US Amateur Radio - Amateur Extra (Element 4, 2016-2020) Practice Test

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1. - E1A13

Who must be in physical control of the station apparatus of an amateur station aboard any vessel or craft that is documented or registered in the United States?

Select	Answer
A	Only a person named in an amateur station license grant
B	Any person holding an FCC issued amateur license or who is authorized for alien reciprocal operation
C	Only a person with an FCC Marine Radio
D	Any person named in an amateur station license grant or a person holding an unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit

2. - E1B03

Within what distance must an amateur station protect an FCC monitoring facility from harmful interference?

Select	Answer
A	30 miles
B	3 miles
C	1 mile
D	10 miles

3. - E1C05

When may an automatically controlled station originate third party communications?

Select	Answer
A	Never
B	When approved by the National Telecommunication and Information Administration
C	When agreed upon by the sending or receiving station
D	Only when transmitting RTTY or data emissions

4. - E1D09

Which UHF amateur service bands have frequencies available for a space station?

Select	Answer
A	70 cm only
B	70 cm and 33 cm
C	70 cm and 13 cm
D	33 cm and 13 cm

5. - E1E09

What may be the penalty for a VE who fraudulently administers or certifies an examination?

Select	Answer
A	Revocation of the VE's amateur station license grant and the suspension of the VE's amateur operator license grant
B	All of these choices are correct
C	A sentence of up to one year in prison
D	A fine of up to $1000 per occurrence

6. - E1F06

Under what circumstances might the FCC issue a Special Temporary Authority (STA) to an amateur station?

Select	Answer
A	To allow regular operation on Land Mobile channels
B	To provide additional spectrum for personal use
C	To provide temporary operation while awaiting normal licensing
D	To provide for experimental amateur communications

7. - E2A03

What is the orbital period of an Earth satellite?

Select	Answer
A	The point of maximum height of a satellite's orbit
B	The time it takes for a satellite to travel from perigee to apogee
C	The time it takes for a satellite to complete one revolution around the Earth
D	The point of minimum height of a satellite's orbit

8. - E2B01

How many times per second is a new frame transmitted in a fast-scan (NTSC) television system?

Select	Answer
A	30
B	90
C	120
D	60

9. - E2C04

What type of transmission is most often used for a ham radio mesh network?

Select	Answer
A	Store and forward on the 440 MHz band
B	Multiple Frequency Shift Keying in the 10 GHz band
C	Spread spectrum in the 2.4 GHz band
D	Frequency division multiplex in the 24 GHz band

10. - E2D07

What digital protocol is used by APRS?

Select	Answer
A	AMTOR
B	802.11
C	PACTOR
D	AX.25

11. - E2E03

How is the timing of JT65 contacts organized?

Select	Answer
A	Stations take turns on alternate days
B	It depends on the lunar phase
C	By exchanging ACK/NAK packets
D	Alternating transmissions at 1 minute intervals

12. - E3A01

What is the approximate maximum separation measured along the surface of the Earth between two stations communicating by Moon bounce?

Select	Answer
A	2000 miles, if the Moon is at apogee
B	5000 miles, if the Moon is at perigee
C	500 miles, if the Moon is at perigee
D	12,000 miles, if the Moon is visible by both stations

13. - E3B09

At what time of year is Sporadic E propagation most likely to occur?

Select	Answer
A	Around the solstices, especially the winter solstice
B	Around the solstices, especially the summer solstice
C	Around the equinoxes, especially the fall equinox
D	Around the equinoxes, especially the spring equinox

14. - E3C08

What does the space weather term G5 mean?

Select	Answer
A	An extreme geomagnetic storm
B	Waning sunspot numbers
C	Very low solar activity
D	Moderate solar wind

15. - E4A04

What determines the upper frequency limit for a computer soundcard-based oscilloscope program?

Select	Answer
A	All of these choices are correct
B	Analog-to-digital conversion speed of the soundcard
C	Amount of memory on the soundcard
D	Q of the interface of the interface circuit

16. - E4B07

What do the subscripts of S parameters represent?

Select	Answer
A	The port or ports at which measurements are made
B	The relative time between measurements
C	Relative quality of the data
D	Frequency order of the measurements

17. - E4C03

What is the term for the blocking of one FM phone signal by another, stronger FM phone signal?

Select	Answer
A	Cross-modulation interference
B	Frequency discrimination
C	Capture effect
D	Desensitization

18. - E4D01

What is meant by the blocking dynamic range of a receiver?

Select	Answer
A	The minimum difference in dB between two signals which produce third order intermodulation products greater than the noise floor
B	The minimum difference in dB between the levels of two FM signals which will cause one signal to block the other
C	The difference in dB between the noise floor and the level of an incoming signal which will cause 1 dB of gain compression
D	The difference in dB between the noise floor and the third order intercept point

19. - E4E12

What is one disadvantage of using some types of automatic DSP notch-filters when attempting to copy CW signals?

