In case you haven't heard... On August 21, 2917, a total solar eclipse will cause the shadow of the moon to traverse the United States from Oregon to South Carolina!
(Omaha is not in the path of totality, but will see a partial eclipse of 98%. )
Although the ionospheric effects of solar eclipses have been studied for over 50 years, many unanswered questions remain. HamSCI, a Ham Radio Citizen Science Investication, is inviting amateur radio operators to participate in a large-scale experiment which will characterize the ionospheric response to the total solar eclipse and target open science questions. HamSci is sponsoring the Solar Eclipse QSO Party which will take place on August 21, before, during and after the event. The data from the QSO Party will be used to Study the effect of the eclipse on radio wave propagation.
Would you like to participate? The Ak-Sar-Ben Amateur Radio Club has been invited to Homestead National Monument of America to participate in their activities, and will be active on HF on August 21, 2017. Homestead National Monument is one of NASA's official viewing sites, and is also playing host to several organizations and PBS Science programs.
The AARC will be an active participant in the Solar Eclipse QSO Party. Our footprint will be small, much like a National Parks on the Air activation. Our exact location is still pending, but Homestead staff is trying their best to keep us front and center. So hopefully we can get some interest and educate a few folks about amateur radio.
There are lots of activities at the park for kids of all ages, so if you are looking for a great place to watch the eclipse, Homestead should be on that list. The K0USA team would welcome some relief operators, loggers and people to talk to curious people walking by, so please consider coming down. However, this is no parking allowed on the property that day. But there are free shuttles from Beatrice (only 4 miles away) which start running at 6:00 am and running until 6:00 pm. There is lots of free parking available in Beatrice. (There will be programs by NASA and lot of other things going on in Beatrice as well)
Even arriving earlier than 6:00 am will not get you parking on the site any vehicles parked at the site need to be removed prior to 6:00 am on 08/21. At this point even the K0USA team does not have parking priveleges on the park grounds. Members of this team do have a lot of experience traveling light after a year of National Parks on the Air, so a quick drop off of equipment should be all that is needed, and the truck will need to be parked off site and the driver shuttled back to Homestead. If you think you are coming.. send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let them know. If you plan go to Homestead then please review their rules and parking and shuttle information. There will be food vendors on site, but it is recommended you at least take snacks and a refillable water bottle.
But, if you can't, or don't want to travel to see the eclipse, you can still help out by getting on the air with the Solar Eclipse QSO Party, a contest-like operating event designed to generate data for studying the eclipse! There are also a LOT of other Special Events going on on the air that day. Several are listed at: http://www.arrl.org/news/many-special-events-will-be-on-the-air-to-mark-the-total-solar-eclipse-in-august . If you have APRS.. check out this link http://www.hamsci.org/article/aprs-and-total-solar-eclipse - Event Nuts and Volts magazine has an article about various projects: http://www.nutsvolts.com/magazine/article/the-solar-eclipse-and-ham-radio - Look for How Can You Participate near the bottom of the article. As well as http://www.hamsci.org/projects/2017-total-solar-eclipse/get-involved.