Hurricane Dorian, now a dangerous Category 5 storm, hit the island of Abaco in the Bahamas with 185 MPH winds and heavy rain. The Hurricane Watch Net (HWN) on 14.325 MHz (7268 MHz alternate) and the VoIP Hurricane Net (EchoLink WX_TALK Conference) remain activated in conjunction with WX4NHC at the National Hurricane Center to keep on top of ground-truth weather information and to handle emergency traffic, if needed.
FEMA has announced that channels 1 and 2 of the 60 meter band will be made available, as necessary, beginning September 2 for interoperability between federal government stations and US Amateur Radio stations involved in Hurricane Dorian emergency communications. They will remain active until the storm has passed and the need for the channels no longer exists.
Channel 1 (5332 kHz channel center) will be available for primary voice traffic 5332 kHz channel center, 5330.5 kHz USB. Channel 2 (5348 kHz channel center) will handle digital traffic, 5346.5 kHz USB with 1.5 kHz offset to center of digital waveform
Radio amateurs must yield to operational traffic related to Hurricane Dorian. Although the intended use for these channels is interoperability between federal government stations and US Amateur Radio stations, federal government stations are primary users and amateurs are secondary.
According to the National Hurricane Center, as of 2100 UTC on September 1, Dorian was some 95 miles east of Freeport, Grand Bahama Island, and about 175 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida, packing maximum sustained winds of 185 MPH. The storm has continued its slow movement to the west at 5 MPH.
A slower west to west-northwest motion should continue for the next day or two, followed by a gradual turn toward the northwest. On this track, the core of the “extremely dangerous” hurricane Dorian will continue to pound Great Abaco this evening and move near or over Grand Bahama Island tonight and Monday. The hurricane will move dangerously close to the Florida east coast late Monday through Tuesday night.
While some fluctuations in intensity are likely, Dorian is expected to remain a catastrophic hurricane during the next few days, the National Hurricane Center says. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 45 miles from the center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 140 miles.
“The Hurricane Watch Net has been in continuous operation since 2100 UTC Saturday and will remain in operation until further notice,” HWN Manager Bobby Graves, KB5HAV, said. “Dorian is now the strongest hurricane in modern records for the northwestern Bahamas.”
Graves said that just before 1600 UTC, the HWN had been hearing from stations in Hope Town, Abacos, and New Providence, Nassau at a. “Unfortunately, we’ve not heard from them since. We were hoping to hear from those in Hope Town while in the eye of Dorian but that never happened.”
“Although Dorian remains forecast to make a turn to the north and track parallel to the coast of Florida and Georgia, that turn isn’t expected until sometime late Monday,” Graves continued. “The current forecast has tropical-storm-force winds along the coast, if the track parallels the coast with hurricane-force winds just offshore. For now, the HWN will continue operations as though Dorian will make Florida landfall. If Dorian were to hit Florida as a Category 5 and at the strength it is now, sustained winds of 185 MPH, it would the strongest hurricane to hit Florida since Andrew in 1992.”
Graves reminded those in the storm-affected areas to resist the temptation to venture outside if in the eye of the storm. “There may be downed power lines and they should be considered live. Furthermore, you do not know when the backside of the eye will come. The winds will not slowly increase in speed but rather go from zero to full speed nearly instantly.”
Source;ARRL
VHF
Ham Radio vs GMRS
Ham Radio vs GMRS – Ham Radio compared to GMRS frequencies and modes – which ones is better? Today let’s talk about both of them, ho... Read more
Best GMRS Handheld Radio 2021 – GMRS Radio Comparison
Best GMRS Handheld Radio 2021 – GMRS Radio Comparison Read more
New Arrival! Dual Mode Portable Repeater RT97P
Dual Mode Portable Repeater RT97P will come. It is similar to the portable repeater RT97. Now we have the RT97 GMRS band, and this RT97P is the d... Read more
ARISS and Partners Are Investigating Space Station Ham Radio Failure
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) and its partners are troubleshooting a failure within the on-board NA1SS amateur station in t... Read more
CHESS CubeSat Constellation to Carry FUNcube Transponders
In 2020, a project between AMSAT-UK, AMSAT-NL, and Swiss universities got under way with the aim of equipping two Swiss satellites — for now under the... Read more
Review
Warrantless Search Of Ham Radio Operators? No Fourth Amendment Rights?
Responding to comments and recent videos here on Youtube. Is there a big threat to amatuer radio operators fourth amendment rights? Are we opening out... Read more
Baofeng UV-9R TP 18-watt Power Testing | UV9R Plus HT
Baofeng UV-9R TP 18-watt HT Ham Radio Unboxing and power testing – let’s see if this 18-watt HT does what it is advertised to do! Read more
ACOM – Manufacturers Showcase
ACOM team to discuss the latest amplifier technology. Tune in and ask the team questions. Read more
Ham Radio vs CB
Ham Radio vs CB, Citizen’s Band Radio – Ham Radio compared to CB frequencies and modes – which ones is better? Today let’s tal... Read more
Ham Radio Forms a Planet-Sized Space Weather Sensor Network
The article “Ham Radio Forms a Planet-Sized Space Weather Sensor Network,” appeared on February 9 in Eos, Earth & Space Science News — an American... Read more
News
Quantum Receiver Can Detect Huge Swath of the RF Spectrum
US Army researchers have built a so-called “quantum sensor,” which can analyze the full RF spectrum and real-world signals, a report on Physics.org sa... Read more
Approaches to Tackle Noise Problems Vary, Remedies Elusive
RF noise is a frequent discussion topic among radio amateurs. A proliferation of electronics has cluttered and complicated the noise environment; it’s... Read more
ARISS, NASA, and ESA Continue to Probe Amateur Radio Problems on ISS
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) International Chair Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, reports that the ARISS team has been working closely... Read more
Yaesu FT-DX10 HF Transceiver – Is it Right for You?
We take a look at one of the most recent HF transceivers to come onto the ham radio market. Could this be the new FT-101E that was one of the best sel... Read more
What is the Base Holding Up My Hexbeam?
William Noble asks about the base used to hold up my MFJ-1846 Hex Beam antenna. The actual base that allows for a fold-over mast was designed by frien... Read more
Digital Modes
FT8DMC 3rd Anniversary-Activity Days 2020
To commemorate our 3rd anniversary, special event stations will be on air during the FT8DMC Activity Days from 1. to 31. July 2020. All stations will... Read more
K1JT , JOE TAYLOR HINTS AT POSSIBLE NEW MODE!
In a post to the WSJT-X email group today, Joe Taylor K1JT hinted at some ongoing experimentation of a new digital mode with sub-modes. His post was a... Read more
WWSA GACW Contest Rules.
WWSA GACW I – Dates Second weekend of June of every year. From Saturday 15.00 UTC until Sunday 15.00 UTC. 24 hours period. II – Goal To co... Read more