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KL7AJ

9/1/2014

9 Comments

 

Episode 006 - Eric Nichols - KL7AJ

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Eric Nichols, KL7AJ, has Plasma dreams and charges up the ionosphere using high power transmitters as a result of his years in ham and broadcast radio.  Starting in 1972, as a high school senior in Southern California, Eric first earned his Novice Class Amateur Radio license, WN6TEE.  Upgrading to General Class, two years later, and adding a First Class Radio Telephone license, Eric relocated to North Pole, Alaska, where he spent the next 20 years as a radio station broadcast engineer. Eric went on to share his ham radio journey through his contribution of over 150 published articles in QST, QEX, eHam and other publications, and even a ham radio novel, Plasma Dreams. Join Eric, 4Z1UG, in his QSO Today, with Eric Nichols, KL7AJ. 

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As a young man, Alaska's frontier beakoned Eric to make his home in North Pole, not far from Fairbanks, Alaska.  It is there that he became a broadcast engineer for the fifty-thousand watt  AM radio station, KJNP, where he worked for over twenty-years. Becoming Alaska's high power transmitter guru, doors opened for Eric to become involved in ionospheric and aurora research using the very high powered transmitters at HIPAS Observatory, a facility operated by UCLA, Northeast of Fairbanks.  

Plasma, as it is discussed in our QSO Today, is the conduction of electrons through a gas. In the HIPAS experiments, high powered transmitters were used to turn the ionosphere above Alaska into a floating plasma chamber. These experiments caught Eric's imagination and was the source of inspiration of much of Eric's latest work. 

First licensed: 1972

Previous Call signs:  WN6TEE, KL7JDC

Elmers:  Mike Aust,  WB6DJI,  and Tim Aust, WB6ZUF

First Rig: ARC 5 Receivers on two bands, Johnson Adventurer on transmit

Current Rig: TenTec Jupiter, "and a whole lot of boat anchors" including a Central Electronics 100V

Favorite Operating Modes: CW, SSB, AM

Favorite ham radio pastimes: 
Rag chew, work DX, home brew and build equipment, contests, antenna design, computers and radio, vintage radio, amateur radio education, authoring articles and books,  Navy/Marine MARS, and Volunteer Examiner (VE)

Clubs: 
  • Arctic Amateur Radio Club, AARC
  • Hutchison Amateur Radio Experimenters Society, (HARES), KL7EX 


Links: 
QRZ
Ham radio needs to sizzle crackel and bang!
HIPAS - High Power Auroral Stimulation Observatory
Invention is the mother of necessity
Plasma Physics for the Radio Amateur, II
SWR Meters Make You Stupid
Don't Blame the Sun (you may need a QST subscription to read this link)

Books:
Plasma Dreams - fiction
The Opus of Amateur Radio - an essay on ham radio
Radio Science for the Radio Amateur - build a plasma chamber in your home - why not!


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ARC 5 Single Band Receivers
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Johnson Viking Adventurer Transmitter
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Central Electronics 100V Receiver
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TenTec Jupiter Transceiver
9 Comments
Ted Clapham VE6AMR link
9/2/2014 07:27:33 am

Really enjoyed listening to your conversation with Eric KL7AJ. I would really like to talk to Eric about the Auroral Zone.

Ted

Reply
Eric Nichols
9/2/2014 04:36:24 pm

Hi Ted:
I'd be happy to talk to you about the Auroral zone! Glad you liked the program.
73,
Eric

Reply
Ted Clapham VE6AMR link
9/3/2014 08:43:40 am

Living in Alaska I would believe that most of your polar international communications, like me, are dependant on the auroral activity. I have determined that regardless of the Solar Flux Index and other indicators that the polar path communications likelyhood is directly dependent on the degree of activity of the auroral zone for my location in Calgary Alberta.

Is this true for you in North Pole Alaska?

Has your research determined if the depleation of the ozone layer and the enlargement of the polar ozone holes due to CFC's and other polutants had any effect on the auroral zone activity?

Ted

Ted Clapham VE6AMR link
9/3/2014 12:21:37 pm

Did some further reading; I was mistaken in my thoughts. Depletion of the ozone layer in the Stratoshere should not cause any disruption or change in the auroral zone which extends upward from about 80 kilometers in the ionosphere.

Ted

Eric 4Z1UG
9/3/2014 05:14:17 pm

Ted - thanks for your comments and contributions to the conversation.

Reply
Ted Clapham link
9/4/2014 04:39:23 am

No problem my pleasure Eric.

Ted

Reply
Eric, 4Z1UG
10/30/2014 09:50:03 pm

Eric was just published again in QST November. Get the free article, even if you do not subscribe to QST from this link:http://goo.gl/YUHyVw

Reply
Ted Clapham link
10/31/2014 04:06:11 am

Thankyou!

Reply
Gene White
6/8/2017 10:48:28 pm

Eric,
Do you still need help on Saturday?

Reply

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