HamSCI, short for Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation, an organization that promotes projects at the intersection of science and amateur radio, is planning a conference at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, NJ on Friday, February 23 and Saturday, February 24, 2018. All hams and scientists interested in ham radio science are invited.
The aim of this workshop is to foster collaboration between the ham radio, space science, and space weather research communities through presentations, discussions, and demonstrations. This year’s meeting will focus on solar eclipse analysis, ham radio data sources and databases, and the development of a “personal space weather station”.
If you are interested in attending, please fill out the HamSCI Workshop Interest Survey. Final registration details will be posted by December 2017. The tentative schedule is as follows:
February 23, 2018
- Oral Presentations:
- Ham Radio Data Sources, Databases Analysis
- Solar Eclipse Effects on the Ionosphere, including results from the Solar Eclipse QSO Party
- Other Presentations that connect Ham Radio and Science
- HamSCI Banquet (Speaker: Dr. Phil Erickson, W1PJE, MIT Haystack Observatory)
Saturday, February 24, 2018
- Tutorials:
- Ham Radio for Space Scientists
- Space Science for Ham Radio Operators (Speaker: Frank Donovan, W3LPL)
- Planning Session: Development of a Personal Space Weather Station
- Poster Session/Demonstration Room
- K2MFF Open House
I like the idea of a personal weather station. The ARRL article on this conference, quotes Dr. Nathaniel A. Frissell, W2NAF, Lead HamSCI Organizer and an associate professor with the New Jersey Institute of Technology Center for Solar-Terrestrial Research:
Frissell said HamSCI would like to encourage development of the personal space weather station concept. “This is analogous to a personal weather station that people install at their homes to measure temperature, wind speed, rainfall, and humidity, and report this data to groups like the NWS, NOAA, and Weather Underground,” Frissell said. “We want to create a similar package for space weather and have that data go to a single repository.”
An ideal personal space weather station would likely include instruments able to detect things such as traveling ionospheric disturbances, radio blackouts, propagation changes, lightning, and magnetospheric activity, Frissell said. It would probably include, at a minimum, a wideband software-defined radio, a magnetometer, a timing source, and a computer — all currently available, but not as an integrated package, he pointed out.
Aside from the magnetometer, I think that I have all of those components already. It hadn’t really occurred to me, since I don’t use a smartphone all that much, but after a bit of Googling, I discovered that many smartphones have magnetometers built in to them. That being the case, it should be relatively simple to build an inexpensive one for this application.
Dave New, N8SBE says
Yes, most smsrt phones have an electronic compass built in to one of the chips. I find it amusing that folks use those strong magnets they stick on the back of their phones to give them a better grip, or to be able mount their phone into an HVAC vent in their vehicle. Can’t imagine how bad that scrambles or maybe even destroys the compass function in the phone.
Dan says
How do I participate. I am a handicapped ham, n0isy, yes noisy, I got lucky on my callsign. Being handicapped I am always home and the radio is right here.
Daniel Knutson says
I am a handicapped ham callsign N zero I S Y.
Yes n0isy, in Rochester Minnesota. I have been a member of ARRL on and off since 1978. I have now been a member for 3-6 monthes after completing my station. Now the City of ROCHESTER Mn want to have me take down my antenna.
Anyway, being handicapped and able to fully utilize my radios 0-400 megahertz so far, I would like to join hamSCI. If nothing else I can record data.