eHam.net News

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Despite New Technology Radio Club Celebrates 100 Years:

Posted: 28 Jun 2016 05:07 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37064


EVESHAM -- A map of the world is displayed across a computer monitor. Seven
small circles, representing satellites, float across the map in incremental
jumps. Joe Fisher is in a trailer, the kind one might use to get kids'
bicycles to the shore. To his left are speakers, radios, microphones,
computers, and cables -- lots and lots of cables. Fisher is operating a
radio, but his job is not to send waves from one receiver to another. He's
waiting for that perfect moment when the satellites on his screen are
directly overhead. That's when he has to strike. As quickly as he can,
Fisher has to link up with one of those satellites and use it to
communicate with another operator somewhere in the United States. For
Fisher, that's worth 100 points, and he has 24 hours to make it happen.
Fisher started playing around with amateur radio, also known as ham radio,
in high school when an instructor let him and his buddies start a small
radio club. But he said his love for technology runs even deeper.


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Warm Reception for Amateur Radio Event:

Posted: 28 Jun 2016 05:06 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37063


Amateur radio operators used a gas powered-generator at the Niskayuna
Soccer Park to show how they would communicate in an emergency situation if
other systems -- like cell towers and the internet -- went down. But
Saturday's event wasn't just a demonstration. That afternoon, local amateur
radio enthusiasts kicked off a 24-hour-long contest, one of hundreds all
over the country. Fueled by potato chips, baked goods and soda, the
Niskayuna group aimed to connect with as many like-minded amateur radio
operators as possible. Last year, the station made about 1,500 contacts
over the course of the event.


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The Sun Has 'Gone Blank' for the Second Time this Month: What That Means:

Posted: 28 Jun 2016 05:08 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37062


The sun is blank for the second time in less than a month -- not a single
dark sunspot mars its surface. It's a sign our star is entering a new
period of decreased activity -- one that will continue to last for about
five years. But, despite the overall decline, history has proven that some
of the largest solar storms in memory can occur when sunspots appear to be
ebbing. The sun is a volatile star. Its surface changes on a 11-year solar
cycle that oscillates between periods of increased and decreased sunspot
production. Sunspots are dark areas on the surface of the sun that indicate
intense magnetic activity -- so strong, in fact, that it inhibits solar
convection and thus reduces the temperature of the sun in that location.
Sunspots can be just a few miles wide, but the largest can span 100,000
miles in diameter, or more than 12 Earths across. These massive spots can
be seen on the surface of the sun without a telescope, and they can be just
half as hot as their surroundings.


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Ham Talk Live #20 DX and Contest with NV9L:

Posted: 28 Jun 2016 05:04 PM PDT
http://www.eham.net/articles/37061


Coming up Thursday at 9 pm Eastern on Ham
Talk Live! this week, Valerie Hotzfeld, NV9L,
will be here to talk DXing and Contesting!