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

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1. - 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	Any amateur license with an FCC Marine or Aircraft endorsement
C	An unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
D	Only General class or higher amateur licenses

2. - E1B06

Which of the following additional rules apply if you are installing an amateur station antenna at a site at or near a public use airport?

Select	Answer
A	No special rules apply if your antenna structure will be less than 300 feet in height
B	You must obtain a construction permit from the airport zoning authority
C	You must file an Environmental Impact Statement with the EPA before construction begins
D	You may have to notify the Federal Aviation Administration and register it with the FCC as required by Part 17 of FCC rules

3. - E1C04

What is meant by IARP?

Select	Answer
A	An international amateur radio permit that allows U.S. amateurs to operate in certain countries of the Americas
B	The internal amateur radio practices policy of the FCC
C	An indication of increased antenna reflected power
D	A forecast of intermittent aurora radio propagation

4. - E1D01

What is the definition of the term telemetry?

Select	Answer
A	Two-way radiotelephone transmissions in excess of 1000 feet
B	Two-way single channel transmissions of data
C	One-way transmission that initiates, modifies, or terminates the functions of a device at a distance
D	One-way transmission of measurements at a distance from the measuring instrument

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. - E1F11

Which of the following best describes one of the standards that must be met by an external RF power amplifier if it is to qualify for a grant of FCC certification?

Select	Answer
A	It must exhibit a gain of 0 dB or less over its full output range
B	It must be capable of external RF switching between its input and output networks
C	It must satisfy the FCC's spurious emission standards when operated at the lesser of 1500 watts or its full output power
D	It must produce full legal output when driven by not more than 5 watts of mean RF input power

7. - E2A05

What do the letters in a satellite's mode designator specify?

Select	Answer
A	The location of the ground control station
B	Power limits for uplink and downlink transmissions
C	The polarization of uplink and downlink signals
D	The uplink and downlink frequency ranges

8. - E2B07

What is the name of the signal component that carries color information in NTSC video?

Select	Answer
A	Luminance
B	Chroma
C	Spectral Intensity
D	Hue

9. - E2C03

From which of the following bands is amateur radio contesting generally excluded?

Select	Answer
A	33 cm
B	30 m
C	2 m
D	6 m

10. - E2D10

How can an APRS station be used to help support a public service communications activity?

Select	Answer
A	An APRS station with a GPS unit can automatically transmit information to show a mobile station's position during the event
B	All of these choices are correct
C	An APRS station with an emergency medical technician can automatically transmit medical data to the nearest hospital
D	APRS stations with General Personnel Scanners can automatically relay the participant numbers and time as they pass the check points

11. - E2E06

What is the most common data rate used for HF packet?

Select	Answer
A	110 baud
B	300 baud
C	1200 baud
D	48 baud

12. - E3A15

What is an electromagnetic wave?

Select	Answer
A	A wave consisting of two magnetic fields at right angles to each other
B	A wave of alternating current, in the core of an electromagnet
C	A wave consisting of two electric fields at parallel right angles to each other
D	A wave consisting of an electric field and a magnetic field oscillating at right angles to each other

13. - E3B02

What is the approximate maximum range for signals using transequatorial propagation?

Select	Answer
A	7500 miles
B	5000 miles
C	2500 miles
D	1000 miles

14. - E3C15

What might a sudden rise in radio background noise indicate?

Select	Answer
A	Increased transequatorial propagation likely
B	Long-path propagation is occurring
C	A meteor ping
D	A solar flare has occurred

15. - E4A02

Which of the following parameters would a spectrum analyzer display on the vertical and horizontal axes?

Select	Answer
A	SWR and frequency
B	RF amplitude and time
C	SWR and time
D	RF amplitude and frequency

16. - E4B17

What three test loads are used to calibrate a standard RF vector network analyzer?

Select	Answer
A	50 ohms through 1/8 wavelength, 1/4 wavelength, and 1/2 wavelength of coaxial cable
B	Short circuit, open circuit, and resonant circuit
C	50 ohms, 75 ohms, and 90 ohms
D	Short circuit, open circuit, and 50 ohms

17. - E4C13

How does a narrow-band roofing filter affect receiver performance?

Select	Answer
A	It improves dynamic range by attenuating strong signals near the receive frequency
B	It improves sensitivity by reducing front end noise
C	It improves intelligibility by using low Q circuitry to reduce ringing
D	All of these choices are correct

18. - E4D14

Which of the following is a way to reduce the likelihood of receiver desensitization?

Select	Answer
A	Raise the receiver IF frequency
B	Switch from fast AGC to slow AGC
C	Decrease the RF bandwidth of the receiver
D	Increase the receiver front end gain

19. - E4E12

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

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

20. - E5A13

What is an effect of increasing Q in a resonant circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Fewer components are needed for the same performance
B	Parasitic effects are minimized
C	Internal voltages and circulating currents increase
D	Phase shift can become uncontrolled

21. - E5B06

What is susceptance?

Select	Answer
A	The magnetic impedance of a circuit
B	A measure of the efficiency of a transformer
C	The inverse of reactance
D	The ratio of magnetic field to electric field

22. - E5C12

If you plot the impedance of a circuit using the rectangular coordinate system and find the impedance point falls on the right side of the graph on the horizontal axis, what do you know about the circuit?

