Ham radio
HAM Radio also known as Amateur Radio is communication on designated bands for non-commercial use.
Call Signs
Call signs begin with a one- two- or three-character prefix chosen from a range assigned by the ITU to the amateur's country of operation or other internationally recognized jurisdiction.
The beginning of the list of call sign ranges is:
- AAA–ALZ United States of America
Call Sign Prefix State ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- W0 Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota W1 Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont W2 New Jersey, New York W3 Delaware, D.C., Maryland, Pennsylvania W4 Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia W5 Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas W6 California W7 Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Utah, Wyoming W8 Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia W9 Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin AL0-7, KL0-7, NL0-7, WL0-7 Alaska AH6-7, KH6-7, NH6-7, WH6-7 Hawaii
While the prefix uniquely identifies a country the suffix is unique for the individual. In Canada a call sign such as VE3ABC has VE3 (Ontario) as the prefix and ABC as the suffix. In the U.S the call sign N2MG has a prefix of N2 and suffix of MG. U.S. hams may also have a two letter prefix thus AB2Z is a valid call. Suffixes may also be less than three letters so you have call signs such as VE7AB in British Columbia and KH6Y in Hawaii.
Call Sign Digit
This digit is always a single numeral, 0 (zero) through 9 which usually indicates a geographical area within the continental (lower 48 contiguous) United States. For initially issued call signs, the mailing address of the licensee determines the numeral. Area digits (also between 0 and 9) of ham stations outside of the contiguous U.S. are arbitrarily assigned by the FCC. For example the area digit for American Samoa is the number 8.
sample test questions
Technician Class
Q: What does the abbreviation FET stand for?
- A: Field Effect Transistor
Q: What electrical component stores energy in an electric field?
- A: Capacitor
Q: What is meant by the term 'check' in reference to a formal traffic message?
- A: The check is a count of the number of words or word equivalents in the text portion of the message.
Q: What is meant by the term 'knife edge' propagation?
- A: Signals are partially refracted around solid objects exhibiting sharp edges.
Q: What is the characteristic appearance of a cold solder joint?
- A: A grainy or dull surface.
Q: What causes 'spin fading' when referring to satellite signals?
- A: Rotation of the satellite and its antennas.
Q: What is the term used to describe the use of a aub-audible tone transmitted with normal voice audio to open the squelch of a receiver?
- A: CTCSS
Q: Why is coaxial cable used more often than any other feedline for amateur radio antenna systems?
- A: It is easy to use and requires few special installation considerations.
