Hi everyone, I hope this finds you doing well & that you have been enjoying these spring days. Our May 12 ALERT meeting will feature our annual elections. If you are a paid up Operational or Supporting Member, which is a member interested in Amateur Radio, Skywarn or Emergency Communications, but doesn’t have a ham license (yet), you may vote in the 2015 – 2016 ALERT leadership elections. The officers will assume their positions at the July meeting. July is also when ALERT dues are due. Remember, if you want to respond to ALERT callouts or serve as an officer you MUST be current with your dues. Also, there will be a Board of Directors meeting preceding the regular 7 PM meeting at 6:30. I hope to see you there! …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 50 Shades of GPS On April 9, 1998, one day after the F5 tornado, I was standing in the ruins of what had the day before been McDonald’s Chapel. The landscape was a scene on complete destruction, with no familiar landmarks. The only street sign left was mangled and folded together like praying hands, on which you could make out the words “Quebec Street”. What does one do when a community in an instant is made into a wilderness? How does one find their way, when nothing recognizable remains? It is in cases such as this, when the Global Positioning System proves an invaluable tool for emergency response. For, though the landmarks are gone, and the streets may be buried, it still remembers where you are and how to get you home. How much do you know about the GPS system? The GPS system, whose official name is NAVSTAR, is a Department Of Defense program, consists of a constellation of 32 satellites, which at an altitude of 17000 miles, orbit at 7000 MPH. The program was begun during the Nixon administration in 1973, and became fully operational in 1995. In 1996 President Clinton issued a policy directive declaring GPS to be a “dual use” system for both military and civilian use. GPS satellites circle the Earth twice a day continuously transmitting a signal to the Earth. The GPS receivers take these signals and compare the time that the signal was transmitted with the time that it was received. This time difference tells how far away the satellite is. With the distance from several satellites known, the receiver, using a mathematical principle called “trilateration” can determine the position and plot it on a map. Not unlike the system used by the old LORAN-C navigation system, which was decommissioned by President Obama in 2010. Being viewed as redundant alongside GPS after the Department of Homeland Security certified that LORAN was not needed as a backup for the GPS. This method of location is not the same as triangulation, where you take a compass bearing of an object from two or more locations, and where the bearings intersect on a map, the objects location is determined. With three satellites in view a GPS can determine latitude, longitude and movement. With four or more satellites in view, altitude can be determined. Newer units are very accurate because they utilize 12 parallel channel receivers, which, assuming the satellites are in range, allow them to receive 12 satellite signals simultaneously. These receivers are quick to lock onto signals, and are accurate to 50 feet. Differential GPS units correct GPS signal errors to an accuracy of 10 to 15 feet. The Coast Guard operates a DGPS correction service which consists of a series of towers that receive GPS signals and retransmits a corrected signal by beacon transmitters. To use this you need a differential beacon receiver and beacon antenna in addition to a GPS unit. GPS receivers with Wide Area Augmentation System – WAAS capability improve the accuracy to 10 feet. This system utilizes 25 ground stations spread over North America to correct the signals, and no additional equipment is required. Russia has a similar system called Globalnaya navigatsionnaya sputnikovaya sistema, or “GLObal NAvigation Satellite System” – GLONASS GLONASS consists of 24 satellites, and although coverage is better in the northern hemisphere, it has global coverage. The system was begun in 1976 and was completed in 1995. It then became neglected and deteriorated until 2001 when Vladimir Putin made the restoration of the system a top priority, which was completed in 2010. Like GPS, GLONASS was made available for public use in 2007 by a presidential decree by Vladimir Putin. GLONASS is the most expensive program of the Russian Federal Space Agency, with one third of its budget being dedicated to the system. There are some significant differences between GLONASS and GPS. GLONASS has fewer satellites in its constellation, with 24 satellites, versus the GPS constellation of 32. The GPS constellation circles the globe in 6 orbital planes, or paths of orbit, where GLONASS satellites use 3 orbital planes, in a slightly lower orbit. This means that with GLONASS, more satellites follow the same orbital path. For systems using GLONASS only, it may be more difficult to connect to available satellites. This could potentially lead to reduced positioning accuracy. The biggest difference between GPS and GLONASS is how they communicate with receivers. With GPS, satellites use the same radio frequencies but have different codes for communication. With GLONASS, satellites have the same codes but use unique frequencies. Despite these differences, GLONASS’s accuracy is comparable to that of GPS. You probably are already using GLONASS and are not even aware of it. Depending on the manufacturer of your smartphone, you may already have GLONASS capability in your device, Apple iPhones and a large number of Android devices use both GPS and GLONASS to ensure accuracy. If you are stuck in an area with a large amount of cloud coverage, or are surrounded by high-rise buildings, your device will use GLONASS in conjunction with GPS. This allows your device to be pinpointed by any of the fifty-five satellites around the world, increasing overall accuracy. However, GLONASS is typically only turned on when the GPS signal is poor in order to preserve the device’s battery. As for portable navigation devices, Garmin GLO is a portable GPS and GLONASS receiver which connects to a mobile device over Bluetooth, and provides better accuracy than any integrated receiver. GPS Quirks & Peculiarities A few years ago I was watching one of the “judge programs” that air in the afternoon. One Judge, a lady with an accent vaguely similar to Bugs Bunny was hearing a case where a gentleman was being sued for not fulfilling a promised work obligation. He admitted that he did not show up and do the promised work, and when asked why, he said he had entered the address in his GPS and it kept saying “no signal”. Hearing this, the Judge declared him a “liar”, since things like that certainly don’t happen with a GPS. She then asked the audience, saying with rolling eyes “has anyone here ever heard of such a thing?” This course, they thought this was ridiculous and laughed him to shame, and nodded their heads approvingly as the verdict went against the gentleman. Whether he was actually guilty as charged or not, I still don’t know, but, I distinctly remember saying to the TV “Oh yes they DO lose signals, you dimwitted wabbit.” As with all manmade devices, GPS units have their own quirks and peculiarities. Some common problems which will defeat a GPS’s accuracy or operation are: Atmospheric Delays – Satellite signals slow as they pass through the atmosphere, which affects the receiver’s calculation of distance from the satellite. The GPS system partially corrects for this type of error by using a built in model that calculates the average amount of delay. Signal Multipath – The GPS signal may reflect off of objects such as tall buildings or rock surfaces before it reaches the receiver. This effect increases the travel time of the signal, thereby causing errors. Receiver Clock Errors – A receiver’s quartz clock is not as accurate as the atomic clock onboard the GPS satellites. Therefore slight timing errors may occur. Orbital or Ephemeris Errors – Gravitational fields or solar storms can cause inaccuracies between the reported positions of the satellite and its actual location, for instance, during a solar storm the atmosphere expands outward into space, causing drag on the satellites temporarily slowing them. Number Of Satellites Visible – The more satellites that a GPS receiver can receive, the better the accuracy is. Buildings, terrain, electronic interference, or even dense foliage can block signal reflection, causing position errors or no signal at all. GPS units typically will not work indoors, underwater, or underground. Plus keep in mind that these satellites are not in a geosynchronous orbit, like communications satellites. They, being in a lower orbit are constantly changing position, in a never ending celestial shell game. Sometimes they just travel out of range. Satellite Geometry and Shading – this refers to the position of the satellites in relation to each other and the GPS receiver at any given time. The best satellite geometry occurs when the satellites are located at wide angles from each other. If they are too close to each other, signal interference can occur. Intentional Degradation of Satellite Signal – “Selective Availability” or SA is an intentional error that was introduced to GPS signals by the Department of Defense, to prevent our enemies from using