@proceedings {851, title = {CatSat: CubeSat Engineering and Communication Technologies}, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

As more spacecraft enter low-Earth orbit each year, there is an increasing need to improve the downlink speed of small satellites and understand more about the Earth{\textquoteright}s atmosphere. CatSat is a 6U CubeSat designed to test a novel inflatable antenna design and conduct ionospheric research with an onboard HF antenna. The inflatable antenna is a solution for future high speed communication with small satellites as current small satellites are limited in data transmission capabilities by stringent size and mass constraints. The HF antenna experiment will probe the Earth{\textquoteright}s ionosphere during twilight by analyzing WSPR and other HF radio transmissions from the ground. CatSat was designed and built primarily by students at the University of Arizona in partnership with Tucson companies. CatSat is fully qualified for launch in 2024. Current work involves the development of X-band and UHF ground stations and preparations for flight operations.

}, author = {Shae Henley and Walter Rahmer} } @proceedings {820, title = {Citizen Science: Development of a Low-Cost Magnetometer System for a Coordinated Space Weather Monitoring}, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

As part of Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) Personal Space Weather Station (PSWS) project, a low-cost, commercial off-the-shelf magnetometer has been developed to provide quantitative and qualitative measurements of the geospace environment from the ground for both scientific and operational purposes at a cost that will allow for crowd-sourced data contributions. The PSWS magnetometers employ a magneto-inductive sensor technology to record three-axis magnetic field variations with a field resolution of ~3 nT at a 1 Hz sample rate. Crowd-sourced data from the PSWS systems will be collected into a central archive for the purpose of public access and analyzation along with space weather research. Ultimately, data from the PSWS network will combine the magnetometer measurements with high frequency (HF, 3-30 MHz) radio observations to monitor large scale current systems and ionospheric disturbances and events due to drivers from space and the atmosphere alike. A densely-spaced magnetometer array, once established, will demonstrate their space weather monitoring capability to an unprecedented spatial extent. Magnetic field data obtained by the magnetometers installed at various locations in the US are presented and compared with the existing magnetometers nearby, demonstrating that the performance is entirely satisfactory for scientific investigations.

}, author = {Joseph Visone and Hyomin Kim and David Witten and Julius Madey and Nathaniel A. Frissell and John Gibbons and William D. Engelke and Anderson Liddle and Nicholas Muscolino and Zhaoshu Cao} } @proceedings {835, title = {Comparative Analysis of Medium Scale Travelling Ionospheric Disturbances: Grape PSWS vs. SuperDARN }, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

Medium Scale Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (MSTIDs) are periodic fluctuations in ionospheric electron density associated with atmospheric gravity waves. They are characterized by wavelengths of 50-500 kilometers and periods of 15-60 minutes. This study presents initial findings from a comparative analysis of MSTID observations sourced from two distinct systems: the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) and the Grape Personal Space Weather Station (PSWS). The Grape PSWS, developed by the Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI), is a small ground-based remote sensing device aimed at monitoring space weather parameters, including MSTIDs. It achieves this by monitoring a 10 MHz transmission from WWV, a National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) time standard station located near Fort Collins, Colorado, USA. In contrast, SuperDARN comprises a global network of high-frequency radars that offer extensive coverage of ionospheric plasma motion. This comparative investigation focuses on aligning MSTID observations obtained from Grape PSWS data with SuperDARN radar data. By investigating datasets from both platforms, these findings serve as initial results for an ongoing investigation of MSTIDs, laying the groundwork for a comprehensive understanding of their dynamics and impacts on ionospheric variability and space weather.

}, author = {Veronica I. Romanek and Nathaniel A. Frissell and Bharat Kunduri and J. Michael Ruohoniemi and Joseph Baker and William Liles and John Gibbons and Kristina Collins and David Kazdan and Rachel Boedicker} } @proceedings {822, title = {Considering the Sudden Loss of WWV{\textquoteright}s signal as seen by HamSCI Grape Stations}, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

Sudden unexplained dropouts of WWV{\textquoteright}s signal as seen by Grape stations are explained and illustrated using Maximum Usable Frequency (MUF) maps.

