuss some of the programs that NARS has created to help folks enter the Amateur Radio service, build their skills, and have fun with Amateur Radio.
Reaching Out To Hams Across New England
HamXpostion Program Info – Amateur Radio Licensing and Skills Development Opportunities
The Nashua Area Radio Society is continuing to expand the reach of our Licensing and Training programs to as many Hams as possible. Our hands-on weekend License Training classes for Technician, General, and Extra class licenses are already quite popular with folks outside of our area.
We are also making our training video content and our popular Q&A forums available to Hams outside of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. These materials are available via our Internet Subscriptions. Look for more information about what we can provide in the HamXposition program and visit us at www.n1fd.org/hamradiofun to learn more as well.
The ARRL gave the Nashua Area Radio Society a Forum at the Dayton Hamvention® this past year to talk about how we approached Growing and Modernizing our club. Here’s a summary of our presentation from the Hamvention program:
ARRL is pleased to introduce members of the Nashua Area Radio Society (NARS), from New Hampshire. This ARRL Special Service Club has over 200 members contributing to Amateur Radio licensing classes, youth and school activities, on the air operating activities, Amateur Radio Expositions in public venues, and emergency communications training. NARS is a vibrant, active radio club with a strong mentoring component. Club members will share a presentation about their activities and approach to building membership and youth participation in their club. If your radio club is hungry for new ideas and is looking for ways to engage newcomers – you won’t want to miss this opportunity to hear from a vibrant, active radio club. Sponsored by ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio®.
The ARRL has produced a video of our Dayton Forum presentation. You can view our Dayton Forum Video by clicking on the image above.
The Nashua Area Radio Society Story (click to view)
You can also view the slides from our Forum presentation by clicking on the image above. It works well to view both the slides and the video together. You can do this by clicking on the slides to bring them up in a separate tab in your browser and then playing the video from this page.
The Nashua Area Radio Society in the ARRL Booth at Dayton
The ARRL also provided space in their booth at Dayton for us to host a display about some of our projects and to talk with folks about how they might go about modernizing and growing their Amateur Radio club.
There has been quite a bit of interest what has worked for us and we are providing this presentation via the Internet to several other Amateur Radio Clubs around the USA. If you would like to have us share this presentation at your club meeting, please contact us via email to [email protected].
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