newsletter of the saskatoon amateur radio club celebrating...
TRANSCRIPT
Inside this issue . . .
• October Meeting Minutes
• WW II Teenage Radio fans
• 8 things about Tesla
• ISS Geocaching
• Announcements
November 2013
Newsletter of the Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club Celebrating over 80 Years of Service
T h e F e e d l i n e
Club [email protected]
Club RepeaterVE5SK 146.64-
Club Websitehttp://ve5aa.dyndns.org
The Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club is a great way to
become acquainted with amateur radio. Our club has much to offer the beginner,
as well as the seasoned veteran. Please join us at an upcoming meeting or for our
Saturday breakfast, and discover the SARC.
Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club
c/o Western Development Museum
Saskatoon Branch2610 Lorne Ave. S.Saskatoon, Sask.
S7J 0S6
During this Remembrance DayIn Memory Of Our Silent Keys
My chair is sitting empty.My call's no longer heard
My radio rests quietly.From it comes no words.
On my shack door is a message. That reads "From Me to Thee"
My frequency's much higher now I've become a Silent Key.
Judy Hudson KC9CCJ
COFFEEHaywood’s Restaurant
Saturdays 9:00 AM
3016 Arlington AvenueSouth of Alvin Buckwold School
Everyone is welcome. Hams, non-Hams, it doesn’t matter. We’re there to have good conversation with good
friends.C’mon out and visit!
NEXT MEETING 1st Tuesday of each Month
7:00 PM
Fire Department Staff Development Centre on the Corner of 22nd Street and
Avenue W
Call in: 146.640-
CommitteesRepeaters Bruce, VE5BNCProperty and Assets Club ExecutiveTraining Coordinator Ron, VA5RJFPublic Service Club ExecutiveSick and Visiting Club MembersField Day John, VE5SJAElmer Ken, VE5KRBTrailer Vacant Space Club Mike, VE5MIK, Al, VE5MDCSARC Net John, VE5SJAL.B.L. Rep Ken, VE5KRBFeedline Mike, VE5MIKWeb-site Bruce, VE5BNC50/50 Draw Terry, VE5TLC
Any items for Swap ‘n Shop in the Feedline contact VE5MIK. Contact Bruce, VE5BNC, to put the items on the club website.
The mission of Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club is to enjoy amateur radio through the
development, promotion, and expansion of amateur radio in and around Saskatoon
ExecutivePresidentGarry Schwartz! VE5SG ! ! 2013-2015
Past PresidentJames Cloney! VE5CNBVice-PresidentSylvan Katz! ! VE5ZX! ! 2013-2015TreasurerTerry Cutler! ! VE5TLC ! ! 2012-2014SecretaryRon Ford! ! VA5RJF! ! 2013-2015DirectorsBob Tower! ! VA5BRT! ! 2012-2014Ken Bindle! ! VE5KRB`! ! 2012-2015Mike Luciuk! ! VE5MIK! ! 2012-2014Ned Carroll! ! VE5NED! ! 2012-2014
ARESSaskatoon
Next Club MeetingNovember 9th
10:30 A.M.Western Development Museum
Education RoomLorne Avenue South
Breakfast after 9 AM atBoomtown Cafe before the
meeting
Local Area Repeaters VE5SK 146.640- Saskatoon, SARC VE5XW 146.730- Rock Point VA5LLR 145.390- Lizard Lake VE5ZH 147.270- 2 MHz offset, Saskatoon, Auto Patch VA5SV 145.330- (100) Ridge East of Saskatoon VE5RPD 145.190- Elbow/Davidson VE5CC 146.970- Sktn MARS Linked to VE5SKN,VE5DNA, & IRLP node 1360Link code 502*/503* VE5SKN 146.940- Sktn MARS. 100Hz tone on xmt only -Linked to VE5CC, VE5DNA and IRLP node 1360. Link code 500*/501* ARES SAME wx Rcvr IRLP Node 1360 Hard linked to VE5CC UHF Hub (444.975 +5M) & available to VE5CC, VE5SKN and VE5DNA VHF repeaters when linked.