}, author = {George Kavanagh and Robert Reif and Stanley Pozerski and Peter Nordberg and William Blackwell} } @proceedings {860, title = {Construction of a Table-Top Antenna Range for Learning Electromagnetics Concepts}, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

Antenna construction and measurement provide an effective method of teaching electromagnetic and antenna concepts, including polarization, gain, directivity, and reflection. During the Spring 2024 semester, the University of Scranton EE 448 Electromagnetics II class is undertaking a project to build a table-top antenna range at 2450 MHz (λ = 12 cm). The table top range will give hands-on visual and intuitive reinforcement of abstract concepts covered mathematically in the course textbook. This frequency was chosen due to the convenient size of antennas and the fact that the antennas will be usable in the 2.4 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) and amateur bands. ISM band applications include WiFi, Bluetooth, RFID, NFC, and more. In this presentation and poster, we demonstrate three types of antennas the class has built so far: dipoles, dipoles with corner reflectors, and loops over ground planes. We also demonstrate the use of a NanoVNA to measure antenna properties, as well as show ideas for future projects.

}, author = {Augustine Brapoh and Matthew Dittmar and Aidan Szabo and Robert Troy and Nathaniel Frissell and Stephen A. Cerwin} } @article {884, title = {Contesting via One-Way Signals...During an Eclipse}, volume = {52}, year = {2024}, month = {03/2024}, pages = {5-6}, type = {General Interest}, abstract = {

Virtually all competitive amateur radio events involve two-way contacts.\  HamSCI is breaking that paradigm by sponsoring the The Gladstone Signal Spotting Challenge, purposefully being held during the April, 2024 North American total solar eclipse.

All ham radio contesters should be\ familiar with {\textquoteleft}spots{\textquoteright}, automated records of received signals. The spotting networks help us find other stations to contact,\ new {\textquoteright}unworked{\textquoteright} locales, and, in general, raise our scores. Spots have never been given their very own competition - but that is about to change, thanks to the Gladstone Signal Spotting Challenge (GSSC). The GSSC is being held for a very simple yet impactful reason: To create research-worthy spot data under {\textquoteleft}controlled{\textquoteright} ionospheric conditions, as the moon passes between the sun and the earth at supersonic speeds, an event better known as a solar eclipse.

}, issn = {0899-0131}, url = {ncjweb.org}, author = {G. Mikitin} } @proceedings {691, title = {Climatology of Ionospheric Variability with MSTID Periods Observed Using Grape v1 HF Doppler Receivers}, year = {2023}, month = {03/2023}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Scranton, PA}, author = {Veronica Romanek and Nathaniel Frissell and Kristina Collins and John Gibbons and David Kazdan and William Liles} } @proceedings {734, title = {Climatology of Large Scale Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances Observed with Amateur Radio Networks}, year = {2023}, month = {03/2023}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Scranton, PA}, abstract = {

A new climatology of Large Scale Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (LSTIDs) has been observed from ham radio data in 2017. LSTIDs are quasiperiodic electron density perturbations of the F region ionosphere. LSTIDs have periods of 30 min to over 180 min, wavelengths of over 1000 km, and velocities of over 1400 km/hr. In this paper, we show a climatology of observed LSTID events using data from the Reverse Beacon Network (RBN), Weak Signal Propagation Network (WSPRNet), and PSKReporter amateur radio networks. This climatology was performed twice and was cross examined between two members of the research team. Results show that most of the observed LSTIDs occurred during the winter months with a decline towards the summer, with the exception of a spike in June. This paper provides additional insight into the seasonal trends of LSTIDs and provides additional knowledge that will help in the pursuit of what is causing this phenomenon.

}, author = {Diego Sanchez and Mary Lou West and Bob Gerzoff and Gareth W. Perry and Nathaniel A. Frissell and William D. Engelke and Philip J. Erickson} } @proceedings {731, title = {Coherent CW: A Claude Shannon Tempest on a Tabletop}, year = {2023}, month = {03/2023}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Scranton, PA}, abstract = {

Experience CW as a GPS synchronized digital mode, legal on 80-40-15 for Technicians and excellent for everyone.

