The following was submitted by PART of Westford. To submit your own content, e-mail asylvia@westfordcat.org
PART Field Day 2016
Concord Rod and Gun Club
74 Strawberry Hill Road
Concord, MA
From 2PM Saturday, June 25th to 2PM Sunday, June 26th. The event is open to the public. Feel free to bring kids aged 12 and up.
Since early on in the hobby, ham radio operators across North America have established temporary ham radio stations in public locations during an event called Field Day in order to showcase the science and skill of Amateur Radio.
In today’s world it is easy for anyone to use a cell phone or a computer to make a call or to look something up on the internet. However, if there is an interruption in service during bad weather or you are out of range of a cell phone tower, you have no way to communicate. Ham radios function completely independently of the internet or cell phone towers and can be set up almost anywhere in minutes. That’s the beauty of Amateur Radio.
Hams can toss a wire into a tree for an antenna, connect it to a solar-powered transmitter and communicate halfway around the world. This is accomplished by bouncing radio waves between the ground and the atmosphere until the signal reaches its destination. The ham radio hobby is one of the best ways to learn about electronics, physics, meteorology and numerous other scientific disciplines. It’s also just a heck of a lot of fun!
Some of the highlights of the event will be:
-A station available for non-hams (both children and adults) to use under the direction of a licensed ham known as a Get on the Air (GOTA) station.
-Contacting as many stations as possible, around the world and in space, using voice, Morse code, digital modes, and relays off of satellites.
– A spaghetti dinner served Saturday night at 6:00PM.
-All antennas will be erected specifically for the event and then taken down afterwards.
-Some of the stations will be in the main clubhouse, others in tents.
-Stations will be powered by generator or solar cells. This is to demonstrate the ability to operate under emergency conditions.
-We will deploy our own battery operated wireless network linking all our stations and interfacing with the club’s connection to the internet.
A team of “Ambassadors” will be on hand to greet you, provide a guided tour of the communications stations, and will answer any of your questions. We expect visits from public safety officials, elected representatives, as well as the general public.
Refreshments will be served.
You may visit at any time, but should you wish to attend dinner, please RSVP me.
I hope that you will be able to attend.
Sincerely yours,
Lela Smith
Public Information Officer
1 Ahern Circle
North Billerica, MA 01862
(978) 670-2460 (Home)
