Category: Amateur Radio
-
Sporadic E on 2 m and 6 m: VHF DX Through Ionospheric Surprises
It happens suddenly and without warning: on the 6 m band, stations from 1,500 km away appear at S9+ — and a few minutes later, everything’s gone. Welcome to the fascinating world of Sporadic E…
-
Vertical Antennas for HF: Fundamentals, Types and Practice
If you want to work DX and have limited space, a vertical antenna is hard to beat. Thanks to their low radiation angle, verticals send their signal flat over the horizon — exactly where the…
-
Magnetic Loop: The Balcony Antenna for Radio Amateurs
If you live in a rented flat or apartment, you know the problem: a Yagi on the roof? Not a chance. A dipole in the garden? What garden? For many radio amateurs in urban areas,…
-
Planned Antenna Workshop or an Unplanned Field Day?
What was originally planned as a structured antenna workshop ultimately turned into what radio amateurs love most: a vibrant field day full of hands-on practice, exchange and genuine radio enthusiasm. Several of our newly licensed…
-
Sending and Receiving QSL Cards in Austria: All Options Compared
When radio amateurs in Austria want to exchange QSL cards, the ÖVSV QSL bureau is usually the first thing that comes to mind. But the range of options for sending and receiving contact confirmations has…
-
3D Printing for Ham Radio: Projects, Materials and Tips
When you need a special enclosure for ham radio, an antenna mount in an unusual shape, or a part that simply isn’t available to buy — reach for the 3D printer. The combination of amateur…
-
Packet Radio & AX.25: The Digital Legacy of Amateur Radio
Long before the internet became mainstream, radio amateurs were already sending digital data packets over the airwaves. Packet Radio — the packet-switched data network based on the AX.25 protocol — was the backbone of digital…
-
DX for Beginners: First Steps into Long-Distance Contacts
Japan, Australia, South America — all reachable with your own antenna from the roof? DX operation, meaning radio contacts over great distances, is the pinnacle of the hobby for many radio amateurs. The good news:…
-
MeshCom vs. Meshtastic: LoRa Mesh Networks for Radio Amateurs
Text messages without the internet, without mobile networks, without infrastructure — simply device-to-device across kilometres? What sounds like science fiction has long been reality with LoRa mesh networks. Two projects dominate the scene: Meshtastic, the…
-
QRP Operation: Around the World with 5 Watts
Five watts of transmit power — less than an LED light bulb consumes — and making contacts across thousands of kilometres? That’s the fascination of QRP, operating with reduced power. What sounds like a limitation…
-
Yaesu FT-290R: 2.5 Watts of Pure Addiction
There are radios you buy. And there are radios that find you. My Yaesu FT-290R belongs to the second category. I was scrolling through willhaben (Austria’s Craigslist) one evening, no plan, just browsing, and there…
-
RTL-SDR for Beginners: Discover the World of Radio for 30 Euros
Track aircraft, receive weather satellite images, listen to amateur radio, monitor ships on the Danube — all with a USB stick costing around 30 euros? Welcome to the world of Software Defined Radio. The RTL-SDR…
-
HAMNET in Austria: The Data Network for Radio Amateurs
What if radio amateurs had their own data network — independent of the internet, independent of commercial providers, operating on amateur radio frequencies with data rates of up to 200 Mbit/s on backbone links? That’s…
-
Icom X-026: New Concept Radio to Be Unveiled at Hamvention 2026
On 20 April 2026, Icom announced a new project via its official channels: the X-026. A concept mock-up set to be shown as a world premiere at the Dayton Hamvention from 15 to 17 May…
-
ITU-R M.1042-4: What the New Emergency Communications Recommendation Means for Amateur Radio
On 19 February 2026, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) adopted Recommendation ITU-R M.1042-4 — Disaster communications in the amateur and amateur-satellite services. It is the first revision since 2007. Nineteen years of silence, then an…
-
Amateur Radio by the Numbers: Demographics, Trends, and the Future of the Hobby
Is amateur radio dying? The data paints a more nuanced picture. All figures backed by primary sources.
-
Youth and Amateur Radio: Why the Hobby Is Exciting for Young People
Update 2026-04-16 – corrections after reader feedback: Two points have been clarified. 1. afukurs.oevsv.at is not a self-study online learning platform; it is a free, non-binding contact form that forwards your interest to the appropriate…
-
Solar Cycle 25: The Best Bands for DX in 2026
We are living in a special time for amateur radio. Solar Cycle 25 has exceeded all predictions and is delivering propagation conditions that many radio amateurs have not experienced in decades. If you are not…
-
QO-100: Getting Started with the Geostationary Amateur Radio Satellite
Imagine this: you press the PTT button, your signal races 36,000 kilometres into space, is picked up by a satellite and beamed back to Earth — from Brazil to India, from Scandinavia to South Africa.…
-
SOTA in Austria: Operating from Summit to Summit
Summits on the Air — SOTA for short — combines two passions: hiking and amateur radio. In Austria, a country full of mountains, SOTA is especially popular. From the gentle Koralpe to the high-alpine Großglockner…
-
Blackout Preparedness for Radio Amateurs: Self-Sufficient Radio Operation with Solar and Battery
Predstavljajte si, da internet odpove — brez Wi-Fi-ja, brez mobilnih podatkov, brez optike. Za večino ljudi bi bila to katastrofa. Za radioamaterje z Winlinkom pa ne. Winlink je svetovni sistem elektronske pošte, ki deluje prek…
