NCRC had three folks (WA1ABI, KA1BQP and WB4SON) participating in the ARRL’s April FMT a few days ago. The results put all three in the “Green Band” (less than 1 Hz error), and they placed 7th, 12th, and 18th out of the global contestants (John WA1ABI had the top score in RI). Their results had errors of around 12 parts per billion. These days the limiting factor is one’s ability (through luck and skill) to divine the influence of Doppler, caused by changes in the ionosphere, which shifts the apparent frequency by 200 parts per billion or more.
Meeting Reminder: Monday April 9 at 7 PM (KVH)
Our April Newport County Radio Club meeting will be held this coming Monday April 9 at 7 PM (KVH 75 Enterprise Ave, Middletown, RI).
In addition to our regular business items we have three new member applicants to vote in, plus discussion of our Winter Field Day results.
ED ED ED – CHANGE – Our postponement was canceled. Alan rushed back from a trip to give us his wonderful presentation on Ladder Safety. Thanks Alan!
Hope to see everyone there on Monday!
Reminder – 1st Thursday Breakfast at Rome Point
Just a reminder for the Thursday breakfast crowd that usually gets together at Chelsea’s. On the FIRST THURSDAY of the month some of us will be having breakfast at Rome Point Cafe in North Kingstown to give the West Bay folks a chance to not drive so far once a month.
Folks are welcomed to join us!
SKYWARN Training in Middletown May 12
We are very fortunate to have the National Weather Service offer their SKYWARN training in the East Bay area. Not only is the topic of weather spotting fascinating, but the information that is gathered on the ground is critical for validating forecasting models and can have an impact on the ability of our towns to recover some of their expenses incurred as a result of a major weather event. Having trained SKYWARN spotters that are also hams is an extra bonus, as we can get the ground reports to the NWS via Amateur Radio when other means are inoperable.
The Newport Daily News had an article a couple of days ago concerning SKYWARN. See page 1 here, page 2 here
The SKYWARN training is free, and takes about 2.5 hours. But you must register as space is limited. Details are below:
Saturday May 12th, 2018 – 1000 AM-1230 PM:
Middletown Fire Department – Community Room
239 Wyatt Road
Middletown RI
Taught by: Amateur Radio Coordinator
Registration Required via the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/
NCRC Meeting Monday March 12, 7 PM, at KVH
Just a reminder that the NCRC Meeting is tomorrow night, Monday March 12th, at 7 PM at KVH. We were a bit concerned about the weather but it appears that any snow our area gets will not begin until after 10 PM on Monday and we should all be home before then.
The program for Monday will be given by John King on VHF repeaters.
On another topic, please be aware that The Consortium meeting at the Asia Grille (622 George Washington Hwy, Lincoln) covering Antenna Analyzer use has been rescheduled for Monday March 19th so that NCRC members can attend. The presentation starts at 6:30 PM, but many folks arrive around 5 PM so they can enjoy a dinner. The concept for The Consortium was featured on page 67 of the April QST.