}, author = {Andre Yost and David Kazdan} } @article {797, title = {Crowdsourced Doppler measurements of time standard stations demonstrating ionospheric variability}, journal = {Earth System Science Data}, volume = {15}, year = {2023}, month = {Jan-01-2023}, pages = {1403 - 1418}, abstract = {

Ionospheric variability produces measurable effects in Doppler shift of HF (high-frequency, 3{\textendash}30 MHz) skywave signals. These effects are straightforward to measure with low-cost equipment and are conducive to citizen science campaigns. The low-cost Personal Space Weather Station (PSWS) network is a modular network of community-maintained, open-source receivers, which measure Doppler shift in the precise carrier signals of time standard stations. The primary goal of this paper is to explain the types of measurements this instrument can make and some of its use cases, demonstrating its role as the building block for a large-scale ionospheric and HF propagation measurement network which complements existing professional networks. Here, data from the PSWS network are presented for a period of time spanning late 2019 to early 2022. Software tools for the visualization and analysis of this living dataset are also discussed and provided. These tools are robust to data interruptions and to the addition, removal or modification of stations, allowing both short- and long-term visualization at higher density and faster cadence than other methods. These data may be used to supplement observations made with other geospace instruments in event-based analyses, e.g., traveling ionospheric disturbances and solar flares, and to assess the accuracy of the bottomside estimates of ionospheric models by comparing the oblique paths obtained by ionospheric ray tracers with those obtained by these receivers. The data are archived at\ https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6622111(Collins,\ 2022).

}, doi = {10.5194/essd-15-1403-2023}, url = {https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/15/1403/2023/https://essd.copernicus.org/articles/15/1403/2023/essd-15-1403-2023.pdf}, author = {Collins, Kristina and Gibbons, John and Frissell, Nathaniel and Montare, Aidan and Kazdan, David and Kalmbach, Darren and Swartz, David and Benedict, Robert and Romanek, Veronica and Boedicker, Rachel and Liles, William and Engelke, William and McGaw, David G. and Farmer, James and Mikitin, Gary and Hobart, Joseph and Kavanagh, George and Chakraborty, Shibaji} } @proceedings {628, title = {Climatology of Large Scale Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances Observed by HamSCI Amateur Radio with Connections to Geospace and Neutral Atmospheric Sources}, year = {2022}, month = {03/2022}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Huntsville, AL}, abstract = {

Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (TIDs) are propagating variations of F-region ionospheric electron densities that can affect the range and quality of High Frequency (HF, 3-30 MHz) radio communications. TIDs create concavities in the ionospheric electron density profile that move horizontally with the TID and cause skip-distance focusing effects for high frequency radio signals propagating through the ionosphere. TIDs are of great interest scientifically because they are often associated with neutral Atmospheric Gravity Waves (AGWs) and can be used to advance understanding of atmosphere-ionosphere coupling. Large scale TIDs (LSTIDs) have periods of 30-180 min, horizontal phase velocities of 100 - 250 m/s, and horizontal wavelengths of over 1000 km and are believed to be generated either by geomagnetic activity or lower atmospheric sources. The signature of this phenomena is manifest as quasi-periodic variations in contact ranges in HF amateur radio communication reports recorded by automated monitoring systems such as the Weak Signal Propagation Reporting Network (WSPRNet) and the Reverse Beacon Network (RBN). Current amateur radio observations are only able to detect LSTIDs. In this study, we present a climatology of LSTID activity using RBN and WSPRNet observations on the 1.8, 3.5, 7, 14, 21, and 28 MHz amateur radio bands from 2017. Results will be organized as a function observation frequency, longitudinal sector (North America and Europe), season, and geomagnetic activity level. Connections to geospace are explored via SYM-H and Auroral Electrojet indexes, while neutral atmospheric sources are explored using NASA{\textquoteright}s Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications Version 2 (MERRA-2).

}, author = {Diego S. Sanchez and Nathaniel A. Frissell and Gareth W. Perry and V. Lynn Harvey and William D. Engelke and Anthea Coster and Philip J. Erickson and J. Michael Ruohoniemi and Joseph B. H. Baker} } @proceedings {603, title = {Consolidated Amateur Radio Reports as Indicators of Intense Sporadic-E Layers}, year = {2022}, month = {03/2022}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Huntsville, AL}, abstract = {

A case study is presented to demonstrate the usefulness and validity of consolidated amateur ({\textquoteleft}ham{\textquoteright}) radio signal reports as indicators of the presence of ionospheric sporadic-E (Es). It is shown that amateur data can provide an important supplement to other techniques, allowing the detection of Es where no suitable ionosonde or satellite radio occultation measurements are available. The effectiveness of the approach is demonstrated by reference to ionosonde data, and the advantages and limitations of the technique are discussed.

