Events

Our club meets every month, normally on the third Tuesday. Our meetings typically involve a radio based talk or presentation followed by a chance to catch up over a cuppa.

Do you have an interesting radio related topic to share?  We are always looking for interesting presentations and ideas for our club meetings.  If you have a story to tell and fancy sharing some interesting aspect of our hobby then please get in touch with our Membership Secretary by emailing membership@verulam-arc.org.uk.

  • Tue
    19
    Feb
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    Club members are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting on the 19th February 2019.

  • Tue
    19
    Mar
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    This month we are pleased to welcome Ron White (G6LTT) who is one of our RSGB District Representatives.

    Although this is an informal meeting we are sure that Ron will spend a couple of minutes bringing us up to date with happenings at the RSGB and within our region.  After that he will be hanging around to chat and enjoy our hospitality.  Please come along and join us.

  • Tue
    16
    Apr
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    Our VARC April meeting on Tuesday will have a short session on the 2019-20 Club Committee plus a talk/discussion/brainstorm on 'Operating Away from Home'.

    On the latter:

    Peter Baker (G4HSO) says 'I have tried and failed at operating locations worldwide (including /mm from the mid Atlantic), spent hours preparing but little success, however the occasional MAGIC success keeps me keen to try again, to learn from others and share ideas'

    Here is what Peter plans to cover:

    Getting outdoors, QRM club theme and QRM from various sources.

    Gear and organisation, rigs.

    Locations and cost of 'exotic locations', getting local contacts / local information.

    Licensing issues.

    Solar cycle radio conditions, TOD, Latitude contests, WhatsApp propagation.

    Operating /MM    /M    /P   /A.

    Modes - JTn, WSPR, CW, Others...

    Antennas for portable operation.

    Antenna options; antenna supports, (kite, portable poles, gambling) end fed, trap dipole, linked dipole, doublet, magnetic loop, tapped, miracle whip, .....

    Criteria - low visual impact, light weight, coax fed, backpack /pm?,  Share tricks and tricks.

    Propagation and testing propagation while running light.

    Flying with batteries, gellcell, lithium, BA letter,.... carry on or checked?

    Club resources, generators, antennas, sites....

    SOTA, RAYNET.

    Satellite operation.

    DXpeditions.

    CDXC.

    As always visitors and prospective members are always VERY welcome, please pass this to anyone you feel may be interested.

  • Tue
    21
    May
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    With weaker signals resulting from solar cycle minima propagation noisy bands are a constant topic of conversation within the Ham Community but who or what is to blame and is there anything you can do about it?

    In this presentation, Alex, M0UKR, defines noise types and discusses their sources and impact to radio activity on bands from 160m to 2m together with a high level guide to diagnosing noise issues at your QTH and how to go about fixing them.

  • Tue
    18
    Jun
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    Our club meeting in June sees the return of the Annual Antenna Shootout where members get to amaze their fellow participants with their novel approaches to antenna design.  In recent years we have seen antenna’s made from wet string through to massive frames connected by silver foil.

    Members can either build their own ‘home-brew’ antenna or bring something that is commercially built to see how it compares with the others.  For newcomers to the hobby this is an excellent way to see some proper antenna theory take place and members of the club are always happy to answer questions about their designs.

    Every year we have a theme or constraint for everyone to work within – this year, in line with our recent talk on operating away from home,  the rule is that the antenna needs to fit in a standard suitcase.  Once assembled it can be any shape or size but it must have started from something that would fit in a suitcase.

    Non-members of the club are welcome to attend.  We will be at the rear of the school.

  • Tue
    16
    Jul
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL
  • Tue
    20
    Aug
    2019
    7:30 pmStarting Point Is Bernards Heath

    Time for our annual fox hunt where one of us goes and hides somewhere with a radio and the rest of us have to use our radio direction skills to find him.  This time our fox is Peter, G0OIK.

    Norman, G8ATO will be handing out envelopes and maps at Bernards Heath.  The postcode for your sat nav for Bernards Heath is AL1 4AP, which is the map location 51.760979,  -0.3311837,17 or on Google maps is https://goo.gl/maps/PJhQoC5ezZxUNkyUA.  Norman will be there from about 18.30 until 20.00.  The envelope will contain the location of the fox so, if you are unable to find him at the end, you can open the envelope and then meet everyone else.  Typically the fox is not far from a pub.

    You may perhaps want to source yourself a full-sized map of the area, but the one provided should suffice. You will also need a compass to orientate the map, so if you don't have a 'normal' compass, then a compass app on your phone may help.  You will need a pen or pencil to fill out your details on the envelope.

    The first transmission will be at 19:30 and Peter will be using the club call G8VER on 145.400 (unless the frequency is busy, in which case it will be 145.375). Full details will be provided with the envelope and map at the start of the hunt.

  • Tue
    17
    Sep
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    This is a continuation of our recent talks on getting started in amateur radio.  Following on from a recent talk on Interference by Alex (M0UKR), this month we look at the radio receiver itself, what can cause noise within the shack and then how modern radios reduce this interference to make it more bearable for the listener.

  • Tue
    15
    Oct
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    A talk that highlights the conflict between the demands of warfare and the altruism of science.

  • Tue
    19
    Nov
    2019
    8:00 pmAboyne Lodge School, Etna Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5NL

    An appreciation of Quantum Computing.  The basic idea will be described, followed by an explanation of the fundamental principles of Quantum Mechanics, and their application in the fabrication of QBit devices.  The operation of a Quantum Computer will be illustrated, with reference to a search algorithm.

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