APRS 144.390 VE5RHF Saskatoon DIGI VE5BNC-3 Saskatoon IGATE & SATGATE VE5XW-1 Rock Point VE5HAN-4 Hanley DIGI
Local & Regional Nets Sask. WX 80m 1400Z 3735 Khz ARES (Sun.) 80m 1430Z 3753 Khz Aurora 40m 2330Z & 0200Z 7055 Khz Manitoba 80m 0000Z 3747 Khz Montana Tfc 80m 0030Z 3910 Khz Sask. 80m 0100Z 3735 Khz
C O N T E S T S • Ukrainian DX Contest 1200Z, Nov 2 to 1200Z, Nov 3 • ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, CW 2100Z, Nov 2 to 0300Z, Nov 4 • CQ-WE Contest 1900Z, Nov 9 to 0500Z, Nov 11 • ARRL Sweepstakes Contest, SSB 2100Z, Nov 16 to 0300Z, Nov 18 • ARRL EME Contest 0000Z, Nov 16 to 2359Z, Nov 17 • CQ Worldwide DX Contest, CW 0000Z, Nov 23 to 2400Z, Nov 24
For a full calendar of contests see: WA7BNM Contest Calendar
Be kind and respectful to your fellow hams. After all, without them, all you’d hear on the air is static.
Alberta 80m 0130Z 3700 Khz 80m YL Net 80m 0315Z 3755 Khz-Sundays B.C. 80m 0200Z 3727 Khz
SARC Local 2m 0200Z 146.640- Prince Albert 2m 0330Z 147.150+
D X p e d i t i o n s• Reunion Island TO2R Nov. 3 - 17 By F5UOW; 40-10m; mainly CW; QSL OK via REF Buro or direct• Cape Verde Is D44TWQ Nov. 5 - 12 By G4IRN fm Boa Vista (AF-086, HK86me); WARC bands; CW; dipole; spare time operation; see Web page for full QSL details• Seychelles S79WDX Nov. 12 - 23 By I0WDX fm La Digue; 160-6m; QSL also OK via I0WDX direct• Papua New Guinea P29VNX Dec. 1 - 6 By JA1NLX fm Lissenung I (OC-008); 30-10m; mainly CW, some SSB RTTY; see Web page for full QSL details
For a full list of DXpeditions see: Announced DXpeditions
Saskatoon and Area Frequencies, Nets, Contests, DX
L I T T L E B E A R L A K E •The LBL telemetry address is dougf.no-ip.com/tlm/test2.txt •The 6 m. beacon address dougf.no-ip.com/va5mg
October 12th, 2013 Meeting Minutes
Call to Order 10:30
Present: 22 members and guests (one from California)
Agenda: Acceptance: Eric VE5HG/Ron VE5RMS - cd
Minutes September 14th as circulated in the Feedline Acceptance: Ron VA5RJF/
Emergency Preparedness Presentation by Ray Unrau City of Saskatoon Emergency Coordinator: speaker did not arrive for the meeting.
WDM report: Ron VA5RJF – no further progress to report
Repeater reports:VE5SK (146.640-) doing OKRock Point (VE5XW, 146.730-) off the air. Wind turbine controller not functioning. Generator needed rebuild. Installed external controller – worked for 2 days. Now working only on solar. Contemplating a new homebuilt controller or lots more solar panels (100-200 Watts?). Probably would need $300 for starters. Should we look at buying solar cells if there is a good price? General agreement. Mike VE5MMG and Bruce VE5BNC agreed to do this. Motion: That we authorize the purchase of solar cells if the price is good. - Mike VE5MIK /Eric VE5HG CD unanimously
Lizard Lake (VA5LLR, 145.390-) is working quite well. Site first secured by VE5EB. 1467- Lizard lake will be linked soon with VA5SV (145.330-). The elevator site at Davidson (VE5RPD, 145.190-) is lost. The voice channel is still available at NED's house VE5HFR (147.36+) on top of Midtown Plaza provides coverage for the downtown .
Possible Dream update: The Executive sent letters to 227 non members. There was one reply. No one showed up today. Just under 10% of the letters were returned undelivered for various reasons.
50-50 Draw: $16 won by visitor – donated back to club
SABRE update: Bruce VE5BNC 2 flights occurred this year. One landed an hour south of town. One U of S student was involved. U of S students then did their own flight – quite successfully – landing near Wakaw. They are planning more flights with our participation.