}, author = {Chris Deacon and Cathryn Mitchell and Robert Watson} } @proceedings {606, title = {Contrasting effects of the 3-5 November 2021 geomagnetic storm on reception in Colorado of WSPR transmissions from North-Eastern North America with those from Australia}, year = {2022}, month = {03/2022}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Huntsville, AL}, abstract = {

Solar wind particles from three M-class flares hit the Earth{\textquoteright}s magnetic field around 19:30 UTC on 3 November 2021. The planetary geomagnetic disturbance index (Kp) peaked at 7 that evening and the following morning. At the USGS Boulder Geomagnetic Observatory, Colorado the vertical magnetic field anomaly was below -40 nT between 07:38 UTC and 12:56 UTC on 4 November, dipping briefly to -75 nT. These dramatic space weather events are examined using WSPR spots at N6GN, near Fort Collins, Colorado. Between 10:30 UTC and 11:00 UTC the 7 MHz WSPR spot count showed a ~90\% drop compared with previous days at that time interval. Second, the median distance for remaining spots increased to 7089 km from ~2500 km of previous days. Furthermore, the noise level dropped about 4 dB. At that time of day the noise at N6GN{\textquoteright}s remote receiver is limited by propagated-in noise rather than local or receiver noise. Central to the observed spot count decrease and median distance increase was a 98\% reduction in spots received from grid FN, North Eastern North America: down to 5 spots from a typical 245 on other days in the same interval. But what caused that precipitous drop? We look at signal levels of individual transmissions to try and understand whether received signal levels dropped below the noise or whether Doppler flutter spread the signals beyond the bandwidth of the WSPR decoder. We also seek to understand the increase in spots from Australia compared with previous days. During the storm itself, signal levels from Australia were unchanged; it was not until the following day that levels and the number of spots decreased. We caution and investigate that the very narrow band transmissions may not be decoded more due to spectral distortion and spreading rather than the more usual lack of signal to noise ratio. This analysis provides a valuable use case for WSPR transmissions, reporting via wsprnet.org, augmented with noise estimates and on-line access via the WsprDaemon database with quick-look Grafana and animated Octave visualizations.

}, author = {Gwyn Griffiths and Glenn Elmore} } @proceedings {508, title = {Characterization of Sporadic E Propagation in WSPRNet Spot Records}, year = {2021}, month = {03/2021}, publisher = {HamSCI}, address = {Scranton, PA (Virtual)}, abstract = {

WSPRNet is a centralized database that collects spot records from amateur radio stations operating weak digital modes. Each of the spot records provides SNR, transmitting power, and geographic information, which can be used to estimate transmission paths. While WSPRNet has primarily used to study propagation paths for HF bands, putative sporadic E propagations at VHF bands have been reported. This on-going exploratory analysis aims to characterize possible Sporadic E Propagations captured in WSPRNet records and possible correlations with solar and other weather conditions. Preliminary results confirms a lack of correlation between sporadic E propagation and F10.7 indices. The geographic distribution pattern of putative sporadic E propagation and its relationship with other space weather indices will be discussed.

}, url = {https://hamsci2021-uscranton.ipostersessions.com/?s=56-9E-0F-03-A5-9D-C6-20-FA-F9-00-80-42-84-4B-EA}, author = {Jeannette Zhou} } @conference {582, title = {Climatology of Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances Observed by HamSCI Amateur Radio with Connections to Geospace and Neutral Atmospheric Sources}, booktitle = {American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting}, year = {2021}, month = {12}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union}, organization = {American Geophysical Union}, address = {New Orleans, LA}, abstract = {

Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (TIDs) are propagating variations in ionospheric electron densities that affect radio communications and can help with understanding energy transport throughout the coupled magnetosphere-ionosphere-neutral atmosphere system. Large scale TIDs (LSTIDs) have periods T ≈30-180 min, horizontal phase velocities vH≈ 100- 250 m/s, and horizontal wavelengths H\>1000 km and are believed to be generated either by geomagnetic activity or lower atmospheric sources. TIDs create concavities in the ionospheric electron density profile that move horizontally with the TID and cause skip-distance focusing effects for high frequency (HF, 3-30 MHz) radio signals propagating through the ionosphere. The signature of this phenomena is manifest as quasi-periodic variations in contact ranges in HF amateur radio communication reports recorded by automated monitoring systems such as the Weak Signal Propagation Reporting Network (WSPRNet) and the Reverse Beacon Network (RBN). In this study, members of the Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) present a climatology of LSTID activity using RBN and WSPRNet observations on the 1.8, 3.5, 7, 14, 21, and 28 MHz amateur radio bands from 2017. Results will be organized as a function observation frequency, longitudinal sector (North America and Europe), season, and geomagnetic activity level. Connections to geospace are explored via SYM-H and Auroral Electrojet indexes, while neutral atmospheric sources are explored using NASA{\textquoteright}s Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications Version 2 (MERRA-2).

