The BergenSkywarn Website

SKYWARN And The 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day Events

2005, 2004, 2003, 2002 and 2001 SKYWARN and Weather Center Operations


ARRL Field Day

Field Day is an annual event undertaken by 10's of thousands of Amateur Radio Operators throughout the United States. It is a program of the ARRL (Amateur Radio Relay League) and its purpose is to test the preparedness and skills of Amateur Radio Operators to setup and operate radio stations in remote locations as would possibly be necessary during an emergency situation. More information on Field Day is available on the ARRL Website and on the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day Webpage.

SKYWARN Operations at 10-70's Field Day:

10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day Webpage

Local SKYWARN Coordinators setup an informational area for SKYWARN and posted NWS Forecast information for the Field Day site in the lobby of the Campgaw Mountain Ski Lodge located in Mahwah, Bergen County NJ in conjunction with the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2005

Had the NWS in Upton NY activate SKYWARN for either Bergen and/or Passaic Counties, during Field Day 2005, and had the need occurred for a Bergen-Passaic SKYWARN Net in conjunction with that activation, Net Control Operations could have take place from the 10-70's Field Day site. For more information on the SKYWARN Program, or SKYWARN activities contact any of the local SKYWARN Coordinators.

Local SKYWARN Coordinators setup, staffed and operated a complete Weather Center and Amateur Radio Station at the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2004. The station was staffed and operational in the Campgaw Mountain Ski Lodge located in Mahwah, Bergen County NJ starting at 11:00 am, Saturday, June 26, 2004 and operations continued thru 1:00 PM on Sunday, June 27, 2004 EDT.

Included as part of the fully operational Weather Center was an Amateur Radio APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) setup that transmitted live digital weather data from the 10-70's Field Day site on the National APRS frequency (144.390 Mhz). These Weather Data updates were automatically transmitted every 10 minutes throughout the event. Live weather data, originating from 100's of other APRS connected Weather Stations located throughout the Northeast and Middle Atlantic States was also able to be viewed on this system.

The 10-70's Field Day Weather Center also included a live, full-time wireless connection to the NWS's EMWIN (Emergency Managers Weather Information Network) DataStream. The EMWIN connection was used by the Coordinators to receive NWS Forecasts, Advisories, Watches and Warnings for Bergen and Passaic Counties in  NJ within minutes of their being issued. All relevant NWS Weather Products were posted for all to read in the Weather Center throughout the event.

Several other weather related items were also on operational display. These included a live and continually updated datafeed of Level III NWS 88D Doppler Radar images, images from the GOES Satellite system and a complete and operational BUFKIT setup. BUFKIT is a forecast profile visualization and analysis tool kit developed by the NWS Buffalo NY and the NWS's Warning Decision Training Branch (WDTB) in Norman, OK. It is used by many NWS Forecasting Offices and the Department of Defense for graphically displaying the output of several key Weather Forecasting Models

Should the NWS in Upton NY have activated SKYWARN for either Bergen and/or Passaic Counties, during Field Day 2004, and had a Bergen-Passaic SKYWARN Net been called in conjunction with that activation, Net Control Operations would have taken place from the Weather Center at the 10-70's Field Day site. For more information on the SKYWARN Program, or SKYWARN activities at the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2004, contact any of the local SKYWARN Coordinators.

Local SKYWARN Coordinators setup, staffed and operated a complete Weather Center and Amateur Radio Station at the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2003. The station was staffed and operational in the Campgaw Mountain Ski Lodge located in Mahwah, Bergen County NJ from 11:00 am, Saturday, June 28, 2003 to 2:00 PM on Sunday, June 29, 2003 EDT. Note: The Coordinators actively monitored live Level III Doppler RADAR Data directly from several NOAA NEXRAD (Doppler) RADAR sites throughout the event. The live Doppler RADAR wireless data feed was a key component to have available at the site as the NWS had Bergen County NJ and the surrounding area listed in the Slight Risk category for possible Severe Weather on Sunday afternoon June 29th.)

Included as part of the fully operational Weather Center was an Amateur Radio APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) setup that transmitted live digital weather data from the 10-70's Field Day site on the National APRS frequency (144.390 Mhz). Weather Data updates were automatically transmitted every 10 minutes throughout the event. Live weather data, originating from 100's of other APRS connected Weather Stations located throughout the Northeast and Middle Atlantic States was also able to be viewed on this system.

The Field Day site Weather Center also include a live, full-time wireless connection to the NWS's EMWIN (Emergency Managers Weather Information Network) DataStream. The EMWIN connection was used by the Coordinators to receive NWS Forecasts, Advisories, Watches and Warnings for Bergen County NJ within minutes of their being issued. All relevant NWS Weather Products were posted for all to read in the Weather Center throughout the event.

Just prior to the end of the Field Day Event the NWS Upton NY issued a Severe Weather Outlook in the form of a Special Weather Statement (SPSOKX) that included Bergen County NJ noting the possibility that Severe Weather could develop in the area during Sunday afternoon and evening. This Statement was immediately posted in the Weather Center and directly communicated to those present at site.

 
WWUS81 KOKX 291707 
SPSOKX
NJZ002>004-NYZ067>070-300100- 
 
SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE UPTON NY
110 PM EDT SUN JUN 29 2003
 
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE LATER TODAY INTO THIS EVENING... 
 