our own GPS constellation for targeting weapons against us. The government turned off SA in May 2000, which improved accuracy, but, they can easily reintroduce the errors, if they determine that a probable threat exists. Radio Troublesome Traits – It should not be forgotten that GPS units (and cellphones for that matter) are, regardless of their sophistication, still radio receivers. Some are more sensitive than others and can pick up marginal signals better, and some are more selective than others and are less susceptible to interference from stronger nearby signals. With cellphones, to use old CB terms, some are “Alligator Stations”, transmitting big signals, but, having sorry reception, and others are “Elephant Stations”, with great reception, but, transmitting wimpy signals. Some are quicker to drop a call when the carrier is lost than others which might “keep the squelch open” longer waiting for the signal to return. Ordinary Electronic Problems – These would include electronic component failure, dead batteries, running over the poor thing with your truck, dropping it into the toilet and so forth. Can’t Find It Issues – Ever lose anything right at the wrong moment? For these reasons, though I certainly love my GPS, for some purposes, such as hiking, I actually consider it as a backup to being able to read and use a map and compass. Let’s talk about compass APPs on Smartphones for a moment. Whether you download a compass APP or one comes “factory built” in your phone, they both operate in the same manner and with presumably the same results accuracy wise. How does this device work? Smartphones have a small magnetometer that measures changes in the Earth’s magnetic field and an accelerometer that tracks the movement of the device. The accelerometer gets information regarding the phone’s position in space. The app combines the heading information from the magnetometer with the roll and pitch data from the accelerometer to work out the exact orientation of the unit as you move the device. This is all independent from GPS signals or cell tower pings, though some smartphones will also use GPS data to determine latitude and longitude. Are these compass apps accurate? Based on my own experimentation, the answer is “at best, more times than not”. I’ve seen them work fine one day and the next day have them indicate “north”, when it was pointing dead east. I’ve also seen them change orientation for no apparent reason and had them jump back and forth with no movement occurring or outside influence to explain the erratic behavior. I consider it usable, but, look at it with a jaded eye, remembering that it has some quirks. “Real” compasses have their quirks also, by the way. For instance, if you use one near a metal object or magnet (think cellphone speakers here) it will throw the needle off. This is called “magnetic deviation”. Also, there are geographic locations possessing “magnetic anomalies”, which are defined as “a local variation in the Earth’s magnetic field resulting from variations in the chemistry or magnetism of the rocks.” An example of this is at Goat Hill, the location of the Alabama State Capitol. No joking intended, there is a magnetic anomaly on the hill which causes compass errors. Though I can find no reference for this online, I know that there was, and presumably still is a USGS marker on the hill near the capitol indicating this, and the amount of error involved. Most compasses are usually slightly off target due to “magnetic declination or variation error”. The Earth’s North Magnetic Pole is not at the physical or geographic North Pole, but actually near Baffin Island in Canada. A compass does not point along lines of longitude, but, rather along the lines of the Earth’s magnetic field, which in the case of Central Alabama, are off 3 degrees to the west, and due to the Earth having a molten core, the lines are drifting slightly further westward each year. For short distance navigation, this isn’t a problem, but, for longer ranges, then you would have to offset your reading 3 degrees to the east for true North to match USGS maps and charts. Also, not all compasses are created with equal quality. When choosing one, take several off of the shelf and keep these three guidelines in mind. 1. Fancy looks, doesn’t necessarily mean fancy results. 2. They should all be pointing in the same direction. 3. After turning a 360 circle where you are standing, they should quickly return to the North position. Just remember “Mark’s Rule of Compasses” – “If they don’t work in Walmart, they won’t work in the field either”. I use a Silva brand compass, which has always served me well. It’s like with any device or technology. You need to learn and understand the limitations of the resources that you are using and then learn to work around those limitations. These, and having backup plans, are always keys to success. Just remember the quote from the great Yogi Berra – “You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going, because you might not get there.” ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. ALERT Sunday Night April Net Report Date NCS Checkins Traffic Apr 8 N4HEY 45 0 Apr 12 KK4YPK 41 0 Apr 19 KK4NGD 46 0 Apr 26 WD4NYL 42 0 ———————————————— TOTAL 174 0 ——————————————————- YEARLY TOTAL 778 0 ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Mark’s Almanac May is the fifth month & third month of the Roman calendar. May is named for the Greek goddess Maia, who was identified with, Bona Dea, the Goddess of Fertility, who was celebrated in May. Since ancient times the first day of the month, “May Day” has been a time of celebration. In Rome it honored Flora, the goddess of flowers. On May the fifth Mexican’s celebrate Cinco De Mayo, the celebration Mexico’s 1862 victory over Napoleon III’s forces at Puebla. This is not, as many assume, Mexico’s Independence Day, which is actually on September 16. Rainfall decreases in May as the Bermuda High strengthens & begins rerouting storm systems northward. The door opens to the Gulf of Mexico & Gulf moisture spreads northward over the continent. The center of maximum tornadic activity also shifts northward over the Nation’s Heartland. May is the peak tornado month, with a 42% increase over April’s amount. Eastern Pacific hurricane season begins May 15, and although the North Atlantic hurricane season has not arrived, occasionally a tropical system will form in the Gulf of Mexico. In 110 years there have been 14 named storms. Looking skyward, Mercury is rising from the glow of sunset, and on May 7 will reach his highest elevation over the Western horizon, or “greatest eastern elongation” of 21.2 degrees from the Sun. This is the best time to view Mercury since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky. Look for the planet low in the western sky just after sunset. Mercury will soon sport a new crater, as the US Messenger space probe will impact on Mercury on April 30, having run out fuel, successfully ending its mission having orbited the planet since March 18, 2011, and returning over 250,000 pictures of the heavily cratered planet. Venus, the “Evening Star”, blazes in the West during and after evening twilight, setting in the west-northwest nearly two hours after dark. Mars is deep in the sunset near Mercury. Jupiter in Cancer is high in the South as the first evening stars appear, and is the second brightest object in the evening sky, after Venus. Saturn in Scorpius rises around 10 or 11 PM and is highest in the south in the early morning hours. The ringed planet will be at its closest approach or “opposition” to Earth on May 23rd and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. It will be brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long. This is the best time to view and photograph Saturn and its moons. A medium-sized or larger telescope will allow you to see Saturn’s rings and a few of its brightest moons. I guess the term “ringed planet” is somewhat out of date now, since US probes detected a faint ring system around Jupiter and a ring system around Uranus. But, their rings you can’t see from Earth, Saturn’s you can. Uranus is deep in the glow of the Sun. Neptune is low in the East at the beginning of dawn. Full Moon will occur May 3th at 10:32 PM CDT. May’s Moon is “Flower Moon” in Native American folklore, but has also been called “Corn Planting Moon” & “Milk Moon”. The Eta Aquarids Meteor Shower, a minor shower, will peak May 5 & 6 with 30 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust particles left behind by comet Halley. The nearly full moon will be a big problem this year blocking out all but the brightest meteors. If you are patient, you should still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius, but can appear anywhere in the sky. New Moon will occur May 17 at 11:13 PM CDT. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters, as there will be no moonlight to wash out the evening sky. 1831 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of April 23, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/ ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… This month’s meeting will be on May 12 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport. If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083. Hope to see you there! Mark / WD4NYL Editor ALERT Newsletter www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/ Mark’s Weatherlynx Weather Resource Database

