Who: Steve Floyd
From: Ultra Electronics
What: HAARP: A Brief History and Engineering Review
When: August 8, 2023 at 6:00 PM
Where: Goddard Space Flight Center (Visitor Center) - Register Here
Address: 8800 Greenbelt Road
Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
Sponsors: ROX Electronics and Goddard Amatuer Radio Club

Chapter 37 SBE and the Goddard Amateur Radio Club bring you a lecture on the latest developments and research findings from The High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program, also known as “HAARP.”

Steve Floyd of Ultra Electronics will present a fascinating look at the program, recognized as a highly successful research project overcoming many unique and unusual radio engineering design challenges. This presentation will provide an inside view describing how the HAARP systems were designed, constructed, installed, and operated.

The HAARP Research Station is a state-of-the-art ionospheric research project located in Alaska and was jointly funded by the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Designed and built by a Washington, DC based APTI/BAE Systems team, its purpose is to analyze the Earth’s ionosphere and investigate the potential for developing ionospheric enhancement technology for radio communications and surveillance.

The HAARP facility was built in three stages starting in 1993, research operations began in 1996, and was completed in 2007. In 2015, the HAARP program and all assets were officially transferred to the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), and it continues to operate today.

The most prominent instrument at the HAARP Research Station is the Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI), a 180-antenna tower phased array, and 180 individual radio transmitter systems, operating in the high frequency (HF) band with an effective radiated power of 5 Gigawatts. The HAARP IRI is recognized as one of the highest-powered HF transmitting systems in the world and is used to temporarily excite a limited area of the ionosphere for scientific study.

Steve Floyd is a BSEE graduate of Virginia Tech, a former student DJ and Chief Engineer at WUVT-FM in Blacksburg, VA, and obtained his MSEE (with emphasis on RF and Microwave Engineering and Radar Systems Engineering) from The Johns Hopkins University in 1991. He became a licensed Amateur Radio operator at 12 years old and is active as W4YHD. Steve began his professional career designing high power RF communications and Radar systems at E-Systems Inc., then became Chief RF Systems Design Engineer for HAARP working at APTI/BAE Systems. As Chief Engineer for the HAARP facility he was responsible for all hardware systems designs, equipment installation, and site operations until 2014 when he became a part time consultant to the program. His current responsibilities are primarily involved in the design of high power SDR based Radar systems, including EW and Communications systems, at Ultra Electronics. Steve is also active in the broadcast industry, he is an SBE member of DC Chapter 37, and has a lifelong love of radio broadcasting and amateur radio.

This event is also affiliated with the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center education program and employee welfare program, and therefore the Visitor’s Center and outdoor rocket garden will be open for visitors and manned by expert docents, as early as 5:30 pm. This is a great event to bring along family, inquisitive children, and those with scientific yearning.

A light dinner will be served in the visitor center auditorium and the Zoom page will open at 6 pm for fellowship and organization news and updates. Program lecture starts at 7 pm. Zoom participants will be able to and are encouraged to participate with questions. Many thanks to David Eltzroth and Rox Electronics for providing the food.

TO REGISTER:
Regardless of if you wish to attend in person or virtually via Zoom, please Register Here so that we can estimate how much food is needed for the meeting.