[3830] ARRL FD WD9EWK 1B LP

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                    ARRL Field Day - 2023

Call: WD9EWK
Operator(s): WD9EWK
Station: WD9EWK

Class: 1B LP
QTH: Arizona
Operating Time (hrs): 6

Summary:
 Band  CW Qs  Ph Qs  Dig Qs
----------------------------
  160:                   
   80:                   
   40:                   
   20:                   
   15:                   
   10:                   
    6:                   
    2:                   
  222:                   
  432:                   
  903:                   
  1.2:                   
  2.3:                   
  3.4:                   
  5.7:                   
  10G:                   
  24G:                   
----------------------------
Total:   0      9       1  Total Score = 272

Club: 

Comments:

Hi!

For ARRL Field Day 2023, I operated using a portable station outside my house. I
did this in 2022, but for 2023 I used different radios - an Icom ID-5100 and
Icom ID-4100 for working FM satellites, and a Kenwood TH-D74 for packet via the
ISS 145.825 packet digipeater. Other than the ISS digipeater, I only worked FM
satellites, and we had nine of those for this year's Field Day:

1. AO-91 (available on Sunday morning only)

2. ARISS cross-band voice repeater

3. LilacSat-2 (CAS-3H, available on Saturday afternoon/evening)

4. PO-101 (available late Saturday afternoon for western North America, also
early Sunday morning for all of North America)

5. SO-50

6. TEVEL-3

7. TEVEL-4

8. TEVEL-5

9. TEVEL-7

Having 9 FM satellites available during this Field Day may be an all-time
record. Many thanks to David Greenberg 4X1DG, command station for the TEVEL
satellites, for making 4 of them available during the Field Day weekend. 

The TEVEL-3 satellite was passing over western North America around the start of
Field Day, 1800 UTC on Saturday (24 June). There were stations making contacts
in the minutes leading up to 1800 UTC. When I saw 1800 UTC appear on my
ID-5100's clock, and also on a Casio "atomic" wristwatch, I announced
myself on the satellite - "WD9EWK, Field Day". Within seconds, I
received a call from W6ZE, the Orange County Amateur Radio Club in southern
California. We made our exchange, and both stations secured their 100-point
bonus for a satellite contact in the first minute of Field Day. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp916GqZ7WE&t=163s (TEVEL-3, link starts
this video at 1800 UTC)

After TEVEL-3 went by, the 3 other TEVEL satellites passed over western North
America in the next 35 minutes. On TEVEL-5, which came right after TEVEL-3, I
recognized a few of the operators calling me from club stations. WD9EWK made
quick contacts with them. These contacts may not have contributed to the WD9EWK
Field Day score, but those contacts helped those clubs claim their satellite QSO
bonuses. WD9EWK then worked TEVEL-7 and TEVEL-4, logging contacts on both of
them, making for a good start to Field Day at WD9EWK.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRldvezvtQg (TEVEL-5)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVtf-PJLSwY (TEVEL-7)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDNncMz8MQ4 (TEVEL-4)

About an hour after the 4 TEVEL satellites passed by, the ISS was passing over
the southwestern USA and northern Mexico. I did not listen to the cross-band
voice repeater on this pass, focusing on the 145.825 MHz packet digipeater.
There was only one station on that pass looking to make Field Day contacts,
AI6DO in southern California. Using APRS messages, WD9EWK and AI6DO completed a
packet contact through the ISS digipeater. 

Later in the afternoon, the PO-101 and LilacSat-2 (CAS-3H) satellites passed by.
I made contacts on each of them, and answered calls from other stations. After
those passes, I looked to work the 3 other FM satellites - AO-91, SO-50, and the
ISS cross-band repeater - on Sunday (25 June) morning.

On Sunday morning, I prepared for the SO-50 pass around 1535 UTC. I was able to
work KB6LTY in southern California for my points-scoring contact on this pass. I
also answered a couple of other stations. Then I was hoping to hear AO-91 active
as it passed by a half-hour later. AO-91 was on, and I was able to make a
contact on this pass. After AO-91, this left the ISS cross-band repeater as the
last FM satellite to work during Field Day. 

The ISS cross-band repeater is always popular. It transmits at 5W, 10 to 20
times the transmitter power of our other current FM satellites, making it easier
to hear. Add in Field Day, and its passes are crowded. I used the pass just
after 1700 UTC to get my final Field Day contact. About half-way into the pass,
I was able to work N0IAN in Iowa to put the ISS repeater into my log. This
completed my "clean sweep" of working all 9 FM satellites available
during Field Day. 

Just after 1800 UTC Sunday, as many stations shut down their Field Day efforts,
I heard KN6UWK from San Clemente Island in grid DM02, off the southern
California coast, looking for contacts of any sort on TEVEL-4 and TEVEL-7. San
Clemente Island is a US Navy base, and grid DM02 is extremely rare for satellite
operators and terrestrial VHF/UHF operators (especially on 6m). On satellites,
Adam K6ARK was on the mic as KN6UWK. It was nice to hear non-military visitors
on the island for Field Day. 

73!



Patrick WD9EWK/VA7EWK

(Score includes bonuses for Emergency Power, Satellite QSO, & Entry
Submitted via web. All QSOs were via satellite.)


Posted using 3830 Score Submittal Forms at: http://www.3830scores.com/