2018 Skywarn Recognition Day

NWS Melbourne, Florida 2018 SKYWARN™ Recognition Day

Celebrating 20 Years!

Final results have been compiled and pictures from the event updated. Thank you to all of our amateur radio volunteers who made this another fun and successful event!

Pictures from the 2018 SRD Event

Spencer, KM4KFG, and Ken, N8KH, operating on HF	Setting up for SKYWARN Recognition Day!
Jessie giving tours of the office to Amateur Radio operators during our SKYWARN Open House	Dave, K1EUS, and Sandy, KA1HUG, operating on HF
Ron, KD4PQQ, operating on 2M	Local Amateur Radio operators at the HF station gearing up for SKYWARN Recognition Day
Gordon, KA4JRY, Don, AF4Z, and Dana, KM4TIX, helping setup for the event	KMLB radar with tower trailer brought by PCARS and tri-band antenna provided by Wayne, KA1VRF

During the first weekend of December, the National Weather Service Office in Melbourne, Florida supported SKYWARN™ Recognition Day for the 20th consecutive year. The event for Amateur Radio (ham) operators was held from 7pm Friday, November 30th through 7 pm Saturday, December 1st and is co-sponsored by the NWS (www.weather.gov) and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL; www.arrl.org). Local amateur radio operators and their family members attended a SKYWARN™ Open House from 10 AM to 4 PM on Saturday, December 1st, for tours of event operations and of the National Weather Service office.

SKYWARN™ Recognition Day (SRD) provides a venue for National Weather Service (NWS) offices to recognize Amateur ("ham") Radio operators for their commitment in helping keep their communities weather-safe. During every tropical weather threat, and many other major weather events, Amateur Radio operators staff local NWS and American Red Cross shelters, standing ready to provide emergency communications should standard services fail or become overloaded. Many Amateur Radio operators are also trained as SKYWARN™ weather spotters by local NWS offices, to provide valuable information during hazardous weather situations. Often, these spotter reports allow NWS meteorologists to issue severe weather warnings with greater advance notice and confidence than would otherwise be possible.

During the 24-hour event, Amateur Radio operators throughout the country visited their local NWS office, set up portable radio stations to simulate emergency conditions, and worked in teams to exchange weather reports with other hams across the nation and the globe.

2018 SRD results:

Total Contacts:   558
States Contacted: 46
NWS Stations Contacted:  43
Countries Contacted: 1
Bands: 2, 20, 40, 80 meters
Modes: SSB, FM, Echolink

Radio Operators & Assistance Provided by:

Dave Allen - N4ESI	Brevard County - PCARS
Walter Aucoin - WB5ZGA	Brevard County - PCARS
Rodger Boogren - AK4MI	Brevard County - PCARS
Gregory Bowman - N4EN	Brevard County - PCARS
Alan Dixon - N3HOE	Brevard County - PCARS
Jan Ferguson - W4REN	Brevard County - TARC
Ken Hendrickson - N8KH	Brevard County - PCARS
John Hudacek - KJ4VQF	Brevard County - PCARS
Gordon Johnson - KA4JRY	Brevard County - PCARS
Debra Markley - WD8JPX	Brevard County - PCARS
Jerry Phelps - KJ4IMP	Brevard County - RACES
Stephanie Phillips - K4MVO	Brevard County - TARC
Donald Purnhagen - KN4ILG	Brevard County - PCARS
Spencer Rich - KM4KFG	Brevard County
Dana Smith - KM4TIX	Brevard County - PCARS
Eric Smitt - K9ES	Brevard County - PCARS
Dennis Tokarzewski - AJ4DT	Brevard County
Glen Vinke - KX4CQ	Brevard County - PCARS
Don Winn - AF4Z	Brevard County - PCARS
Wayne Burkett, Sr. - KA1VRF	Indian River County - TCWN
Carm Miranda - K4CRM	Indian River County - VBARC/ARES
Dave Roy - K1EUS	Indian River County - VBARC
Sandy Roy - KA1HUG	Indian River County - VBARC
Ray Jaworski - KI4RHL	Martin County - ARES/RACES
Ron Tagg- KD4PQQ	Martin County - ARES/RACES
Ellory Buehl - W2DNR	Volusia County - DBARA/ARES
Warren Greenburg - AE4WG	Volusia County - ARES
Karl Martin - KG4HBN	Volusia County - ARRL NFL
Pete Blottman - N2RFW	NWS Melbourne
Don Burkhardt	NWS Melbourne
Fred Johnson	NWS Melbourne
Jessie Smith - WX4JRS	NWS Melbourne
Scott Spratt - KT4PD	NWS Melbourne
Roddey Stevenson	NWS Melbourne
Derrick Weitlich - W1DKW	NWS Melbourne

For questions, comments, feedback, please email Derrick Weitlich or Jessie Smith.

To receive a QSL card from WX4MLB after the event, please send your card along with an SASE to:

NWS Melbourne
421 Croton Road
Melbourne, FL 32935.

Electronic QSLs can be exchanged via EQSL (www.eqsl.cc).

Annual Statistics from WFO Melbourne (local records)

YEAR	Total Contacts	NWS Contacts	States	DX Countries	Contacts nation-wide
1999	279	20	38	7
2000	489	38	43	12
2001	276	33	48	3
2002	388	35	44	29
2003	538	42	43	20
2004	1524	68	49	57	1st Place
2005	778	71	49	20	3rd Place
2006	921	70	50	24	2nd Place
2007	930	64	47	17	1st Place
2008	1192	74	50	40	2nd Place
2009	1373	77	50	43	1st Place
2010	292	35	43	6	15th Place
2011	1604	81	50	43	1st Place
2012	978	74	50	25	1st Place
2013	1024	54	47	21	1st Place
2014	1294	63	50	38	1st Place
2015	1407	65	50	32	-
2016	1209	65	50	21	2nd Place
2017	182	27	33	6
2018	558	43	46	1

2018 SKYWARN Recognition Day Official Website