Practice Exam

T0A03

1. In the United States, what circuit does black wire insulation indicate in a three-wire 120 V AC cable?

• A. Negative
• B. Hot
• C. Neutral
• D. Equipment ground

T1B09

2. Why should you not set your transmit frequency to be exactly at the edge of an amateur band or sub-band?

• A. So that modulation sidebands do not extend beyond the band edge
• B. To allow for calibration error in the transmitter frequency display
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. To allow for transmitter frequency drift

T1D04

3. Under what conditions is an amateur station authorized to transmit music using a phone emission?

• A. When the music produces no spurious emissions
• B. When the music is transmitted above 1280 MHz
• C. When transmissions are limited to less than three minutes per hour
• D. When incidental to an authorized retransmission of manned spacecraft communications

T2C11

4. What is meant by "check" in a radiogram header?

• A. The call sign of the originating station
• B. A list of stations that have relayed the message
• C. The number of words or word equivalents in the text portion of the message
• D. A box on the message form that indicates that the message was received and/or relayed

T3A07

5. What weather condition might decrease range at microwave frequencies?

• A. Colder temperatures
• B. Precipitation
• C. Low barometric pressure
• D. High winds

T5A08

6. Which of the following is a good electrical insulator?

• A. Stainless steel
• B. Glass
• C. Graphite
• D. Sea water

T5C11

7. How much current is required to deliver 120 watts at a voltage of 12 volts DC?

• A. 12 amperes
• B. 0.1 amperes
• C. 132 amperes
• D. 10 amperes

T1E01

8. When may an amateur station transmit without a control operator?

• A. When the station licensee is away and another licensed amateur is using the station
• B. Never
• C. When using automatic control, such as in the case of a repeater
• D. When the transmitting station is an auxiliary station

T6B11

9. What does the term gain mean in amplifiers?

• A. All these choices are correct
• B. The output signal current relative to the input signal current
• C. The output signal power relative to the input signal power
• D. The output signal voltage relative to the input signal voltage

T7A10

10. What can be added to the output of a transceiver to increase the transmitted output power?

• A. An impedance multiplier
• B. A potentiometer
• C. An RF power amplifier
• D. All these choices are correct

T8D01

11. Which of the following is a digital communications mode?

• A. Packet radio
• B. IEEE 802.11
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. FT8

T6C12

12. Which of the following is accurately represented in electrical schematics?

• A. Physical appearance of components
• B. Wire lengths
• C. Component connections
• D. All these choices are correct

T8B02

13. What is the impact of using excessive effective radiated power on a satellite uplink?

• A. Possibility of rebooting the satellite control computer
• B. Overloading the satellite batteries
• C. Possibility of commanding the satellite to an improper mode
• D. Blocking access by other users

T9A08

14. Why is a 19-inch-long vertical antenna often used on 2 meters?

• A. It is a resonant quarter-wave
• B. It has low RF radiation exposure
• C. It is a resonant half-wave
• D. It has high gain

T8A12

15. Which of the following is a disadvantage of FM compared with single sideband?

• A. FM signals are harder to tune
• B. Voice quality is poorer
• C. Only one signal can be received at a time
• D. FM signals are more susceptible to high SWR

T7D11

16. Which of the following precautions should be taken when measuring in-circuit resistance with an ohmmeter?

• A. Ensure that the circuit is grounded
• B. Ensure that the circuit is not powered
• C. Ensure that the applied voltages are correct
• D. Ensure that the circuit is operating at the correct frequency

T7C09

17. Which of the following causes failure of coaxial cables?

• A. Operation at 100% duty cycle for an extended period
• B. Moisture contamination
• C. Solder flux contamination
• D. Rapid fluctuation in transmitter output power

T1C08

18. What is the normal term for an FCC-issued amateur radio license?

• A. Life
• B. Ten years
• C. Five years
• D. Eight years

T0B04

19. Which of the following is an important safety precaution to observe when putting up an antenna tower?

• A. Insulate the base of the tower to avoid lightning strikes
• B. Look for and stay clear of any overhead electrical wires
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. Wear a ground strap connected to your wrist at all times

