Ham Radio

Utility of HAM Radio

A ham radio operator can carry on experiments with various communication equipment and systems going deeper into the science of electronics (Learning by Doing) and at the same time provide great service to the people in general worldwide by way of organizing on-the-air emergency medical traffic, establishing emergency communication network during natural calamities like flood, cyclone, storm, earthquake or any other disaster. Amateur Radio stations act as the ‘SECOND LINE’ of communication when existing public or government communication links fail to act. life-saving facet of amateur radio was demonstrated in India with valuable public service activities during a Post & … Continue reading Utility of HAM Radio

What does HAM mean?

The reason why an amateur radio operator is called a ‘ham’ is not known. Some relate these three letters (HAM) to the names of three great radio experimenters. They are- Hertz (who practically demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves in 1888), Armstrong (who developed a resonant oscillator circuit for radio frequency work) and Marconi (the 1909 Nobel laureate in Physics, who in the year 1901 established the first transatlantic radio contact). Some people believe that when the young and inexperienced radio enthusiasts began to venture on air with crude spark transmitters based on vehicle ignition coils, their Morse code transmission … Continue reading What does HAM mean?

What is HAM Radio?

“Ham: a poor operator. A ‘plug’.” That’s the definition of the word given in G. M. Dodge’s The Telegraph Instructor even before radio. The definition has never changed in wire telegraphy. The first wireless operators were landline telegraphers who left their offices to go to sea or to man the coastal stations. They brought with them their language and much of the tradition of their older profession. In those early days, spark was king and every station occupied the same wavelength–or, more accurately perhaps, every station occupied the whole spectrum with its broad spark signal. Government stations, ships, coastal stations … Continue reading What is HAM Radio?