Another first for the intrepid Balloon, yesterday the 28th of November in the evening (PST) the Balloons utilized its 20m transmitter to report its position over Mongolia. Several stations on the 20m band heard the beacon one from Russia one from China and two from Japan. I’m sure David Voit was pleased to hear from WB6TOU after a several day absence during its long journey over Russia. The addition of the WSPR transmitter proved its importance in tracking. We should hear more from the Balloon as it approaches the Chinese coastline and then onto Japan!
On this Thanksgiving Day in the early morning hours transmissions were heard again from the high altitude balloon. Maintaining a course in a North Easterly direction, nearest largest city being Hanover Germany. Telemetry reports relay that the balloons general health is good, holding an altitude of 40,723 ft at 34mph
The intrepid balloon of David Voit id call wb6tou-12 has come alive around Plymouth, England on November 25th. Tracking transmissions from the balloon have been inconsistent, but the times it has come alive, appeared both on the 20m WSPR network as well as the APRS network. The option of the additional 20m WSPR on the HF band gives greater reception opportunity, WSPR signals can be received if propagation permits up to 5,000 miles.
We are all keeping our hopes alive to hear again from our World traveler . Tally Ho!
CADS lines up and prepares to depart on the November 21st exercise in which Calaveras Amateur Radio Society provided communications at different evacuation points along the route. CADS familiarized themselves to the roads in the area of West Point, Railroad Flat, Mountain Ranch. The scenario given to the team was to a fire disaster in which they aided in rescuing and transporting displaced animals, and pets to a safe area to be cared for.
According to Ken AE6LA “were on track for a session this Saturday Nov 21st at 2 pm”. Bring a picture ID and one other form of ID. We will observe Covid protocols . Please call Ken for an update on space available for the test.
Kenneth A. Sanders, AE6LA (209)795-5947, cell (209)768-5941
Radio Operators are needed for this CADS exercise on November 21st 9:30 am to 12:00. Please call Sam Hernandez for details. If you are registered on ARES connect you can sign up on the website.
Kristen McIntyre, K6WX, of San Jose, California, has assumed the office of ARRL Pacific Division Director following the recent vacancy in the office. The ARRL Articles of Association stipulate she will serve as Director for the remainder of the current term, which expires on December 31, 2022. She will join the ARRL Board which is comprised of the organization’s 15 Directors — each representing a geographical area. McIntyre was appointed as the Division’s Vice Director in 2018, and was unopposed as a candidate for the position in 2019. She was first licensed in the late 1970s while a student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She holds an Amateur Extra class license. She has served as ARRL Technical Coordinator for the East Bay Section, and is a member of the Palo Alto Amateur Radio Club. McIntyre also is licensed in Japan, her second home, as JI1IZZ. She is a senior software engineer at Apple. FacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditMore
David Voit has sent along updates on the launch status of his new high altitude balloon which will carry along a 20 meter WSPR transmitter. The beacon has gone thru successful testing, and the balloon itself has been prepared for the task of carrying the WSPR transmitter along with the antenna made of litz wire. David and his launch crew are waiting for favorable winds that will gently carry the balloon aloft, more information will be made available as the launch progresses.
ARRL Pacific Division Director Jim Tiemstra, K6JAT, of Oakland, California, died October 30. An ARRL Life Member, he was 65. “Jim was passionate about ham radio and a dedicated member of the ARRL Board of Directors,” ARRL President Rick Roderick, K5UR, said. “He devoted himself to the members of his Division and always strove to do what was best for amateur radio and its future. His knowledge and leadership were significant and will be missed by the many who worked with him and had the pleasure to know him.” Tiemstra was ARRL Pacific Division Vice Director from 2009 through 2017, sitting on the Administration and Finance, and Programs and Services Committees of the Board. He became ARRL Pacific Division Director in January 2018. Currently, he was a member of the Administration and Finance Committee, the Legal Structure Review Committee, chair of the Legislative Advocacy Committee, and an advisor to the Amateur Radio Legal Defense and Assistance Committee, among other Board assignments. Licensed in 1970 as WN9ELU in Chicago, Tiemstra was the president of his high school radio club in Illinois. Early on, he built most of his own gear from Heathkits. In 1977, he married Lilah Greene, KE6EHD, and they moved to California, where Tiemstra became N6OIK, later choosing K6JAT as a vanity call sign. He’d also held V26JAT and 3D2TJ and had operated from Curacao and Hawaii. Primarily a contester and DXer, Tiemstra had been a DXpedition member and had long been involved in the public service aspects of the hobby. As a member of the Oakland Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) group, he was among those responding to the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 and the Oakland Hills firestorm in 1991, receiving a Certificate of Appreciation from the American Red Cross. He championed the Emergency Communication Ham Operation (ECHO) proposal to install amateur radio equipment in his city’s emergency operations center and in each of its 30 fire stations. Tiemstra worked with his ARES group to gain RACES recognition, wrote the RACES Operations Manual, and was instrumental in forging a formal Letter of Understanding with the City of Oakland. Jim served as Oakland’s RACES Radio Officer for more than 14 years, was on the mayor’s Emergency Management Council, and was ARRL East Bay Section Emergency Coordinator. In 2002, he was recognized by the Oakland Fire Department as Community Volunteer of the Year. In 1998, Tiemstra incorporated the Oakland Radio Communication Association (ORCA), an ARRL affiliated club, was a founding director, and became its first president. He served as trustee of the club’s call sign, WW6OR. Tiemstra retired in 2018 as a federal practitioner in the private practice of law. He was an ARRL Diamond Club and Maxim Society member. He and his wife have twin sons, Robert and Matthew, KI6IHP. FacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditMore
