Clifty Amateur Radio Society Field Day

Setting up and operating emergency radio communication using (ham) radio to communicate with similar operations throughout the country.

(Shutterstock Photo)

The Clifty Amateur Radio Society, Ivy Tech Community College Amateur Radio Club, and the Royal Rangers Amateur Radio Club will participate in a national emergency communications preparedness exercise on June 26th, 2021. Known as Field Day, the exercise involves setting up and operating emergency radio communications using amateur (ham) radio to communicate with similar operations throughout the country.

The clubs will conduct its Field Day operations in the West parking lot on the Ivy Tech Community College Madison campus located at 590 Ivy Tech Drive beginning at 2 p.m. June 26th and concluding at 6 p.m. Operations will include digital messaging, as well as voice and possibly Morse Code communications. The local ham radio club members will demonstrate the “magic” of ham radio by contacting hams across the country using wire antennas, low-power radios, and emergency power.

The public is invited to come and see modern amateur radio technology in action and learn about this exciting hobby. Club members will be available to answer questions, provide literature and even help visitors get on the air.

Field Day is sponsored by ARRL, the national association for amateur radio, and has been an annual event since 1933. This year’s operations are expected to involve over 40,000 ham radio operators from across North America.

Often using only emergency power supplies, ham operators construct and operate emergency stations in parks, shopping malls, schools and backyards around the country. Their slogan, “When All Else Fails, Ham Radio Works,” is demonstrated by hams who can send messages in many forms without the use of phone systems, internet or any other infrastructure that can be compromised in a crisis. The event combines public service, emergency preparedness, community outreach and technical skills.

Modern amateur radio is a fast-growing hobby. There are now nearly 15,890 licensed amateurs in Indiana, more than 750,000 in the United States, and more than 2.5 million worldwide. Through the ARRL’s Amateur Radio Emergency Services program, volunteers provide emergency communication for thousands of state and local emergency response agencies and non-emergency communications services to a wide variety of community and civic organizations, all without cost to the public.