July 3: ARISS radio contact with an astronaut aboard ISS

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Join us on July 3 for a live contact with
Astronaut Nick Hague, KG5TMV
aboard the International Space Station

Live Streams (try both): SB City TV Live Stream | SB Library Facebook Live

When: Wednesday, July 3rd. Doors open at 10:00 AM
10-minute contact will begin promptly at 10:54 AM

Where: Santa Barbara Public Library Faulkner Gallery
40 E Anapamu St, Santa Barbara

Children and families will be given priority access to the event, and attendees are encouraged to arrive early. Capacity for the Faulkner Gallery is 175 people, but overflow viewing and listening will be available. 

NASA Astronaut Nick Hague will answer questions from 12 local children as they make a live 2-meter amateur radio contact from the Santa Barbara Public Library to ask him about life on the space station, careers in STEM, experiments in space, and more.

Children and families will have the opportunity to explore space through virtual reality, create rocket ships, and more before and after the contact.

This experience is made possible by Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) in cooperation with NASA. The contact will be coordinated by SBPL youth services staff, Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club volunteers, and ARISS mentors.

All ages have enjoyed space-themed programs and events at the Library over the last few months, including learning about astronomy, an introduction to amateur radio, hands on engineering and technology projects, and more. Related programming will continue through the month of July. A full calendar, including two additional amateur radio-related events, is available at SBPLibrary.org/summer.

Levi C. Maaia, K6LCM
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station
ARISS-US Education Committee

About ARISS

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) is a cooperative venture of international amateur radio societies and the space agencies that support the International Space Station (ISS).  In the United States, sponsors are the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL), the ISS National Lab and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or public forms. Before and during these radio contacts, students, educators, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies, and amateur radio. For more information, see www.ariss.org.

Post expires at 3:00pm on Wednesday July 3rd, 2019 but will still be available in the archives.

Field Day 2019 – Saturday June 22 thru Sunday June 23

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Directions to the SBARC Elings Park Field Day site: If you are coming from the south (see map above), take 101 to Carrillo and head southwest toward the Mesa. Turn west on Cliff Drive and follow 3/4; mile (past Monrow Elementary) to the Elings Park South entrance (not well marked). If you are coming from the north, take 101 to Las Positas and head south. Turn east on Cliff Drive and continue about 1/4 mile to the Elings Park South entrance (not well marked). In either case, turn north into the park passing through a gate and then turn left at the fork, passing through another gate, and continue on the dirt road. Stay LEFT at the next fork (the dirt road becomes one way at this point) and park in the dirt parking lot (we will be sharing with the hang glider folks). Continue on foot until you see the SBARC Rover at the top of the hill. ADVISORY: There is no driving access to the site from the Elings Park main gate off Las Positas.

Directions to the SBARC Elings Park Field Day site: If you are coming from the south (see map above), take 101 to Carrillo and head southwest toward the Mesa. Turn west on Cliff Drive and follow ¾ mile (past Monrow Elementary) to the Elings Park South entrance (not well marked). If you are coming from the north, take 101 to Las Positas and head south. Turn east on Cliff Drive and continue about $frac14; mile to the Elings Park South entrance (not well marked). In either case, turn north into the park passing through a gate and then turn left at the fork, passing through another gate, and continue on the dirt road. Stay LEFT at the next fork (the dirt road becomes one way at this point) and park in the dirt parking lot (we will be sharing with the hang glider folks). Continue on foot until you see the SBARC Rover at the top of the hill.  (Lat/Long 34.410028, -119.735822) ADVISORY: There is no driving access to the site from the Elings Park main gate off Las Positas.

This year we’re putting the “Field” back in Field Day!  We will be operating from Elings Park up on the hill where the hang gliders take off. We will be operating from 11:00am Saturday until 2:00pm Sunday, and we still have several time slots to fill, so we would really appreciate your help. We need three volunteers per time slot, two to operate the two stations (morse code [CW] and voice [SSB] this year), and one to help with outreach to the public (answering questions, etc).  We also need people to help set up before-hand, and help break-down at the end. Operating/outreach time-slots are four hours long (but if you can only do something less, we’ll still fit you in).  We are considering visiting a restaurant for an early dinner after the event Sunday – stay tuned!  Your club needs you! Let’s make this a fun field day for everyone.

