Global Amateur Radio Emergency Conference - 2013

The Global Amateur Radio Emergency Conference (GAREC) is the premier annual event attended by those with an interest in amateur radio providing emergency communications during training exercises or in response to disasters.  Since it was first held in 2005, the conference has taken place in all three IARU regions and is open to all emergency communications groups.

In 2013 GAREC returns to IARU Region 1 and will be held in Zurich, Switzerland between 25th to 28th June. The conference has been timed to precede Europe's largest amateur radio exhibition, HAM RADIO in Friedrichshafen so that people can enjoy both events.

General information on GAREC 2013 including information on the venue, registration fees and the tentative agenda and the registration forms is now available on http://www.garec2013.ch/ . This website will be updated frequently to keep all updated with the latest news and program changes. For more information you may also email info@garec2013.ch

Among the draft topics to be discussed are the relevance of Amateur Radio Emergency Communication in the '1st World', the HAMNET high speed data network along with presentations from the three regions of the IARU and also some presentations from groups with recent disaster relief communications operations.

The past presentations from the conferences including GAREC 2012, are now available at http://www.iaru.org/garec.html

2013 Southeastern VHF Society Conference

The 2013 Southeastern VHF Society Conference, sponsored by the Florida Weak Signal Society, will be held 19 and 20 April 2013 at the Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront, 1550 N. Atlantic Ave, Cocoa Beach, FL.

There will be a full slate of events including, a surplus tour, antenna range, noise figure testing, Friday luncheon with WB4SLM and Friday night flea market.

There will be vendor displays and technical presentations both days.

The Saturday night banquet will have awards for the best paper and the best presentation, the K4UHF and Runkle honors and presentation of the Fall Sprint winners.

For attendees, there will be a shack photo contest to be judged by the XYLs. Prizes for the best and worst.

More information - http://www.svhfs.org

Encouraging science, technology, engineering and mathematics

The Women in STEM High School Aerospace Scholars (WISH) project is sponsoring two six-day summer camps for rising high school seniors that should feature an Amateur Radio contact.

Eighty-four female high school students from 29 states will plan a simulated mission to Mars and experience life as an engineer or scientist when NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston hosts two events focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in June and July.

“WISH gives some of our brightest future innovators a chance to experience some of the exciting challenges that NASA engineers and scientists face on a daily basis. It shows the young women that there are a variety of opportunities for them in technical fields.”

— Johnson Deputy Director and four-time space shuttle astronaut Ellen Ochoa

The young women will work in teams with female NASA mentors to develop mission plans for launching to Mars, living and working there, and integrating the many components necessary for a successful planetary mission. They will work within the confines of a fictitious budget and build several small mockups of vehicles to demonstrate a successful launch and landing of the Mars spacecraft.

"WISH gives some of our brightest future innovators a chance to experience some of the exciting challenges that NASA engineers and scientists face on a daily basis," said Johnson Deputy Director and four-time space shuttle astronaut Ellen Ochoa. "It shows the young women that there are a variety of opportunities for them in technical fields."

Young women participating June 24-29 will hear a first-hand account of life in space from radio amateur and NASA astronaut Shannon Walker KD5DXB. Participants July 8-13 will have a chance to speak with a current space station astronaut via ham radio as part of the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station program, a NASA educational initiative that facilitates direct links between students and astronauts.

The young women were selected based on completion of interactive, online lessons focused on space exploration and mapped to national education standards, academic merits and geographic diversity. The WISH program encourages young women to pursue science, technology, engineering and mathematics degrees and exposes them to the real-world applications of STEM careers at NASA. This program is in its second year. It began as a NASA accompaniment to the White House Council on Women and Girls.

For more information about WISH and a list of student participants, visit http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/teachingfromspace/students/wish.html

NASA - http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2012/jun/HQ_12-209_WISH.html

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station ARISS - http://ariss.rac.ca/

AMSAT-UK - http://www.uk.amsat.org/