Amateur Radio
Amateur radio, often called ham radio, is both a hobby and a service in which participants, called “hams,” use various types of radio communications equipment to communicate with other radio amateurs for public service, recreation and self-training.
Amateur radio operators enjoy personal (and often worldwide) wireless communications with each other and are able to support their communities with emergency and disaster communications if necessary, while increasing their personal knowledge of electronics and radio theory. An estimated six million people throughout the world are regularly involved with amateur radio.
The term “amateur” is not a reflection on the skills of the participants, which are often quite advanced; rather, “amateur” indicates that amateur radio communications are not allowed to be made for commercial or money-making purposes. (From The Wikipedia.)
Amateur Radio can play a large role in emergency events whether it be simply reporting news and information from an area that has been affected by severe weather or other natural disaster, or whether it may be getting information in and out of an affected area.
One of the advantages radio has other many other communications methods is its relatively low requirements to make it work. Internet technology can require computers, routers and physical (or satellite) network connections. Telephones can require lines and also power for the telephone switching stations. Cell phones also require power and an uplink. Radio of course is what cellular service piggy backs upon, but amateur radio opens up many possibilities that cell service cannot. Depending on the choice of frequencies amateur radio can be just local communications, or regional or even trans continental communications.
A radio, battery and antenna may be all that’s required for someone to be able to transmit and be heard for thousands of miles. The recent earthquake in Haiti has been an event where amateur radio operators around the world really have taken part in trying to help in getting information in and out of the affected area. I have listened to several of the emergency nets. Some of them have been on short range VHF (2m) signals using repeaters linked together through the internet. Others, have been using HF (shortwave) frequencies directly and on those nets I have heard people from Nebraska, Arkansas, Wisconsin, New York, Washington DC, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida among many others using their amateur equipment to try to call into the area listening for traffic back from Haiti. With so many other technology options today we tend to forget, but really shouldn’t as radio should always be a solid communications alternative when all else fails.
The following pages I will try to give more detail on amateur radio and the various bands currently available for amateur use, modes which may take a bit of explanation and other things as I come to them. It may be a while before everything is fleshed out there so, bear with me.
More info on amateur radio band allocations can be found in this wikipedia article.
- 2 Meter Band
- Amateur Radio Emergency Organizations
- Amateur Radio News
- Asheville, NC area Amateur Radio Repeaters and Local Nets
amateur radio – Google News
Audio: DIY Recordings of Awakening Sun – Wired News
 Wired News |
Audio: DIY Recordings of Awakening Sun
Wired News And from a shed on three acres of land outside Santa Fe, New Mexico, amateur radio astronomer Thomas Ashcroft is making recordings of them available for … |
Youth@HamRadio.Fun: Ham Radio 2.0 – ARRL
 ARRL |
Youth@HamRadio.Fun: Ham Radio 2.0
ARRL Amateur Radio is also experiencing a second wind, with more hams, more activity and more ways to enjoy the hobby than ever before. We are also experiencing … |
New Lenox residents ham it up – New Lenox Patriot
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New Lenox residents ham it up
New Lenox Patriot Byerley, who is also a volunteer with New Lenox's Community Emergency Response Team, held an informational session on amateur radio at the league's New … |
Soyuz 100 Times More Reliable Than Shuttle – Space Daily
 Space Daily |
Soyuz 100 Times More Reliable Than Shuttle
Space Daily He is an Amateur Radio Operator, and during his stay on the International Space Station, communicated with students and other Amateur Radio operators using … |
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Radio club
Baltimore Sun The Anne Arundel Radio Club will hold a free, eight-week course that culminates in a Technician Class Amateur Radio (HAM) license. Classes will be held from … |
Men itching to get a ‘classic rig’ crackling again – Kearney Hub
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Men itching to get a 'classic rig' crackling again
Kearney Hub By Jennifer Chick Hub Regional Correspondent | 0 comments OXFORD â Through the dedication of two amateur radio operators, an old ham's memory will live on, … |
Feb 05 Surfin’: Viewing the New Star of Ham Radio – ARRL
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Feb 05 Surfin': Viewing the New Star of Ham Radio
ARRL The D-STAR Information Site is an excellent place to start learning about the Digital Smart Technology for Amateur Radio. … |
Ham radio classes offered to get license – Picayune Item
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Ham radio classes offered to get license
Picayune Item PICAYUNE â The Pearl River County Amateur Radio Club will be offering classes for those who want to acquire a ham radio license, said Larry Wagoner, … Amateur radio operators play important role |
A role for ham radio – Mail Tribune
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A role for ham radio
Mail Tribune Jackson County Amateur Radio Emergency Service members, from left, Bill Anderson, Robert Tangel and Don Montgomery, stand in the door of an ambulance given … Ham radio operator ready to help in disasters |
Radio operators are the eyes of the National Weather Service – Fort Worth Star Telegram
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Radio operators are the eyes of the National Weather Service
Fort Worth Star Telegram It's a service that amateur radio operators have provided locally since the early 1970s. Technology such as Doppler radar has given forecasters more tools, … |
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