The 2017 Jamboree on the Air patch design for the USA has been approved by the BSA National Radio Scouting Committee. It is now headed to BSA National Supply for production. We’ll post ordering information as soon as it’s available.
Radio Merit Badge Numbers for 2016
Boy Scouts of America, via the Bryan on Scouting blog, have released the rankings and numbers for all the merit badges earned during 2016. You can find the full blog post at 2016 Merit Badge Rankings Unveiled.
Radio Merit Badge came in at 74 with 6,442 earned during 2016. This is down a bit from 2015 where it was ranked 73 and 6,709. For lifetime ranking Radio Merit Badge comes in at 88th on the list with 185,633.
It will be interesting to see the impact the new requirements have in 2017. Plus, the K2BSA Jamboree operation will add roughly 300 to the numbers. Most Jamboree years result in a higher number of badges earned.
We’ve updated our chart at Radio Merit Badge History.
March 2017 Jamboree on the Air and Radio Scouting Newsletter
The March 2017 Jamboree on the Air and Radio Scouting Newsletter has been published. You can find it at this link http://eepurl.com/cGdaN9
You can have the newsletter emailed to you each time it is published. Just enter your information in the upper right hand corner of this webpage to subscribe.
Ask an Astronaut a Question During the 2017 Jamboree
During the 2017 Jamboree, the K2BSA Amateur Radio Station will be in contact with the International Space Station as part of the ARISS Program. During the contact, which lasts about 10 minutes, we will have Scouts speaking with an astronaut. That conversation will be a question and answer session, with the Scouts asking a list of prearranged questions.
If you or your Scout have ever wanted to ask an astronaut a question. Here’s your opportunity. We’re asking for your input, via the form below to provide your suggestions for questions.
Here’s a few samples from earlier contacts with the ISS to give you a better idea of the types of questions. Note that they are short and simple since the contact is so short. For background, you can view a video overview of a contact at JOTA 2012 ISS. This contact shows the nature of the questions and the answers.
We will publish the final list of questions before the Jamboree. We’ll also provide either live coverage of the contact and/or a video after the contact.
Sample Questions:
- What do you like most about living in space?
- When did you decide to become an astronaut?
- How do you keep fit in space?
- How did you feel when you watched planet Earth for the first time?
- Which is your favorite food on board?
- How can astronauts have a shower on board?
- Can you hear sounds and noises outside the space ship?
- How does being in space affect blood pressure?
- How, and how often, do you communicate with your family while aboard the ISS?
- What happens if something in space hits the space station and damages it? How would you fix it?
