Severe Weather & Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend Coordination Message #1 – Friday 6/26/20-Sunday 6/28/20 Severe Weather Potential

Hello to all..

..The following is the first in a series of messages on Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend and providing information on the weather during this period. This is a tradition spanning over 17 years for Amateur Radio Operators involved with Field Day and the NWS Boston/Norton SKYWARN Program..
..2020 Field Day weekend will mostly be dry but has potential shower and thunderstorm risks in isolated to scattered locations each day including the threat for isolated to scattered strong to severe thunderstorms with conditions being warm on Friday and becoming hot and humid Saturday and Sunday..
..There will be chance for isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms on Friday with the potential for an isolated strong to severe thunderstorm on Friday in Southeast Massachusetts and Rhode Island. After some morning showers and possibly embedded thunderstorms Saturday Morning, conditions will clear and become hot and humid Saturday Afternoon into the evening with the threat of a bit more coverage of isolated to scattered to strong to severe thunderstorms dependent on the timing of the morning activity where the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) has placed all of Southern New England in a marginal risk for severe weather Saturday. Another round of isolated to scattered strong to severe thunderstorms is possible on Sunday Afternoon and evening well…
..Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend is an annual event where Ham Operators across the United States setup at Emergency Operations Centers, field locations, home locations etc. to operate and test their equipment and skills and make as many radio contacts as possible during the weekend. Due to COVID-19, Amateur Radio Field Day across Southern New England will be quite different with far less Field Day sites than normal in the region and those that are up and running in the field adhering to social distancing guidelines with limited to no public access. There will be many more Amateur Radio Field Day operations operating at home and not at field locations. Amateur Radio Field Day resource information is listed below..
..SKYWARN Self-Activation will monitor conditions throughout Field Day weekend Friday through Sunday with Amateur Radio Call Up Nets brought up

Here are some links to information on these Amateur Radio Field Day Sites from across the region understanding limited to no public access in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions and far less field day sites than normal years:

Amateur Radio Field Day Information: http://www.arrl.org/field-day
Amateur Radio Field Day National Locator: http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator
Eastern Massachusetts Field Day Home Page: https://ema.arrl.org/field-day/
Eastern Massachusetts Field Day Directory: http://ema.arrl.org/field_day/
ARRL President K5UR-Rick Roderick’s Field Day 2020 Statement: http://www.arrl.org/news/arrl-president-rick-roderick-k5ur-issues-field-day-2020-statement

While most of Friday and the weekend will be dry, there will be scattered showers and thunderstorm chances each day and the potential for isolated to scattered strong to severe thunderstorms particularly on Saturday Afternoon and Evening and Sunday Afternoon and Evening with a more isolated chance for strong to severe thunderstorms in Southeast Massachusetts and Rhode Island on Friday. There will also be the risk for an area of showers and embedded thunderstorms Saturday Morning in portions of Southern New England and it will be the timing of that activity that determines the risk for severe thunderstorms later Saturday Afternoon and Evening. Coordination messages will be sent throughout the weekend to monitor the severe weather potential throughout Friday and the weekend.

Below are links to the NWS Boston/Norton Hazardous Weather Outlook, NWS Boston/Norton Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook and SPC Day-3 Convective Outlook for Saturday 6/27/20:

NWS Boston/Norton Hazardous Weather Outlook:
http://kamala.cod.edu/ma/latest.flus41.KBOX.html

NWS Boston/Norton Experimental Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook:
https://www.weather.gov/box/ehwo

SPC Day-3 Convective Outlook for Saturday 6/27/20:
https://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/archive/2020/day3otlk_20200625_0730.html

Amateur Radio Field Day sites are encouraged to bring a NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio, monitor various cell phone weather apps where Amateur Operators may have those available and have a dedicated Ham Radio that can monitor their local SKYWARN Frequency for their area as a best safety and preparedness practice. Also sites that have mobile Internet capability can utilize that capability as a way to monitor for weather information. With Mobile Internet capability, utilizing Echolink to monitor the New England Reflector system on Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG3* Node: 9123/IRLP 9123 would be helpful as well. Please see the link below for the latest SKYWARN Frequency information for the region:
https://wx1box.org/southern-new-england-skywarn-frequency-list/

During setup and takedown of Amateur Radio Field Day sites and even while operating, be sure to drink plenty of fluids and eat accordingly. Also having a jacket or sweatshirt during evenings as conditions cool and rain gear for any showers and thunderstorms etc. may also be useful while operating this year’s Field Day. The link below features information on Heat Safety:
https://www.weather.gov/safety/heat

Given the threat for thunderstorms in isolated to scattered locations over the course of Friday and the weekend, lightning is a threat to any and all Amateur Radio Field Day sites. Remember your lightning safety tips and details on lightning safety can be seen at the following link:
https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning

The next Amateur Radio Field Day coordination message will be posted by 300 PM Friday Afternoon.

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
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