US Amateur Radio - Amateur Extra (Element 4, 2020-2024) Practice Test

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1. - E0A05

What is one of the potential hazards of operating in the amateur radio microwave bands?

Select	Answer
A	Microwaves often travel long distances by ionospheric reflection
B	The extremely high frequency energy can damage the joints of antenna structures
C	Microwaves are ionizing radiation
D	The high gain antennas commonly used can result in high exposure levels

2. - E1A11

Which of the following describes authorization or licensing required when operating an amateur station aboard a U.S.-registered vessel in international waters?

Select	Answer
A	Any FCC-issued amateur license
B	An unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
C	Any amateur license with an FCC Marine or Aircraft endorsement
D	Only General Class or higher amateur licenses

3. - E1B11

What does PRB-1 require of regulations affecting amateur radio?

Select	Answer
A	Use of wireless devices in a vehicle is exempt from regulation
B	No limitations may be placed on antenna size or placement
C	Reasonable accommodations of amateur radio must be made
D	Amateur radio operations must be permitted in any private residence

4. - E1C10

What is the permitted mean power of any spurious emission relative to the mean power of the fundamental emission from a station transmitter or external RF amplifier installed after January 1, 2003 and transmitting on a frequency below 30 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	At least 63 dB below
B	At least 73 dB below
C	At least 43 dB below
D	At least 53 dB below

5. - E1D08

Which VHF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	6 meters and 2 meters
B	6 meters, 2 meters, and 1.25 meters
C	2 meters and 1.25 meters
D	2 meters

6. - E1E01

For which types of out-of-pocket expenses do the Part 97 rules state that VEs and VECs may be reimbursed?

Select	Answer
A	No expenses are authorized for reimbursement
B	Preparing, processing, administering, and coordinating an examination for an amateur radio operator license
C	Providing amateur operator license examination preparation training materials
D	Teaching an amateur operator license examination preparation course

7. - E1F10

Who may be the control operator of an auxiliary station?

Select	Answer
A	Only Technician, General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operators
B	Any licensed amateur operator
C	Only General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operators
D	Only Amateur Extra Class operators

8. - E2A03

How is the signal inverted by an inverting linear transponder?

Select	Answer
A	The signal is detected and remodulated on the reverse sideband
B	The signal is reduced to I and Q components and the Q component is filtered out
C	The signal is passed through a non-linear filter
D	The signal is passed through a mixer and the difference rather than the sum is transmitted

9. - E2B09

What hardware, other than a receiver with SSB capability and a suitable computer, is needed to decode SSTV using Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM)?

Select	Answer
A	A special notch filter to remove synchronization pulses
B	No other hardware is needed
C	A special front end limiter
D	A special IF converter

10. - E2C11

How should you generally identify your station when attempting to contact a DX station during a contest or in a pileup?

Select	Answer
A	Send only the last two letters of your call sign until you make contact
B	Send your full call sign and grid square
C	Send your full call sign once or twice
D	Send the call sign of the DX station three times, the words this is,then your call sign three times

11. - E2D11

Which of the following data are used by the APRS network to communicate station location?

Select	Answer
A	Polar coordinates
B	Radio direction finding spectrum analysis
C	Latitude and longitude
D	Time and frequency

12. - E2E11

What is the difference between direct FSK and audio FSK?

Select	Answer
A	Only direct FSK can be decoded by computer
B	Direct FSK occupies less bandwidth
C	Direct FSK can transmit faster baud rates
D	Direct FSK applies the data signal to the transmitter VFO, while AFSK transmits tones via phone

13. - E3A07

Atmospheric ducts capable of propagating microwave signals often form over what geographic feature?

Select	Answer
A	Forests
B	Bodies of water
C	Urban areas
D	Mountain ranges

14. - E3B01

What is transequatorial propagation?

Select	Answer
A	Propagation between two mid-latitude points at approximately the same distance north and south of the magnetic equator
B	Propagation between points located on the magnetic equator
C	Propagation between a point on the equator and its antipodal point
D	Propagation between points at the same latitude

15. - E3C01

What does the radio communication term "ray tracing" describe?

Select	Answer
A	Evaluating high voltage sources for x-rays
B	Modeling a radio wave's path through the ionosphere
C	The process in which an electronic display presents a pattern
D	Determining the radiation pattern from an array of antennas

16. - E4A01

Which of the following limits the highest frequency signal that can be accurately displayed on a digital oscilloscope?

