How to become an amateur radio ?, by ON4SKY

Radio amateur activities

WRC 2003 and the Morse code (II)

According to the final acts signed at the end of WRC 2003 conference, the authorities decided that the condition previously mandatory of bearing an examination on the Morse code to operate below 30 MHz was suppressed but the decision to apply or not this condition was left with the free appreciation of national administrations. Fine said all amateurs limited to VHF and above frequencies, and not very familiar with the telegraphy... Indeed, this opportunity opened the HF bands to many new amateurs. Welcome to you !

Practically many countries including small entities like Belgium, Luxembourg, Hong Kong or Papua New Guinea decided to suppress the Morse examination immediately.

However administrations from countries like F, G, DL and LX among others have wished that VHF amateurs keep their callsign although other countries accepted the callsign change.

Most other countries followed this movement, including the United States. Indeed, in July 2005 FCC suggested to drop the famous "Element 1", the 5 WPM Morse test, from the Amateur Service rules (Part 97) as they have received thousands petitions requesting its removal. Therefore end 2006, FCC removed the Morse code from the examinaton in order to "encourage individuals who are interested in communications technology, or who are able to contribute to the advancement of the radio art, to become amateur radio operators."

But by a strange reversal of the history, now that the Morse code is not more mandatory, many amateurs are again interested in this mode and learn the code...

This confirms that the will of people has sometimes more effects than a law applied in force.

For Morsists, remember that there is an excellent shareware ($20) for reception, WinMSDSP, able to manager any kind of Morse communication, including Meteor Scatter up to speeds reaching 4000 words/minute !

World speed record in Morse

The speed record is hold by Theodore McElroy who translated a message at the speed of 75.2 WPM on July 2, 1939.

The legend tells that he astounded the audience by not doing anything when the sending started, except to take a drink of water, and light a cigarette. He waited 15 seconds before writing the text and when the tape finished, he kept typing for... 15 seconds. This record remains unsurpassed. Should you be the next challenger ?

CEPT Radio amateur license and the rest of the world

End 2003 T/R 61-01 was approved. What does it mean ? This ratification was a true revolution in amateur radio community. It means that the owner of an European VHF license (equivalent to the US Technician) can work on the HF bands from any country at the condition that this country implemented Appendix 1 point 2 of this document. That will be probably not the case in San Marino or Andorra (see the document) as these countries have not ratified this recommendation yet.

However, if not all european countries have ratify yet in their law the removal of ITU article 2735, most administrations gave the provisional authorizations within the limits of their State without awaiting the deliberation of the European Commission (CEPT). In the field, the HAREC certificate of class A (CEPT of class 1) given to the owner of an old HAREC B certificate has thus not (yet) a legal value in another country of the European Community, although most accept the equivalence, from Luxembourg to Finland.

But this liberalization is on the good way. Preceeding the ideas expressed at WRC 2003, an arrangement was signed on March 21, 2002 between CEPT (Europe) and CITEL (Inter-America) as well as with ATU (Africa). This arrangement should help ITU in the development of telecommunications and the standardization of HAREC certificate.

That means that if non-European countries haven't signed the T/R 61-01 document yet, usually they "support" the principle, as for example Israël, Peru or the U.S.A. Now that the U.S.A. dropped the Morse code, amateur who meets the CEPT requirements will have the privileges accorded the US Amateur "Extra" class license. However, the U.S.A. does not issue a full FCC license based on reciprocity. That means that to get a regular US Amateur "Extra" class license, you must succeed test Elements 2 (Technician), 3 (General) and 4 (Extra). You do not qualify for a permanent US license simply based on the fact you hold a license from another country.

What's the matter if a canadian or US citizen visiting Europe wants to use his transceiver ? CEPT, thus european administrations do not recognize yet the participation of Canada or the U.S.A. for example as a non-CEPT participating country, as this country is not a member of the European Community. In practice non-European licensed amateurs must request a reciprocal temporary operating permit in the visited country like they did visiting another country from America for example (see IARP). This is done by applying in writing several months in advance to the Ministry of Communications (or Transportation) of the visited country. You need to supply all information, including callsign, license class, dates of your visit and the model and serial numberss of all transmitting equipment you plan to transport to this country.

The IARP permit

The IARP is an International Amateur Radio Permit, reciprocal and temporary, issued to all amateurs citizens and licensees of a country that is a signatory to CITEL agreements (thus all american countries). It allows visiting amateurs to operate temporarily an amateur station in a CITEL country. The IARP may be issued by an american member-society of the IARU. For the U.S.A., this is ARRL, in Canada this is RAC, in Brazil this is LABRE, etc. IARPs are issued for one-year terms, or until the amateur license expires, whichever comes first. A new IARP can be obtained. Like CEPT licenses, there are two classes of IARPs : class 1 requires knowledge of the international Morse code and carries all operating privileges, and class 2 that does not require knowledge of telegraphy and carries all operating privileges above 30 MHz. When operating under IARP, an indicator consisting of the appropriate letter-numeral designating the station location must be included before the callsign (e.g. PY2/VE4SKY). Currently the following countries recognize an IARP : Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Peru, Uruguay, U.SA. and Venezuela.

