Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC)
March/April 2025

In this issue...

Upcoming Community Deadlines and Notices

ARDC Unveils Vision & Strategy

ARDC's High-Level StrategiesSince 2019, ARDC has been making grants to support many wonderful projects that align with our mission of advancing amateur radio and digital communications science and technology. Throughout the course of our grantmaking, we’ve faced philosophical and practical questions from both our community and each other:

  • What do we mean by digital communications?
  • At ARDC, we support communication technology that is open, accessible, and free from barriers. Why is open source technology and access so important to us, and how does it relate to amateur radio?
  • Ultimately, what is ARDC trying to do, and for what purpose?

For the past year or so, we have been working on articulating answers to these questions, resulting in our vision statement and our accompanying strategy. We are pleased to finally be able to share them with you. …more

2024 Annual Report is Live

Front cover of the Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) 2024 Annual Report

The 2024 ARDC Annual Report is now available. Check it out to learn more about our highlights from 2024 and what we’re looking to accomplish in 2025. …more

Grantee Updates

WX5FWD SKYWARN

SKYWARN

In 2023, ARDC funded the WX5FWD SKYWARN Team to modernize WX5FWD with updated radio equipment, improvements to their tower and antenna, computer and network upgrades, remote base build outs, and updates to their remote station operations. The team recently published a video highlighting their work from this modernization project, which you can take a look at here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TR6dAhssC3A.

ARISS Contact: Collaboration between Maple Bear School and LZ1KRN Neterra Amateur Radio Club, Bulgaria

Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)

On March 24, students from Maple Bear School, in collaboration with the LZ1KRN Neterra Amateur Radio Club in Sofia, Bulgaria, made contact with astronaut Don Pettit KD5MDT aboard the ISS, marking the first direct contact between Bulgarian students and an astronaut on the space station. To view this milestone QSO, you can listen to the recording of their ARISS contact here, where the contact begins at the ~1h mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdpdXPEOMd4.

Deep Space Exploration Society (DSES) Welcomes First Group of High School Students to their Facility

Students from Las Animas High school conversing with members of the Deep Space Exploration Society (DSES) on their visit to the Plishner Radio Astronomy and Space Sciences Center.

Image Credit: Deep Space Exploration Society (DSES)

On January 22, the Deep Space Exploration Society (DSES) hosted its first high school visitors! Students from Las Animas High School in Colorado took a field trip to the Plishner Radio Astronomy and Space Sciences Center to learn about ham radio and radio astronomy. This visit included a tour of the DSES Radio Telescope, discussions about its history, and insights into the work involved to restore it. These field trips aim to create opportunities for research and mentorship in astronomy, engineering, electronics, and radio. DSES plans to host more of these educational visits over the next year. You can learn more about the students’ visit by checking out the following links:

FreeDV: HamCation Update

FreeDV

Back in February, grantees from FreeDV returned to HamCation, where maintainer Mooneer Salem K6AQ gave a presentation detailing their recent work with Radio Autoencoder (RADE) technology, which they also demonstrated at their booth. The demo was a hit, with visitors impressed by RADE’s audio quality, especially when compared to current digital voice offerings. For more details about RADE and Mooneer’s experience at HamCation this year, check out the related blog post: https://freedv.org/freedv-experience-at-2025-orlando-hamcation/.

Society of Women Engineers (SWE): Impact on Scholarships/Retention

Society of Women Engineers (SWE)

Grantees at the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) recently reported on the impact of their scholarships on student retention. They found out that of the 400 women who received at least one SWE Scholarship between 2017 and 2023, approximately 78% of undergraduate scholarship recipients either earned a STEM degree or are still pursuing their STEM degree. Of this 78%, 93% are pursuing degrees in computer science or engineering. You can learn more about the impact of SWE scholarships by reading their related blog post: https://swe.org/research/2025/the-impact-of-swe-scholarships-on-retention-in-engineering-and-computer-science/.

The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute’s Introduces the ARISE Lab

Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute

The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute recently launched their ARISE lab, an initiative developed to connect science with community colleges. The program provides hands-on training for students and instructors in areas such as digital signal processing, astronomy, and radio science. Curriculum includes both labs and modules, using tools like GNU Radio and real-time data from SETI’s Allen Telescope Array (ATA). Recent program updates include 15 new labs, two hands-on workshops at the Hat Creek Radio Observatory (HCRO), and on-site sessions at 10 community colleges.