Select	Answer
A	Amount of memory
B	Sampling rate of the analog-to-digital converter
C	Q of the circuit
D	All these choices are correct

17. - E4B01

Which of the following factors most affects the accuracy of a frequency counter?

Select	Answer
A	Input attenuator accuracy
B	Decade divider accuracy
C	Time base accuracy
D	Temperature coefficient of the logic

18. - E4C05

What does a receiver noise floor of -174 dBm represent?

Select	Answer
A	The noise figure of a 1 Hz bandwidth receiver
B	The galactic noise contribution to minimum detectable signal
C	The theoretical noise in a 1 Hz bandwidth at the input of a perfect receiver at room temperature
D	The minimum detectable signal as a function of receive frequency

19. - E4D12

What is the term for the reduction in receiver sensitivity caused by a strong signal near the received frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Squelch gain rollback
B	Quieting
C	Desensitization
D	Cross-modulation interference

20. - E4E04

How can conducted and radiated noise caused by an automobile alternator be suppressed?

Select	Answer
A	By installing filter capacitors in series with the DC power lead and a blocking capacitor in the field lead
B	By installing a noise suppression resistor and a blocking capacitor in both leads
C	By connecting the radio's power leads directly to the battery and by installing coaxial capacitors in line with the alternator leads
D	By installing a high-pass filter in series with the radio's power lead and a low-pass filter in parallel with the field lead

21. - E5A03

What is the magnitude of the impedance of a series RLC circuit at resonance?

Select	Answer
A	Approximately equal to circuit resistance
B	Approximately equal to inductive reactance
C	High, as compared to the circuit resistance
D	Approximately equal to capacitive reactance

22. - E5B09

What is the relationship between the AC current through a capacitor and the voltage across a capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	Voltage and current are in phase
B	Voltage and current are 180 degrees out of phase
C	Current leads voltage by 90 degrees
D	Voltage leads current by 90 degrees

23. - E5C08

What coordinate system is often used to display the phase angle of a circuit containing resistance, inductive and/or capacitive reactance?

Select	Answer
A	Faraday grid
B	Elliptical coordinates
C	Polar coordinates
D	Maidenhead grid

24. - E5D05

What is the power factor of an RL circuit having a 30-degree phase angle between the voltage and the current?

Select	Answer
A	0.577
B	0.866
C	1.73
D	0.5

25. - E6A08

What term indicates the frequency at which the grounded-base current gain of a transistor has decreased to 0.7 of the gain obtainable at 1 kHz?

Select	Answer
A	Corner frequency
B	Alpha cutoff frequency
C	Alpha rejection frequency
D	Beta cutoff frequency

26. - E6B09

What is a common use for point-contact diodes?

Select	Answer
A	As a constant voltage source
B	As a high-voltage rectifier
C	As a constant current source
D	As an RF detector

27. - E6C02

What happens when the level of a comparator's input signal crosses the threshold?

Select	Answer
A	The IC input can be damaged
B	The comparator changes its output state
C	The feedback loop becomes unstable
D	The comparator enters latch-up

28. - E6D07

What is current in the primary winding of a transformer called if no load is attached to the secondary?

Select	Answer
A	Direct current
B	Stabilizing current
C	Excitation current
D	Magnetizing current

29. - E6E03

Which of the following materials is likely to provide the highest frequency of operation when used in MMICs?

Select	Answer
A	Silicon nitride
B	Silicon
C	Gallium nitride
D	Silicon dioxide

30. - E6F03

What is the most common configuration of an optoisolator or optocoupler?

Select	Answer
A	An LED and a phototransistor
B	A lens and a photomultiplier
C	A frequency modulated helium-neon laser
D	An amplitude modulated helium-neon laser

31. - E7A07

What logical operation does a NAND gate perform?

Select	Answer
A	It produces logic 1 at its output only when all inputs are logic 1
B	It produces logic 0 at its output only when all inputs are logic 1
C	It produces logic 0 at its output if some but not all inputs are logic 1
D	It produces logic 0 at its output only when all inputs are logic 0

32. - E7B14

Why are switching amplifiers more efficient than linear amplifiers?

Select	Answer
A	The power transistor is at saturation or cutoff most of the time
B	Switching amplifiers operate at higher voltages
C	Linear amplifiers have high gain resulting in higher harmonic content
D	Switching amplifiers use push-pull circuits

33. - E7C10

Which of the following filters would be the best choice for use in a 2 meter band repeater duplexer?

