Most
Wireless Society of Southern Maine meetings include a rountable
dicussion period about the "topic of the night." These can range
from planning a field operation to ham radio basics such as
antenna modelling, dx'ing, operating QRP, digital modes, or even kit
building. As this page gets updated, you'll be able to keep up to date
with the latest topics, and some of the useful info that rises out of
our research, activities, and presentations. Explore the Topics
& Links Archive for
a history of meeting topics, events, and ham radio related resources.
2024 Events
October 26th
|
The
WSSM-ECT will participate in the 2024 Maine Simulated Emergency Test,
from 8AM-12PM, on Saturday, October 26th. The emergency drill will focus on
developing skills using FM Simplex, UHF repeater, digital NBEMS, and
PACKET communications within a simulated event.
|
|
September 28-29th
Join
us the weekend of September 28-29th for the 12th Annual Maine QSO Party
contest.
The Maine QSO Party is a fun contest that
encourages Maine stations to expand their knowledge of DX propagation,
improve their operating skills, and station capability in a competition
where W/VE and DX stations have the incentive to work Maine. Click
here for more details.
|
|
August
18th
The WS1SM
team will activate Cape Neddick "Nubble" Light (US0201) for this year's
International Lighthouse and
Lightship Weekend (ILLW) on August 18th. We plan to operate mixed HF
on battery power, as well as some VHF.
International
Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend is an annual
amateur radio
activity started in Scotland by members of
the Ayr Amateur Radio Group. It evolved from the Scottish Northern
Lighthouses Award Weekend into an international event in 1998. This
year, nearly 450 lighthouses and lightships, in 85 different countries
are expected to participate.
|
|
June
22-23rd
The
WS1SM team will take part in their 14th ARRL Field Day during the
weekend of June 22-23rd, during Windham
Summerfest, at
the Windham High School Campus.
We'll be operating in the 3A category (3 full-time HF transmitters) and
also plan on having a Get on the Air (GOTA) station for visitors to try
out
Amateur Radio. On-air activities. More details to be annouced soon.
|
|
May
18th
The WS1SM team will activate
Crescent Beach State Park (US-2386) for Maine Parks on the Air Day, on
Saturday, May 18th. Currently the plan is to arrive at 11 AM, setup and
get on the air by noon, and operate until 2-3, depending on weather and
activity. Rick K1OT is kind enough to let us use his tower trailer.
For more information about Parks on the Air, please click here.
|
|
March
16th
You're invited
to take part in a
fun and competitive 2m-only contest, on Saturday, March 16th, from
12pm-4pm. Participants may be entered as either mobile (as a
rover), or fixed, and there are power levels for everything from a
handie-talkie to a high power base station. The contest exchange is
your callsign, the name of the town, township, or city that you are
operating from, and your power level.
For more information and complete rules, click here.
|
|
January
27-28th
The
WS1SM team
will participate in their fifth annual Winter
Field Day
during the weekend of January 27-28, at the Cumberland County Emergency
Management Agency, located at 22 High Street, in Windham, ME. The
purpose of Winter Field Day is to foster Ham camaraderie, field
operation, emergency operating preparedness, and just plain on-the-air,
outdoor fun - in the midst of winter!
|
|
2024 Meeting Topics
October's Topic: D-STAR, by Cory Golub KU1U
|
Join
us
Thursday, October 10h, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll begin with a presentation about D-STAR by Cory Golub KU1U.
Cory has been an avid D-STAR user since 2012. A ham since 1995, he has
been very involved in emergency communications, which has helped him
with his career path, having dispatched for various emergency and 911
centers, and he now works in 911 administration. Cory is the Assistant
Section Manager for the Maine Section, previously serving as Assistant
Director for Emergency Communications for the New England Division, and
Section Traffic Manager for Maine. He currently serves as Vice
President of the Androscoggin Amateur Radio Club.
The presentation will take place first, followed by our Monthly Business Meeting.
September's Topic: Station Automation Using NodeRed, by Todd Rodgers,
followed by Annual Business Meeting and Officer Elections
|
Join
us
Thursday, August 8th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll begin with a presentation about Station Automation using NodeRed, by Todd Rodgers KC1SQ.
Todd was first licensed in 1969 (as WN2NMH). He grew up in New York
City (Manhattan), which posed some interesting antenna problems. It
turned out to be a truly amazing tower situation (3 element beam on top
of a 16 story tall apartment building). Moving to Massachusetts in
1989, he started anew in building a modern station. Back to an
apartment in Boston, then in 2014, he and his wife Laura purchased a
log cabin on 5 acres in Standish, Maine as a second home. While a real
tower is still dreamed of, the swampy "back 40" makes for a great
ground plane (for a vertical with loads of radials). He's spent a
career in science (physics/astronomy) and computer science and now
consults in Internet of Things development, calling it semi-retirement.
After the presentation, we'll have our Annual Business Meeting and Officer Elections.
August's Topic: Planning for ILLW, & TX5S DXpedition Movie
|
Join
us
Thursday, August 8th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll do some planning
for our upcoming activation of Cape Neddick "Nubble" Light for International
Lighthouse & Lightship Weekend (ILLW), which takes place August
17-18, and watch a short video about the TX5S Clipperton Island DXpedition 2024.
July's Topic: Northeast Ham Xposition
|
Join
us
Thursday, June 6th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll begin with a presentation by Phil Temples K9HI, abouth the
Northeast Ham Xposition, which takes place August 22-25, in Marlboro,
MA. For more information, please visit: www.hamxposition.org. After
the presentation, we'll review ARRL Field Day, and start planning for
the International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend (ILLW), that takes
place August 18th.
June's Topic: ARRL Field Day
|
Join
us
Thursday, June 6th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll discuss final preparations for Field Day, including equipment
and personnel needs, Bonus Point categories, Windham Summerfest
activities, and more!
May's Topic: VARA Digital Software
|
Join
us
Thursday, May 16th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as Brad Brown KC1JMH will give a presentation on the VARA Digital
Software Modem. The presentation will take place first, followed by our
regular business meeting.
April's Topic: Morse Code (CW)
|
Join
us
Thursday, April 18thth, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as Rick Fickett K1OT will give a presentation on the topic of Morse
Code, also known as CW. Rick will talk about training methods, CW's
origins, use, and the gear required. The presentation will take place
first, followed by our regular business meeting.
March's Topic: Field Day Planning & 2 Meter
Challenge Preview
|
Join
us
Thursday, March 14th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll begin Field Day planning and also preview the upcoming Maine 2
Meter FM Simplex Challenge, which takes place Saturday, March 16th.
February's Topic: Movie Night
|
Join
us
Thursday, February 8th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll be doing a quick recap of Winter Field Day, and begin planning
for several upcoming activities, plus, we'll watch a movie about a
recent DXpedition.
January's Topic: WSJT-X and GridTracker
|
Please
join
us
Thursday, January 11th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME, as Roger Pushor NK1I, will
give a presentation on the WSJT-X and GridTracker softwares, covering
installation and tips for use.
Click
here to view the presentation. Thanks Roger!
December's
Topic: Holiday Pot Luck
|
Please
join
us
Thursday, December 8th, from 7pm-9pm at the South Windham Fire
Station, 33 Main Street, Windham, ME,
as we'll be having our annual pot luck dinner, following a brief
business meeting.
|
