Ham Radio General Class Test Radio Wave Propagation 3

Question 1

What is the 'skip zone' in HF propagation?

Accepted Answer

The region between the end of ground-wave coverage and the point where sky-wave returns to Earth

Answer

The skip zone is the area of no usable signal between where ground-wave fades out and where the first sky-wave hop returns to Earth.

Question 2

What is 'multipath propagation' and what audio effect does it cause?

Accepted Answer

Signals arriving via different ionospheric paths causing selective fading and distortion

Answer

Multipath propagation occurs when signals arrive via different paths with different delays, causing phase cancellation, selective fading, and audio distortion.

Question 3

How does the 11-year solar cycle affect HF propagation on the higher bands (15, 10 meters)?

Accepted Answer

Near solar maximum, higher ionization raises the MUF, making 15 and 10 meters highly active for DX

Answer

Near solar maximum, increased F-layer ionization raises the MUF above 28 MHz, opening the 10-meter band to worldwide propagation that may be absent at solar minimum.

Question 4

What causes 'long-path' propagation and how does it differ from 'short-path'?

Accepted Answer

Long-path uses the longer great-circle route (the other way around the globe) and can offer cleaner signals

Answer

Every great-circle path has two directions; the long-path goes the longer way around Earth and sometimes offers better propagation or unique signal characteristics.

Question 5

What is the typical one-way skip distance for a single F2-layer hop?

Accepted Answer

1,000-3,000 km

Answer

A single F2 hop typically spans 1,000 to 3,000 km, and multiple hops can extend this range to cover intercontinental distances.

Ham Radio General Class Test Practice Test

Ham Radio General Class Test Practice Test

Ham Radio General Class Test Radio Wave Propagation 3