Communicate - Construct - Experiment - educate
Four Pillars of Amateur Radio Activity
Contact: kb7hta@kb7hta.com
NEWS
Las Vegas Valley T-Hunts Are Back
After a long absence, T-Hunts are back in the Valley! The plan is to conduct a T-Hunt once a month, which will be open to all Radio Amateurs. The next T-Hunt will be hosted by Ron, KJ7PAQ on March 21, 2026 . For the results of past T-Hunts, latest information and a request form to be added to the T-Hunt mailing list click HERE
Las Vegas Mesh Group
The next LV Mesh Group quarterly breakfast will be held on Saturday April 4, 2026. Let’s meet at Winchell’s Pub & Grill, 199 E Warm Springs Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89119 at 8:00 am; mark your calendars!
Rick, K7FYI has developed software to help evaluate our AREDN Mesh Network here in Las Vegas, using Prometheus that is imbedded into the node firmware. He has made a great YouTube video explaining its use. The video is unlisted, but a link has been sent out to all of the LV Mesh Group members.
Frank, N7ZEV and Robert, WA3PAD setup hardware to connect Angel Peak to the Las Vegas AREDN Network.
Las Vegas Amateur Radio Balloon News
Tony, KD7TOG, a local group member launched his latest balloon a little before 10:22 am (PST) on December 16, 2025. It remained airborne for three days. On the third night, December 19, 2025 KD7TOG-5 nearing the East coast ran into a line of thunderstorms, which extended to a much higher altitude and caused it to come down. More information about the flight can be found in the table below.
A short video on some of Tony’s other launches working with kids can be seen here.
The balloon will have a design similar to the ALP40-H balloon, see the table below for construction details. However, with luck there will be some interesting additions. I hope to have a sensor to record the internal pressure of the balloon. To facilitate the pressure sensor connections, I will be using an End Fed 20m antenna (33′) with a 1.5′ counterpoise designed by Rudi, K7RAW…”The Antenna Whisperer“.
The American Legion Amateur Radio Club Post 40 (TALARC) Balloon Launches
| Balloon Designation | Balloon Status | Construction | Launch Date/Info | Tracking Website | Flight Info/Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALP40 – J | PRE LAUNCH | ALP40-J Design | March | N/A | N/A |
| KD7TOG-5 | DOWN | KD7TOG-5 Design | December 16, 2025 | WSPR TV Spot | KD7TOG-5 Archive |
| ALP40 – I | DOWN | ALP40-I Design | April 28, 2025 | WSPR TV Spot | ALP40-I Archive |
| ALP40 – H | DOWN | ALP40-H Design | April 6, 2025 | WSPR TV Spot | ALP40-H Archive |
| ALP40 – G | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/Bat | February 6, 2025 | WSPR Traquito Spot | ALP40-G Archive |
| ALP40 – F | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/SCap | January 22, 2025 | WSPR Traquito Spot | ALP40-F Archive |
| ALP40 – E | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/SCap | November 28, 2024 | WSPR Traquito Spot | ALP40-E Archive |
| ALP40 – D | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/Bat | November 8, 2024 | WSPR Traquito Spot | ALP40-D Archive |
| ALP40 – C | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/SCap | June 5, 2024 | Not Tracked | ALP40-C Archive |
| ALP40 – B | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/Bat | April 10, 2024 | WSPR TV Spot | ALP40-B Archive |
| ALP40 – A | DOWN | U4B/SolarPan/SCap | February 3, 2024 | WSPR TV Spot | ALP40-A Archive |
Small Super Capacitor Battery
My objective was to build a small portable Super Capacitor Battery for charging an Android Phone or Tablet. The major components of the design are a 3D printed case, 3 x 4000 Farad 4.2 Volt Super Capacitors, USB C to 4.2 Volt battery charger, DC-DC converter and USB A connector. See the photo below.
The Super Capacitor Battery in theory could output a regulated 5 Volts at 3 amps to the USB A socket. Most devices when charging are happy to get 5 Volts at 1 amp. Assuming this is true, the battery could supply one amp to the DC-DC converter for over 3 hours, with the voltage on the capacitors dropping from 4.2 Volts to 3.2 Volts. See the chart below.
I have tested the Super Capacitor Battery by charging a Samsung Galaxy Tab A and a Samsung Z Flip 3 Phone. See the photo below. The battery seems to work well.
Further testing needs to be done to determine if the battery lives up to the theoretical calculations discussed above. Also, I would like to see if the battery would power a Raspberry Pi or Arduino Uno. Stay tuned.
First Quarter 2026 LV Mesh Group Breakfast
Weekly LV Mesh Group NET
Every Sunday starting at 6:45 pm there is a NET using Team Talk 5 (similar to Zoom) over the LVMesh Network. If you would like to participate, please contact Tom, KB7HTA, for more information. His contact information is available through QRZ. The NET usually sees about 7 regulars, Frank (N7ZEV), Dale (WA6MZW), Robert (N7GET), Don (KE6BXT), Tom (KB7HTA), Steven (N6SFX) and Wayne (N7HWM), with others joining in periodically.
AllStar Over LVMesh
AllStar over LVMesh has been tested, with encouraging results. A private connection from the QTH of KB7HTA through the Apex repeater site, KO0OOO repeater site, Potosi repeater site and finally to the W7HEN public hub at the QTH of K6FYN was made during the Henderson Sunday night NET on October 4th, 2020. The AllStar over LVMesh private network consists of Richard, KO0OOO (node#1500), Tom, KB7HTA (node#1501), Rick, K7FYI (node#1502) and Lawrence, k6YFN (node#1503). A few hardware improvements need to be made before testing continues.
Mesh Power Box
In working with mesh nodes, it was clear there was a need for a power box, which could supply both 12 volts and 24 volts. Even though, many nodes will operate using 12 volts, 24 volts is recommended. Also, the use of longer Ethernet cables, will drop the supply voltage significantly. In the “Projects” section, I have provided details on how to construct such a box.
Archived Articles
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