Finance Report: Terry VE5TLC The Club is in good financial condition. Acceptance: Terry VE5TLC/Ron VA5RJF CD
RAC membership & annual fees: Motion: that the Executive review annual fees and report back to the next annual meeting. Cd 1 opp.
Call for Volunteers for JOTA: scouts having jamboree on the air next week. We are considering opening our home stations to scout groups midnight sat to mid sunday. Looking for volunteers to open their stations for an hour or two. Bob volunteered.
John SJA was hoping to have a QSO party for Sasktel using our trailer. Not happening.
New Business: Alberta has cw net at 36.85MHz at 0100UTC Adjournment: Eric VE5HG
Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club IncorporatedC/O Western Development Museum, Saskatoon Branch
2610 Lorne Ave. S.Saskatoon, SK S7J 0S6
November 3, 2013
Dear SARC member,
We need your help formulating the Possible Dream. Currently SARC is focusing on the
following areas
• A fixed club station,
• A mobile station for community events and emergency preparedness, • Modernization and expansion of the repeater network and • Club activities such as but not limited to improving the SARC web site, net times &
schedules, community visibility and fundraise.
Please take a moment to send us an email to tell us what dreams you have for each or any of
these focus areas. Dream big! Garry,VE5SG would like to see us own our club house, Syl,
VE5ZX, would like a club station that can be remotely operated and Ken, VE5KRB, has his eye
on a big Bertha rotating tower. While we may not be able to accomplish all of these dreams
we need to know what the membership would like to see the club to do. Also, it would be
helpful if you would indicate which of the four areas interests you the most and which areas
you may be willing volunteer time to make a reality.
Please email your dreams to [email protected]. Suggestions will be collated, summarized
and posted on the VE5AA web site for others to view and consider. If you have any question
please contact me.
Sylvan, VE5ZX [email protected]
To mark the centenary of the Radio Society of Great Britain, one of its members recalls how the amateur organisation played a key role in a covert operation to safeguard the country's independence.
One day, towards the start of World War II, a captain wearing the Royal Signals uniform knocked on a British teenager's door.
The 16-year-old was called Bob King. When he went to greet the visitor, he had no idea that soon he would become one of Britain's so-called "voluntary interceptors" - some 1,500 radio amateurs recruited to intercept secret codes broadcast by the Nazis and their allies during the war.
"The captain asked me if I would be willing to help out with some secret work for the government," remembers Mr King, now 89. "He wouldn't tell me any more than that.
"He knew that I could read Morse code - that was the essential thing."
The captain had heard about Mr King through the RSGB - an organisation for amateur radio enthusiasts. Many of its members were youngsters curious about the possibilities offered by tinkering with radio receivers.
During World War II, dozens were recruited by MI8 - a division of the British Military Intelligence department, and a cover name for the now-defunct Radio Security Service (RSS).
The purpose of their work was to intercept secret wireless transmissions by German and Italian agents in Britain.
Mr King signed the documents the captain had handed to him, which, he says, basically stated that he had "read them and knew what would happen to me if I opened my mouth too wide".
He was then given the instructions to scan shortwave bands and write down Morse code he discovered on a piece of paper.
Cracking codesMr King worked from his home in Bicester, Oxfordshire, but voluntary interceptors were scattered all around Britain. Many used their own radio equipment to eavesdrop on enemy messages.
The RSS's original headquarters had been in Wormwood Scrubs, London but in 1940 it was moved 12 miles (19km) north to the village of Arkley when German air raids threatened its efforts to analyse and sort the intercepted data.
By mid-1941, the new base, Arkley View, was receiving about 10,000 message sheets a day from its recruits. "I worked for five years scrutinising the logs that came in from the other amateurs - thousands of log sheets with the signals which we knew were wanted, and you could only know it from experience," remembers Mr King.
"We knew it wasn't Allied army air force, we knew it was German or Italian - various things gave that away, but it was disguised in such a form that it looked a bit like a radio amateur transmission.
"We knew it was highly important, everything was marked 'top secret,' but only many years later we discovered that it was German secret service we were listening to.
"Of course you didn't ask questions in those days, otherwise you'd be in real trouble."
Encoded messages were transmitted to Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire, the UK's former top-secret code-cracking centre.
Once decoded, the data was sent to the Allied Commanders and the UK Prime Minister, Winston Churchill.