Logbooks to download

(clic on the image to download)

DX4Win demo from KK4HD/NJ4F

(ZIP of 2.8 MB)

Logger from Robert Furze (freeware)

(EXE of 3.5 MB to extract)

The shack and its equipment

Before contacting amateurs all over the world, to make QSOs on other words, you must select your equipment, first your transceiver, maybe its associated power supply (that depends if it works directly on the 115/220V main or via an external 13.8V PSU), then the so long-awaited microphone (stand or hand-held), your antenna and maybe a pylon, some tens of meters of feed line ending with PL connectors, a dummy load and an external SWR-meter or an antenna tuner.

Add maybe some accessories like a Morse key, a computer connected to the Internet, an electronic logbook, a linear amplifier, a Vox or a Rigblaster interface, a VHF gain antenna to work with satellites, etc. You will soon discover that your shack will gradually be fill up with many accessories, a practice that you will probably experiment if amateur radio becomes your first spare time activity.

You can prepare this selection months before to get your license, although the regulation does not allow you to listen amateur traffic with an equipment able to transmit.

When all is plugged and well disposed on your desk, that you have well read and read again all instruction manuals, serious things will begin : indeed, before pronouncing the least word at your mike or your first code, you will need to tune all this equipment to get the lowest SWR at both the transceiver and the transmission line. Work first with a dummy load to prevent making QRM on the air while tuning your system. If you use a linear amplifier, don't forget to tune the plate and the load to get here also the lowest SWR on the line according to the working frequency. If you don't make these checks you have all chances to overload the last stage of your transmitter, to get signal losses and high currents, source of potential damage to your installation, if yourself are not injured. So, it is great time to apply correctly what you learnt to succeed your ham examination.

Now your station is ready and I invit you to go on the air. Check first if the frequency is not in use. If it isn't, send your first CQ... This is here that that becomes fascinating when someone answers to your call !

To read : Hamshacks of dream (in images)


Future amateur, this armchair is waiting for you... as well as Patty, alias KD4WUJ...Hi ! A QSO with YL is always a moment of pleasure as they are very few on the air.

Languages

What language to speak on the air ? No rule recommands a special language to use on the air. Therefore, the polyglot will be very at ease as ham radio because with QSO passing he could practice all languages that he masters when jumping from one country or continent to another. The feeling to belong to only one national community vanishes and one becomes quickly cosmopolitan with a vision of "foreigners" much different from the feeling often petty and segregationist of many people. Of course English-spoken people by birth are less sensitive to this fact as most foreigners know English.

According to UNESCO, there are 2000 languages spoken in the world. Don't worry, about 15 languages disappear each year. In this context, Saint Ignatius High School in Ohio published a list of main languages spoken in the world. One learnt that if Mandarin is the most used language due to the explosion of the chinese population, this is the English that remains officially the first spoken language in 115 countries, followed by French used in 35 countries and Arab spoken in 24 countries. All factors together, including economical or taking into account the secundary language, they classify as follows the ten most used languages in the world, by decreasing order : English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arab, Mandarin, German, Japanese, Portugese and Indi/Urdu. And de facto, most radio amateurs speak English and often several among the three first languages listed, the six others being essentially used in countries where it constitutes the official language (and where inhabitants are sometimes reluctant or have difficulties to speak foreign languages). So don't worry if you have the language easy or if you want to learn a foreign language on the air, the world is yours !

Disasters and emergency services

We cannot discuss amateur radio without speaking about emergency services. Like in 1914 when Hiram Percy Maxim, 1WH founded ARRL to coordinate the service of radio relay stations that helped truckers across the U.S.A., today radio amateurs always insure a similar service (Cf. the definition of amateur radio) but at another scale.

In this context, radio amateurs are also volunteers offering their time, their know-how and their equipment to serve the community in ensuring communications duty in the public service when usual media (radio, TV, cellular, etc) become useless (damaged, burned, flooded, etc). In these circumstances, there are always some radio amateurs whose installations are always operational and who can relay messages to authorities.

In the U.S.A., where stands the largest ham community, the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES) consists of licensed amateurs involved in providing information to authorities about disasters (weather conditions, status of infrastructures and needs of the population), from WX4NHC, the amateur radio station at the National Hurricane Center to the Hurricane Watch Net, the Waterway Net, Skywarn and the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN).

