"Making Waves at UCSC:
From Ham Radio to SlugSats" Sarah Mitchell, NF2S
Natalie King, KO2V
Synopsis: Sarah Mitchell, NF2S, and Natalie King, KO2V, are the President and Vice President of the UCSC Amateur Radio Club, W6SLG. They are currently co-leading the SlugSat micro-satellite project within the school’s electrical engineering senior capstone course. During their time serving as club leadership, Sarah and Natalie have led an initiative to revitalize the UCSC radio club. Through accessible projects, equipment fundraising, field trips, and on-campus licensing exam sessions, the two undergraduates have successfully increased both UCSC ARC membership and the club’s reach within the engineering department.
Sarah and Natalie have taken their interest in amateur radio outside of the club, by designing a satellite for the ham community in a project called SlugSat. SlugSat is a fully student run, designed, and built CubeSat project for HF amateur radio communications and do particle physics research. While most CubeSats are designed to operate on the UHF/VHF frequencies, SlugSat’s main payload is to use an HF linear transponder to operate with a 21.4 MHz uplink and 29.4 MHz downlink. The challenge of building a full satellite from the ground up has been an incredible learning experience for all students involved and they are all excited for an opportunity to see their work go to space. Sarah Mitchell, NF2S, Club President
Sarah Mitchell is a senior in electrical engineering and mathematics at UC Santa Cruz. After graduating, She will continue pursuing her interest in satellites and space robotics at Space Systems/Loral (SSL) over the summer before moving on to a masters focusing in robotics. Since joining the UCSC Radio Club, she has enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about RF engineering while also engaging with the ham community.
Natalie King, KO2V, Vice President
Natalie King is a senior in computer engineering at UC Santa Cruz pursuing a robotics and control focus. She will soon begin her master’s within the school’s Machine Interaction Lab. Natalie was first drawn to amateur radio through her interest in community engagement, and has used her position as Vice President of the UCSC ARC to help students use HAM radio to become more hands-on in their coursework.
See you all there !!
Past Meetings Click on The Year/Month Below For A Past Meeting
The Palo Alto Amateur Radio Association meets on the 1st Friday of the month at 7:00 pm (19:00 J) (except when the first Friday lands on a holiday and typically moved to the 2nd Friday of the month).
PLEASE NOTE: The meeting location has changed. We will now be meeting in Meeting Room H6, in the Cubberley Community Center in Palo Alto. Further information is below.
Location: Cubberley Community Center; 4000 Middflefield Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303.
Telephone: (650) 329-2418.
After the meeting, many members gather for beer, pizza, and eyeball QSOs at Pizza Chicago, located at 4115 El Camino Real, in Palo Alto..
Location: https://www.pizzachicagopaloalto.com/
Board Meetings
The PAARA Board meets on the 3rd Wednesday of every month at 7:00 pm at the home of Marty Wayne, W6NEV. Address is: 1039 Bryant Way, Sunnyvale, CA. We conduct most of our club business there in order to allow more time for guest speakers and socializing at regular club meetings. Any PAARA member is welcome to attend.
A few meetings throughout the year have pre-defined agenda items. These include:
September Board Meeting
The Nominating Committee is appointed by the President to decide on a slate of candidates to be recommended to the membership.
October General Meeting
The Nominating Committee presents its nominations to the membership at the regular club meeting. Nominations from club members opens at the beginning of the meeting, and closes at the end of the meeting.