}, url = {https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm21/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/1000724}, author = {Sanchez, Diego F. and Frissell, Nathaniel A. and Perry, Gareth and Harvey, Lynn and Engelke, William D. and Coster, Anthea J. and Erickson, Philip J. and Ruohoniemi, J. Michael and Baker, Joseph B. H.} } @proceedings {575, title = {Climatology of Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances Observed by HamSCI Amateur Radio with Connections to Geospace and Neutral Atmospheric Sources}, year = {2021}, month = {09/2021}, publisher = {ARRL-TAPR}, address = {Virtual}, url = {https://youtu.be/MHkz7jNynOg?t=23773}, author = {Sanchez, Diego F. and Frissell, Nathaniel A. and Perry, Gareth W. and Engelke, William D. and Coster, Anthea J. and Erickson, Philip J. and Ruohoniemi, J. Michael and Baker, Joseph B. H. and Harvey, Lynn and Luetzelschwab, R. Carl} } @proceedings {579, title = {Coherent CW: A Technician{\textquoteright}s HF Digital Mode}, year = {2021}, month = {09/2021}, publisher = {ARRL-TAPR}, address = {Virtual}, url = {https://youtu.be/kVY3E3e--_I?t=5168}, author = {Kazdan, David and Montare Aidan} } @conference {541, title = {Collective Science: Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Atmosphere Coupling and the Building of an Amateur Radio Citizen Science Community (Invited Early Career Highlight)}, booktitle = {NSF CEDAR (Coupling, Energetics, and Dynamics of Atmospheric Regions)}, year = {2021}, month = {06/2021}, publisher = {CEDAR}, organization = {CEDAR}, address = {Virtual}, author = {Nathaniel A. Frissell} } @conference {581, title = {Construction and Operation of a HamSCI Grape Version 1 Personal Space Weather Station: A Citizen Scientist{\textquoteright}s Perspective}, booktitle = {American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting}, year = {2021}, month = {12}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union}, organization = {American Geophysical Union}, address = {New Orleans, LA}, abstract = {

Measurement of Doppler shifts of high frequency (HF) radio signals emitted by precision frequency transmitters is a well-established technique for the detection of traveling ionospheric disturbances and other perturbations in the bottomside ionosphere. Because Doppler measurements require minimal instrumentation, this technique naturally lends itself to crowdsourced data collection, and purpose-built instrumentation platforms are desirable in order to maximize consistency and repeatability. However, even the best system only has value if it is used, and a robust and engaged community of citizen scientists is vital to sustaining instrumentation platforms. The Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) has developed a prototype, low-cost system for making HF Doppler shift measurements of signals from standards stations such as WWV (Fort Collins, Colorado, USA) and CHU (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada). This system, known as the Personal Space Weather Station Grape Version 1, consists of a low intermediate frequency (IF) mixer board, GPS disciplined oscillator, and Raspberry Pi. In collaboration with funded project scientists and engineers, volunteer HamSCI community members developed instructions for building and operating a Grape Version 1 on the HamSCI website. In this presentation, we explain the process for constructing a Grape Version 1 and discuss the experiences of volunteers who have built and are now operating this system. We also discuss preliminary data from these stations, which show dramatic Doppler shifts during sunrise and sunset and during solar events. Concurrent data from multiple proximal stations show shared features and can be used for validation. These stations constitute the first iteration of the Personal Space Weather Station network.

