| Introduction to Ham Radio | |
| Published on : 2025-12-01 13:45 | |
| Ham radio - formally known as amateur radio - is a hobby and | |
| service that allows licensed operators to communicate over the air | |
| using a wide range of frequencies, modes, and equipment. Unlike | |
| commercial or broadcast radio, ham radio is intended for personal | |
| experimentation, emergency communication, technical learning, and | |
| worldwide friendship. | |
| 📻 Ham radio operators often enjoy: | |
| * Building and modifying equipment | |
| * Communicating locally or worldwide | |
| * Participating in emergency and disaster response | |
| * Exploring digital modes such as FT8, APRS, or packet radio | |
| * Experimenting with antennas, propagation, and radio science | |
| Right now, I really enjoy my 2 Baofeng radios: | |
| Baofeng UV-5R | |
| Baofeng UV-5RM Plus | |
| To transmit on amateur bands, you generally need a | |
| government-issued license. However, there are also unlicensed | |
| radio services - such as PMR446 in Europe - that anyone can use | |
| with appropriate equipment. | |
| 📡 PMR446 Frequencies | |
| Below is a table of the 16 PMR446 channels. These are licence-free | |
| UHF FM frequencies commonly used for short-range communication | |
| in Europe. | |
| +---------+-----------------+ | |
| | Channel | Frequency (MHz) | | |
| +---------+-----------------+ | |
| | 1 | 446.00625 | | |
| | 2 | 446.01875 | | |
| | 3 | 446.03125 | | |
| | 4 | 446.04375 | | |
| | 5 | 446.05625 | | |
| | 6 | 446.06875 | | |
| | 7 | 446.08125 | | |
| | 8 | 446.09375 | | |
| | 9 | 446.10625 | | |
| | 10 | 446.11875 | | |
| | 11 | 446.13125 | | |
| | 12 | 446.14375 | | |
| | 13 | 446.15625 | | |
| | 14 | 446.16875 | | |
| | 15 | 446.18125 | | |
| | 16 | 446.19375 | | |
| +---------+-----------------+ | |
| 🧠Closing Thoughts | |
| Ham radio offers an enormous world to explore, from local handheld | |
| communication to long-distance ionospheric propagation experiments. | |
| If you find PMR or general radio operation interesting, getting an | |
| amateur radio license is a great next step. | |
| Happy listening, and 73! | |
| Back to my phlog |