The same kind of organization exists in several other countries to name the U.K (RAYNET) and in a lesser extent in France where the Plan ORSEC is organized in cooperation with REF-UNION. In the other countries this cooperation is less close and active as these countries are subject to few disasters and rescues are fully taken in charge by officials.

Recently (August 29, 2005), ARES was engaged in the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Earlier (December 26, 2004), after the tsunami killed hundreds of thousands people and destroyed infrastructures on coasts of Indonesia, Thailand and Sri Lanka, several radio amateurs were the first people calling authorities and the international community for help or reporting to authorities the state of inhabitants and infrastructures of their region. At this occasion ham radio operators working from Red Cross US Ships were alerted and maintained contact with operators stayed in the US. At other occasions, contacts via Echolink also helped identifying needs of disaster victims.

Amateurs in emergency situations

An activity that has the power to save lifes

At left the US Television relaying the work of radio amateurs after the disaster of hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005 (WXV shortcut). At right Bharathi Prasad, VU2RBI calling for help from Sri Lanka after the tsunami of December 26, 2004 (399 KB wav file).

Thanks to the cooperation between these amateur networks and officials, the population can be quickly taken in charge and the nightware soon over. Remain however to rebuild the devastated zones and sometimes his or her own identity...

These emergency radio networks communicate on HF bands (80, 40, 30, 20m) and take in charge health-and-welfare inquiries on the air, and optionally via their web site. These activities become tactical communications that have the power to save lifes rather than a simple hobby for the operators.

A world to explore

With time and more experience, after have read amateur magazines and meet other amateurs in radio clubs, maybe participating in some DX-peditions and contests, you will discover that amateurs do not only work in CW or SSB but some of them use many other interesting modes too like FM on VHF, aurora traffic, SSTV, packet, and other digimodes.

When the sky is the limit : listen to these amazing QSOs

Earth-Moon-Earth HB9BBD w/LX1DB - Meteor Scatter with F6CRP

Unfortunately, you will also quickly discover that not all counties will allow you to erect large antenna farms where you want or as high as you want (you can if you are lucky). Sometimes the neighborhood will suddenly suffers of a great sensitivity to your antennas, even if they are not connected yet ! But up to now, each owner is sole responsible on the area of his parcel. In some countries you even have the "right to the air" ("droit à l'antenne" in France) even if you have to accomodate with some constraints (height of the mast, beam wingspan, emission power vs. the distance, claims from neighborings, etc). In case of doubt contact your national radio club or your administration for more information.

When fiction meets reality. At left, "2001: A Space Odyssey". Onboard the Space Station V and waiting his shuttle for the Moon and Clavius base, Dr. Heywood Floyd contacts by phone his family left on Earth. Charge : $1.75 for 5 minutes. In 1968, it was almost an unreachable dream. Today, for astronauts such telecommunications are a reality et practically for amateurs as well. At right, about 30 years after the release of "2001", radio amateurs are onboard Mir and communicate in SSTV with other hams stayed on ground. The price ? The communication is free of charge ! This transmission was recorded on August 26, 1999 on 145.985 MHz by WB8ERJ. More real than the best of anticipations ! Recall that a similar event occured in 1969 when Apollo XI landed onto the Moon, when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were in radiotelephone contact with President Nixon (here is a version of better quality from BBC).

At last if most amateur activities require a standard installation (a transceiver and a HF or V/UHF antenna) digital modes require specific accessories : a cable to link your transceiver to your PC sound card, and a Rigblaster interface for example that we introduced earlier, which is a small device dedicated to digital mode including SSTV. Once installed you only need to drive this interface with a software like MMSSTV or ChromaPIX. If you succeed in your installation you can even work ISS in SSTV if they are equipped for ! Satellite activities and activities on higher frequencies (I think to UHF and EME) require more technical skills, a dish, dedicated software, stacked gain antennas, a radome, etc.

Whatever your interests, all these activities are practiced by a significant part of the amateurs community worldwide, from the kid to the old timer 90 years old. The majority of amateurs is 45 years old in Europe and 58 in the U.S.A.

Thanks to the new rules, the average age of radioamateurs tends to become younger. Each year radioclubs see new blond heads, sign of good health, and a regain of interest from the population towards this activity.

Have fun, and hope to work you soon on the air !

Thierry, ON4SKY, LX4SKY

For more information

Radio Amateur (on this site)

IARU Website

ARRL video "A.R. Today", a 70 MB video/mpeg file about amateur radio

How to Become a Radio Amateur in Canada and USA, eHam

How to become an amateur radio, CNIB, Canada

Comment devenir radioamateur, RAQI, Canada

How to Become a Radio Amateur, Gov.UK

The Magic of Amateur Radio, RSGB

Beginners Guide to Ham Radio, by AA2MZ