[InHam] INARRL BULLETIN 02-2006

[Brian Murrey]

INARRL BULLETIN 002-2006
21:05PM 11/05/2006 de KB9BVN
SKYWARN Recognition Day is December 2The 8th annual SKYWARN Recognition Day 
(SRD) special event will take place Saturday, December 2, 2006. SKYWARN 
Recognition Day is an event co-sponsored by the National Weather Service and 
the American Radio Relay League, and it is the National Weather Service's 
way of saying "thank you" to Amateur Radio operators for their commitment to 
helping keep their communities safe. During the 24-hour special event, 
amateur radio operators will visit their local National Weather Service 
(NWS) office, set up Amateur Radio stations, and work as a team to contact 
other hamsacross the world."Ham radio operators volunteering as storm 
spotters are an extremely valuable asset to National Weather Service 
operations since they are cross-trained in both communications and severe 
storm recognition", says Scott Mentzer (N***QE), organizer of the event and 
Meteorologist-In-Charge at the NWS office in Goodland, Kansas.In typical 
warning operations, it is the direct communicationbetween mobile spotters 
and the local NWS office which providesvital ground truth information. 
Spotter reports of hail size, wind damage and surface-based rotation in real 
time greatly assists the radar warning operator since that information can 
be correlated with Doppler radar displays. The result can range anywhere 
from a more strongly-worded statement to conveya greater sense of urgency, 
or the issuance of a tornado warninga few minutes earlier than would 
otherwise have been possible.While National Weather Service offices utilize 
the real-time reporting of severe weather events to assist in warning 
operations,hurricanes and tropical storms have shown us that ham radio 
operators are equally important during the recovery phase of natural 
disasters.There are countless stories where ham radio worked in tandem with 
more conventional technology to relay emergency traffic. Details of the 
EventSKYWARN Recognition Day will be held on Dec 2, 2006, 0000Z to 2400ZThe 
object is for all radio amateur stations to exchange QSO information with as 
many National Weather Service Stations as possible on 80, 40, 20, 15, 10, 6, 
and 2 meter bands plus the 70 centimeter band. Contacts via repeaters are 
permitted.The exchange should include call sign, signal report, location,and 
a one or two word description of the weather occurring at your site 
("sunny", "partly cloudy", "windy", etc.).NWS stations will work various 
modes including SSB, FM, AM, RTTY, CW, and PSK31. While working digital 
modes, special event stations will append "NWS" to their call sign (e.g., 
N0A/ NWS).The National Weather Service will provide event information via 
the internet. Event certificates may be requested from:SKYWARN Recognition 
Day920 Armory Road,Goodland, KS 67735Simply enclose a self-addressed stamped 
envelope with a list of NWS stations worked. The certificate size is 8.5 x 
11 inches. Separate NWS stations will also issue individual QSL cards. See 
the Web page for a list. To learn more, check out the Web site: 
http://hamradio.noaa.gov.
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Brian Murrey - KB9BVN
KB9BVN at arrl.net
Indiana Section Bulletin Manager
(317)535-9887
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