Next Meeting
July 1, 2020, from 7:30-9:00 PM
Venue: Online Meeting There will be NO pre-meeting at Jakes this month.
Please join us by navigating to: meeting ( https://zoom.us/j/4086215853 ) You will be prompted to enter your name and the meeting password. In order to minimize the opportunity for zoom bombers or others to hijack our meeting, this page will be updated again with the password on the day of the meeting or we will provide it on our email distribution list.
You can also join by telephone using the following phone number:
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
Meeting ID: 408 621 5853
Password: TBD
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/aPwFOCDKO
TOPIC: The Russian Woodpecker Over the Horizon Radar – A Blast from the Past
Hidden deep in a serene forest yet taller than the clouds, standing in surreal beauty is an antenna array like none other on earth, having an aperture area greater than 15 U.S. football fields. One of the great wonders of the world – a top secret Soviet radar, so secret that even the name is uncertain, for it had many. It was the Russian Woodpecker. It was the Steel Yard. It was Duga.
The story of this top secret place is one of mystery and intrigue. Now abandoned, a rusting testament to man’s cold war hubris, almost all popular accounts on the web are seriously flawed – victims of deliberate disinformation. Where did it come from? What did it do? Did it transmit? Did it receive? Was it the first of three, or the third of two?
Keith Snyder, KI6BDR, has been busy reverse engineering to uncover truth before time erases history. Keith shows visible engineering clues that reveal the mission and correct the history of the huge “Duga 3” antenna Array. The Duga 3 is located a few kilometers from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant site. Although it has fallen into disrepair, it stands today due only to a hasty exit forced by radiation from the Chernobyl nuclear accident. The nuclear accident ironically protected the array from dismantlement, a reprieve from all but the ravages of time. The antenna array today attracts tourists who visit Chernobyl. It is one of the 8th wonders of the world due to its titanic size.
Our speaker, Keith Snyder (KI6BDR), is a master power user of the FEKO numerical electromagnetics code for antenna modeling and analysis. He started using FEKO 18 years ago as user no. 8 in the U.S. and no. 1 at Northrop Grumman. Keith is an expert at reverse engineering antennas using photos and AutoCAD to import complex models into FEKO. Keith studied antennas at The Ohio State University. He had the great fortune of having Professor John Kraus as his electromagnetics instructor. Keith’s aunt was Kraus’s secretary!
Keith graduated from Ohio State in 1980 and picked up a Telecommunications Certificate from U.C. Berkeley. Keith has considerable antenna design experience having worked on a wide variety of antenna applications including: AM antenna matching at Harris Broadcast in Quincy, Illinois; reflector antennas using the NECREF code at GTE in Needham, Massachusetts; patch antenna arrays at Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado; radar antenna design at Aydin Radar in San Jose; broadband antennas at GTE in Mountain View; shaped reflector antennas at Space Systems Loral; and finally antenna and array design and analysis for aircraft and vehicles at Northrop Grumman in Sacramento, San Jose, and San Diego.
Nets
- Sundays – 2M Net at 9:00 pm
- Tuesdays – SVECS 2M Net at 8:00 pm
Saratoga Frequencies
Everyone should have the following frequencies programmed into their VHF/UHF radios. A complete list of all county frequencies and local jurisdictions can be found at this link.
| Channel Name | Resource Name | R/S | Frequency | Offset | PL | |
| Command | K6SA | Repeater | 146.655 | – | 114.8 | |
| Command | K6SA | Repeater | 443.150 | + | 100 | |
| Tactical Alt | Simplex | 146.505 | ||||
| Tactical Alt 2 | Simplex | 146.595 |
Read All About Us
- Our brochure contains an overview of our club’s history, member interests, net, meetings, activities, and how you might become a member. If you would like to become a member, please complete our membership form and mail it to: Saratoga Amateur Radio Association, P.O. Box 2034, Saratoga, CA 95070.
Mission
- Facilitate scientific education and knowledge of radio engineering and communication skills by providing training, reference materials for self education and operating practice;
- Provide voluntary noncommercial communication, particularly providing emergency communication as a public service and without any remuneration; and
- Promote amateur radio by facilitating the exchange of information, improve individual operating efficiency and strengthen the welfare of amateur radio in the community.
Meetings
- Meetings are normally on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:30 pm.
- Location is at the Saratoga Fire Station, located on 14380 Saratoga Avenue at the corner of Saratoga-Sunnyvale and Los Gatos-Saratoga Roads, in Saratoga. Map
- Prior to the meeting we have dinner at Jake’s of Saratoga Restaurant located at 12175 Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road (and Prospect Road). Map. We usually meet around 6:00 p.m. Someone will be monitoring the repeater while we are at dinner so check-in and say “Hi” if you are on your way.
- We strongly suggest you bring your 2M HT in case you have difficulty finding the meeting. If you have difficulty finding the meeting, please contact someone on the club repeater.