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

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1. - E0A01

What is the primary function of an external earth connection or ground rod?

Select	Answer
A	Reduce RFI to telephones and home entertainment systems
B	Lightning protection
C	Reduce received noise
D	Reduce RF current flow between pieces of equipment

2. - E1A12

What special operating frequency restrictions are imposed on slow scan TV transmissions?

Select	Answer
A	They are not permitted above 54 MHz
B	They are restricted to phone band segments
C	They are restricted to 7.245 MHz, 14.245 MHz, 21.345 MHz, and 28.945 MHz
D	None; they are allowed on all amateur frequencies

3. - E1B03

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

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

4. - E1C06

Which of the following is required in order to operate in accordance with CEPT rules in foreign countries where permitted?

Select	Answer
A	You must append "/CEPT" to your call sign
B	You must bring a copy of FCC Public Notice DA 16-1048
C	You must identify in the official language of the country in which you are operating
D	The U.S. embassy must approve of your operation

5. - E1D06

What is the maximum permitted transmitter output power when operating a model craft by telecommand?

Select	Answer
A	5 watts
B	2 watts
C	1 watt
D	100 watts

6. - E1E05

What is the minimum passing score on all amateur operator license examinations?

Select	Answer
A	Minimum passing score of 74%
B	Minimum passing score of 70%
C	Minimum passing score of 80%
D	Minimum passing score of 77%

7. - E1F05

Amateur stations may not transmit in which of the following frequency segments if they are located in the contiguous 48 states and north of Line A?

Select	Answer
A	420 MHz - 430 MHz
B	222 MHz - 223 MHz
C	53 MHz - 54 MHz
D	440 MHz - 450 MHz

8. - E2A01

What is the direction of an ascending pass for an amateur satellite?

Select	Answer
A	From south to north
B	From north to south
C	From west to east
D	From east to west

9. - E2B06

What is vestigial sideband modulation?

Select	Answer
A	Narrow-band FM modulation achieved by filtering one sideband from the audio before frequency modulating the carrier
B	Amplitude modulation in which one complete sideband and a portion of the other are transmitted
C	Spread spectrum modulation achieved by applying FM modulation following single sideband amplitude modulation
D	A type of modulation in which one sideband is inverted

10. - E2C10

Why might a DX station state that they are listening on another frequency?

Select	Answer
A	To separate the calling stations from the DX station
B	To improve operating efficiency by reducing interference
C	Because the DX station may be transmitting on a frequency that is prohibited to some responding stations
D	All these choices are correct

11. - E2D08

What type of packet frame is used to transmit APRS beacon data?

Select	Answer
A	Connect
B	Acknowledgement
C	Disconnect
D	Unnumbered Information

12. - E2E10

Which of these digital modes has the narrowest bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	MFSK16
B	170 Hz shift, 45-baud RTTY
C	300-baud packet
D	PSK31

13. - E3A01

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

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

14. - E3B09

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

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

15. - E3C05

What orientation of Bz (B sub z) increases the likelihood that incoming particles from the sun will cause disturbed conditions?

Select	Answer
A	Eastward
B	Northward
C	Southward
D	Westward

16. - E4A05

What is the purpose of the prescaler function on a frequency counter?

Select	Answer
A	It divides a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the input frequency
B	It amplifies low-level signals for more accurate counting
C	It prevents oscillation in a low-frequency counter circuit
D	It multiplies a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the operating frequency

17. - E4B02

What is the significance of voltmeter sensitivity expressed in ohms per volt?

Select	Answer
A	The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating will indicate the input impedance of the voltmeter
B	When used as an ammeter, the full scale reading in amps divided by ohms per volt rating will determine the size of shunt needed
C	When used as a galvanometer, the reading in volts multiplied by the ohms per volt rating will determine the power drawn by the device under test
D	When used as an ohmmeter, the reading in ohms divided by the ohms per volt rating will determine the voltage applied to the circuit

18. - E4C07

What does the MDS of a receiver represent?

Select	Answer
A	The maximum detectable spectrum
B	The minimum discernible signal
C	The meter display sensitivity
D	The multiplex distortion stability

19. - E4D02

Which of the following describes problems caused by poor dynamic range in a receiver?

Select	Answer
A	Cross-modulation of the desired signal and insufficient audio power to operate the speaker
B	Spurious signals caused by cross-modulation and desensitization from strong adjacent signals
C	Oscillator instability requiring frequent retuning and loss of ability to recover the opposite sideband
D	Oscillator instability and severe audio distortion of all but the strongest received signals

20. - E4E11

What could cause local AM broadcast band signals to combine to generate spurious signals in the MF or HF bands?

Select	Answer
A	One or more of the broadcast stations is transmitting an over-modulated signal
B	Nearby corroded metal joints are mixing and re-radiating the broadcast signals
C	You are receiving skywave signals from a distant station
D	Your station receiver IF amplifier stage is defective

21. - E5A07

What is the magnitude of the current at the input of a parallel RLC circuit at resonance?

Select	Answer
A	R/L
B	Maximum
C	L/R
D	Minimum

22. - E5B02

What letter is commonly used to represent susceptance?

Select	Answer
A	G
B	Y
C	X
D	B

23. - E5C09

When using rectangular coordinates to graph the impedance of a circuit, what do the axes represent?

Select	Answer
A	The X axis represents the resistive component and the Y axis represents the reactive component
B	The X axis represents the reactive component and the Y axis represents the resistive component
C	The X axis represents the magnitude and the Y axis represents the phase angle
D	The X axis represents the phase angle and the Y axis represents the magnitude

24. - E5D02

Why is it important to keep lead lengths short for components used in circuits for VHF and above?

