Ham radio nationwide event June 25–26

The Oak Ridger
·2 min read
Jim Bogard of the ORARC demonstrates his expertise at the CW station during ARRL Field Day 2021 as fellow hams observe.
Jim Bogard of the ORARC demonstrates his expertise at the CW station during ARRL Field Day 2021 as fellow hams observe.

Ham radio operators from the Oak Ridge Amateur Radio Club (ORARC) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee will be participating in a national amateur radio exercise from 2 p.m. Saturday, June 25, until 2 p.m. Sunday, June 26. The event is ARRL Field Day (www.arrl.org/FieldDay), an annual amateur radio activity organized since 1933 by ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio in the United States.

Hams from across North America ordinarily participate in Field Day by establishing temporary ham radio stations in public locations to demonstrate their skill and service. Their use of radio signals, which reach beyond borders, bring people together while providing essential communication in the service of communities. Field Day highlights ham radio’s ability to work reliably under any conditions from almost any location and create an independent, wireless communications network, according to a news release.

Local station

The ORARC will set up their station in the pavilion behind the Oak Ridge History Museum (Midtown Community Center and Wildcat Den) at 106 Robertsville Road in Oak Ridge. They will use a combination of portable generators, solar panels and batteries to power their equipment for the 24 hours of the exercise. ORARC ham operators will demonstrate two-way voice, radiotelegraph and digital communications modes. The public is encouraged to visit and can participate in this important event.

The purpose of the exercise is to demonstrate the readiness of amateur radio operators to assist in times of emergency when commercial power and communications can be impacted or lost. This exercise is especially timely this year with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicting a 65% chance of an above normal hurricane season.

During Field Day 2021, more than 26,000 hams participated from thousands of locations across North America. According to ARRL, there are more than 750,000 amateur radio licensees in the United States, and an estimated 3 million worldwide.

Among the tenets of the Amateur Radio Service is developing and practicing skills in radio technology and radio communications, and even contributing to international goodwill. Hams range in age from as young as 9 to older than 100. A self-study license guide is available from ARRL: The ARRL Ham Radio License Manual (www.arrl.org/shop/Ham-Radio-License-Manual) and for Kindle (https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B07DFSW94G). For more information about ARRL Field Day and ham radio, contact Art Pettit at (865) 919-5373 and visit www.arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio.

This article originally appeared on Oakridger: Ham radio nationwide event June 25–26