Secret listenersJust like thousands of code-crackers working at Bletchley Park during the war, voluntary interceptors had to keep quiet about what they were doing.
Mr King says that they were not even allowed to mention anything to their families. His wife only found out about her husband's secret past in 1980 - more than three decades after he had stopped his interception activities.
Now that they are allowed to speak up, he seems disappointed that this ghost army of secret civilian listeners has not been given more credit for the part it played in the Allies toppling the Nazis - including the successful invasion of Normandy.
"The main success of the voluntary interceptors was in knowing what the enemy intelligence services were doing, what they believed and didn't believe, and we managed to manipulate them in that way through the agents that we controlled," he says.
John Gould, the organiser of the RSGB's centenary celebrations, agrees. "Not only did the intercepts provide a huge amount of traffic, but through the skills of the radio amateurs 'fingerprinting' the Morse code of the German operators, supported by direction finding, the UK was able to monitor movements of the German forces," he says.
"The intelligence gained from these intercepts was reported to have been of significant importance to control enemy agents and other matters such as sabotage and deception activities."
The teenage radio enthusiasts who helped win World War IIBy Katia Moskvitch Technology reporter, BBC News
8 Things About Tesla1. He was born during a lightning stormNikola Tesla was born around midnight, between July 9 and July 10, 1856 during a fierce lightning storm. According to family legend, midway through the birth, the midwife wrung her hands and declared the lightning a bad omen. This child will be a child of darkness, she said, to which his mother replied: "No. He will be a child of light."
2. He was really funnyMost people don't know that Tesla had a terrific sense of humor, Seifer said. For example, after dining with writer and poet Rudyard Kipling, he wrote this in a correspondence to a close friend:
April 1, 1901My dear Mrs. Johnson,What is the matter with inkspiller Kipling? He actually dared to invite me to dine in an obscure hotel where I would be sure to get hair and cockroaches in the soup.
Yours truly,
N. Tesla
3. He and Edison were rivals, but not sworn enemiesMany have characterized Tesla and inventor Thomas Edison as enemies (see this and this,) but Carlson says this relationship has been misrepresented. Early in his career, Tesla worked for Edison, designing direct current generators, but famously quit to pursue his own project: the alternating current induction motor. Sure, they were on different sides of the so-called "Current Wars," with Edison pushing for direct current and Tesla for alternating current. But Carlson considers them the Steve Jobs and Bill Gates of their time: one the brilliant marketer and businessman and the other a visionary and "tech guy."On a rare occasion, Edison attended a conference where Tesla was speaking. Edison, hard of hearing and not wanting to be spotted, slipped into the back of the auditorium to listen to the lecture. But Tesla spotted Edison in the crowd, called attention to him and led the audience in giving him a standing ovation.Seifer qualifies it more, saying the two had a love/hate relationship. At first Edison dismissed Tesla, but came to eventually respect him, he said."When there were fires at Tesla's laboratory, Edison provided him a lab, so clearly there was some mutual respect," Seifer said.
4. He developed the idea for smartphone technology in 1901Tesla may have had a brilliant mind, but he was not as good at reducing his ideas to practice, Carlson said. In the race to develop transatlantic radio, Tesla described to his funder and business partner, J.P. Morgan, a new means of instant communication that involved gathering stock quotes and telegram messages, funneling them to his laboratory, where he would encode them and assign them each a new frequency. That frequency would be broadcast to a device that would fit in your hand, he explained. In other words, Tesla had envisioned the smart phone and wireless internet, Carlson said, adding that of all of his ideas, that was the one that stopped him in his tracks."He was the first to be thinking about the information revolution in the sense of delivering information for each individual user," Carlson said. He also conceived of, but never developed technology for radar, X-rays, a particle beam "death ray" and radio astronomy.
5. He shook the poop out of Mark TwainOne famous legend surrounding the eccentric Tesla was that he had an earthquake machine in his Manhattan laboratory that shook his building and nearly brought down the neighborhood during experiments.Tesla's device wasn't actually an earthquake machine, Carlson said, but a high frequency oscillator. A piston set underneath a platform in the laboratory shook violently as it moved, another experiment in more efficient electricity.It didn't bring the block to ruins, Carlson said, but it did "shake the poop out of Mark Twain." Twain was known for having digestive problems, so Tesla, who knew Twain through their gentlemen's club, invited him over. He instructed Twain to stand on the platform while he flipped on the oscillator. After about 90 seconds, Twain jumped off the platform and ran for the facilities.
