This week, I offer you something to keep you busy between scrimmages and/or commercials during the big game on Sunday.

Go to the ARRLWeb's FCC License Data Search page and lookup the address of an Amateur Radio station you want to check out (type the station's call sign in the call sign field, then click on the "Submit Query" button).

When the search engine comes back with the results, copy the address to your computer's clipboard (select the address with your computer's mouse, then press the Ctrl-C keys).

Go to Microsoft's Live Search Maps page, paste the address in the Live Search field (press the Ctrl-V keys) then press the magnifying glass button.

When the Web page returns with a map, click on the "Bird's Eye" link at the top of the map. Also, click on the "magnifying glass plus" icon on the left side to magnify the image and you will be able to check out the antenna farm, if any, at the station you selected. A caveat: Not all locations have the bird's eye view available at this time.

Click on the compass points (N, S, E and W) of the compass icon in the top left corner to change the view (you can view the site from each of the four compass points).

The view is amazing; much better than the current version of Google Maps. The view is so good that I can tell approximately when the images were photographed by the year and model of cars parked in my driveway!

By the way, don't bother checking out my antenna farm because wire and vertical antennas do not show up very well (yet). Instead, check out W1AW, KC1XX, W3LPL and the other big guns. If you find anything really interesting, let me know and I will pass along your best findings here.

Thank you Matt Cassarino, WV1K, for suggesting this topic.

Until next time, keep on surfin'!

Editor's note: Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU, discovered crop circles in the fields near his home courtesy of Live Search Maps. To communicate with Stan, send him e-mail or add comments to his blog. By the way, every installment of Surfin' is indexed here, so go look it up.

Stan Horzepa, WA1LOU
Contributing Editor