BDARS Helps Inspire the Next Generation

What began several years ago as a Maker Project by Bob VK4YA, Paul VK4PLY and David VK4ZF has grown into something much bigger! In 2026, BDARS is proud to support around 30 final-year undergraduate students at the University of Queensland (UQ), providing inspiration and guidance to teams working on the Lightning Detector Network project.

It’s an exciting collaboration that brings together amateur radio experience, university learning and fresh ideas, as the next generation of innovators took on the challenge of developing this promising technology.

The project is directly supported by many of our club members who host the array of lightning detectors. Members also benefit from a live strike-map and a Discord “Early Warning” instant messaging pop-up (very good for a warning to unplug antennas!).

Yesterday marked a major milestone for three of the University of Queensland teams as they showcased the results of a semester’s hard work at a trade-show-style exhibition, presenting their completed projects and demonstrating what they had achieved.

The students all work together in multidisciplinary teams of about five members each. The project gives them an opportunity to experience how to structure and manage a research and development project, collaborate effectively, and combine their unique knowledge and skills to deliver a final tangible solution for assessment as part of their degree requirements.

The collaboration between the University of Queensland and BDARS was initiated by Professor Adrian Panow, Director of the Energy Transition Research Network at UQ, who continues to oversee the project. Adrian, VK4BCF, is a keen amateur radio enthusiast and a valued BDARS member.

At the kind invitation of Dr Thilina Halloluwa, who led this DECO3801 capstone course, Bob VK4YA attended the exhibition on BDARS behalf, where he met Upul Rathnayake (the projects supervisor) and also caught up with Dr. Thilina and Prof. Adrian.

Sadly, David VK4ZF, who built many of the low-cost detectors, passed away recently and did not live to see this significant outcome of his contribution to the project. Paul VK4PLY was also unable to attend due to being called for a civic duty.

Bob was pleased to report that all three teams demonstrated successful outcomes. Interestingly, each team adopted a slightly different approach, focusing on important areas of its own choosing while working towards the same common goals.

You might spot a not-so-young-looking Bob VK4YA in one of those pictures!

All of the teams explored the use of Artificial Intelligence to help categorise the waveform signatures of lightning ground strikes before turning their attention to the challenge of accurately determining strike locations. Many of the members remarked how they had to try multiple approaches to the problems to find the best solutions – A true learning experience!

The association with future engineers and scientists presents a valuable opportunity for BDARS to support the wider community and for the undergraduates to experience a real-world challenge (both technical and organisational). The project highlights the value of collaboration between amateur radio enthusiasts, researchers, and students working together toward meaningful real-world outcomes.

The overall project is continuing to evolve and may, in time, prove valuable in helping to envisage a low-cost lightning detection system for developing countries or for protecting specific areas of critical infrastructure.

Finally, a heartfelt thank you to all the team members for their hard work, dedication and enthusiasm throughout the project. BDARS wishes them every success in their future careers and research endeavours, and we look forward to seeing what they achieve in the years ahead!