Ham Radio Information

For radio hobbyists and people who spend a lot of time broadcasting independently for local communities, amateur radio means ham radio. Public service and recreation are the elements that stimulate the activity of the service participants, furthermore, ham radio proves priceless in times of crisis, emergency or disaster. Estimations indicate a six million people involvement in ham radio, and although they are not broadcasting to make money, their reward is the ability to get on air. The element that makes ham radio stations stand apart is not the lack of professional skill but rather the absence of advertising moments.

Ham radio probably gets back to the 19th century or the beginning of the 20th when ninety amateur stations serviced Canada and the United States. The appearance of ham radio has very much to do with hobby practices and experiments, and very often the contribution made to science and public services has been preponderant. Moreover, lots of people owe their lives to ham radio operators who saved them in emergency cases.

Ham radio covers several types of transmissions and besides the quality FM (frequency modulation) that we are all familiar with, ham radio operators also work on single sideband with a higher transmission reliability or on the Morse code even if technology has come a long way since the days of the radio-telegraph. As for other technological improvements, ham radio meant the introduction of the packet radio and the use digital modes and computers for broadcasting. Last but not least, ham radio operators often use the low power communications on shortwave bands while staying in real-time mode.

Ham radio now has access to OSCARs (orbiting satellites carrying amateur radio) by means of a basic device such as a hand-held transceiver. Another interesting aspect is that ham radio operators use the moon and the aurora borealis to get a good reflection of the radio waves. Some ham radio stations have even got into contact with the International Space Station as the astronauts on board are also licensed as amateur radio operators. Discussions are in fact common practice among the individual hams who get on-air just to join one meeting or another.