Amateur Radio Operators
Provide Emergency Communications
Cell phones have provided the basic
voice communications capability once enjoyed exclusively
by amateur radio operators. Yet natural disasters demonstrate
time after time that amateur radio operators can continue
communicating long after cell phone antennas have been
blown down or lost electrical power or their link to
land lines.
Amateur radio operators in the Southern
United States again came to the rescue after Hurricane
Katrina devastated the Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama
Gulf Coasts. Electrical power was lost throughout the
region, and cell phone coverage was spotty at best.
For many decades amateur radio operators
have provided emergency services during natural disasters
at their own expense. On 2 September 2005, the American
Radio Relay league (ARRL) announced that the Corporation
for National and Community Service ( CNCS
) "will provide a $100,000 grant supplement
to ARRL to support Amateur Radio's emergency communication
operators in states affected by Hurricane Katrina."
The ARRL announced that the grant will help provide
assistance to "Ham Aid," a new ARRL program that will
support volunteer amateur radio operators who contribute
their time and equipment for emergency communications
during disasters.
Amateur radio operators have long had
an interest in the effects of solar activity, for various
solar phenomenon can enhance or worsen radio communications.
NASA's Space Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) was a
program that placed amateur radio gear on various manned
satellites. Astronauts spoke with students from some
200 schools and many radio amateurs during the life
of the project.
The ARRL has 152,000 members, which
makes it the largest organization of amateur radio operators
in the United States. The ARRL is a not-for-profit organization
headquartered in the Hartford suburb of Newington, Connecticut,
where a staff of 120 serves the membership. The ARRL
serves as International Secretariat for the International
Amateur Radio Union, which includes amateur radio organizations
in 150 countries.
Besides being an enjoyable hobby and
providing a vital service during emergencies, amateur
radio has many potential applications in citizen science.
Those interested in learning more about becoming a licensed
radio amateur are encouraged to visit the "Welcome
to Amateur Radio!" page on the ARRL web site.
Forrest M. Mims III 
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