“The Ionosphere is Birefringent, or You Are Never Too Old to Learn”
Jim Stewart, K2PK
It does not take a lot of depth of knowledge about how our signals get from point A to point B to enjoy and productively use amateur radio. It also is true we never progress to the point where there isn’t something new to learn.
This is a tale about how an almost throwaway line in a CQ magazine article led to one of those “Aha” moments when something I knew from on the air experience suddenly made sense from the physics of the ionosphere, and maybe some terrestrial things as well.
Jim has been a member of SARA nearly 40 years.
He is past president and vice president of SARA and is currently Board Secretary. He was first licensed in 1954 as WN3ZIR with later calls W3ZIR, K2PKK and now K2PK.
While the bulk of his professional life was in the electric power industry first at Niagara Mohawk then in Schenectady at Power Technologies Inc., he also has had a hand in commercial radio at two AM broadcast stations and one FM station.
Jim is a Fellow of the IEEE and is on the ARRL CW DXCC Honor Roll.
If Niskayuna High School cancels evening classes and activities, the SARA meeting will normally be cancelled and possibly rescheduled. Listen to the SARA 147.060 repeater for meeting status information and whether the meeting will be rescheduled.
SARA meetings are generally held in the Little Theatre of the Niskayuna High School on Balltown Road unless otherwise noted. Attendees should enter the school through the cafeteria entrance located on the side of the school, adjacent to the Nott Street Extension school parking lot.
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