ALERT members,
ALERT has an opportunity to set up a recruitment table at the Montgomery Hamfest November 8th.
ALERT has also been invited to have a table at Storm Alert Extreme November 15 at the BJCC which is from 9:30 – 3:30.
Volunteers are needed for both events. Unfortunately it appears I probably won’t be available to attend due to work commitments.
If you can volunteer, let me know.
Mark
WD4NYL
The next ALERT meeting will be at the National Weather Service at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, October 14th, 2008.
If you are not able to make the meeting in person try the teleconference.
Every effort will be made to have teleconferencing available for each meeting, to participate:
Please call: (877) 951-0997 and enter participants code 741083.
Special thanks to Mark Wells for getting the following documents together.
As discussed last meeting the following documents have been added to the website in PDF form:
The ByLaws have been changed to pdf form as well
73,
Russell, KV4S
Hi everybody and welcome the October ALERT Newsletter.Yesterday Alabama conducted the annual Simulated Emergency Test. ALERT was activated & K4NWS was manned, taking simulated storm reports via RF and the Spotter Chat.
Initially there was some concern about participation, since there were two conflicting events to work against, that being Alabama vs Kentucky & the race in Talladega, but there seemed to be plenty of people out there contributing.
Band conditions were good & weather conditions were good, even with a land falling hurricane & tornadoes rearranging all of Central Alabama. And despite the state being devastated from one end to the other, it was fun.
Very, very hectic at times, but, fun.
A full report on the SET will be given at our meeting October 14, which will give you an incentive to be there.
And, if you don’t come, we are going to talk about you, as we usually do.
So consider yourself forewarned….;-)
See you then.
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Mark’s Almanac
October, named after the eighth month on the Roman calendar, is a mild and dry month, the driest of the year, in fact. And, it is a sunny month with the amount of possible sunshine reaching the ground in the 60% or greater range.
Weather shifts from autumn pattern to revisiting the summer pattern and back again. The Azores-Bermuda High shifts Eastward into the Atlantic, but, leaves weaken high pressure centers over the Virginias, which still try to block out approaching fronts.
October is usually a quite month for tornadoes, with a 40% decrease in activity. Nationwide an average of 28 tornadoes occur in October and those tornadoes are usually weak.
Our Hurricane threat continues, with hurricane activity increasing during the first half of the month, concentrating in the Caribbean, both from formation in the Caribbean and from the long track Cape Verde hurricanes which enter the Caribbean. And, we still have the little “gifts” that the Gulf of Mexico occasionally will provide. But after the second half of the month the activity will begin a steady decrease.
28% of the year’s hurricanes occur in October.Hurricane Prognosticator Deluxe Dr. William Grey, of Colorado State is predicting an active October & November. He is now calling for four named storms in October and November, including two hurricanes, one of them major.
As of October first, 13 named storms have developed, including four hurricanes. Two of the hurricanes were major.
So, just because it’s cool here, doesn’t mean the oceans have cooled off.
Action still may be lurking just around the bend.
This is the month for Alabama’s version of “Indian Summer’s” arrival.
Technically speaking Indian Summer doesn’t occur until “Squaw Winter” or the first frost arrives, but, exact date when Indian Summer arrives varies with latitude.
We live in Alabama, and while the earliest frosts have occurred by October 17, they usually wait until November. So, we, in our milder climate call the first warm up after the first cool down “Indian Summer”.
Cool weather will seem to have arrived & Summer is over & boom, it’s warm again & your are melting once again, wondering why the weather is acting so crazy & muttering “global warming”.
Also, in late October & Early November the leaves will be reaching their peak fall colors.
October’s Full Moon is “Hunters Moon” in Native American folklore.
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This month’s meeting will be on October 14 at 7PM at the National Weather Service
forecast office at the Shelby County Airport
I hope to see you there.
Until then,
73 and take care.
Mark
WD4NYL
PRESIDENT
www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/
When: Saturday October 4 from roughly 9 AM to 12 Noon
Hi All,
K4NWS will be fully operational during the SET. I’m looking forward to testing all our systems & modes & contacting as many as possible.
A few items of note, we will continuously monitor 224.500 MHz, PL 100 Hz.
This frequency is our link to Central Alabama Skywarn in Montgomery & also has been used by WX4TPC at the Peachtree City WFO to link with ALERT.
It would be very desirable that EMA’s & groups with 220 MHz capability try this route so we can see how effective it is as a “somewhat secure”
frequency. While there are no truly secure amatuer radio frequencies, this, due to lack of band population, is as close as we get to having one for messages prehaps not meant for public consumption.
444.425 Mhz will be monitored. This has a 131.8 PL tone, and has a plus input on Red Mountain & a minus on Double Oak. We are toying with using this as a dedicated frequency for EMA’s to reach ALERT & hope it will be used.
3.965 MHz will tested & used, but, not continuously monitored, as there are technical issues & since the radio is also the one we use to monitor 98 & we will want 98 to be monitored, as I am thinking Tuscaloosa Skywarn & will link in.
I have recieved inquiries as to D-Star. We want to fully test D-Star, so we will be bouncing back & forth between 41 & 88.
And, I think that is one point to be remembered. As is the nature of ALERT, we will be trolling all over the band looking for reports. If you don’t get us right away, don’t worry, we’ll be back.
And last but not least, the spotterchat will be monitored.
I look forward to working you Saturday.
Mark
WD4NYL
ALERT
The October Callout/Mailing List Test just went out. If you aren’t recieving the messages let us know at the next meeting.