6. He had famous friendsPeople aren't aware that he was close friends with conservationist John Muir, Seifer said. Muir, one of the founders of the Sierra Club, loved that Tesla's hydroelectric power system was a clean energy system. It runs on waterfalls, which Tesla referred to as "running on the wheelwork of nature." Also among his friends: financiers Henry Clay Frick and Thomas Fortune Ryan. "He lived in the Waldorf Astoria, at the height of the gilded age," Seifer said, adding that his fame later in life lessened.
7. Pearls drove him crazyPeople aren't aware that he was close friends with conservationist John Muir, Seifer said. Muir, one of the founders of the Sierra Club, loved that Tesla's hydroelectric power system was a clean energy system. It runs on waterfalls, which Tesla referred to as "running on the wheelwork of nature." Also among his friends: financiers Henry Clay Frick and Thomas Fortune Ryan. "He lived in the Waldorf Astoria, at the height of the gilded age," Seifer said, adding that his fame later in life lessened.
8. He had a photographic memory and fear of germsTesla had what's known as a photographic memory. He was known to memorize books and images and stockpile visions for inventions in his head. He also had a powerful imagination and the ability to visualize in three dimensions, which he used to control the terrifying vivid nightmares he suffered from as a child. It's in part what makes him such a mystical and eccentric character in popular culture, Carlson said. He was also known for having excessive hygiene habits, born out of a near-fatal bout of cholera as a teenager.
Astronaut Rick Mastracchio KC5ZTE to Geocache the ISSItʼs the Travel Bug® thatʼs taking the global Geocaching community on a rocket ride to spaceWhether youʼre in Mexico or France, Australia or Korea youʼre primed to join the geocaching community in celebrating the spirit of exploration.! There are more than 800 Geocaching in Space events scheduled around the world. Those who attend Event Caches on either November 6 or November 7, 2013 earn the Geocaching in Space souvenir.! Join the adventure and watch the launch live as Astronaut and Radio Amateur Rick Mastracchio KC5ZTE packs the Travel Bug along on his 6 month mission aboard the International Space Station. Heʼll use the Travel Bug as a tool to teach students back on earth about geography and science.! Geocaching HQ is offering a limited edition Geocaching in Space Mission Patch. Geocaching will donate proceeds from the patch to http://Donorschoose.org/ for use in funding projects that use geocaching as an educational tool.! Geocaching in Space Event Owners: Be on the lookout for an email from Geocaching HQ later this week. Weʼll serve up details on how to watch the launch live, how to connect with the 800+ events around the world and how to celebrate afterwards (hint: geocaching).! For more information on this event visit http://blog.geocaching.com/2013/10/geocaching-in-space-faq/! While aboard the ISS Mastracchio is expected to recover a travel bug hidden by another radio amateur Astronaut Richard Garriott W5KWQ on October 14, 2008.! For more information on the 2008 Geocache see http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/
SARC 2013 Meeting Dates ! November 9! ! December 10! ! January 11, 2014
Announcements, etc.The Feedline is the official publication of the Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club. This is your newsletter! Amateur radio information of general interest, club member project descriptions and doings, radio applications to other activities, corrections, or suggestions are all welcome. Individual submissions make for variety! We need more writers! Electronic submissions are preferred via email. (MSWord, PDF or generic text). Email submissions may be sent to: [email protected] or [email protected]
Tuesday Christmas Party
Remembrance Day Service @ Credit Union Centre
23rd Annual Santa Claus Parade Mark it on your calendar! Sunday, November 17 Santa is back in town for his parade and he needs our help. Saskatoon hams have once again been asked to help make his parade a success. Needing as much credit with the jolly elf as I can get, I've agreed to coordinate the communications. If you'd also like to get on Santa's good side before Christmas, please consider joining us again this year. The route and timings are the same as previous years. We begin the setup around 10:00 with he parade beginning at 1:00 PM sharp. We will need hams to help out in the staging area, to report from intersections along the route as well as a few other positions. To volunteer please contact the club at [email protected]. If you have a preference of which task you would like, please let me know and I'll try my best to accommodate you. Thanks
Bruce - VE5BNC