We will bring the Rover to just above the hang gliding area at about 10:00am on Saturday, June 22.  We will need a small crew to help assemble di-poles and erect antenna masts and pop-ups.

Check out the ARRL Field Day intro and the ARRL Field Day Rules for more information.  If you want to follow along closely with field day activities, please subscribe to the field day mailing list.

You are more than welcome to work a 4-hour operator shift and a 4-hour outreach shift, if you so desire, or even take two operator shifts at different stations and/or times (lowering the need for as many total volunteers). Feel free to mix it up and hang out.

If you can help out in any way, please contact us immediately, and let us know what hours you are available. Ideally, we’ll be filling shifts for these seven time slots: 11am-3pm, 3pm-7pm, 7pm-11pm, 11pm-3am, 3am-7am, 7am-11am, and 11am-2pm, but again, let us know when you can help, and we’ll fit you in!

Post expires at 8:00pm on Sunday June 23rd, 2019 but will still be available in the archives.

Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net – 6/13/2019

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The audio archive of this net can best be followed by downloading the .mp3 file for the appropriate date here and listening with the media player of your choice. You can move the progress slider forward or backward to the subject of interest to you.

We had another interesting net tonight with 10 check-ins, plus net control Frank, K6FLD. Tonight’s topics included:

  • Local DMR repeater frequencies.
  • FT-8 operations.
  • Field Day 2019.
  • Local Earthquake and K6BPM’s seismograph built on a Raspberry PI (Raspberry Shake).

Tune in to the SBARC TM&E Net every Thursday at 8:00 PM local (2000 Hrs) and see what interesting questions might arise or ask some of your own! All club members and visitors are encouraged to check in to the net each week and join in with questions and /or answers and contribute the knowledge of new and seasoned amateur radio operators alike.

Amateur Radio in Space: Special Summer Events in Santa Barbara

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Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club members are preparing for a rare event this July that will allow local youngsters to make a live amateur radio contact with a NASA astronaut aboard the International Space Station (ISS)! The 10-minute live forum will bounce between a radio station at the Santa Barbara Public Library and the ham radio aboard the ISS (NA1SS) as the space station’s orbit passes over Southern California. The event is expected to take place sometime between July 1-3. Details will be forthcoming.

SBARC is supporting the Santa Barbara Public Library’s participation in the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program as part of the library’s comprehensive STEAM programming for upper elementary and junior high students. The ARISS event ties into the Summer Reading Program theme: Choose Adventure in Outer Space. The Santa Barbara Public Library endeavors to provide equal opportunities to all community members to learn about science, space travel, and careers in many fields that utilize these technologies, particularly in light of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing this summer.

As part of the space-themed program, SBARC will host three special events at the main branch library:

What is Amateur Radio? – A Community Conversation
Monday, June 10, 2019 – 6:30 PM – 7:45 PM @ Santa Barbara Public Library
A talk with members of the Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club about modern amateur radio, common misconceptions, digital projects and how to get involved. Everyone is welcome, especially new hams and those who are not yet licensed! Free and open to all ages.

What is Amateur Radio? – Open House
Monday, July 8, 2019 – 6:30 PM – 7:45 PM @ Santa Barbara Public Library
An open house showcasing software defined radio technologies, amateur radio in orbit and other exciting digital equipment and projects. Come join us for hands-on learning and live demonstrations. Free and open to all ages.

Amateur Radio Technician Class License “Cram ‘n’ Exam”
Saturday, July 20, 2019 – 10:30 AM – 3:30 PM @ Santa Barbara Public Library
Join us to prepare for the amateur radio Technician Class license exam and then stick around after lunch for a specially scheduled test session. Cram is free and open to all ages. There is a $15 fee (check or cash) to sit for the exam. IMPORTANT: The “Cram ‘n’ Exam” session is not intended to replace advance preparation for the Technician Class amateur radio license exam. Candidates should expect to review material in advance.  Click here for exam preparation resources and information about exam registration requirements.