T2A10

20. What is a band plan, beyond the privileges established by the FCC?

• A. A list of operating schedules
• B. A voluntary guideline for using different modes or activities within an amateur band
• C. A list of available net frequencies
• D. A plan devised by a club to indicate frequency band usage

T1A08

21. Who recommends transmit/receive channels for repeater and auxiliary stations?

• A. A Volunteer Frequency Coordinator recognized by local amateurs
• B. A Frequency Spectrum Manager appointed by the FCC
• C. The International Telecommunication Union
• D. An FCC Regional Field Office

T9B02

22. What is the most common impedance of coaxial cables used in amateur radio?

• A. 8 ohms
• B. 600 ohms
• C. 12 ohms
• D. 50 ohms

T3B07

23. In addition to frequency, which of the following is used to identify amateur radio bands?

• A. Channel numbers
• B. All these choices are correct
• C. Traditional letter/number designators
• D. The approximate wavelength in meters

T3C09

24. What is generally the best time for long-distance 10-meter band propagation via the F region?

• A. From dawn to shortly after sunset during periods of low sunspot activity
• B. From shortly after sunset to dawn during periods of low sunspot activity
• C. From dawn to shortly after sunset during periods of high sunspot activity
• D. From shortly after sunset to dawn during periods of high sunspot activity

T7B10

25. What might be a problem if you receive a report that your audio signal through an FM repeater is distorted or unintelligible?

• A. You are in a bad location
• B. Your transmitter is slightly off frequency
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. You are speaking too loudly or too close to the microphone

T5B12

26. Which is equal to 28400 kHz?

• A. 2.800 MHz
• B. 284.00 MHz
• C. 28.400 kHz
• D. 28.400 MHz

T5D13

27. In which type of circuit is the current always the same through all components?

• A. Series
• B. Branch
• C. Resonant
• D. Parallel

T4A05

28. Where should an RF power meter be installed?

• A. At the power supply output
• B. In parallel with the push-to-talk line and the antenna
• C. In the feed line, between the transmitter and antenna
• D. In the power supply cable, as close as possible to the radio

T8C09

29. Which of the following protocols enables an amateur station to transmit through a repeater without using a radio to initiate the transmission?

• A. EchoLink
• B. IRLP
• C. DMR
• D. D-STAR

T6D06

30. What component changes 120 V AC power to a lower AC voltage for other uses?

• A. Diode
• B. Transistor
• C. Variable capacitor
• D. Transformer

T1F04

31. What language must you use for identification when using a phone emission?

• A. Any language recognized by the United Nations
• B. Any language recognized by the ITU
• C. English, French, or Spanish
• D. English

T6A07

32. What electrical component is typically constructed as a coil of wire?

• A. Inductor
• B. Diode
• C. Transistor
• D. Capacitor

T4B07

33. What is a DMR "code plug"?

• A. An adapter cable used to connect a DMR radio to a computer for internet access
• B. An upgrade to DMR programming software provided by the radio manufacturer to accommodate new radio models
• C. Configuration data loaded onto your radio to access repeaters and talkgroups
• D. A Coder-Decoder (CODEC) that converts analog voice data to DMR digital data and vice versa

T2B14

34. Which of the following is a "talkgroup"?

• A. A method of automatically alerting all group members to the frequency where any member is transmitting
• B. An identifier used by DMR to organize radio traffic so that those who want to hear the group aren't bothered by other radio traffic
• C. The members of a net organized for amateur radio operators with a specific common interest
• D. A group of amateur radio operators who share email on a specific amateur radio topic

T0C12

35. How does RF radiation differ from ionizing radiation (radioactivity)?

• A. RF radiation is limited in range to a few feet
• B. RF radiation does not have sufficient energy to cause chemical changes in cells and damage DNA
• C. RF radiation is perfectly safe
• D. RF radiation can only be detected with an RF dosimeter