Select	Answer
A	Any nearby signal passing through the DSP system will overwhelm the desired signal
B	A DSP filter can remove the desired signal at the same time as it removes interfering signals
C	Received CW signals will appear to be modulated at the DSP clock frequency
D	Ringing in the DSP filter will completely remove the spaces between the CW characters

20. - E5A10

How is the Q of an RLC series resonant circuit calculated?

Select	Answer
A	Resistance divided by the reactance of either the inductance or capacitance
B	Reactance of the inductance times the reactance of the capacitance
C	Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance times the resistance
D	Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance divided by the resistance

21. - E5B02

What is the term for the time it takes for a charged capacitor in an RC circuit to discharge to 36.8% of its initial voltage?

Select	Answer
A	A discharge factor of one
B	One time constant
C	One discharge period
D	An exponential discharge rate of one

22. - E5C17

Which point on Figure E5-2 best represents the impedance of a series circuit consisting of a 300 ohm resistor, a 0.64-microhenry inductor and an 85-picofarad capacitor at 24.900 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	Point 5
B	Point 1
C	Point 8
D	Point 3

23. - E5D10

How can the true power be determined in an AC circuit where the voltage and current are out of phase?

Select	Answer
A	By multiplying the apparent power times the power factor
B	By dividing the apparent power by the power factor
C	By multiplying the reactive power times the power factor
D	By dividing the reactive power by the power factor

24. - E6A07

Which of the following indicates that a silicon NPN junction transistor is biased on?

Select	Answer
A	Base-to-emitter resistance of approximately 0.6 to 0.7 ohms
B	Base-to-emitter voltage of approximately 0.6 to 0.7 volts
C	Base-to-emitter resistance of approximately 6 to 7 ohms
D	Base-to-emitter voltage of approximately 6 to 7 volts

25. - E6B10

In Figure E6-3, what is the schematic symbol for a light-emitting diode?

Select	Answer
A	5
B	6
C	1
D	7

26. - E6C06

Why do CMOS digital integrated circuits have high immunity to noise on the input signal or power supply?

Select	Answer
A	Larger bypass capacitors are used in CMOS circuit design
B	Input signals are stronger
C	The input switching threshold is about two times the power supply voltage
D	The input switching threshold is about one-half the power supply voltage

27. - E6D05

What is one reason for using ferrite cores rather than powdered-iron in an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Ferrite toroids generally require fewer turns to produce a given inductance value
B	Ferrite toroids are easier to use with surface mount technology
C	Ferrite toroids generally have better temperature stability
D	Ferrite toroids generally have lower initial permeability

28. - E6E05

Which of the following noise figure values is typical of a low-noise UHF preamplifier?

Select	Answer
A	2 dB
B	44 dBm
C	-20 dBm
D	-10 dB

29. - E6F05

Which describes an optical shaft encoder?

Select	Answer
A	A device for generating RTTY signals by means of a rotating light source
B	A device which measures the strength of a beam of light using analog to digital conversion
C	A device which detects rotation of a control by interrupting a light source with a patterned wheel
D	A digital encryption device often used to encrypt spacecraft control signals

30. - E7A09

What logical operation is performed by an exclusive NOR gate?

Select	Answer
A	It produces logic "0" at its output if any single input is logic "1"
B	It produces logic "1" at its output only if all inputs are logic "1"
C	It produces logic "1" at its output if any single input is logic "1"
D	It produces logic "0" at its output only if all inputs are logic "0"

31. - E7B05

What can be done to prevent unwanted oscillations in an RF power amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	Tune the stage for maximum SWR
B	Tune both the input and output for maximum power
C	Use a phase inverter in the output filter
D	Install parasitic suppressors and/or neutralize the stage

32. - E7C15

What is a crystal lattice filter?

Select	Answer
A	An audio filter made with four quartz crystals that resonate at 1kHz intervals
B	A filter with wide bandwidth and shallow skirts made using quartz crystals
C	A filter with narrow bandwidth and steep skirts made using quartz crystals
D	A power supply filter made with interlaced quartz crystals

33. - E7D08

What type of circuit is shown in Figure E7-3?

Select	Answer
A	Switching voltage regulator
B	Linear voltage regulator
C	Emitter follower
D	Grounded emitter amplifier

34. - E7E06

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

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

35. - E7F01

What is meant by direct digital conversion as applied to software defined radios?

