 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||
|
|
ARRL Headquarters station W1AW will be participating in an APRS meteor-scatter experiment, November 12 through 19, during the Leonids meteor shower. Beginning at 2100 UTC on 12 November, W1AW will be monitoring and beaconing on 53.530 and 147.585 MHz continuously. QSLs will be available for all stations receiving W1AW's APRS packet beacons (please include an SASE). For more information concerning the Leonids APRS experiment, see the November issue of QST, page 46.
To participate, all you need is either a 2 or 6-meter FM transceiver, a packet TNC and the Windows APRS software. For successful packet meteor scatter on 2 meters you'll need 150-W output and a multielement beam antenna, preferably on a tower or other elevated structure. For 6-meter scatter, however, you can be successful with 100 W or less and low omnidirectional antennas. The Windows APRS software is available on the Web at http://www.tapr.org.
Each day the call signs of stations received at W1AW during the previous 24 hours will be posted on this page.
The Leonid shower peaked early this morning, but the results have been largely disappointing. W1AW reports only one APRS beacon received on 2 meters. It was transmitted by WY9T in Indianapolis. No beacons were received on 6 meters.
WB8IMY reports nothing heard on 6 meter APRS. While monitoring SSB on 50.125 MHz at about 1200 UTC he heard several pings, but they were brief and very weak.
Reports have also been received from:
W1AW has received local APRS beacons on 147.585 MHz and some data fragments that may be from short-duration burns. At approximately 1600 UTC they switched to a higher-gain Yagi tilted slightly upward. On 6 meters the antenna remains the same, although they have not copied packets on 53.530 MHz.
WB8IMY reports no beacons copied on 6 meters. He is now beaconing continuously and will do so until about 0100 November 19.
W0RPK in Iowa announced reception of "several" packets from K2QAE in New Jersey on 6 meters--a distance of over 1000 miles.
Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, reports receiving a beacon from a station in northern Ohio on 2 meters over a distance of about 500 miles. Stan is using only an omnidirectional antenna on 2 meters.
W1AW has only received local APRS beacons on 147.585 MHz. They discovered a problem with the 6-meter antenna, but this has been fixed and the station is active on 53.530 MHz. Headquarters staff WB8IMY and WR1B are participating from their home stations on 6 meters. WB8IMY reports seeing only local signals to date. WR1B reports receiving a beacon from N3KFC at 0400 UTC over a distance of 200 miles, but that was probably an aircraft reflection or tropo ducting.