SETI will host their next in-person workshop from June 25 - 27 at the HCRO. Community college instructors that are interested in attending have until May 13 to apply: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe14k_-kUnJGxGg5j8KQWdDThUxM1H_CI84IezpwgJdOlYz7Q/viewform. In addition, virtual workshops will be held from 11a - 12p PDT on the first Monday of each month starting on June 2. To learn more about the ARISE lab, check out their recent press release: https://www.seti.org/press-release/seti-institute-launches-arise-lab-bringing-seti-and-radio-astronomy-community-colleges, or explore the curriculum at https://agiseti.com/.

If you are a grantee and would like to have ARDC highlight your work, please send updates to giving@ardc.net. We love telling the world about the great work you all are doing to support our mission and advance our vision!

What ARDC Has Been Up To

ARDC March 2025 Community Meeting

On March 15, we hosted our latest Community Meeting, where 45 folks were in attendance to learn about our recent work and our path ahead. Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV kicked off the meeting by introducing our newest Staff and Board Members, along with our 2025 Advisory Committee members. …more

Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV visits California Historical Radio Society

California Historical Radio Society Radio StationOn February 26, ARDC’s Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV paid a visit to the California Historical Radio Society, a group in Alameda, CA that’s dedicated to preserving all things radio – including a ham radio station! If you’re in the Bay Area, it’s well worth a visit. They’re also always looking for volunteers, especially to help out with the ham station. Whether you’re stopping by to explore or looking to get involved, it’s a great place to learn, connect, and celebrate radio history.

HamSCI Workshop 2025

Nathaniel Frissell W2NAF giving remarks at HamSCI 2025ARDC Board members Ria Jairam N2RJ and Phil Karn KA9Q attended the HamSCI Workshop 2025 from March 14-15 at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, NJ. In its eighth year, the workshop highlights projects from our grantees in advancing amateur radio and ionospheric science. When asked about the event, Ria states “this event was billed as HamSCI’s big year, and it most certainly was. I had the chance to see many presentations and talk to researchers from undergrad to postdoctoral and it was interesting to see just how much we could learn about everything from propagation to space to radio. Can’t wait for the next one.” Kudos to HamSCI for another excellent workshop!

PEAK Grantmaking

Director of Grantmaking Chelsea Párraga KF0FVJ and Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV at Principles Equity Advocacy Knowledge (PEAK) GrantmakingPEAK Grantmaking occurred from April 24 - 26 in New Orleans, LA. Director of Grantmaking Chelsea Párraga KF0FVJ and Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV attended. Both Chelsea and Rosy ran a workshop – How To Do A 360 Review of Final Reports – where they described our new participatory structure for evaluating grant reports and how those outcomes have impacted our approach to future grantmaking. The talk, to an audience of at least 70, garnered lots of follow-up questions and enthusiasm about adopting our methodology. This conference was a great opportunity to share our work, spark new ideas, and build connections within the grantmaking community.

Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV on RATPAC

On April 3, Executive Director Rosy Schechter KJ7RYV was a guest on Radio Amateur Training Planning and Activities Committee (RATPAC). She gave a recap of ARDC’s 2024 activities and discussed our newly rolled-out vision and strategy and what it means for grantmaking and technology programs, as well as our broader community. If you didn’t get a chance to catch the live presentation or would like to revisit the talk, you can find a recording of the presentation here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQWf7qMgqQE.


ARDC Welcomes New Committee Members for 2025

ARDC's New Advisory Committee Members for 20252025 is in full swing, which brings us new volunteer teams for our four Advisory Committees:

Our volunteers play a vital role in driving the foundation’s mission forward. Members of each committee serve at least one term from January to December, with the opportunity to serve up to four consecutive terms.

With the close of the 2024 term, we bid farewell to some of our dedicated volunteers while welcoming new members to the team. Please join us in expressing gratitude to those departing and extending a warm welcome to our newest volunteers on the ARDC team! …more

Come See us at Dayton Hamvention, NANOG 94, and HAM RADIO Friedrichshafen

ARDC will be out and about in May and June: you will be able to find our team at the following event(s):

Dayton Hamvention
The North American Network Operators' Group (NANOG) 94 2025HAM RADIO Friedrichshafen

Contact Us!

We always want to hear from you:

ARDC's Mission

The mission of Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) is to support, promote, and enhance digital communication and broader communication science and technology, to promote amateur radio, scientific research, experimentation, education, development, open access, and innovation in information and communication technology.

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