Amateur Radio, what is it?

Amateur Radio related frequencies & information
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Amateur Radio, what is it?

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Amateur radio, also known as 'Ham Radio', is a relatively active hobby within Tasmania. There are 35 repeaters around the state, which operate on 50MHz (6m), 144MHz (2m) and 430MHz (70cm). Also used are simplex channels which can range between 144-148MHz, and 420-450MHz.

VK7 regional news is broadcast every Sunday morning at 9am on UHF CB channel 15 followed by national news. Listening to amateurs all depends on the listener's taste - conversations can include technical talk, politics, the weather and even what was for dinner!

Amateur radio hobbyists can use 25 watt transmitters which can offer good reception when the conditions are right.

There is a difference between HF and VHF/UHF Amateur radio. First, amateurs from NZ, UK, USA, Canada and other locations around the world use "DXing" to talk to one another. "DXing" means talking over a long distance, mainly internationally, and requires a good knowledge of your radios and antennas. Another aspect to HF is the ability to decode SSTV (Slow Scan TV), especially taking into account that the picture could be from a hobbyist in Europe or Africa. VHF/UHF Amateur radio tends to be used for shorter range, up to 100km in general. This can be through a repeater as above, or simplex.

If you have ever heard call-signs like VK3 or VK7 and aren't sure what they mean, then see below.



Wireless Institute of Australia (WIA) Amateur Radio callsigns:

VK0 - Australian Antarctic Territories
VK1 - ACT (Also call-sign for WIA National)
VK2 - New South Wales
VK3 - Victoria
VK4 - Queensland
VK5 - South Australia
VK6 - Western Australia
VK7 - Tasmania
VK8 - Northern Territory
VK9 - Australian External Territory Islands
VI/AU - Special Events



Special Callsigns:

VK#WIA-WIZ - Wireless Institute of Australia
VK#GGA-GGZ - Guides Australia
VK#SAA-SDZ - Scouts Australia
VK7OTC - R.E.A.S.T.
VK#IYA-IYZ - International Years



New Zealand Callsigns:

ZL1 - Northern North Island
ZL2 - Southern North Island
ZL3 - Northern South Island
ZL4 - Southern South Island (including Stewart Is)
ZL5 - New Zealand Antarctic Territories
ZL7 - Chatham Islands
ZM# - Special Event Callsign






Amateur Radio Band Plans:

Legend: Band Name / Frequency in KHz or MHz / Modes Used


LF / MF

2200 Metres / 135.7 - 137.8 KHz / Digital & CW
630 Metres / 472 - 479 KHz / Mixed




HF

10 Metres / 28.000 - 29.700 / USB/AM
12 Metres / 24.890 - 24.990 / USB
15 Metres / 21.000 - 21.450 / USB
17 Metres / 18.068 - 18.168 / USB
20 Metres / 14.000 - 14.350 / USB
30 Metres / 10.100 - 10.150 / USB/LSB
40 Metres / 7.000 - 7.300 / LSB
80 Metres / 3.500 - 3.800 / LSB
160 Metres / 1.800 - 1.875 / LSB

NOTE: - USB/LSB modes could be used on any of the amateur bands, however generally they use the mode stated. Other modes used include RTTY, SSTV, Packet, Amtor FSK PSK and FM (the latter for upper freqs).



VHF

2 Metres / 144.000 - 148.000MHz / Mixed
6 Metres / 50.000 - 54.000MHz / Mixed




UHF/SHF

70cm / 420.000 - 450.000 MHz / Mixed
23cm / 1.240 - 1.300 GHz / Mixed
13cm / 2.300 - 2.450 GHz / Mixed
9cm / 3.300 - 3.600 GHz / Mixed
6cm / 5.650 - 5.850 GHz / Mixed
3cm / 10.000 - 10.500 / Mixed
12mm / 24.000 - 24.250 / Mixed
6mm / 47.000 - 47.200 GHz / Mixed
4mm / 76.000 - 81.000 GHz / Mixed




For a full list of Tasmanian Amateur Repeater frequencies please see the other post in this section entitled 'Current Repeaters'.

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