Select	Answer
A	Software is converted from source code to object code during operation of the receiver
B	Incoming RF is converted to a control voltage for a voltage controlled oscillator
C	Incoming RF is digitized by an analog-to-digital converter without being mixed with a local oscillator signal
D	A switching mixer is used to generate I and Q signals directly from the RF input

36. - E7G04

What is meant by the term op-amp input offset voltage?

Select	Answer
A	The output voltage of the op-amp minus its input voltage
B	The difference between the output voltage of the op-amp and the input voltage required in the immediately following stage
C	The differential input voltage needed to bring the open loop output voltage to zero
D	The potential between the amplifier input terminals of the op-amp in an open loop condition

37. - E7H12

Which of the following must be done to insure that a crystal oscillator provides the frequency specified by the crystal manufacturer?

Select	Answer
A	Provide the crystal with a specified parallel inductance
B	Bias the crystal at a specified current
C	Bias the crystal at a specified voltage
D	Provide the crystal with a specified parallel capacitance

38. - E8A08

Why would a direct or flash conversion analog-to-digital converter be useful for a software defined radio?

Select	Answer
A	Immunity to out of sequence coding reduces spurious responses
B	All of these choices are correct
C	Very high speed allows digitizing high frequencies
D	Very low power consumption decreases frequency drift

39. - E8B07

Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing is a technique used for which type of amateur communication?

Select	Answer
A	Extremely low-power contacts
B	OFDM signals are not allowed on amateur bands
C	High speed digital modes
D	EME

40. - E8C07

What is the necessary bandwidth of a 4800-Hz frequency shift, 9600-baud ASCII FM transmission?

Select	Answer
A	5.76 kHz
B	4.8 kHz
C	15.36 kHz
D	9.6 kHz

41. - E8D08

What parameter might indicate that excessively high input levels are causing distortion in an AFSK signal?

Select	Answer
A	Baud rate
B	Signal to noise ratio
C	Intermodulation Distortion (IMD)
D	Repeat Request Rate (RRR)

42. - E9A16

What is the effective radiated power relative to a dipole of a repeater station with 200 watts transmitter power output, 4 dB feed line loss, 3.2 dB duplexer loss, 0.8 dB circulator loss, and 10 dBd antenna gain?

Select	Answer
A	300 watts
B	317 watts
C	2000 watts
D	126 watts

43. - E9B04

What may occur when a directional antenna is operated at different frequencies within the band for which it was designed?

Select	Answer
A	Element spacing limits could be exceeded
B	The gain may change depending on frequency
C	The E-field and H-field patterns may reverse
D	Feed point impedance may become negative

44. - E9C12

Which of the following describes an extended double Zepp antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A center fed 1.25 wavelength antenna (two 5/8 wave elements in phase)
B	An end fed folded dipole antenna
C	A wideband vertical antenna constructed from precisely tapered aluminum tubing
D	A portable antenna erected using two push support poles

45. - E9D10

What happens to feed point impedance at the base of a fixed length HF mobile antenna as the frequency of operation is lowered?

Select	Answer
A	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance decreases
B	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance decreases
C	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance increases
D	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance increases

46. - E9E10

Which of these choices is an effective way to match an antenna with a 100 ohm feed point impedance to a 50 ohm coaxial cable feed line?

Select	Answer
A	Insert a 1/2 wavelength piece of 300 ohm twin-lead in series between the antenna terminals and the 50 ohm feed cable
B	Insert a 1/4-wavelength piece of 75 ohm coaxial cable transmission line in series between the antenna terminals and the 50 ohm feed cable
C	Connect a 1/4-wavelength open stub of 300 ohm twin-lead in parallel with the coaxial feed line where it connects to the antenna
D	Connect 1/2 wavelength shorted stub of 75 ohm cable in parallel with the 50 ohm cable where it attaches to the antenna

47. - 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	The same as the input impedance to the generator
B	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line
C	Very high impedance
D	Very low impedance

48. - E9G06

On the Smith chart shown in Figure E9-3, what is the name for the large outer circle on which the reactance arcs terminate?

Select	Answer
A	Prime axis
B	Reactance axis
C	Impedance axis
D	Polar axis

49. - E9H05

What is the main drawback of a wire-loop antenna for direction finding?

Select	Answer
A	It has a bidirectional pattern
B	It is non-rotatable
C	It is practical for use only on VHF bands
D	It receives equally well in all directions

50. - E0A04

When evaluating a site with multiple transmitters operating at the same time, the operators and licensees of which transmitters are responsible for mitigating over-exposure situations?

Select	Answer
A	Only commercial transmitters
B	Only the most powerful transmitter
C	Each transmitter that produces 5 percent or more of its MPE limit at accessible locations
D	Each transmitter operating with a duty-cycle greater than 50 percent

Figure E5-2

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-3

Figure E9-3