THE AIRMASS ACROSS THE REGION WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY WARM AND UNSTABLE AS THE AFTERNOON PROGRESSES. IN RESPONSE TO THIS...THE STORMS WHICH SHOULD FORM MAY EVENTUALLY PRODUCE SOME HEAVY DOWNPOURS...STRONG WINDS AND POSSIBLY HAIL.
 
ALTHOUGH THE ENTIRE TRI-STATE REGION IS UNDER A THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS...THE AREA THAT HAS A GREATER RISK OF THESE STORMS BECOMING SEVERE ARE THE COUNTIES OF ORANGE...PUTNAM...ROCKLAND AND NORTHERN WESTCHESTER OF NEW YORK STATE AND PASSAIC AND NORTHWESTERN SECTIONS OF BERGEN COUNTY IN NEW JERSEY.
 
AS SUCH THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS PLACED THESE COUNTIES UNDER A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM LATER TODAY INTO THIS EVENING. 
STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...YOUR LOCAL RADIO OR TELEVISION STATIONS...OR YOUR CABLE TELEVISION OUTLET FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES.
 
$$

To the relief of all at the site, no Severe Weather developed at the 10-70's 2003 Field Day Event. Had the NWS activated SKYWARN for Bergen or Passaic County NJ, during the 2003 Field Day operations, Bergen-Passaic County NJ SKYWARN Nets would have been conducted on the W2PQG Repeater of the 10-70 Repeater Association with the Net Control Station operating from within the Weather Center at Field Day site.

The 10-70's Field Day Event for 2003 was also featured in an article in the June 30 2003 edition of the Bergen Record and be sure to see the 10-70 Website for Pictures of their 2003 Field Day Event.

The Bergen County SKYWARN Coordinators setup and operated a portable Weather Station and Amateur Radio Station at the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2002. The station was staffed and operational in the Campgaw Mountain Ski Lodge from 11:00 am, Saturday, June 22, 2002 to 02:00 AM on Sunday, June 23, 2002 EDT. Note: The Coordinators actively monitored Level III Data directly from several NOAA NEXRAD (Doppler) RADAR sites from 4:00 pm on Saturday to 2:00 am on Sunday, keeping an eye on several storms that passed through the region. (to the North of Orange County NY)

Included as part of this fully operational Weather Station was an Amateur Radio APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) setup that transmitted live digital weather data from the 10-70's Field Day site on the National APRS frequency (144.390 Mhz). Live weather data, originating from other APRS connected Weather Stations located throughout the Northeast and Middle Atlantic States was also able to be viewed on this system.

The Weather Station also include a wireless connection to the NWS's EMWIN (Emergency Managers Weather Information Network) DataStream. The EMWIN connection was used by the Coordinators to receive NWS Forecasts, Watches and Warnings for Bergen County NJ within minutes of their being issued . Relevant NWS Weather Products were posted for all to read at the Weather Station throughout the day and night. Due to the late Saturday afternoon update of the NWS Forecast for Bergen County NJ mentioning the possibility of Thunderstorms in the area for Saturday afternoon and evening, printed copies of this important NWS Weather Bulletin were delivered directly into the hands of all Field Day radio operators.

Additionally, should the NWS have activated SKYWARN for Bergen County NJ, during the Field Day 2002 operations, Bergen County NJ SKYWARN Nets would have been conducted with the Net Control Station based at the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day site. 

The Bergen County SKYWARN Coordinators participated in the 10-70 Repeater Association's Field Day 2001 by setting up a portable Weather Station which was also connected to a 2 Meter Amateur Radio. Using APRS (Automatic Packet Reporting System) software running on a PC, the live data from the Weather Station was transmitted on a frequency of 144.390 Mhz (the National APRS frequency). APRS Weather Data, when transmitted in this manner, is able to be viewed by other APRS stations either directly or via a network of digipeaters. APRS transmitted Weather Data is also able to be viewed via an Internet connection using the appropriate software and hardware.

Additionally, APRS is a digital radio communications protocol that allows for the transmission and reception of text messages over Amateur Radio frequencies. This textual communications ability can play an important part during SKYWARN or emergency activations, as it allows Amateur Radio operators to easily and quickly send reports to the NWS or emergency operations centers using Amateur Radio frequencies. This is particularly applicable in situations where conventional means of communications such as Telephones (landline and/or cellular) and Internet connections are unavailable.

During the 10-70 Repeater Association's 2001 Field Day event, the NWS Upton, NY activated SKYWARN for Bergen County NJ. This was due to several torrential rainfall events occurring on Saturday morning, afternoon and again during the evening of June 23, 2001.  As a result of these events, Bergen County SKYWARN operated several SKYWARN Nets with the Net Control operating from the 10-70's Field Day site.

Data collected during these Nets was forwarded directly to the NWS in Upton, NY and resulted in Flood Warnings being issued for the Northern NJ area. Of particular note was that over 2.5 inches of rain fell between 1:45 and 2:30 pm at the 10-70's Field Day site. At times exceeding a rate of 3.5" per hour. The ARRL published an article on the 10-70's 2001 Field Day, including a mention of the Bergen County NJ SKYWARN Net operations in their August 2001 ARRL News Brief.


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