GV Ham Radio Club demonstrating emergency communications

Thousands of Amateur Radio—usually called “ham” radio—operators will be demonstrating their emergency capabilities.

On the weekend of June 28 - 29, the public will have a chance to meet and talk with some of these ham radio operators and see for themselves what the Amateur Radio Service is about.

Using the newest digital and satellite capabilities, voice communications, and even historical Morse code, hams from across the USA will be holding public demonstrations of emergency communications abilities.

Called Field Day, this demonstration is the largest Amateur Radio event of the year.

This year the Green Valley Amateur Radio Club (GVARC) will hold Field Day operations in the meeting room at the Green Valley Fire District Headquarters Building next to Fire Station No. 152 on the southeast corner of Camino del Sol and Camino Encanto in Green Valley.

The “hams” will set up their equipment, including the generators, batteries, solar power, and temporary antennas, on Friday evening.

For 24 hours—from 11 a.m. Saturday, June 28, until 11 a.m. Sunday, June 29—GVARC members will contact other hams around the country, earning a score by the number of contacts they make and by the number of transmitters they use.

Members hope to make a good showing in this year’s event when the results are announced later in the summer.

The Green Valley Club will use two transmitters, each staffed by one operator and another person who will assist in logging the contacts. Interested parties are invited to join them at any time during this 24-hour period.

You can stay as long as you want and observe the action. Licensed control operators will be available, so even someone without a license can enjoy participating in the event.

In addition, beginning at 3 p.m. on Saturday, club members will be demonstrating the use of radio direction finding (RDF) equipment. Sometimes called “Fox” hunting, RDF can be an important tool in emergency situations.

Visitors will be invited to participate in hands-on training as they try to locate a hidden transmitter using RDF techniques.

If you would like to sign up to help, or if you would like more information on Field Day 2008, call Lloyd Miller at 648-2834 or Ron Gross at 762-5847.

They will be happy to answer your questions.