eHam.net News

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Amateur Radio: Who Ya Gonna Call? Surrey Hams!

Posted: 15 Jan 2016 04:10 PM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/35985


SURREY -- If you felt the recent earthquake that hit B.C., you may have
pondered the aftermath of a large disaster. Technology, as we know it,
would likely be rendered useless. Our phones no more useful than
paperweights. Our televisions and computers worthless without energy to
power them. Enter amateur radio. Hams, as amateur radio operators are
nicknamed, are often called on to help with emergency communications during
disasters around the world when all other communications fail. We're in
pretty good shape should we ever need to call on our Surrey Hams. The club
placed first in Canada and second in North America in their category in the
annual North American Field Day last year. While there are tons of
competitions, this one's their Super Bowl.


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Ham Radio to the Rescue:

Posted: 15 Jan 2016 04:09 PM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/35984


Amateur radio can be a vital source of information in the aftermath of
future disasters: As phone lines were jammed and the internet went down in
Nepal after last April's earthquake, the only way Manju Sunar could find
out if her daughter was safe was to ask an amateur radio operator in
France, where she worked, to contact another radio hobbyist in Nepal who
then sent people out on motorbikes and found Sunar's daughter safe. Amateur
radio enthusiasts, called ham operators, can speak to each other across the
world through shortwave transmitters. The 2.5 million licensed operators
communicate through voice or the Morse code, a method of sending messages
in a series of electronic pulses. With additional equipment, operators can
even attach files and send emails through radio signals alone. Though
primarily taken up as a hobby, these devices become crucial in times of
disaster when all other modes of communication fail as happened in Nepal,
or during the Asian tsunami in 2004, when ham radio operators coordinated
rescue. "We probably helped search and rescue over 400 people," says Pravin
Joshi, a ham radio operator in Kathmandu.


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Propagation Forecast Bulletin #3 de K7RA:

Posted: 15 Jan 2016 10:01 AM PST
http://www.eham.net/articles/35983


Trends over the past week were just the way we like them, with
average daily sunspot numbers and solar flux increasing, and
geomagnetic indices lower, compared to the previous seven days. Why do we
like these numbers? When solar flux and sunspot numbers
are higher, this increases the likelihood that there will be
openings on HF. Lower geomagnetic indices suggest lower absorption.