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Desert RATS Newsletter
October 2026
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Presidents Message
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Looks like fall is finally upon us! The temps have cooled and the roads are crowded due to the annual Return of the Snowbirds. If you are a snowbird-RAT, welcome back! First things first: make sure you join us for our Monday Night Nets, and please participate in our membership meetings! We also have other nets, like Simplex and Winlink. Reach out to us if you would like more information.
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The next membership meeting is this coming Saturday, October 17th at 9am. We will be meeting at the Denny’s in Thousand Palms, and our speaker will be Fredrick KK6NOW, who will be speaking about his extensive experience in aerospace activities for ham radio operators.
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If you are looking for used gear, talk to us. We have a storage unit filled with donated equipment and we get more all the time. We are working on a new inventory soon so we can make a list available to members. In the meantime, I am happy to meet people at our storage unit if you want to have a look, and I know that Glenn WB6RLC is happy to let you know what he may have recently acquired for the club.
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ARES News. You will be getting this newsletter early on the morning of October 15, so let me just say, pay attention to your radio on the club repeater at 10:15am, and listen for the Shakeout!!
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Riverside County RACES and the Riverside County Emergency Management Department have invited us to participate in a drill on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. We will participate in a simulated storm event by activating a resource and information net, passing some Winlink messages, and providing some damage assessment. More details to follow. We will also be providing communication support to the Veteran’s Day Parade on November 11 and the Parade of Lights on December 5. Please let me know if you would like to help out with either of these events.
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Looking Ahead. Please check out the new Go Box Challenge page on our website! We will be hosting this new event on Winter Field Day, Saturday January 23, 2027. Keep an eye out for more information forthcoming about our November membership meeting (which is also elections) as well as our holiday party in December.
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Well RATS, that’s about all I have for now. Till next time, keep your batteries charged and I will see you on the radio.
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October Meeting - This Saturday
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It will be an in-person meeting. Note the Time.
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It will be held at the Thousand Palms Dennys Restaurant. (Denny’s 72244 Varner Rd. Thousand Palms 760-343-3739).
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Saturday, October 17th 2026
9:00 a.m.
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Aerospace Activities for Amateur Radio Operators and Others
Fredrick Raab KK6NOW will give an entertaining, prop-loaded presentation:
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Aerospace activities have never been so accessible to learners and experimenters of all ages. This presentation will highlight such activities from ground level to deep space, with an emphasis on those involving amateur radio. Topics include high powered rocketry, high altitude balloons, satellites, and radio astronomy.
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Since retiring from the UCSD Qualcomm Institute’s Center for Wireless and Public Health Systems in 2017, Fredric Raab KK6NOW promotes STEM/STEAM activities through teaching and course development, focusing his efforts on computer engineering projects using the Arduino, Raspberry Pi and software defined radio (SDR).
His special interest is in space and aerospace applications, building flight recorders and trackers for high powered amateur rockets and high-altitude balloons, functional (but not space-worthy) CubeSats, and ground stations to receive telemetry from satellites, weather balloons and aircraft.
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He serves on several NASA STEM Engagement review committees and judged seven NASA TechRise student challenges to send experiments on sub-orbital sounding rockets and high-altitude balloon flights.
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Although he spent his entire career in telecommunications, he didn’t obtain his technical and general licenses until 2014, initially for off-roading, then with the Red Cross. Today his primary usage is telemetry and experimentation.
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Desert RATS Board Elections in November
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We will be having annual Board elections at the November Meeting. If you are interested in running for a position, please notify the Club Secretary here.
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The Current Board Members are:
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· Vice President: Rick – N6PSP
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· Treasurer: Jim – KN6QLC
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· Secretary: Gavin - K6GAV
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· Director at Large: Guy – KS6F
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· Director at Large: Mark – KD6SEC
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· Director at Large: Shane – KO6JGR
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· President Emeritus: Glenn – WB6RLC
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· Membership: Annie - KJ6QWC
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All have expressed their availability to continue.
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CERT Training Announced
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Are you prepared for earthquakes, fires, power outages, terrorism, public health crises, or adverse weather? Cathedral City Fire & EMS invites the community to take part in Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training.
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CERT training builds a partnership between professional emergency services and the people they serve. Emergency personnel train members of neighborhoods, community organizations, and workplaces in basic emergency response skills. CERT-trained members strengthen their area’s emergency response capability by providing valuable assistance until help arrives.
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Please consider taking CERT if you have not done so already. Please share with your neighbors that may be interested. CERT stands for Community Emergency Response Team.
