[TCARC-NTX] ARRL West Gulf News

[David Johnson]

NICK POWELL TO SPEAK ON AMATEUR RADIO IN THE ANTARCTIC 
AT ARRL NATIONAL CONVENTION/ HAMCOM 2003 ON JUNE 21ST

Antarctic Ham Radio has a long and storied past which begins with the
expeditions of Admiral Byrd in the late 1920s and 1930s and continued
through Operation Highjump in 1946, precursor to Operation Deep Freeze
which began in 1956.  From then until recently when satellite
communications and the internet diminished its need, Ham Radio played an
important morale and welfare role for Deep Freeze and National Science
Foundation US Antarctic Program (USAP) participants.  This presentation
focuses on the current and near future state of Ham Radio in Antarctica
at USAP facilities with special emphasis on Amundsen-Scott Station at
the South Pole. Also, a number of questions and thoughts on the
direction of Antarctic Ham Radio will be presented to the Amateur
community with the goal of examining ways to improve Ham Radio
operations at USAP bases.  For example, could an Amateur Radio in
Antarctica program similar to ARRL's Amateur Radio on the International
Space Station (ARISS) be established?  Could such a program help meet
the Amateur Community's needs as well as address educational/ public
knowledge of Antarctica and the science conducted there, key National
Science Foundation goals?  In addition to ham radio,  an overview of the
station's telecommunications infrastructure and planned upgrades under
the approximately $165 million South Pole Station Modernization program
to be completed in the 2007-08 time frame will be presented.


Nick Powell is has been working as an Information
Technology/Communications Project Engineer at Raytheon Polar Services
(RPSC), Englewood CO since April 2000.  RPSC is the prime Operations and
Maintenance contractor for the National Science Foundation's US
Antarctic Program contract.  Nick is a key member of the team which
designs, installs, and modifies communication systems at Amundsen Scott
Station South Pole, Antarctic.  Station telecommunication systems
include voice and data copper and fiber optic wireline as well as
wireless systems that exploit HF, VHF, and satellite communication
portions of the radio spectrum.

Since 1996 and prior to working on the Antarctic program, Nick worked as
a Systems Engineer on various large satellite ground station projects at
Hughes Aircraft and Raytheon Space Systems Division in Aurora CO.  Nick
spent a total of 23 years in the Air Force and Air National Guard
retiring in 1996. While he carried officer and enlisted weather
specialty codes for most of his Air Force career, Nick spent much of his
time evaluating space and terrestrial weather effects on radiowave
propagation, communication, radar, satellite, and remote sensing
systems.  He had two tours at NORAD and Space Command in Colorado
Springs and worked at the Air Force Space Forecast center where among
other things he analyzed and predicted the affects of solar activity on
HF radiowave propagation.  Of course what would a military career be
without one hardship tour.  So it was with Nick, he spent 3 years at
Pacific Air Force Command (PACAF) HQ at Hickam AFB Hawaii developing
weather plans and providing daily weather briefings for the PACAF
commander.  Getting those early morning golf tee-times was always a
hardship since his workday typically began at 5AM to get the General's
7:30 briefing ready.

Nick took a Bachelor in Science degree in Meteorology from San Jose
State University in 1984 and a Master of Science in Atmospheric Science
with specialization in radar meteorology from Colorado State University
in 1992.

He received his General class amateur radio operator license (NH6ON) in
1988 while stationed in Hawaii with the Air Force and upgraded to
Amateur Extra in 2001.  Most of that time his activity focused on VHF,
but his work with South Pole HF systems and amateur radio ops really
fired up his interest in HF.

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ARRL West Gulf Division
Director: Coy Day, N5OK
n5ok@arrl.org
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