W3USR Ham Radio Station Dedication Oct. 25

The University of Scranton will dedicate a state-of-the-art amateur radio station that serves students in the University's W3USR Amateur Radio Club and is also used for physics courses and research by students and faculty participating with the Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation (HamSCI) project led by Nathaniel Frissell, Ph.D., associate professor of physics and engineering at Scranton. Research conducted using the facility has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF), NASA, the Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) foundation and other organizations.

Located on the fifth floor of the Loyola Science Center, the main station has floor to ceiling glass walls with sweeping views of the city of Scranton. Last academic year, a 40-foot tower with a Skyhawk High Frequency antenna for 14, 21, and 28 MHz, as well as VHF/UHF satellite and microwave antennas, some with rotating mounts were installed, in addition to heavy-duty controllers, all-mode transceivers, speakers, desktop microphones and other components.

In April of 2024, Dr. Frissell, University students and community volunteers used the capabilities of the station to participate in NASA's Citizen Science Investigations to study the effects of the total solar eclipse on the earth's ionosphere. Dr. Frissell, University students and faculty have already presented research supported by use of the facility at conferences including, most recently, at the National Science Foundation CEDAR (Coupling, Energetics, and Dynamics of Atmospheric Regions) Workshop.

W3USR is part of the University of Scranton Physics and Engineering Department. Major support for the amateur radio station was made possible through a generous grant from the Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) foundation, with additional support from Mary Lou West, Ph.D., (KC2NMC), Edward Hayes (N6XEM), Jeffrey DePolo (WN3A), DXEngineering, and the National Science Foundation.

The dedication ceremony will begin at 3:10 pm. in the PNC Auditorium of the Loyola Science Center with a presentation about the station by Dr. Frissell (W2NAF) and student members of the W3USR Amateur Radio Club, followed an open house for the station on the fifth floor of Loyola Science Center and a reception with light refreshments and student poster presentations in the Atrium of the Loyola Science Center. The dedication presentation, station open house and reception are free of charge and open to the public.

A ticketed buffet dinner that begins at 6:15 p.m. will conclude the dedication events planned for Oct. 25. Tickets for the buffet dinner are $30 and are available scranton.edu/w3usr-dedication. For additional information, call 570-941-7509 or email [email protected].