Select	Answer
A	To increase the thermal time constant
B	All these choices are correct
C	To maintain component lifetime
D	To avoid unwanted inductive reactance

25. - E6A06

What is the beta of a bipolar junction transistor?

Select	Answer
A	The frequency at which the current gain is reduced to 0.707
B	The switching speed
C	The change in collector current with respect to base current
D	The breakdown voltage of the base to collector junction

26. - E6B09

What is a common use for point-contact diodes?

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

27. - E6C10

In Figure E6-3, what is the schematic symbol for a NOR gate?

Select	Answer
A	2
B	4
C	1
D	3

28. - E6D10

What is a primary advantage of using a toroidal core instead of a solenoidal core in an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Toroidal cores exhibit greater hysteresis
B	Toroidal cores confine most of the magnetic field within the core material
C	Toroidal cores have lower Q characteristics
D	Toroidal cores make it easier to couple the magnetic energy into other components

29. - E6E08

How is power supplied to the most common type of MMIC?

Select	Answer
A	Directly to the bias voltage (VCC IN) lead
B	MMICs require no operating bias
C	Through a capacitor and RF choke connected to the amplifier input lead
D	Through a resistor and/or RF choke connected to the amplifier output lead

30. - E6F05

Which describes an optical shaft encoder?

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

31. - E7A09

What logical operation is performed by an exclusive NOR gate?

Select	Answer
A	It produces logic 0 at its output if only one 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 only one input is logic 1
D	It produces logic 0 at its output only if all inputs are logic 0

32. - E7B08

How can an RF power amplifier be neutralized?

Select	Answer
A	By feeding a 180-degree out-of-phase portion of the output back to the input
B	By increasing the driving power
C	By reducing the driving power
D	By feeding an in-phase component of the output back to the input

33. - E7C10

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

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

34. - E7D08

What type of circuit is shown in Figure E7-2?

Select	Answer
A	Switching voltage regulator
B	Linear voltage regulator
C	Grounded emitter amplifier
D	Monostable multivibrator

35. - E7E08

What are the principal frequencies that appear at the output of a mixer circuit?

Select	Answer
A	The two input frequencies along with their sum and difference frequencies
B	The square root of the product of input frequencies
C	Two and four times the original frequency
D	1.414 and 0.707 times the input frequency

36. - E7F07

What function is performed by a Fast Fourier Transform?

Select	Answer
A	Converting digital signals to analog form
B	Converting 8-bit data to 16-bit data
C	Converting analog signals to digital form
D	Converting digital signals from the time domain to the frequency domain

37. - E7G04

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

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

38. - E7H03

How is positive feedback supplied in a Hartley oscillator?

Select	Answer
A	Through a tapped coil
B	Through a capacitive divider
C	Through a neutralizing capacitor
D	Through link coupling

39. - E8A10

What is the purpose of a low-pass filter used in conjunction with a digital-to-analog converter?

Select	Answer
A	Improve accuracy by removing out-of-sequence codes from the input
B	Lower the input bandwidth to increase the effective resolution
C	Remove harmonics from the output caused by the discrete analog levels generated
D	All these choices are correct

40. - E8B08

What describes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing?

Select	Answer
A	A bandwidth compression technique using Fourier transforms
B	A digital modulation technique using subcarriers at frequencies chosen to avoid intersymbol interference
C	A digital mode for narrow-band, slow-speed transmissions
D	A frequency modulation technique that uses non-harmonically related frequencies

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	Binary Coded Decimal Code
D	Excess 3 code

42. - E8D06

What is the advantage of including parity bits in ASCII characters?

Select	Answer
A	Some types of errors can be detected
B	The signal can overpower interfering signals
C	Foreign language characters can be sent
D	Faster transmission rate

43. - E9A12

How much gain does an antenna have compared to a 1/2-wavelength dipole when it has 6 dB gain over an isotropic antenna?

Select	Answer
A	6.0 dB
B	3.85 dB
C	2.79 dB
D	8.15 dB

44. - E9B08

What is the far field of an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	The region of the ionosphere where radiated power is not refracted
B	The region where the shape of the antenna pattern is independent of distance
C	The region where radiated field strengths are constant
D	The region where radiated power dissipates over a specified time period

45. - E9C03

What is the radiation pattern of two 1/4-wavelength vertical antennas spaced 1/2-wavelength apart and fed in phase?

Select	Answer
A	A Figure-8 end-fire along the axis of the array
B	A Figure-8 broadside to the axis of the array
C	Omni-directional
D	Cardioid

46. - E9D11

Which of the following conductors would be best for minimizing losses in a station's RF ground system?

Select	Answer
A	Stranded wire
B	Solid wire
C	Resistive wire, such as spark plug wire
D	Wide flat copper strap

47. - E9E09

Which of the following is used to shunt-feed a grounded tower at its base?

Select	Answer
A	Hairpin match
B	Gamma match
C	All these choices are correct
D	Double-bazooka match

48. - E9F02

Which of the following has the biggest effect on the velocity factor of a transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	The termination impedance
B	The center conductor resistivity
C	Dielectric materials used in the line
D	The line length

49. - 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	Impedance axis
C	Reactance axis
D	Polar axis

50. - E9H04

What is an advantage of placing a grounded electrostatic shield around a small loop direction-finding antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It adds capacitive loading, increasing the bandwidth of the antenna
B	It eliminates unbalanced capacitive coupling to the surroundings, improving the nulls
C	It increases signal strength by providing a better match to the feed line
D	It eliminates tracking errors caused by strong out-of-band signals

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-2

Figure E9-3