}, url = {https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm21/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/845691}, author = {Hobart, Joseph R. and Farmer, James O. and Mikitin, Gary and Waugh, David and Benedict, Robert and Cerwin, Stephen A. and Collins, Kristina V, and Kazdan, David and Gibbons, John and Romanek, Veronica I. and Frissell, Nathaniel A.} } @proceedings {569, title = {Construction and operation of a HamSCI Grape version 1 Personal Space Weather Station: A citizen scientist{\textquoteright}s perspective}, year = {2021}, month = {09/2021}, publisher = {ARRL-TAPR}, address = {Virtual}, url = {https://youtu.be/MHkz7jNynOg?t=12718}, author = {Benedict, Robert and Waugh, David A.} } @conference {440, title = {Characterizing and Optimizing the behavior of a Ground-based Magnetometer for Ionospheric Space Weather Observations}, booktitle = {ARRL-TAPR Digital Communications Conference}, year = {2020}, month = {09/2020}, publisher = {ARRL-TAPR}, organization = {ARRL-TAPR}, address = {Virtual}, url = {https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9p0FpZkxE4}, author = {Witten III, David and Kim, Hyomin and Madey, Julius and Cowling, Scotty and Frissell, Nathaniel A.} } @conference {398, title = {Construction of an Aurora Camera in North Dakota to Aid in Citizen Science and Space Weather Applications (ePoster)}, booktitle = {HamSCI Workshop 2020}, year = {2020}, month = {03/2020}, publisher = {HamSCI}, organization = {HamSCI}, address = {Scranton, PA}, abstract = {

We will present plans for a new student-built aurora camera integrated with a public university, local astronomy groups, and Aurorasaurus citizen science. Live aurora cameras are crucial tools for avid skywatchers, aurora chasers, and scientists.\ \ Globally there are hundreds of cameras providing nowcast views of aurora strength, yet in low-latitude areas, especially in the United States, the number of high-quality, live aurora cameras is extremely limited.\ \ The need for aurora camera coverage in mid-latitudes is apparent; not only will it be another resource for amateur astronomers and aurora-watching communities, but the analysis of many transient auroral phenomena such as substorms and STEVEs benefit from multiple geographical observations.\ \ A north-facing camera will be built near Inkster, North Dakota, on the Martens Observatory location (approximately 48.1oN), broadcasting a public live stream of the night sky while simultaneously offloading images to a storage server.\ \ The Sony a7s2 mirrorless camera, a model employed by other live broadcasts such as the LiveAuroraNetwork, will be used in conjunction with a wide-aperture lens for maximum light-gathering ability.\ \  The entire apparatus will be housed in a weatherproof enclosure and internet will be supplied on-site.\ \ The camera will be integrated with the University of North Dakota{\textquoteright}s Astrophysics and Space Studies department and will be a resource for the local astronomy community, the Northern Sky Astronomical Society.\ \ Working with Aurorasaurus, the aurora camera will {\textquotedblleft}tweet{\textquotedblright} when an aurora is spotted and be shown on the Aurorasaurus auroral oval map along with other citizen scientist observations.\ \ This aurora camera will be a valuable resource for citizen science and will aid scientists in attempting to unravel the mysteries of Earth{\textquoteright}s magnetism.

}, author = {Vincent Ledvina and Elizabeth MacDonald and Wayne Barkhouse and Timothy Young} } @conference {299, title = {Conquering The Skip Zone: Short Range Voice and Digital NVIS Communication}, booktitle = {HamSCI Workshop 2019}, year = {2019}, month = {03/2019}, publisher = {HamSCI}, organization = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, author = {Stephen Hamilton and B. Lebiednik and K. Hager} } @conference {339, title = {Contesting with FT4 - Issues and Opportunities Going Forward}, booktitle = {Dayton Hamvention}, year = {2019}, month = {05/2019}, publisher = {Ham Radio 2.0}, organization = {Ham Radio 2.0}, address = {Xenia, OH}, author = {John Pescatore} } @conference {298, title = {Crazy Antennas}, booktitle = {HamSCI Workshop 2019}, year = {2019}, month = {03/2019}, publisher = {HamSCI}, organization = {HamSCI}, address = {Cleveland, OH}, abstract = {

Everyone here is familiar with traditional antennas, time-honored favorites like dipoles and solid parabolic reflectors. But occasionally, circumstances call for something peculiar. This paper will describe a number of unusual antennas for particular communications scenarios that have been developed at the NASA Glenn Research over the past decade or so. The list includes: a K-band scanning ferroelectric reflectarray; a UHF {\textquotedblleft}Vivaldi{\textquotedblright} for cellular connectivity to unmanned aerial vehicles; a Ku-band array that develops a top-hat pattern to feed a zone plate antenna; an active antenna that toggles between Iridium and GPS bands; a VHF hybrid spiral/dipole for orientation determination on Venus; and a Ku-band deployable reflector that strongly resembles a giant beach ball. Design strategy and performance results will be included, and trends towards cognitive antennas will be discussed.

