A New Hobby for you - HAM Radio

Dear Visitors,

I am writing this Blog is reflection of my facination towards technology, Though I am not Geeksih i appreciate the technology in our daily lives which makes more interesting day after day. The topic today i would like to Blog is ' HAM RADIO' also called 'Amateur Radio'.

Objective of this write up is to introduce a new Hobby which exciting and a learning experience for many. I strongly belive that everyone should cultivate a good hobby, which is beneficial at the same time fulfills some responsibilities towards society in return. The article is just a compilation on the topic no where i claim for any originality, My sole purpose of
this write up is to Just introduce HAM Radio to the people who have not heard about this wonder ful Hobby. There are number of HAM Clubs near your cities, There is a Tiny HAM club in Mangalore somewhere near Chaktrapani temple, Attavar, Mangalore and many more in Bangalore and other part of Karnataka ( Please see the HAM Club List at the bottom of this writeup). Exact address i shall post it some time later. I Wish more and more youngesters will adopt this exciting hobby.

WhY HAM Radio?
Scenario I:
You have witnessed a worst tsunami/disaster/earthquake or just an accident on a rural highway, Help is needed immediately..ya i know youll popup your cell phone but you are out of cell range...what do you do, You just Use a Pocekt sized HAM radio.
Connect to the world and seek help and update the status, in simple just reach out.

Scenario II:
You want to meet new peole and learn about their culture and traditions or simply make friends. You are fed-up chatting on a IM, now you wanto chatt with some real people..Ya i know, voice chatting over internet, but trust me this will blast your imagination to max. Yes i am talking about HAM Radio.

How did HAM Radio started ?
In September 1895, Guglielmo Marconi, a self-taught 21-year-old from Bologna, Italy, performed simple experiments that showed it was possible to send signals using electromagnetic waves to connect a transmitting and a receiving antenna. By 1901, he sent a wireless signal across the Atlantic. For the next seven years, many Americans experimented with wireless. The first radio clubs appeared in 1909, and the Titanic disaster of 1912 pointed out the need for regulation of wireless.

Today, ham radio operators regularly make radio contacts around the world, often using very inexpensive (and Yes!,sometimes home-made! try www.electronicsforu.com ) equipment.

Why would I get into ham radio?Ham radio is for anyone who likes to communicate with others via wireless technology. It is also for anyone who enjoys experimentation. Licensed amateur radio operators communicate with each other in nearby places, across the country, around
the world or even with astronauts in outer space! Amateur radio is a worldwide group of people who communicate with each other over a wide frequency spectrum using many
different types of wireless transmitting modes.

How Ham Radio Operate?
Hams use a variety of frequencies for communications. Non-hams can "listen in" via their own receivers or radio scanners. Hams are able to use many frequency bands across the radio spectrum -- these frequencies are allocated by the FCC for amateur use. Hams may operate from just above the AM broadcast band to the microwave region, in the gigahertz range. Many ham bands are found in the frequency range that goes from above the AM radio band (1.6 MHz) to just above the citizens band (27 MHz). During daylight, 15 to 27 MHz is a good band for long-distance communications. At night, the band from 1.6 to 15 MHz is good
for long-distance communications. These bands are often referred to historically as short-wave bands (as in "short-wave radio"). Unlike frequencies used by FM radio stations and TV stations, which are line-of-sight and therefore limited to 40 or 50 miles, short-waves "bounce" off the ionosphere from the transmitter to the receiver's antenna. The higher the frequency
is, the "shorter" the wavelength is.

Some ham radio operators use the very reliable Morse code, while others use voice. Morse code signals (beeps) often get through when voice transmissions cannot. There are also very many digital modes as well, and hams use radio modems to communicate in various networks.
Ham Radio Activities:Although a ham radio does broadcast in all directions, hams generally do not use their radios in a broadcast kind of way as a disk jockey would at a radio station. In normal AM or FM radio, one disk jockey transmits and thousands of people listen. Hams, on the other hand, conduct two-way conversations, often with another ham or with a group of hams in an informal roundtable. The roundtable of hams may be in the same town, county, state, country or continent or may consist of a mix of countries, depending on the frequency and the time of the day. Hams also participate in networks, often called nets, at predetermined times and frequencies to exchange third-party messages. In the case of disastrs, hams exchange health and welfare information with other hams. Some hams use radioteletype, (RTTY) with computer screens replacing the noisy teletype machines of the past. Many hams get their start on VHF FM, using battery-operated hand-held transceivers set to transmit on one frequency and receive on another frequency. They use FM repeaters, set up and supported by local radio clubs. These repeaters borrow antenna space from TV-station-tower owners on top of mountains and high buildings to receive and re-broadcast signals to extend the range.
Amateur radio satellites are a cutting-edge use of technology in amateur radio. Radio amateurs use their hand-held radios to communicate through an amateur radio satellite when the satellite is overhead. A indian satellite has launched by ISRO to improve HAM RAdio in our country.

Natural disasters like hurricanes or tornadoes disrupt normal telephone and cell phone systems. Ham radio operators pitch in to help with emergency communications, and you will often hear about them on news reports. On Space Shuttle missions, each member of the crew usually has an amateur radio operator's license. During breaks, astronauts hold their 1- to 5-watt VHF FM hand-held radios up to the shuttle window and chat with other hams for a few minutes, often at
schools while the shuttle is in an orbit overhead! VHF transmissions have a limit to line-of-sight communications and normally do not travel over the horizon, so a conversation is limited to the time when the shuttle is overhead.License RequirementsYou need an easy-to-earn license to transmit on an amateur radio frequency. License tests cover electronics theory and
amateur radio rules and regulations. Study guides are readily available. There is no age restriction. Each country has its own licensing arrangements.

The Indian Wireless Telegraphs (Amateure Serice) Rules 1978Officual Rules and Regulations of Amateur Radio
Amendments to the Indian Wireless Telegraphs (Amateur service) Rules 1978Amendements to Original Ruleshttp://www.bangalorehams.com/downloads.htm

Apart from these there are regularly conducted seminars and fests, generally to create awareness and also enjoy this medium.
Look out for more details on the Internet.

Important Day: World Amateur Radio Day, 18th April

Ham Club In India:
http://www.vigyanprasar.com/ham/HAMCLUBS.htm

http://www.bangalorehams.com/

Watchout for this Blog as i shall update this topic more often. I shall try to gather more information on HAM Radio. My core objective of this posting is to highlight the fun part of this wonder ful hobby, though i shall also try to furnish some of the technical stuffs too. If you found this interesting hobby as well try to educate some more guys who will be interested to do thing differently!. With that note I will wind up this Blog.

Happy Haming !