Select	Answer
A	A crystal filter
B	A cavity filter
C	A DSP filter
D	An L-C filter

34. - E7D02

What is a characteristic of a switching electronic voltage regulator?

Select	Answer
A	It is generally less efficient than a linear regulator
B	It gives a ramp voltage at its output
C	The resistance of a control element is varied in direct proportion to the line voltage or load current
D	The controlled device's duty cycle is changed to produce a constant average output voltage

35. - E7E06

Why is de-emphasis commonly used in FM communications receivers?

Select	Answer
A	For compatibility with transmitters using phase modulation
B	For higher efficiency
C	To reduce impulse noise reception
D	To remove third-order distortion products

36. - E7F14

Which of the following would allow a digital signal processing filter to create a sharper filter response?

Select	Answer
A	More taps
B	Higher data rate
C	Complex phasor representations
D	Double-precision math routines

37. - E7G01

What is the typical output impedance of an op-amp?

Select	Answer
A	Very high
B	1000 ohms
C	100 ohms
D	Very low

38. - E7H08

Which of the following components can be used to reduce thermal drift in crystal oscillators?

Select	Answer
A	NP0 capacitors
B	Wirewound resistors
C	Non-inductive resistors
D	Toroidal inductors

39. - E8A02

Which of the following is a type of analog-to-digital conversion?

Select	Answer
A	Level shifting
B	Phase reversal
C	Successive approximation
D	Harmonic regeneration

40. - E8B04

What is the modulation index of an FM-phone signal having a maximum carrier deviation of plus or minus 6 kHz when modulated with a 2 kHz modulating frequency?

Select	Answer
A	3
B	1/3
C	6000
D	2000

41. - E8C09

Which digital code allows only one bit to change between sequential code values?

Select	Answer
A	Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
B	Gray code
C	Excess 3 code
D	Binary Coded Decimal Code

42. - E8D11

What is one advantage of using ASCII code for data communications?

Select	Answer
A	It contains fewer information bits per character than any other code
B	It includes built-in error correction features
C	It is possible to transmit both upper and lower case text
D	It uses one character as a shift code to send numeric and special characters

43. - E9A11

Which of the following factors determines ground losses for a ground-mounted vertical antenna operating in the 3 MHz to 30 MHz range?

Select	Answer
A	The standing wave ratio
B	Distance from the transmitter
C	Take-off angle
D	Soil conductivity

44. - E9B11

What is a disadvantage of decreasing the number of wire segments in an antenna model below 10 segments per half-wavelength?

Select	Answer
A	The computed feed point impedance may be incorrect
B	Ground conductivity will not be accurately modeled
C	The antenna will become mechanically unstable
D	The resulting design will favor radiation of harmonic energy

45. - E9C11

How is the far-field elevation pattern of a vertically polarized antenna affected by being mounted over seawater versus soil?

Select	Answer
A	Fewer vertical angle lobes will be present
B	The low-angle radiation decreases
C	The low-angle radiation increases
D	Additional higher vertical angle lobes will appear

46. - E9D02

How can linearly polarized Yagi antennas be used to produce circular polarization?

Select	Answer
A	Stack two Yagis fed 90 degrees out of phase to form an array with the respective elements in parallel planes
B	Stack two Yagis fed in phase to form an array with the respective elements in parallel planes
C	Arrange two Yagis collinear to each other with the driven elements fed 180 degrees out of phase
D	Arrange two Yagis perpendicular to each other with the driven elements at the same point on the boom fed 90 degrees out of phase

47. - E9E02

What is the name of an antenna matching system that matches an unbalanced feed line to an antenna by feeding the driven element both at the center of the element and at a fraction of a wavelength to one side of center?

Select	Answer
A	The stub match
B	The epsilon match
C	The delta match
D	The gamma match

48. - E9F12

What impedance does a 1/4-wavelength transmission line present to a generator when the line is open at the far end?

Select	Answer
A	Very high impedance
B	Very low impedance
C	The same as the input impedance to the generator
D	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line

49. - E9G10

What do the arcs on a Smith chart represent?

Select	Answer
A	SWR
B	Points with constant reactance
C	Points with constant resistance
D	Frequency

50. - E9H06

What is the triangulation method of direction finding?

Select	Answer
A	Antenna headings from several different receiving locations are used to locate the signal source
B	A fixed receiving station plots three headings to the signal source
C	A fixed receiving station uses three different antennas to plot the location of the signal source
D	The geometric angles of sky waves from the source are used to determine its position