About ARISS
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station is a cooperative venture of the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT), the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States, and other international space agencies and international amateur radio organizations around the world. The primary goal of ARISS is to promote exploration of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) topics by organizing scheduled contacts via amateur radio between crew members aboard the ISS and students in classrooms or informal education venues. With the help of experienced amateur radio volunteers from radio clubs and coordination from the ARISS team, the ISS crew members speak directly with large group audiences in a variety of public forums such as school assemblies, science centers and museums, scout camporees, jamborees and space camps, where students, teachers, parents, and communities learn about space, space technologies and amateur radio. Find more information at www.ariss.org.

Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net – 6/6/2019

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The audio archive of this net can best be followed by downloading the .mp3 file for the appropriate date here and listening with the media player of your choice. You can move the progress slider forward or backward to the subject of interest to you.

We had another interesting net tonight with 8 check-ins, plus net control Brian, K6BPM. Tonight’s topics included:

  • How to wire an ICOM 7200 HF rig in a Jeep.
  • Windows 10 e-mail issues.
  • Battery back-up system for a file server.
  • Setting up OctoPi to acquire a static IP address.

Tune in to the SBARC TM&E Net every Thursday at 8:00 PM local (2000 Hrs) and see what interesting questions might arise or ask some of your own! All club members and visitors are encouraged to check in to the net each week and join in with questions and /or answers and contribute the knowledge of new and seasoned amateur radio operators alike.

Technical Mentoring and Elmering Net – 5/30/2019

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The audio archive of this net can best be followed by downloading the .mp3 file for the appropriate date here and listening with the media player of your choice. You can move the progress slider forward or backward to the subject of interest to you.

We had another interesting net tonight with 7 check-ins, plus net control Chuck, K5CAW. Tonight’s topics included:

  • Power outage during 3D print and trying to resume print afterward. (Hint: deploy a battery backup unit for just that kind of occurrence).
  • MP1584EN Ultra Small DC-DC 3A Power Step-Down Adjustable Module Voltage Converter for charging lithium batteries.

Tune in to the SBARC TM&E Net every Thursday at 8:00 PM local (2000 Hrs) and see what interesting questions might arise or ask some of your own! All club members and visitors are encouraged to check in to the net each week and join in with questions and /or answers and contribute the knowledge of new and seasoned amateur radio operators alike.

Bruce Gordon N6OLT Honored with Lifetime Member Award

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Bruce N6OLT accepting award from board member Wayne AF6GX

Bruce Gordon – N6OLT was honored in April with the Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club Lifetime Member award for his many contributions to SBARC, ARES and amateur radio in general.

Bruce’s first experiments in ham radio came during high school when he and a friend built crystal sets and managed to connect them to telephone lines serving their apartments houses in Cleveland, Ohio. Worked fine for a while until complaints from neighbors alerted their fathers to their adventures. Bruce got his Amateur license, W6GUX, as well as his pilot’s license during high school. (He was later licensed as N6OLT.)

He graduated UC Berkeley in 1959, accepted a job as engineer at Raytheon Company  and moved to Goleta, where he bought property and he and his wife Thelma built their home. While at Raytheon, many of his designs were patented and he travelled all over the world assisting military customers.

Bruce joined SBARC and lent his talents to many projects, including the repeaters and the communications van, and happily to anyone with a problem or project. At one SBARC meeting he was demonstrating new Slow Scan TV equipment and mentioned its versatility. One member said, “Bet you can’t use two Dixie cups and a string” to send pictures. Next month, he used two Dixie cups and a piece of dental floss (string) successfully. You can also visit Century Smile Dental homepage to sort out dental issues.

Bruce is a legend in the art and science of direction finding. As founder of L-Tronics he designed, engineered and built thousands of portable DF units for field operations and airborne use. Variants of the L-Per are used worldwide by numerous search & rescue groups, the US Coast Guard and the Civil Air Patrol.

Bruce’s dedication will not be forgotten.

 

Post expires at 6:03am on Tuesday June 25th, 2019 but will still be available in the archives.