Hi everyone,   I hope this finds you doing well.   Just a brief reminder, that at our upcoming April meeting the Nominating Committee will issue its recommendations for the upcoming May ALERT elections.  Nominations from the floor will be allowed the night of the elections in May.   I hope to see you there!     ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….  

Impact Based Warnings Implemented

 

Beginning April 1^st, 2015, The NWS Birmingham, Huntsville and Peach Tree City Forecast Offices are implementing “Impact Based Warnings”.

  These new Impact Based Warnings are designed to improve communication of critical information through the use of specific statements, with easy to find hazard and impact information and the use of summary tags at the bottom of warnings.   These new warnings originate from NWS findings learned after the May 22, 2011 Joplin Missouri EF5 tornado.  This storm caught the city largely off guard, leaving 158 people dead and injuring more than 1,000 people, making it the deadliest tornado in the United States since record-keeping began in 1950.   An NWS assessment found that most of the residents of Joplin found out about this warning from the outdoor warning systems, but, before seeking shelter, they sought out more information from additional sources, such as media outlets, wanting to confirm that a tornado was actually touching down in their vicinity and that it would affect their location, rather than another part of the county.   It was discovered that the residents of Joplin simply weren’t taking tornado warnings seriously.   The NWS tried to think of a way to stress importance on future storms that may have similar impacts as the Joplin tornado, and this resulted in the new Impact Based Warnings.   The goal of these new warnings is to provide more information to the media and Emergency Managers, to help them inform the public of the reality of the threat and the probable consequences of the storm. Citing a Montgomery Advertiser article from March 27, 2015: “The potential damage and threat of the storms will be key to the impact-based warning system”, said Kevin Laws, of the NWS office in Birmingham. The tuned advisories will be for severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings. The most common time for severe weather in Alabama is March through May, NWS data shows.

“The impact-based warnings will give more detailed information about the threats the severe storm may pose for an area,” he said. “In the event of a tornado warning, it will tell if it is a radar-indicated tornado, or if there is a confirmed tornado on the ground. We want to give the public as much information as possible, as quickly as possible, so they can take the steps to protect themselves and their families during times of severe weather.”

 

The impacts will range from “Expect wind damage to roofs or siding and hail damage to vehicles” for severe thunderstorms to “You are in a life-threatening situation,” reserved for the most powerful tornado.

 

“We hope these enhancements will make our warnings more effective and easier to use,” said Jim Stefkovich, meteorologist in charge of the Birmingham office, in a YouTube video posted to discuss the changes. “We want to make the warnings as effective as possible. The words we use may motivate people to take the proper precautions when they are threatened by tornadoes or severe storms.”

 

Currently tornado warnings are of one category.

 

The impact-based system will divided tornado warnings into three categories:

 

1. The Base Warning which will be used for the majority of warnings

2. Particularly Dangerous Situation PDS warnings for more powerful storms

3. Tornado Emergency or Catastrophic Warning, reserved for the most rare, most potentially   dangerous tornadoes.

  A “Tornado Emergency” will vividly explain the likely devastation, urging those in the path to seek immediate shelter underground or in a tornado shelter or face unsurvivable conditions. These warnings are for “catastrophic” tornadoes, those likely to cause “complete destruction of neighborhoods,” including “many well built homes and businesses,” according to Jim Keeney of the NWS Central Regional Headquarters.   Examples of the format of these warnings, courtesy of the NWS Peachtree City Office are as follows:     Changes to Warning Text Specific Statements Specific phrases will be used in Tornado Warnings for both the considerable and catastrophic tags.       Hazard and Impact Information Each Tornado and Severe Thunderstorm Warning will contain individual lines that clearly state hazard and impact information.         Tags Tags will appear at the bottom of Tornado and Severe Thunderstorm Warnings, and in the Severe Weather Statements that update the warnings. In a Severe Thunderstorm Warning, tags will be used to define:

• hail size
• wind speed
• possible tornado (if necessary)

In a Tornado Warning, two types of tags can be used:

• Tornado tag (always used)
  • radar indicated
  • observed
• Damage threat tag (optional)
  • considerable damage
  • catastrophic damage

 

An recent example would be:

  BULLETIN – IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA 756 PM CDT TUE MAR 31 2015 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSED A   * SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR…   JEFFERSON COUNTY IN CENTRAL ALABAMA…   * UNTIL 900 PM CDT   * AT 755 PM CDT…A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED OVER   GRAYSVILLE…OR 8 MILES SOUTHEAST OF SUMITON…MOVING EAST AT 30   MPH     HAZARD…60 MPH WIND GUSTS AND QUARTER SIZE HAIL     SOURCE…RADAR INDICATED     IMPACT…HAIL DAMAGE TO VEHICLES IS EXPECTED. EXPECT WIND DAMAGE            TO ROOFS…SIDING AND TREES.   * LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE…   BIRMINGHAM…HOOVER…VESTAVIA HILLS…HOMEWOOD…MOUNTAIN BROOK…   TRUSSVILLE…HUEYTOWN…GARDENDALE…IRONDALE…LEEDS…MOODY…   FAIRFILED…FULTONDALE…SUMITON…CENTER POINT…PLEASANT GROVE…   CLAY…PINSON…TARRENT AND MIDFIELD.    PRECAUTIONARY PREPARDNESS ACTIONS…  PREPARE IMMEDIATLEY FOR LARGE HAIL AND DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND  LIGHTNING. SEEK SHELTER INSIDE A WELL-BUILT STRUCTURE.  STAY AWAY FROM  WINDOWS.    TORRENTIAL RAINFALL IT OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM…AND MAY LEAD TO  FLASH FLOODING. DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE THROUGH FLOODED ROADWAYS.   Hopefully these new warnings will persuade the public to heed the warnings and to make rapid wise decisions, while the time to act and react remains.   For time is our greatest enemy.     ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….       ALERT Sunday Night Net Report   Date      NCS               Checkins   Traffic Mar 1   KK4YPK                   52               0 Mar 8   KK4NGD                  44               0 Mar 15 WD4NYL                   27                0 Mar 22 KK4NGD                    49                0 Mar 29 WD4NYL                   42                0   ——————————————————- TOTAL                                  214               0     ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………       Mark’s Almanac   The Romans called April “Aprilis”, probably from the word “aperire”, which means, “to open”.  This time of year being when buds open.  It was originally the second month of the Roman calendar, before Roman King Numa Pompilius added January & February in 700 BC.   Freezing weather comes to an end as Birmingham’s average last freeze is April 1, while Tuscaloosa’s was March 26.  The record for the latest freeze date is April 21, 1953 for Tuscaloosa and April 23, 1986 for Birmingham.   April is less wet than March & rain becomes more localized and less widespread in nature. The sun heats the lower atmosphere near the ground and since the upper atmosphere is still cold, the warm air rises, reaches the dew point line, forms clouds & then it may rain.  April is the first time in the spring season that favors local convective activity, which is why you have “April Showers”.   April is peak tornado month, with wide scale outbreaks possible.  There are 2 ½ times the number of tornadoes as in March.  25% of the year’s tornadoes will have occurred by April 28.   From April 1950 to 2014, 8304 tornadoes were reported causing, as of 2013, 1770 deaths and 29,090 injuries.   As of 2011, Alabama ranked fifth in the number of April tornadoes, following Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois & Kansas, all belonging to the “over 400 club” for April since 1950.   As of June 2013 Alabama and Oklahoma are tied as having the most F5 & EF5 tornadoes, both having had 7 F5 or EF5 tornadoes.  In fact until the May 20, 2013 Moore Oklahoma EF5 tornado, Alabama lead the nation in the most violent tornadoes.   The Moore Oklahoma tornado was notable not only for its strength, but, also for what I consider the unfortunate or unwise advice given by Oklahoma City’s KFOR Meteorologist Mike Morgan telling his viewers at least eight times to get in their cars and flee south of the city as the large rain wrapped tornado rapidly bore down on the city.  Advising this though admitting that the interstate was already a “parking lot”, since it was rush hour, and then later advising people twice to “abandon your cars” as the storm reached the city and its helpless commuters.   “Unfortunately there are hundreds and hundreds of cars on the road……a lot of people are panicking trying to leave their house…..you really can’t move very much.”  –  Chase Thomason KFOR   Not exactly the best advice from my perspective.   Some notable Alabama tornados in past Aprils include:   April 18, 1953 F3   Lee & Russell County          6 dead 195 injured April 18, 1953 F3   Shelby County                     8 dead 495 injured April 15, 1956 F4   Jefferson County    25 dead 200 injured     “McDonald Chapel Tornado” April 18, 1969 F4   Montgomery, Bullock, Butler & Crenshaw Counties     2 dead   15 injured   April 3 & 4, 1974 “Super Outbreak” produced at least eight tornadoes in Alabama, including four extremely intense and long-lived storms that swept the state killing eighty-six persons and injuring 949.  The Huntsville area had an F3, F4 & an F5 tornado.  The F4 tornado struck a half mile from where they were still digging out from an F3 tornado that had struck earlier in that day.   Guin was literally wiped off the map, as was Xenia Ohio.  The entire Eastern US and Southern Canada was affected during “The Day of 100 Tornadoes”, which in total produced 148 tornadoes including 30 F4 and 6 F5 tornadoes, killing 315 people and injuring over 5,000 people.   April 3, 1974   F5   Lamar, Marion, Winston, Lawrence & Morgan Counties 30 dead 230 injured    April 3, 1974   F4   Pickens, Tuscaloosa, Fayette, Walker & Cullman Counties 3 dead 178 injured   

April 3, 1974   F5   Limestone-Madison                     28 dead 260 injured

April 4, 1977   F5   Jefferson County                         22 dead 130 injured    “Smithfield Tornado” April 1, 1998   F3   Russell County                              2 dead   23 injured April 8, 1998   F5   Tuscaloosa & Jefferson County 32 dead 259 Injured   “Oak Grove Tornado”   April 25 – 28, 2011 Super outbreak was the largest and deadliest tornado outbreak on record,   with 358 tornadoes in 21 states and southern Canada.  April 27 alone had 211 tornadoes.  Of 348 people killed, 324 were tornado related, the other 24 being non tornado storm related deaths, such as straight line winds.   Alabama was hit by two distinct waves of tornadoes, the first hitting during the early morning hours resulting in 52 injuries and the second in the afternoon and evening resulting in 238 deaths and 1946 injuries in a total of 62 tornadoes.   April 27, 2011   F5   Marion County                 18 dead 100 injured April 27, 2011   F4   Pickens, Tuscaloosa, Fayette, Walker & Blount Counties 13 dead 54 injured April 27, 2011   F3   Marion County                 7 dead 100 injured April 27, 2011   F4   Greene, Tuscaloosa & Jefferson counties 65 dead 1500 injured April 27, 2011   F3   Greene, Hale & Bibb counties 7 dead 50 injured April 27, 2011   F4   Jefferson, St. Clair, Calhoun, Etowah and Cherokee counties 22 dead 81 injured April 27, 2011   F4   Elmore, Tallapoosa & Chambers counties 7 dead 30 injured April 3, 2012     F2   Tallapoosa & Chambers counties 1 dead 2 injured   In April it pays to look upon the sky with a jaundiced eyed, except, of course, at night.   Looking skyward, Mercury is hidden deep in the glow of sunrise.   Venus, the “Evening Star”, blazes in the West during and after evening twilight.   Mars is below Venus in the evening sky, but, is only 1% as bright as his much brighter sister.   Jupiter in Cancer is shining high in the Southeast sky as the first evening stars appear.   Saturn in Scorpius rises around midnight and is highest in the south just before dawn.  His rings are tilted a wide 24.9 degrees to our line of sight, with his north pole tilting towards Earth, as it is Summer in the northern hemisphere of Saturn.   Uranus and Neptune are hidden behind the glare of the Sun.   April’s Full Moon was known as “Full Pink Moon” in Native American folklore as it marked the reappearance of pink wild ground phlox.  This will occur April 4 at 7:05 AM.  This moon was also called by various tribes, the “Sprouting Grass Moon”, “Growing Moon”, “Egg Moon” and “Fish Moon”, as this is when shad swam upstream to spawn.   Also, on April the 4, there will be a total lunar eclipse.  This eclipse will be visible through most of North America, South America, Australia and eastern Asia.    You will notice that I underlined the word “most of North America”.   We are in the area outside of “most”, as the eclipse will be occurring at our moonset on that date, which occurs at 6:36 AM.     The eclipse begins at 4:01 AM as the first traces of the Earth’s shadow begins darkening the moon. The moon sets late during the “partial phase” and then goes into total eclipse at 7:01 AM, after it has sunk below our western horizon.   The farther west you go, the more eclipse you will see.  Visited Dallas lately?   The next total lunar eclipse will be on September 27, 2015 and this one will be visible in Birmingham.   New Moon will occur April 18 at 1:56 PM CDT.  This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters, as there will be no moonlight to wash out the evening sky.   The Lyrid Meteor Shower occurs on the evening of April 22 and morning of April 23.   This is a minor shower, with only 12 to 24 meteors per hour. These meteors sometimes produce bright dust trails that last for several seconds.   The first quarter moon will exit shortly after midnight, and leave a dark sky for observing.   This shower is produced by dust particles left behind by comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, which was discovered in 1861.   1822 planets beyond our solar system have now been confirmed as of March 26, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/   One of them has been confirmed to be emitting a series of radio signals, possibly produced by an alien civilization, on 27.185 MHz.   Oh, “April Fool” by the way…   ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………   This month’s meeting will be on April 14 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport.   If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone.  The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083. Hope to see you there! Mark / WD4NYL Editor ALERT Newsletter   www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/   Mark’s Weatherlynx Weather Resource Database

I hope all of you fared well during our recent snowstorm. While some areas received up to a foot of snow, I received a glorious half inch, which still made for a good snowball or two. Hopefully the next round, which is threatening ice, will prove to be a minor event or non-event. The good news is that warm weather is just around the corner. It’s just a matter of time. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… Cooking Methods During Power Outages Recently as we were looking ahead toward our first round of winter weather problems I posted the following on Facebook: “If you are going to prep for the possible coming winter weather event, might I suggest you forget the bread and milk and instead get canned food requiring no cooking, such as chili, stew, soup, etc., and some “comfort food” like cookies and chips. Grab some extra batteries, toilet paper and food for the pets. And, remember this will be very short lived situation.” This message was well received and I obtained useful feedback both on online and off. One interesting comment I received was “you ever ate cold stew…yuck”, pointing out the value of sandwiches and milk to wash them down. This reminded me that, while I have ways to heat food and boil water during an emergency, many may not have the equipment or have no knowledge of how to cook “off the grid”. This being the case I wanted to make a few hints and suggestions which might prove useful for your emergency Two things I should point out. The first being that winter weather emergencies in Alabama are very short lived events, 72 hours after the event it may be 60 or 70 degrees outside. The second thing being that in a short term emergency (which I define as 72 hours or less), unless you have specific medical needs, food is really a minor consideration. Here I will quote a rule known as the “Rule Of Threes”: “During an emergency or survival situation, You can die within three seconds from hasty unwise decisions made during a panic. You will begin dying within three minutes without oxygen. You will begin dying within three hours without shelter. You will begin dying within three days without water. You will need food after three weeks”. Three days – 72 hours without food will not kill you. To roughly quote author J Wayne Fears, “just think this: ‘what a great opportunity to start that diet I’ve been thinking about.’” Everyone has gone without food for two or three days before and survived. When? You may ask. Do you remember that time when you were so sick that you were sure you were throwing up vital Everything, including air made you wretch – from both ends. You felt like you were dying, looked even worse, didn’t even want to hear the word “food” and yet you are alive and reading this. Consider you were in a physically compromised condition, feverish, probably dehydrated, could not eat, barely could drink and yet you survived. Why, should you expect to not be able to do the same thing again during an emergency? It is really the FEAR of lack of food, rather than the actual lack of food that people react to. Certainly you would feel miserable at first without your regular meals, and I’m not suggesting that you make no preparations, but, if you don’t, you won’t become skeletal after missing a few biscuits for a You absolutely should prepare and preferably do this well in advance of ANY potential problems, whether it is tornadoes, winter weather or common sicknesses and injuries that may temporarily disable you. And, you should certainly have extra food on hand for children. Before we look at a few ways to heat up your chow during a blackout, I’ll give a word of caution! Outdoor grills and stoves should not be used indoors. This is due to carbon monoxide dangers, and fire dangers, both from the actual fire or from spilled or leaking fuel. They can be used on the porch, or deck or other well ventilated areas, as long as you are careful not to set the deck on fire. Always think “safety first”. Now let’s look at some cooking options, starting with indoor solutions. PORTABLE BUTANE TABLETOP “BISTRO” STOVE These stoves, sold under the brand names Coleman, Camp Chef, Sterno and others are very portable, weighing only 3 1⁄2 pounds, produces 8000 BTUs of heat and are suitable for indoor or outdoor use. It is not uncommon to see these in use in grocery stores for cooking and food demonstrations. The stove operates using an 8.8oz butane cylinder, about the size of a small can of hair spray. These canisters will last over an hour at full continuous burn, around 3 hours at low to moderate continuous burn and even longer if used for shorter burn times. The stove will handle up to a 10 inch pot or skillet. The stove costs, depending on the brand and the store you choose, from $20-$30 and the cylinder prices vary widely from $3 per cylinder to 4 cylinders for $6. So for less than $40 you can have a reliable backup stove. My setup cost $26, fuel and everything. STERNO OR “CANNED HEAT” These canisters are basically a candle in a can. The candle is made from denatured alcohol and jellied alcohol. It is designed to be burned directly from the can and is widely used by restaurants for buffet heating and for heating chafing dishes. They are lit just like a candle and placed directly on the table under the chafing dishes, which are elevated a couple of inches to receive maximum heat. These are reusable, and I see these used at work almost daily during buffets. They come in small and large sizes, and an optional foldable “stove”, which is basically a frame to hold the candle and support a pot, is available. Prices vary with size and store, but, a typical price would be $20 for 12 pack of 6 hour cans. OUTDOOR SOLUTIONS When warm weather returns, outdoor solutions become viable. Some quick suggestions would be: These stoves, commonly called “Coleman stoves” have been used for generations by campers. The “traditional” stove has two burners and run off of “white gas”, also called “camp fuel” used for camp stoves and lanterns, usually consisting of naphtha. Regardless of brand, and there are many, these stoves can be a little messy when fueling, but, work well and can cook anything that a regular stove can cook. There are also “dual fuel” models, which can run off of camp fuel or gasoline, and there are propane models available also. Prices range widely up to $179 depending on store, brand and luck. Other warm weather options would be your trusty Charcoal BBQ Grill or a Fire Pit, which you probably are familiar with. Lastly I would give honorable mention to an old fashion Camp Fire. A couple of years ago I ran a short series of articles in this newsletter called “The 5 Main Ways To Push Up Daisies In A Disaster & How To Avoid Them” and I mentioned “Miss Julie”. “Miss Julie” is originally from the Philippines. She and her husband survived the April 27th, 2011 tornado. She told me that after three days without power she told her husband “when I was little girl, we used to cook by campfire in the back yard, so my husband built a fire and we had hot soup!” If it worked for “Miss Julie”, this will work for you also. Think about these solutions, and consider making these a part of your emergency equipment so you can have the comfort of warm food on a very dark stormy night. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Top Ten Amateur Radio Countries (From N0HR.com per IARU statistics) Rank Country Ham Population 1. Japan 1296059 2. United States 679854 3. Thailand 141241 4. South Korea 141000 5. Germany 79666 6. Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) 68692 7. Spain 58700 8. United Kingdom 58426 9. Canada 44024 10. Russia 38000 ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… February ALERT Sunday Night Net Report Our net meets each Sunday at 7 PM local time on 146.88 MHz and all are invited to participate. If you haven’t checked in before or if has been a while, I invite you to join us! Date Net Control QNI QTC Feb 1 WD4NYL 38 0 Feb 8 KK4NGD 44 0 Feb 15 N4HEY 37 0 Feb 22 WD4NYL 51 0 ————————————————- MONTHLY TOTAL 170 0 ————————————————- YEARLY TOTAL 390 0 Note: QNI = Check-ins & QTC = National Traffic System formal radiogram traffic. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Originally called Martius, March is the third month & first month of the Roman calendar. March is named for Mars, the god of war, and was the start of the military campaign season. The beginning of “Meteorological Spring”, which is based on changes in temperature and precipitation, not the solar angle, is March 1 March is a wet month. Most floods occur in March and rainfall averages around 6 inches. Tornadic activity sharply increases in March with there being an increase of 2.2 times the number of tornadoes over the February amount. The focal point for this tornadic activity is the Gulf States. March is the hail maximum for the Deep South. This is due both to the number of thunderstorms & due to the freezing level still being near the surface. This allows hail to form at lower altitudes and reach the ground intact, as opposed to summer months, when the near surface level temperatures are higher and melts the hail into liquid before impact. Killing frosts are gone and the last average frost is on March 16. March is a snow month for Alabama & there is a 45% chance of snow up to one inch, and an 8% chance of one inch or more. The good news is that there is hope on the horizon as Spring will arrive at Vernal Equinox on March 20 at 22:45 UTC or 5:45 P.M. CDT. Remember to get the eggs out, as it is said that you can stand eggs on their ends at the hour of Daylight Savings Time begins at 2 AM on March 8. So remember to “spring forward” one hour. This, of course means I will lose one hour of “beauty sleep”, which is something I desperately need. Saint Patrick’s Day is March 17, and you better participate by wearing a Touch O’ The Green or you will be plagued by leprechauns and gnomes. Not a pleasant experience, I can assure you. Looking skyward, Mercury glimmers just above the east-southeast horizon in the early dawn. Venus and Mars appear very close together in the west-southwest at evening twilight. On March 20 a trio will be formed as the crescent moon joins them in the evening twilight. Mars and Venus will have their closest approach to each other on March 21, with Mars just to the upper right of brilliant Venus. Giant Jupiter rises in the east-northeast at twilight in western Leo and by 10 PM is near maximum Saturn at the head of Scorpius the Scorpion rises around 2 AM. Uranus in Pisces is getting low in the west just after dark, to the upper left of Venus and Mars. Neptune is hidden behind the sun. Full Moon will occur on March 5 at 18:06 UTC or 12:06 PM CST. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes “Worm Moon”. So called because the rains disturb the earthworms & they are seen wiggling around after the rains. They are edible by the way, but I think I’ll let you have my share. Incidentally slugs are edible also. Just think of them as snails without the shell New Moon will occur March 20 at 9:35 UTC or 4:35 AM CDT. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere. At that time, if you happen to be in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans near Greenland, Iceland or the islands off Northern Russia you will have the opportunity to view a total solar eclipse. The greatest eclipse will occur around 9:46 UTC in the waters southeast of Iceland. This will of course occur at 4:46 AM in the dark here, which thrills me to no end. On March 6 the US space probe Dawn will arrive at Ceres. Ceres is the largest object located in the main asteroid belt between Mars & Jupiter. At 590 miles across, nicely rounded by gravity in a process known as “hydrostatic equilibrium” and having cleared most of its immediate area of other objects, it qualifies as a “Dwarf Planet”. Another probe, New Horizons, will reach Dwarf Planet Pluto on July 14, 2015. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) currently recognizes five Dwarf Planet in our solar system: Ceres, Pluto, Haumea, Makemake & Eris. Other probable Dwarf Planets are 2007OR, Quaoar, Sedna, Orcus, 200 MS4 and Salacia. There are probably hundreds, maybe thousands more lurking in the dark regions beyond Neptune and the distant edge of the solar system at the borders of Beyond our star system, 1819 planets have been confirmed as of February 26, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/ I don’t try to keep up with the 676,205 “minor planets” or asteroids floating around. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… This month’s meeting will be on February 10 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport. If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083. Remember the Birmingham Hamfest, March 7 & 8! Hope to see you there! www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/ Weather Resource Database

Hi Everyone, I hope this finds you well this Groundhog Day. So far this winter we have been able to miss the winter weather that our friends up north are dealing with. Remember that Alabama winter weather can creep upon us unexpectedly, even into March. Regardless, spring is drawing closer every day. But, until it arrives, bundle up, grab some hot chocolate and think warm thoughts this cold shivery night. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… ALERT Sunday Night Net Beginning this month I will include the monthly net statistics for the ALERT Sunday Night Net. Our net meets each Sunday at 7 PM local time on 146.88 MHz and all are invited to participate. If you haven’t checked in before or if has been a while, I invite you to join us! January ALERT Sunday Night Net Report Date Net Control QNI QTC Jan 4 N4HEY 67 * 0 Jan 11 KK4NGD 51 0 Jan 18 WD4NYL 50 0 Jan 25 KK4NGD 52 0 ————————————————- MONTHLY TOTAL 220 0 ————————————————- YEARLY TOTAL 220 0 * Ties WD4NYL for most check-ins. Note: QNI = Check-ins & QTC = National Traffic System formal radiogram traffic. Let’s talk about nets, for a moment. There are many types of Nets. There are emergency nets for emergency preparedness and response, DX nets, which alert stations to rare DX finds on HF, rag chew nets, where everyone gives updates on what is happening in their world, and NTS traffic nets, passing radiograms all over North America. The ASNN was designed to be a “discussion Net”. Where any topic related to Amateur Radio could be discussed. It is also a “training net”, and training topics are occasionally presented during the “discussion” time after the announcements and swap shop items have been passed. While the ASNN is not a formal traffic net, we can and do accept NTS traffic. Normally, if someone indicates they have formal NTS traffic, the Net Control will ask if anyone if is going to the state Section Nets who can carry the traffic to them. For instance, if I am available, I can take it and pass it on HF. If no one is available and the NCS cannot relay the traffic himself, by necessity the traffic would have to be deferred to another net. How does the NTS system work anyway? Let’s explore this for a few moments. As an example of how NTS traffic is relayed, let’s assume I have traffic for Atlanta. Normally I won’t put this on a two meter net, as I have HF capability. But, on our example we will assume I didn’t. I check into the local net and list my traffic. “I have one piece of format traffic for Georgia”. The NCS calls for a volunteer to take the traffic to one of the section nets. The Alabama NTS Section Nets are: Alabama Day Net 3965 MHz LSB 10:00 AM CST Alabama Traffic Net Mike 3965 MHz LSB 6:30 PM CST Daily & 8:00 AM Sunday Alabama Section Net 3575 MHz CW 7:00 PM Daily There are also NTS Nets using digital modes, for those with that station capability. I send the message to the volunteer, which should be in a format similar to this example, which I obtained courtesy of the North Carolina ARRL NCARR. http://www.ncarrl.org/index.html ARRL RADIOGRAM FORMAT GENERAL Follows is a description of the different parts of the Amateur Radio Message format. Some sections are OPTIONAL, and I recommend they not be used, unless needed. The use of this pre-printed message form from ARRL is NOT necessary for handling traffic. Use any paper you seem appropriate. MESSAGE NUMBER (Mandatory) This can be any number the originating station chooses. Most start with 1 the first of each year. Once a message is numbered, that same number remains with the message until it is delivered. Example: NR 1 PRECEDENCE (Mandatory) The Precedence of the Message determines what order the messages will be handled. The following four precedence’s are used in ascending order of priority: ROUTINE (R on CW) 99.99% of all messages have this precedence. These messages will be handled last. WELFARE (W on CW) This message is either an inquiry to the health and welfare of an individual in a disaster area or a report of the health and welfare of an individual. These messages will be handled before ROUTINE traffic. PRIORITY (P on CW) These are messages have specific time limits. They are also for Official messages, not covered in the EMERGENCY category. This traffic will be handled before WELFARE or ROUTINE. EMERGENCY (EMERGENCY on CW) This is any message having life and death urgency to any person or group of persons, which is transmitted by Amateur Radio in the absence of regular communication facilities. When in doubt, do NOT use this precedence. This traffic will be handled first and immediately. Example: NR 1 R (for Routine) HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS (Optional) Handling Instructions are sometimes used to tell the various stations along the way, what the desires of the originating station are. If not needed, it is best not to use. On phone: the sending station would say, “HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS n”, n explained below. On CW: Send HXn. HXA (Followed by a number) Collect landline delivery authorized by the by addressee within … miles. (If no number, authorization is unlimited). HXB (Followed by a number) Cancel message if not delivered within … hours of filing time; service originating station. HXC Report the time and date of delivery to originating station. HXD Report to the originating station the identity of the station from which you received, plus time and date. Report the identity of the station to which it was relayed, plus time and date, or if delivered report time and date of delivery. HXE Delivering station get a reply from the addressee, and originate a message back. HXF (Followed by number) Hold delivery until … (date). HXG Delivery by mail or landline toll call not required. If toll or other expense involved, cancel message and service originating station. Example: NR 1 R HXG STATION OF ORIGIN (Mandatory) This is the call sign of the Amateur Radio Station generating (originating) this message. This call sign, along with the message number, serve as the “serial number” of this message. Any future reference to this message would be: “Number nn of CALL nn4nnn”. Example: NR 1 R K4IWW CHECK (Mandatory) This is a count of the number of words used in the TEXT (only) of the message. Words in the address or signature are NOT counted. Groups of figures, letters, combinations of figures and letters, and “X” are counted as words. This is the method that Amateurs use to make sure that the TEXT was received without error. Both the sender and receiver should end up with the same word count (CHECK). Example: NR 1 R K4IWW 12 (If the check has a prefix ARL, the letters ARL indicates that the message includes ARRL Numbered Radiogram text. The letters ARL are also inserted in the text before the ARRL message number that represents the text from the list. Note that ARRL message numbers must be spelled out (e.g., FORTY SIX) and are counted as words for the check. For example, ARL FORTY SIX is counted as 3 words. For example, the following message includes ARRL Numbered Radiogram text: ARL Sixty One, by the way, means “Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.” ARRL Numbered Radiograms are as follows: Group 1 for Possible Emergency Use ARL ONE – Everyone is safe here. Please don’t worry. ARL TWO – Coming home as soon as possible. ARL THREE – Am in ________ hospital. Receiving excellent care and recovering fine. ARL FOUR – Only slight property damage. Do not be concerned about disaster reports. ARL FIVE – Am moving to a new location. Send no further mail. Will inform you of new address when relocated. ARL SIX – Will contact you ASAP. ARL SEVEN – Please reply by Amateur Radio through the Amateur delivering this message. This is a free public service. ARL EIGHT – Need additional ________ mobile or portable equipment for immediate emergency use. ARL NINE – Additional ________ radio operators needed to assist with emergency at this location. ARL TEN – Please contact ________. Advise to stand by and provide further information, instructions, or assistance. ARL ELEVEN – Establish Amateur Radio emergency communications with ________ on ________ MHz. ARL TWELVE – Anxious to hear from you. No word in some time. Please contact me as soon as possible. ARL THIRTEEN – Medical emergency situation exists here. ARL FOURTEEN – Situation here is becoming critical. Losses and damage from ________ increasing. ARL FIFTEEN – Please advise your condition and what help is needed. ARL SIXTEEN – Property damage very severe in this area. ARL SEVENTEEN – REACT communications services is also available. Establish REACT communication with ________ on channel ________. ARL EIGHTEEN – Please contact me as soon as possible at ________. ARL NINETEEN – Request Health and welfare report on ________ (Name, Address, Phone). ARL TWENTY – Temporarily stranded. Will need some assistance. Please contact me at ________. ARL TWENTY ONE – Search and rescue assistance is needed by local authorities here. Advise availability. ARL TWENTY TWO – Need accurate information on the extent and type of conditions now existing at your location. Please furnish this information and reply without delay. ARL TWENTY THREE – Report at once the accessibility and best way to reach your location. ARL TWENTY FOUR – Evacuation of residents from this area urgently needed. Advise plans for help. ARL TWENTY FIVE – Furnish as soon as possible the weather conditions at your location. ARL TWENTY SIX- Help and care for evacuation of sick and injured from this location needed at once. Group 2 for Routine Messages ARL FORTY SIX – Greetings on your birthday and best wishes for many more to come. ARL FIFTY – Greetings by Amateur Radio. ARL FIFTY ONE – Greetings by Amateur Radio. This message is sent as a free public service by ham radio operators at ______. Am having a wonderful time. ARL FIFTY TWO – Really enjoyed being with you. Looking forward to getting together again. ARL FIFTY THREE – Received your _____. It’s appreciated, many thanks. ARL FIFTY FOUR – Many thanks for your good wishes. ARL FIFTY FIVE – Good news is always welcome. Very delighted to hear about yours. ARL FIFTY SIX – Congratulations on your _______, a most worthy and deserving achievement. ARL FIFTY SEVEN – Wish we could be together. ARL FIFTY EIGHT – Have a wonderful time. let us know when you return. ARL FIFTY NINE – Congratulations on the new arrival. Hope mother and child are well. ARL SIXTY – Wishing you the best of everything on ______. ARL SIXTY ONE – Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. ARL SIXTY TWO – Greetings and best wishes to you for a pleasant holiday season. ARL SIXTY THREE – Victory or defeat, our best wishes are with you. Hope you win. ARL SIXTY FOUR – Arrived safely at ______. ARL SIXTY FIVE – Arriving ______ on ______. Please arrange to meet me there. ARL SIXTY SIX – DX QSLs are on hand for you at the ______ QSL Bureau. Send ______ self addressed envelopes. ARL SIXTY SEVEN – Your message number ______ undeliverable because of ______. Please advise. ARL SIXTY EIGHT – Sorry to hear you are ill. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. ARL SIXTY NINE – Welcome to the ______. We are glad to have you with us and hope you will enjoy the fun and fellowship of the organization.) PLACE OF ORIGIN (Mandatory) This field is the City and State of either the Station of Origin or the person in the Signature. In most cases, this will be the same place. Example: NR 1 R K4IWW 12 CARY NC TIME FILED (Optional) The time the message was originated. You may either use UTC or Local time. Examples: 1615Z or 1115 EST. Most messages do NOT use this field. It is only useful if the message has a short time value. Example: NR 1 R K4IWW 12 CARY NC 1615Z DATE (Mandatory) This is the date the message was originated. In Amateur Radio, we use month and day. The year is NOT used. If the message is over a year old, it should be sent to the circular file. Example: NR 1 R K4IWW 12 CARY NC 1615Z DEC 20 ADDRESSEE (Mandatory) The name(s) and address of the person to which this message is going. It looks like the address on an envelope used in snail mail. Include a phone number, if you have it. The more information here, the easier the delivery will be. Example: JOHN Q PUBLIC 1234 MAPLE AVE ANYTOWN NC 27000 919 555 1234 DELIVERING STATION INFO (Optional) This section is rarely used. If the message is to be mailed or hand delivered, it is nice to put your (the delivering station) info here so the addressee can reach you if there is any question, or they want to send a return message. Most messages are delivered by phone. TEXT (Mandatory) Finally! This is the message you are sending for the signature person to the addressee. It should be short (usually less than 25 words) and in telegram style. No punctuation is used. The letter “X” is used (similar to STOP in telegrams) to end one idea and start another. Many messages do not even have an “X” in them. Example: ARRIVE 7PM DEC 24 X LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU X LOVE The above TEXT has a count of 12. So the CHECK is 12. As Amateur Radio is non-commercial, the TEXT should have no commercial value. Each Radio Amateur is the judge of what is commercial and what is not. SIGNATURE (Mandatory) This is the name if the person sending the message. It may be the name or call of the originating station. However, it is usually the name of a “third party”, for whom the originating station is generating the message. Example: BETTY M PUBLIC RECEIVED (Optional) This is for the handling station to write down whom they received the message from. This field is only for the book keeping of the handling station. SENT (Optional) This is for the handling station to write down whom they sent the message to. This field is only for the book keeping of the handling station. (Many thanks to the NCARRL Organization for their permission to use the preceding article, which was written by Will Harper K4IWW) Back to our example of traffic handling on our local nets, the volunteer who received my traffic carries the traffic to one of the section nets. From whichever Section Net he goes to, the out of state traffic is then carried onward from the Section net to the Fifth Region Nets either DRN5 or RN5. These nets which operate on 75 and 40 Meters, using are both LSB and high speed CW. Why exactly Alabama is in the NTS Fifth Region with New Mexico and Texas, instead of the Fourth Region with Tennessee and Georgia I’ve never figured out. From the Region Net the traffic is carried to the Central Area Net or CAN, covering the Central Time Zone of the US and Canada, on 75, 40 and 20 Meters. The traffic is then carried to the Transcontinental Corps, which sends it to the EAN or Eastern Area Net, covering the Eastern Time Zone and then onward to the Fourth Region Net and then to one of the Georgia Section Nets, such as the Georgia Single Sideband Net and finally to a ham in Atlanta who phones the addressee and cheerfully gives him the message and usually asks if they wish to send a reply. If they do, the entire process is repeated in reverse order. This may sound like a laborious, complicated, time consuming process, but, actually it is a very efficient, time tested, well-oiled system, which has been in operation for many decades and has proven vital during disasters. The usual transit time from point of origin to point of delivery is 24 hours or less. Traffic nets are fun, by the way. I “cut my teeth” net wise on the Alabama Section Nets and was Net Manager of the old Alabama Emergency Net Delta slow speed CW Section Net, and liaison to the ASN, ATNM and RN5 Nets. So, if you have HF capability, I would urge you to give it a try! For more information on the NTS see http://www.arrl.org/nts …………………………………………………………………………. Mark’s Almanac February, or Februarius, as the Romans called it is named after the Latin term februum, which means “purification”. Ancient Rome celebrated the Februa purification ritual on February 15, which was Full Moon on the old lunar based Latin calendar. February was not originally included in the Roman calendar, which began in March, but was added, along with January by Numa Pompilius around 713 BC, and until 450 BC was considered the last month of the year. February was originally 29 days long, but one day was taken and added to August, so the that Emperor Augustus’s month would be equal to Julius Caesar’s month of July. Now only Leap Year has 29 days, the next of which will occur in 2016. In the Southern Hemisphere February is the equivalent of August. But, for us, February is a cold month with more snow falling in February than in any other month. Statistically speaking, there is a 70% chance of snow flurries, and a 57% chance of snow up to one inch. There is a 13% chance of over one inch, and a 3% chance of 4 inches or more. There is hope on the horizon though, as the worst of winter weather is usually over by February 15. Ground Hog Day is on February 2 & believers will watch Punxsutawney Phil and Birmingham Bill, to see if they saw their shadows. Looking skyward, Mercury has disappeared into the glow of sunset. Venus shines in the west-southwest in evening twilight and is gradually getting higher each week and will be a brilliant “Evening Star” by spring. Mars in Aquarius glows in the Southwest at dusk, to the upper right of Venus and sets around 8PM. Venus and Mars will be visible within only half a degree of each other, or half a little finger diameter at arm length, in the evening sky on February 22. Look for this impressive sight in the west just after sunset. Giant Jupiter rises in the east-northeast at twilight in western Leo and by 9 PM is brightly in the east. The giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth on February 6. If you have a telescope, this will be a great time to bundle up and look at the Jovian system, as his moons change position nightly and you see the cloud bands on another world, so close, yet so very far away. Saturn at the head of Scorpius the Scorpion is well up in the southeastern before and during dawn. Uranus in Pisces is in the southwest right after dark. Neptune in Aquarius is sinking into the evening twilight. Full Moon will occur on February 3 at 5:09 PM CST. This full moon was known by early Native American tribes as the Full Snow Moon because the heaviest snows usually fell during this time of the year. Since hunting is difficult, this moon has also been known by some tribes as the Full Hunger Moon or Cold Moon New Moon will occur February 18 at 5:47 PM CST. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere. The February sky is alit with bright stars. With Orion the Hunter overhead, along with his faithful hunting dogs, Canis Major & Canis Minor, the Large & Lesser Dogs. In Canis Major is the blue star Sirius, The Dog Star, which 8.6 light years away, is the brightest star in the night sky. February and March are the best times of the year for seeing the Zodiacal Light. In the evening away from city lights and after twilight has faded you might see a faint, roughly triangular, whitish glow near the sunset point. This is Zodiacal Light, which is formed by the sunlight reflecting off millions of minute particles of cosmic dust aligned with the Earth’s orbital plane. Another sight, much more common is the Earth Shadow. At sunset, on very clear days, as the sun goes farther below the horizon, you will see what appears to be a layer of gray cloud rising along the eastern horizon. This is actually the silhouette of the earth’s shadow being cast against darkening sky, sometimes with a pinkish glow along the edge. It fades as twilight fades into darkness. 1810 planets have been confirmed beyond our star system as of January 29, per NASA’s Exoplanet Archive http://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/ ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… This month’s meeting will be on February 10 at 7PM at the National Weather Service Forecast office at the Shelby County Airport. If for some reason you cannot attend the meeting in person, you can still participate via telephone. The teleconference number is 1-877-951-0997 & and the participant code is 741083. Birmingham Hamfest is only five weeks away, March 7 & 8! Hope to see you there! Mark / WD4NYL Editor ALERT Newsletter www.freewebs.com/weatherlynx/ Mark’s Weatherlynx Weather Resource Database