WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio Station at the National Hurricane Center in Miami Florida, Communications Test – Saturday June 1st, 2013

May 8, 2013 Rob Macedo Leave a comment

Hello to all..

Amateur Radio Coordinators for WX4NHC, the Amateur Radio station at the National Hurricane Center in Miami Florida, Julio Ripoll-WD4R and John McHugh-K4AG, have announced that the WX4NHC Communications Test will take place on Saturday June 1st, 2013 from 9 AM-5 PM EDT (1300-2100 UTC) across various modes. WX4NHC will be on the *WX_TALK* Echolink Conference node: 7203/IRLP 9219 system from 1-3 PM EDT (1700-1900 UTC) and net controls for the VoIP Hurricane Net will be active during that timeframe. Also, announced is a new QSL card and a letter requesting support from Amateur Radio Operators along coastal areas affected by hurricanes were also issued. Links to those items can be seen below:

http://beta.wx1box.org/local/WX4NHC_Hurricane_Season_letter_to_Ham_Radio_Operators.pdf
http://beta.wx1box.org/local/wx4nhc_qsl_front_web.jpg

We encourage all Amateurs using all the various Amateur Radio modes to make contact with WX4NHC during this communications test over the course of the day. This will help assure the equipment at WX4NHC will be ready for use. Amateur Radio stations in hurricane prone areas are also strongly encouraged to check into the test.

Below is the announcement from Julio Ripoll-WD4R and John McHugh-K4AG, WX4NHC Coordinators:

Announcement from WX4NHC
Amateur Radio Station at the National Hurricane Center

WX4NHC Hurricane Season 2013 On-The-Air Station Test
Saturday, June 1st, 2013 from 9AM-5PM EDT (1300z-2100z)

The purpose of this event is to test the NHC Amateur Radio Station equipment, antennas and computers.

We will also be perform operator training in preparation for this year’s Hurricane Season.

We will be making informal contacts on many frequencies and modes and would appreciate signal reports and basic weather data exchange (“Sunny”, or “Rain”, etc.) from stations in any location.

WX4NHC will be On-The-Air on HF, VHF, UHF and 2 & 30 meter APRS.

We plan on testing on the following voice frequencies +/- QRM
3.950 MHz, 7.268MHz, 14.325MHz, 21.325MHz, 28.425MHz.

We will try to stay on 14.325 MHz most of the time and announce when we QSY.

You may be able to find us on HF by using one of the DX Spotting Networks,
Such as the DX Summit Web Site:
http://www.dxsummit.fi/Search.aspx

We will also be on VoIP Hurricane Net 1pm-3pm EDT (1700z-1900z)
(IRLP node 9219 / EchoLink WX-TALK Conference node 7203).
http://www.voipwx.net/

Local South Florida area VHF & UHF Repeaters will be contacted.

Non-Ham Radio Weather Enthusiasts are invited to submit their actual weather using the On-Line Hurricane Report Form at
http://www.wx4nhc.org/WX-form1.html

QSL Cards are available via WD4R.
Please send your card with a S.A.S.E.

Please do NOT send QSLs directly to the Hurricane Center address, as it will get delayed.

Due to security measures, NO VISITORS will be allowed entry to NHC without prior clearance from NHC Security.

Only WX4NHC Operators on the NHC pre-approved operating schedule will be allowed entry.

For more information about WX4NHC, please visit our website
www.wx4nhc.org

Thank you for your participation in the WX4NHC Hurricane Annual Season Station Test.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Julio Ripoll Architect WD4R
WX4NHC Amateur Radio Asst. Coordinator
www.wx4nhc.org
Celebrating 32 years at the
National Hurricane Center
www.nhc.noaa.gov
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 508-346-2929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://beta.wx1box.org