}, author = {Romanofsky, Robert} } @article {255, title = {Citizen radio science: an analysis of Amateur Radio transmissions with e-POP RRI}, journal = {Radio Science}, year = {2018}, abstract = {

We report the results of a radio science experiment involving citizen scientists conducted on 28 June 2015, in which the Radio Receiver Instrument (RRI) on the Enhanced Polar Outflow Probe (e-POP) tuned-in to the 40 and 80 m Ham Radio bands during the 2015 American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Field Day. We have aurally decoded the Morse coded call signs of 14 Hams (amateur operators) from RRI{\textquoteright}s data to help ascertain their locations during the experiment. Through careful analysis of the Hams{\textquoteright} transmissions, and with the aid of ray tracing tools, we have identified two notable magnetoionic effects in the received signals: plasma cutoff and single-mode fading. The signature of the former effect appeared approximately 30 seconds into the experiment, with the sudden cessation of signals received by RRI despite measurements from a network of ground-based receivers showing that the Hams{\textquoteright} transmissions were unabated throughout the experiment. The latter effect, single-mode fading, was detected as a double-peak modulation on the individual {\textquotedblleft}dots{\textquotedblright} and {\textquotedblleft}dashes{\textquotedblright} of one the Ham{\textquoteright}s Morse coded transmissions. We show that the modulation in the Ham{\textquoteright}s signal agrees with expected fading rate for single-mode fading. The results of this experiment demonstrate that Ham Radio transmissions are a valuable tool for studying radio wave propagation and remotely sensing the ionosphere. The analysis and results provide a basis for future collaborations in radio science between traditional researchers in academia and industry, and citizen scientists in which novel and compelling experiments can be performed.

}, keywords = {Citizen Science, ionosphere, Radio Propagation, Radio Science, Satellite}, doi = {10.1029/2017RS006496}, url = {https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2017RS006496}, author = {Perry, G. W. and Frissell, N. A. and Miller, E. S. and Moses, M. and Shovkoplyas, A. and Howarth, A. D. and Yau, A. W.} } @conference {223, title = {Collaborative Use of Solar Eclipses to Study the Ionosphere}, booktitle = {HamSCI-UK}, year = {2017}, month = {10/2017}, publisher = {HamSCI-UK}, organization = {HamSCI-UK}, address = {Milton Keynes, UK}, author = {W. C. Liles and C. N. Mitchell and K. C. Kerby-Patel and J. Nelson and L. Lukes} } @conference {144, title = {Characterizing the Ionosphere Using a Commercial Off the Shelf Software Defined Radio System}, booktitle = {Fall 2016 American Geophysical Union}, year = {2016}, month = {12/2016}, publisher = {American Geophysical Union}, organization = {American Geophysical Union}, address = {San Francsico}, abstract = {

On August 21, 2017, there will be a total solar eclipse over the continental United States (US). Solar eclipses offer a way to study the dependence of the ionospheric density and morphology on incident solar radiation. There are significant differences between the conditions during a solar eclipse and the conditions normally experienced at sunset and sunrise, including the east-west motion of the eclipse terminator, the speed of the transition, and the continued visibility of the corona throughout the eclipse interval. Taken together, these factors imply that unique ionospheric responses may be witnessed during eclipses including variations in the density and altitude of the F2 peak. In order to study these changes, we will establish four temporary field stations along the path of totality to track the maximum usable frequency (MUF) across the US over the course of the eclipse. Each field station shall consist of a commercial off the shelf (COTS) software defined radio (SDR) transceiver, a laptop computer running automatic link establishment (ALE) software, a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver for timing, and a COTS antenna. Custom ALE software will automate the sites{\textquoteright} operation during the experiment to determine the MUF. As a validation test prior to the eclipse, we established three sites along the east coast to confirm that the SDRs are capable of inferring ionospheric conditions. The preliminary results characterize the effects of the sunrise/sunset terminator on our system{\textquoteright}s measurements as well as the change in foF2 during different seasons and under different geomagnetic conditions.

}, url = {http://hamsci.org/sites/default/files/publications/2016_AGU_Moses.pdf}, author = {Magdalina L. Moses and S. Dixit and Gregory D. Earle and Nathaniel A. Frissell and Lee Kordella and Xiaoyu Han and Charudatta Chitale} }