Amateur Radio Class - 13-14 September 2014

Amateur radio operators (also known as “hams”) provide communications support during local and national emergencies. At other times they initiate and relay messages between friends and families as practice in preparation for emergencies. Hams also enjoy the hobby by making contact with other licensed radio operators in the U.S. and around the world. These radio operators have bounced signals off the moon to other hams. Many of our astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) have acquired ham licenses to permit them to use amateur radio assigned frequencies to talk to students at schools to promote interest in space.

The Sterling Park Amateur Radio Club (SPARC) is offering a class to prepare you to take and pass the FCC Technician class amateur radio “ham” license the weekend of 13-14 September. Class will be all day Saturday (8 am to 5 pm), 13 September, and from 8 am to noon on Sunday, 14 September, at the Eastern Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office at 46620 E. Frederick Street just off Sterling Blvd. in Sterling Park.

FCC-authorized license testing will be offered beginning at 1 pm on Sunday, 14 September at the same location. Exams are multiple-choice questions, and sample exams are available on the internet for study in advance of the test.
For information about enrolling in the class, contact Gordon Miller NQ4K, SPARC president, at (703) 437-8287 or email nq4k@arrl.net. If you are currently licensed as an amateur radio operator and would like to take an exam to upgrade your license, call Bill Free N3TG (Franklin Glen resident) at (703) 798-6785 or email n3tg@arrl.net to reserve a seat and find out what you need to bring to the testing site. More information is also available at http://www.qsl.net/sterling/Licensing/licensing.html.