[PBARC] SKYWARN Recognition Day jDecember 2

[E. Glenn Wolf, Jr.]

SKYWARN RECOGNITION DAY IS DECEMBER 2

The 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 hams across the world.
 
  
8th Annual SKYWARN Recognition Day
Date:	 December 1st, 2006 6 PM to 12 AM

Saturday Dec. 2nd, 7 AM to 6 PM
	
Where:	  National Weather Service - Training Building
	

Contact: Fred Shay N2JAS at 748-5033 (Work Day) or

326-3881 (Cell) or 315-4189 (Home). 

E-Mail: fred.r.shay at windstream.com or frshay at windstream.net


"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 communication between mobile
spotters and the local NWS office which provides vital 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 convey a greater
sense of urgency, or the issuance of a tornado warning a 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.

SKYWARN Recognition Day will be held on December 2, 2006, from 0000 UTC to
2400 UTC.

The 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.).