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You will learn life saving skills:
• Incident Command System
• Triage the injured
• Search and Rescue
• Fire Suppression
• Hazardous Materials
• Disaster Phycology
• Stop the Bleed, Splinting, Transporting the injured
• And confidence to handle what may come your way.
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Space is limited. Taught by Cathedral City Fire and EMS
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Monday, November 9 through Wednesday, November 11, 2026:
• November 9: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• November 10: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• November 11: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
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An ARES Opportunity
Volunteer and Have Some Fun!
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It’s that time of year again! Coachella Valley ARES will be providing communications support to the Palm Springs Veteran’s Day Parade on Wednesday, November 11, 2026 from 3pm to 5pm. Like last year, we will provide some extra eyes and ears in the staging area and along the parade route.
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This is a great way to practice your radio skills and utilize your NET and ICS training in real time. Plus, its fun!
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We will have a preparatory ZOOM briefing on Thursday, November 5 at 7pm.
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Note: You do not have to be an ARES member to volunteer.
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Go-Kit Challenge Announced
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We will be having a challenge to see who has the best portable Go-Kit in the Coachella Valley.
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The challenge will be held in association with our annual Winter Field Day observance at Lake Cahuilla Veterans Park in La Quinta on Saturday January 23rd 2027.
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We are announcing it now to allow time for you to design and build your award winning entries.
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All bands and all types of radios are permitted.
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More info is available here.
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Training and Licensing Course Available
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Ham Radio Clubs - History And Evolution
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This interesting YouTube video takes us on a brief history of Ham Radio Clubs and why they are disappearing – or perhaps evolving. It’s a well-produced piece that provides context for the past and future of our hobby.
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Tic-Toc What?
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Ever wonder about the evolution of timekeeping and WWV?
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Here is a great video on how the WWV timekeeping system evolved, how it is used and why it is important to broadcasters – including Ham Radio operators.
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Keep an eye out for a picture of our own ticntoc past president Glenn WB6RLC around the 23 minute mark.
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SSTV Pictures from the ISS
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These sample images courtesy of Earl, KJ6DQR who downloaded them from the International Space Station. The focus was on student education.
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Did You Know?
Earl conducts a digital net on Monday evenings at 8:00 p.m. on the RATS repeater. Many of the digital and emergency modes are covered and the net is specifically designed for helping everyone get on the air using modes such as FLDIGI, FT8 or JT65.
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Tune in – there are many of your friends ready to help get you on the air.
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Want To Know What's Happening?
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The best way to be fully informed about Amateur Radio activities here in the Coachella Valley is to tune into the RATS Monday Night Net.
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The net is conducted every Monday at 7:00 p.m. on the Edom Hill repeater (146.94 – 107.2) and features announcements about club and ARES activities.
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A Note on Amateur Radio Testing Resources
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Remote Testing for amateur licensing is available from the Greater Los Angeles Amateur Radio Group (GLAARG)
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GLAARG is one of the 14 FCC-recognized Volunteer-Exam Coordinators conducting amateur radio exams. GLAARG is a VEC testing organization, not a radio club. Our exam fee is $10 for remote exams and $10 for in-person exams. Exam fees are waived for minors, students with a current ID, first responders, Active Military, Veterans, and GLAARG VEs upgrading to Extra.
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For more information on times for the online testing please see the GLAARG website here.
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Note that GLAARG also offers in-person testing when COVID regulations permit.
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Other Testing Resources
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The ARRL is facilitating video supervised on-line examinations. This testing is made available by video from a number of Clubs.
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For more information, the ARRL website for remote testing is available here.
Also, Marc – N9WIB has assembled a series of technician class license tutorials. There are 20 presentations covering all the topics related to getting your initial ham radio license and all are posted on YouTube. This content is free and open to all Amateur Radio Clubs to use as an educational tool. Links and further information are available on his website here.
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ARRL Podcasts Schedule
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The On The AIR podcast is a monthly companion to On Air magazine, a magazine for beginner-to-intermediate ham radio operators, produced by the ARRL. The podcast and other interesting publications are available here.
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Listen to ARRL Audio News, available every Friday. ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week's top news stories in the world of amateur radio and ARRL, along with interviews and other features.
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The On the Air podcast and ARRL Audio News are available on blubrry, iTunes, and Apple Podcasts.
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Club President: Don Stouder, N1GAY
Club Vice-President: Rick Lee - N6PSP
Club Treasurer: Jim Haggerty - KN6QLC
Club Secretary: Gavin Schutz – K6GAV
Directors
Guy Chabot - KS6F
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Mark Johnston - KD6SEC
Shane Meyer - KO6JGR
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President Emeritus: Glenn Morrison – WB6RLC
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Membership: Anne Larson - KJ6QWC
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