Carsten Glasbrenner KQ4SJM of Brookville in central Florida was almost speechless when he learned in a recent phone call he had been selected as this year’s YHOTY.

CARSTEN: You’re kidding! That’s awesome!

MARK: Carsten, who is 14 and holds a General Class license earned in May 2024, took his Technician test at the age of 11. He is the son of Drew and Merete Glasbrenner. Carsten gives his dad, KO4MA, credit for planting the seeds that sprouted into an early interest in amateur radio – specifically, satellites and using

radio to take advantage of atmospheric changes to talk to people far away.

CARSTEN: Talking through a technological box in space. But, also 2-meter e-skip, and tropo, which was really cool, and some HF.

MARK: Carsten says he was pretty nervous making his first satellite contact just a month after earning his General and called on dad for some help.

CARSTEN: I hadn’t learned completely how to point and polarize the antenna yet. So I was more talking and he was helping me out through what I was going to say since FM satellites are rather quick so it’s kind of

hard to understand when you’re first doing them. So he was helping me out with the call signs, what to say, what to copy and what grid square I was. I didn’t know what grid square we were in yet.

MARK: Carsten says his interest in sharing his new-found hobby with other young people led to invitations to speak at Hamcation and the Dayton Hamvention and earned him a position as AMSAT’s youngest ambassador.

This past March, Carsten’s proposal to get more young hams working satellites became a reality. It’s called Students On the Air days and they’re held the first and third Tuesdays of each month.

Carsten has activated a number of rare grid squares in the short time he’s

been active. Carsten has well over 100 satellite contacts in the log and says he’s looking

to make many more. He begins high school this fall and says his interest in

kit-building, especially soldering components, might set him on the path to

electrical engineering.

From all of us here at Amateur Radio Newsline, Congratulations Carsten!

I’m Mark Abramowicz NT3V.

SKEETER/ANCHOR: Carsten will be presented the award at the Huntsville Hamfest on Saturday, August 22nd in the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Alabama.