Amateur radio basics
- The ionosphere for radio amateurs — D, E and F layers How the Sun creates D, E and F regions, refraction vs a “mirror”, absorption, MUF, LUF, the skip zone, and day/season/solar-cycle effects on HF.
- How a radio signal travels from transmitter to receiver The full radiocommunication chain: information, modulation, RF, transmitter, feedline, antenna, propagation, reception, demodulation and losses along the path.
- What is amateur radio? — ITU and IARU basics Amateur radio is an internationally recognised radiocommunication service (ITU) for self-training, communication and technical investigation — a clear starter guide.
- Callsigns explained — structure, prefixes and use A callsign uniquely identifies a radio station. Learn prefix, series and suffix, on-air use in a QSO, personal vs club calls, and the role of ITU and national admins.
- VHF and UHF basics — a beginner guide An introduction to VHF and UHF amateur bands: propagation, line of sight, terrain, simplex, repeaters, antennas and mobile work, with IARU band plans as a frame.
- Operating procedure basics — CQ, QSO and RST Core on-air procedures: calling CQ, the flow of a voice QSO, callsign identification, RST reports, the phonetic alphabet and good frequency discipline.