HamSCI 2025

Workshop Agenda

Program

The 8th annual HamSCI Workshop is upon us! Join us at the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) in Newark, NJ, on March 14-15, 2025. We're excited to welcome you to this fast-growing meeting. Organizers have worked hard to put together a memorable two-day event.

This year's theme, "HamSCI's Big Year," celebrates the community's achievements, including the Festivals of Eclipse Ionospheric Science (FOEIS) during the 2023 annular and 2024 total solar eclipses. The workshop features over 50 poster and oral presentations, five HamSCI tutorials, and a keynote address by ARRL's Bob Inderbitzen (NQ1R) at the HamSCI Banquet on Friday March 14th. 

The program will focus on the latest findings, strategy, and best practices, and is designed to bring together the amateur radio community and professional scientists. Anyone interested in these subject matter topics is welcome to join.  Most speakers and attendees will participate in-person.  A virtual option will be available (use Zoom registration button above).

Connect and share ideas with scientific industry leaders, peers, experts, and partners. Learn about the latest insights and best practices across different segments of ionospheric science. Get an in-depth look at what is coming next.   Click on the 'Workshop Agenda' button for details.

Friday Keynote:  Bob Inderbitzen (NQ1R), Director of Marketing and Innovation, American Radio Relay League

Abstract: Bob will share his vision for a more active and engaged Amateur Radio Service, exploring how the ham radio community can inspire others to develop a deeper understanding for wireless communications. Through personal stories, ARRL initiatives, and a spotlight on some of the brightest areas of amateur radio activity, Bob will illustrates how the service acts as a "sandbox" for introducing the public to the world of radio, while nurturing the next generation of innovators in radio science and technology.

Biography: Bob is the Director of Marketing and Communications for ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®. A ham since 1981, Bob has spent his life promoting amateur radio and supporting the community. He joined the ARRL staff in 1991 and has played pivotal roles in enhancing ARRL’s visibility and outreach, supporting members, volunteers, and a growing amateur radio community. Bob is passionate about engaging new hams and youth, creating opportunities for them to become more active. He enjoys HF operating, digital modes, portable and remote operating, and radiosport (PJ4/NQ1R). He lives in Glastonbury, Connecticut, with his family.

Invited Tutorial:  Dr. Lynn Harvey, Research Scientist, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder

Abstract: In the polar regions, the wintertime polar vortices play a critical role in "bottom-up" atmosphere-ionosphere coupling via the generation and modulation of atmospheric gravity waves (GWs) and via interactions with planetary waves (PWs). This talk will first present a tutorial on the polar vortex: why it forms, where and when it exists, and variability in vortex strength sub-seasonally (within each winter), inter-annually (from winter-to-winter), and inter-hemispherically (in the Arctic and Antarctic). I will then present the current state of understanding regarding the role of the polar vortex in coupling different atmospheric layers via “bottom-up” processes. In the last decade it has become widely accepted that PW-driven sudden stratospheric warmings (SSWs) cause variability in the thermosphere-ionosphere system. Recent results demonstrate that strong polar vortex events result in variability of the opposite sign than is observed during SSWs. In addition, the geographic distribution of smaller-scale GWs depends on the strength and shape of the polar vortex. The polar vortices act to vertically couple the atmosphere from the troposphere to geospace by changing the background wind field through which GWs propagate. Recent work demonstrates that localized jet cores around the polar vortex also act as a middle atmosphere source for GWs. Vortex modulation and generation of atmospheric GWs then impact the abundance of traveling ionospheric disturbances that may impact Ham radio communications.

Biography: Dr. Harvey received her doctorate in atmospheric and oceanic sciences from the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 2001. Her PhD focused on the numerical identification of stratospheric vortices, thus her scientific expertise is rooted in the neutral atmosphere. She did a postdoc at NASA Langley and has been a Research Scientist at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado in Boulder for over 20 years where she is a world expert in studies of the polar vortices. She has published 120 peer-reviewed manuscripts on topics covering the general circulation, wave dynamics and transport of trace gases in the stratosphere, mesosphere, and lower-thermosphere. Her recent work focuses on how the polar vortex acts to couple the Sun-Earth system from the top down via the descent of nitrogen oxides produced by energetic particle precipitation and from the bottom up via the upward propagation of waves that drive variability in the thermosphere and ionosphere. 

Invited Tutorial:  Steve Cerwin (WA5FRF), Retired Institute Scientist, Southwest Research Institute

Abstract: Steve's tutorial will give a basic overview of radio propagation and the fundamentals of antennas. Topics include The Nature of Radio Waves, Dipole Antenna Characteristics, Line of Sight Propagation, Diffraction and Multipath Interference, What a BALUN does, The Isotropic Antenna and Concept of Gain, Examples of Gain Producing Antennas and How They Work, Transmission Line Basics, and Selected Antenna Stories.

Biography: Steve Cerwin, WA5FRF, is an experimental physicist with over 45 years’ experience in designing and building custom instrumentation systems spanning a wide range of disciplines. He spent 38 years at Southwest Research Institute, retiring as an Institute Scientist in 2008. While at the Institute he also taught Advanced Electronic Design and the associated lab at St. Mary's University as an evening course for 15 years. He is still a Technical Advisor for the Institute, operates his own consulting business, and teaches week-long, hands-on antenna courses. He attributes his career in science to an early start in ham radio. Hobbies include ham radio, scuba diving, and flying both full scale and RC model aircraft.

Invited Tutorial:  Derek Kozel (K0ZEL / MW0LNA), GNU Radio Leadership Team

Abstract: Introduction to GNU Radio

Biography:  Derek is an electrical engineer with a particular passion for embedded sytems, RF communications, and aerospace applications. His PhD research involves High Efficiency RF Power Amplifier design using Load Modulation techniques. He is an Amateur Radio operator currently focusing on the design and construction of systems for microwave bands. Prior work included work on Software Defined cellular basestation radios and developing low power sensor nodes. His masters work and courses involved evolutionary algorithms and low power computer architecture and software design.  When not playing with something with bits or volts he enjoys cycling, diving, and gardening.

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Invited Tutorial:  Dr. Louis Lanzerotti, Distinguished Research Professor, CSTR, New Jersey Institute of Technology

Abstract: Dr. Lanzerotti's distiguished career will provide numerous opportunities to enlighten banquet attendees on the history of space weather research.

Biography:  Louis Lanzerotti has degrees in engineering physics and in physics from the University of Illinois (BS) and Harvard University (MA & PhD). He was a distinguished member of technical staff at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, NJ, for 37 years and is now a distinguished research professor in physics at NJIT. He has been elected a Fellow of five scientific societies and elected to the International Academy of Astronautics and the National Academy of Engineering. He has co- edited and co-authored eight books and has eight patents issued. He is an Eagle Scout.

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION
 

The abstract submission window for the 2025 HamSCI Workshop closed on February 10, 2025.  Questions regarding submissions, formats and deadlines should be addressed to the HamSCI mailbox.

Presentation and posters have been received from all sectors of the HamSCI community:

• Professional researchers
• Academics / Educators
• Students, at all academic career levels
• Citizen scientist volunteers, including, of course, the ham radio community

Topics include:

• Observations and findings from HamSCI's Festivals of Eclipse Ionospheric Science
• Personal Space Weather Station project updates
• Data management and visualization techniques
• Radio wave propagation modeling
• The applicability of HamSCI's research to amateur radio operations
• General interest topics, e.g. from the arts, literature, history, with an amateur radio, science or technology theme.