Commonly used terms in radio communication:
FCC - Federal Communications Commission. HF – High Frequency. VHF – Very High Frequency. UHF – Ultra High Frequency. FRS – Family Radio Service. MURS – Mobile User Radio Service. CB – Citizens Band. MHz - Megahertz
Citizens Band radio has been around since the 1940s. In 1958 the FCC designated its use as a special class of service and in 1975 for hobby
ists. Even during the age of cell phones, CB radio is still a popular form of communication between truck drivers and hobbyists alike. Citizens Band radio operates on HF frequencies between 26.965 MHz and 27.405 MHz, making it perfect for single sideband long range communication when atmospheric conditions are right. Because a license is no longer required to operate a CB radio, it is a great place to start out a hobby in radio communications. The SUU CB portion of the club will primarily use channel 23 with 26 and 27 used as secondary channels. Officially, the FCC does not allow someone to claim a channel as your own, so anyone will be able to use either of them whether in the club or not. But it is a common courtesy to choose a different channel if a certain one you want to use is occupied. In that case, if both channels are occupied, another will be selected to use for the time being. Keep in mind that most people these days hang out on channel 19 which is the trucker's channel. Often times it is used as a calling frequency and conversations then shift to another channel. So if you can't get ahold of someone on the club channels, try 19! Amateur Radio, commonly referred to as Ham Radio, has been around since the turn of the century. To help organize and curb interference, Congress approved the Radio Act of 1912. This required you to be licensed and only communicate on specific frequencies. In 1914, the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) was formed to better organize relay stations to transmit more reliably over long distances. As technology improved and more discoveries were made, over time the FCC added more frequencies to be used by amateur radio operators. These frequencies range from LF to UHF frequencies. In 2006 the FCC dropped the Morse Code requirement to be licensed and opened the door for more people to join the hobby. For licensed members, the SUU Ham portion of the club will operate on frequencies based on the level of license. No official frequency will be designated at this time until further interest develops in becoming licensed. FRS, or family radio service, is where your common walkie talkie comes into play. Anyone can use the FRS channels without a license. These channels operate on the UHF spectrum. MURS is similar to FRS. No license required but it operates on VHF instead. Both radio services have their time and place for operation depending on the type of application. An official club channel for FRS use will be channel 7 and 6 as backup. MURS channel 2 and 5 (green dot) as backup. If interested in joining, please let me know. I usually have my radio scanning or on channel 19 when I'm home.
-Chris
