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JPLARC/Caltech ARC Field Day 2008

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Attendance

Score

Power Source: Generator
Total CW QSOs: 593 * 2 = Total CW QSO Points: 1186
Total Phone QSOs: 311 * 1 = Total Phone QSO Points: 311
Total QSO Points: 1497
Power Multiplier: 2
Claimed QSO Score: 2994

Total Bonus Points Claimed: 610

• 100% Emergency power
• Media Publicity
• W1AW Field Day Message
• Youth Element (3×20)
• Submitted using b4h.net applet

Original Announcement and Instructions

Below is the original announcement and instructions published prior to Field Day.

JPL/CIT ARC Field Day is Coming June 28, and 29!

This year’s ARRL Field Day operation by the JPL and Caltech Amateur Radio Clubs will take place on June 28–29 at our usual location on the summit of Mt.Gleason in the Angeles National Forest Caltech. All hams at JPL and Caltech and their families and friends are invited to participate - come operate for the weekend or just take a day trip to check out the operation.

The Field Day contest starts at 11:00 AM PDT (1800 UTC) on Saturday, June 28th, and lasts 24 hours. Come on over and check it out and/or put in some time on the air. We will begin operation preparations at 9:00 AM PDT on Saturday.

IMPORTANT: Field Day Location Change

Due to the extreme fire danger plus non-availability of several key personnel, we have reluctantly decided to cancel our 2008 Field Day operation from Mt. Gleason.

At the suggestion of Mike Tope, some of us are planning a Field Day operation from Caltech in Class E. We will operate from the W6UE shack using emergency power and existing antennas. This gives us the opportunity to give the casual contesters some mentoring in contest-style operation as well as serious contesters a chance to make some good QSO runs. Number of simultaneous transmitters is TBD. Six-meters and VHF/UHF are also available and we should have an interesting operation.

There are no formal plans to provide food or beverages, but we may have access to the kitchen area nearby so that those who are inclined can take advantage of the refrigerator and the nearby culinary resources. The convenience store (aka “C-Store”) in the nearby Chandler cafeteria (building 52) should be open over the weekend.

What’s New

There are a few rules changes this year. The GOTA station may now operate on the VHF bands as well as HF, but only on one band at a time. Any newly-licensed (since FD 2007) operator may operate the GOTA station regardless of license class. (Must be newly licensed, not just an upgrade.) The Demonstration Mode bonuses have been replaced by an Educational Activities bonus.

Background

Field Day is an annual nationwide event sponsored by the ARRL to exercise our radio equipment and operating skills in preparation for communications emergencies. Your participation benefits yourself, JPL and your community. The objective of Field Day is to set up and operate portable stations under simulated emergency conditions. If resources permit, we plan to have enough stations to give everyone operating time.

Our goals for the JPL / Caltech Radio Clubs’ 2008 Field Day effort are to have fun, keep busy, stay safe, learn new skills and sharpen our existing ones. There’s a special provision for non-hams, new hams and hams not active on HF; it’s called a Get-On-The-Air (GOTA) station. Those of you new to HF can “test-fly” it under the supervision of a control operator / mentor.

How You Can Take Part

Please complete and return the attached Participant Input Form (electronically, if possible). Use the form to tell us what your Field Day operating interests are, how many group meals you and your party will need, what gear you might be able to bring, and how you might like to help. Don’t like to climb towers? That’s ok, there are lots of ways to pitch in; let’s find one to suit you. We can usually use extra laptops, spare rigs, accessories, patch cables, connectors and adapters, lightweight antennas and masts. Got a van or camper that can house a station? Great! Have a spare vhf beam or push-up mast tucked away in the garage? We may be able to use it. If you have weak-signal VHF / UHF gear, ATV, SSTV, a satellite station, PSK-31 set-up or portable packet node, we can put it on the air and let our operators try something new!

Over the years we have designed and built new hardware to enhance the set-up, operation, safety and tear-down of our Field Day stations. It will be more fun than ever, so be a part of it! Just send us the accompanying questionnaire (at least dates, meals, operating preferences) we can start planning your Field Day participation.

Download field day participant form here: FD_Input_Form_2008.pdf

For more information: david.komm .at. jpl.nasa.gov 818–393–3269 or w6ejj .at. arrl.net 818–957–8346

Directions to W6UE

The W6UE Shack is located on the 2nd floor of the Caltech Bookstore in the Winnett Center which is Building number 51 on the Caltech campus in Pasadena. If you were to park in Holliston Parking Lot 4 or along Holliston Ave then go south until you see San Pasqual leading off to the East. From the corner of Holliston and San Pasqual, you should be able to see CITARC’s KLM 4 element 40 meter yagi with a KT 34 XA? stacked above it. Go West past the Chandler Dining Hall (#52) past the tables in the courtyard and passing past the Red Door Cafe to the South-West corner of Winnett. From there you should be able to see an external stairwell that leads to a second level patio. The entrance to the club room is the door next to the point where all the coax and rotor cables from the towers converge. Please call on the W6JPL or W6UE repeaters for access if your shouts to those above you do not succeed. For those who need even more information the approximate lat/lon is 34.137413N, 118.123989W.

Please note that after 5:00 p.m. and on weekends you can park in most spots at Caltech [except red zones, fire lanes, no parking zones, handicapped spaces, etc.]

Talk-in Frequencies

W6UE repeater 445.440 (-) PL-123.0 on Caltech Campus or try the JPL ARC 224.08 & 445.20 repeaters. Or try calling the W6UE shack at: 626–395–3939.