Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Should we really be concerned about the future of amateur radio?


In recent on the air discussions several concerns were highlighted by me and others. I will only mention five important and relevant concerns here:

1. Dramatic ambient noise level on HF, VHF and even UHF

2. RAE candidates "disappear" after writing the Exam.

3. Convincing the youth to join our ranks is like asking them to "stay with us in an old age home". With all do respect.

4. Our service to communities as radio amateurs are in many cases not needed any more.

5. Cost to become a radio amateur are outrageously high as is the cost of amateur radio equipment.

Now it is fairly easy to point the finger, voice concerns or outright complaining. The aim here is to find solutions or come up with ideas to "turn the boat around."

My humble possible solutions to the above 5 issues:

1. To solve the noise on HF, VHF and UHF will be very difficult if not completely impossible. Live with it? Yes unfortunately. Authorities will not be able to solve the problem. It has already gone to far. Alternative: We will have to look at other means of using the amateur radio spectrum that can either overrun or run parallel with the noise. Digital modes might be an option. Any suggestions?

2. This is a difficult one. You can take a "horse to the water but you cannot make him drink." Why do RAE candidates write the exam and disappear? I have my thoughts but no concrete evidence. A possible solution would be to not issue the ZS License after the RAE, but only when the candidate provide proof of 1000 confirmed contacts on any of the bands. Another option would be for a club to provide a certificate of competence that endorse the fact that this candidate has actively participated in on air radio activities for at least 1 year. If we lose some then so be it. Any suggestions?

3. Even a more difficult one. In my opinion there is very little we can do to convince the youth to join our ranks. A radio on a table will not do it. Even a computer will not cut it. The only way is to include amateur radio in the school curricula as a subject. Now this will be very difficult in SA. Another options is to get the youth involved in scientific projects where they launch balloons once a month with their projects on board. We can provide guidance but it is up to them to provide us with what they would like to see in amateur radio. Only problem is that our children does not have free time today as the schools and other activities get priority over hobbies. I really do not have any solutions in this regard as we have tried many in the past and that did not work. Any suggestions?

4. There are still some services being rendered by radio amateurs but these are getting far and in between. No, there is no need for us (our services) any more. Do yourself a favour and look at all the new and modern communication mediums available today. You will be surprised that there are many mediums available that can also easily be included in our "If all else fails ........." slogan. The deployment of Starlink Satellites by SpaceX changed the way people will communicate during disasters and emergencies. And not only the Starlink Satellites. There are many other systems used to replace traditional amateur radio emergency communications. We do not like to read or hear this but it is a real-time fact. Any suggestions?

5. I am not going to go into detail here other than to say that we are “shooting ourselves in the foot” with the high cost of the RAE and also high cost of amateur radio equipment. Solutions: Cut costs, do not support or buy over prized equipment. Look for sponsorships from radio amateurs and the private sector. The RAE Exam must be available on the Internet 24/7 to hopefully save costs. We want new radio amateurs, not chasing candidates away as a result of high costs. We have lost many candidates this year as a result of high costs. Looking at the SK’s it is important that we add new blood to the hobby. Any suggestions?

I would like to ask my fellow radio amateurs to come up with suggestions on how we can solve some if not all of the issues mentioned above. Do not throw the messenger with stones. We must “take stock” and come up with new ideas/methods. If we continue with the current trend the future of amateur radio might be in jeopardy.


What route will the future of amateur radio follow?

In my opinion the future of amateur radio is in the GHZ bands. We need to explore the GHZ bands and work to and from outer space, like Mars etc. I would one day like to see an amateur radio station, beacon, repeater etc on Mars or for that matter any other planet even our own Moon. Just imagine that we can speak to astronauts/fellow radio amateurs on their way to some planet. Yes I know all to well that the GHZ bands mainly uses line of sight but would it not be possible to come up with a new digital mode for the GHZ Bands whereby it is possible to reach vast distances. With the GHZ bands there is also the possibility of video streaming and many other modes not possible on HF, VHF and UHF. Who is going to convince Elon Musk to become a radio amateur and to add different radio modules to his Starlink satellites that we as radio amateurs can use. Imagine that all Starlink Satellites have amateur radio nodes that could form a mesh network and be available for future missions to Mars. Really it should not be that difficult to get a 5.8 Ghz Node up and running on every single Starlink Satellite. Something similar to the current AREDN nodes. We need to be creative, think and dream big and into the future, like many did before us. We need to go back to our "garages", start experimenting again like in the olden days. Stop being a “black box” amateur radio operator. You are just a passenger and not a Mover or Shaker. Lets move and shake amateur radio now to preserve and live the legacy that we as radio amateurs have, thanks to those who created it long before many of us became radio amateurs.

Finally:  Who will be the first radio amateur to make a contact to Mars on the GHZ Amateur Radio bands?



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