Select	Answer
A	It is equivalent to a pure resistance
B	It contains resistance and capacitive reactance
C	It contains resistance and inductive reactance
D	It has to be a direct current circuit

23. - E5D09

What happens to reactive power in an AC circuit that has both ideal inductors and ideal capacitors?

Select	Answer
A	It is repeatedly exchanged between the associated magnetic and electric fields, but is not dissipated
B	It is dissipated as heat in the circuit
C	It is dissipated as kinetic energy in the circuit
D	It is dissipated in the formation of inductive and capacitive fields

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

25. - E6B02

What is an important characteristic of a Schottky diode as compared to an ordinary silicon diode when used as a power supply rectifier?

Select	Answer
A	Less forward voltage drop
B	Much higher reverse voltage breakdown
C	Controlled reverse avalanche voltage
D	Enhanced carrier retention time

26. - E6C08

In Figure E6-5, what is the schematic symbol for a NAND gate?

Select	Answer
A	4
B	1
C	2
D	3

27. - E6D05

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

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

28. - E6E06

What characteristics of the MMIC make it a popular choice for VHF through microwave circuits?

Select	Answer
A	Plate current that is controlled by a control grid
B	Nearly infinite gain, very high input impedance, and very low output impedance
C	Controlled gain, low noise figure, and constant input and output impedance over the specified frequency range
D	The ability to retrieve information from a single signal even in the presence of other strong signals

29. - E6F05

Which describes an optical shaft encoder?

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

30. - E7A01

Which is a bi-stable circuit?

Select	Answer
A	A flip-flop
B	A clock
C	An "OR" gate
D	An "AND" gate

31. - E7B04

Where on the load line of a Class A common emitter amplifier would bias normally be set?

Select	Answer
A	Approximately half-way between saturation and cutoff
B	At a point where the load line intersects the zero bias current curve
C	Where the load line intersects the voltage axis
D	At a point where the bias resistor equals the load resistor

32. - E7C02

Which of the following is a property of a T-network with series capacitors and a parallel shunt inductor?

Select	Answer
A	It is a band-pass filter
B	It is a high-pass filter
C	It is a low-pass filter
D	It is a notch filter

33. - E7D12

What is the drop-out voltage of an analog voltage regulator?

Select	Answer
A	Maximum amount that the output voltage drops when the input voltage is varied over its specified range
B	Maximum amount that the output voltage may decrease at rated load
C	Minimum input-to-output voltage required to maintain regulation
D	Minimum input voltage for rated power dissipation

34. - E7E10

How does a diode detector function?

Select	Answer
A	By sensing the change of reactance in the diode with respect to frequency
B	By mixing signals with noise in the transition region of the diode
C	By rectification and filtering of RF signals
D	By breakdown of the Zener voltage

35. - E7F06

What is the minimum number of bits required for an analog-to-digital converter to sample a signal with a range of 1 volt at a resolution of 1 millivolt?

Select	Answer
A	6 bits
B	8 bits
C	4 bits
D	10 bits

36. - E7G04

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

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

37. - E7H07

How can an oscillator's microphonic responses be reduced?

Select	Answer
A	Mechanically isolating the oscillator circuitry from its enclosure
B	Eliminating noise on the oscillator's power supply
C	Use of NP0 capacitors
D	Using the oscillator only for CW and digital signals

38. - E8A08

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

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

39. - E8B08

What describes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing?

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

40. - E8C08

How does ARQ accomplish error correction?

Select	Answer
A	Special polynomial codes provide automatic correction
B	If errors are detected, redundant data is substituted
C	Special binary codes provide automatic correction
D	If errors are detected, a retransmission is requested

41. - E8D11

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

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

42. - 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	2.79 dB
B	8.15 dB
C	6.0 dB
D	3.85 dB

43. - E9B03

In the antenna radiation pattern shown in Figure E9-1, what is the front-to-side ratio?

Select	Answer
A	24 dB
B	18 dB
C	14 dB
D	12 dB

44. - E9C05

What is an OCFD antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A remotely tunable dipole antenna using orthogonally controlled frequency diversity
B	A multiband dipole antenna using one-way circular polarization for frequency diversity
C	An eight band dipole antenna using octophase filters
D	A dipole feed approximately 1/3 the way from one end with a 4:1 balun to provide multiband operation

45. - E9D13

What usually occurs if a Yagi antenna is designed solely for maximum forward gain?

Select	Answer
A	The frequency response is widened over the whole frequency band
B	The front-to-back ratio increases
C	The SWR is reduced
D	The front-to-back ratio decreases

46. - E9E05

How must the driven element in a 3-element Yagi be tuned to use a hairpin matching system?

Select	Answer
A	The driven element radiation resistance must be higher than the characteristic impedance of the transmission line
B	The driven element reactance must be inductive
C	The driven element reactance must be capacitive
D	The driven element resonance must be lower than the operating frequency

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

48. - E9G04

What are the two families of circles and arcs that make up a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Resistance and reactance
B	Reactance and voltage
C	Voltage and impedance
D	Resistance and voltage

49. - E9H05

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

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

50. - E0A09

Which insulating material commonly used as a thermal conductor for some types of electronic devices is extremely toxic if broken or crushed and the particles are accidentally inhaled?

Select	Answer
A	Uranium Hexafluoride
B	Beryllium Oxide
C	Mica
D	Zinc oxide

Figure E6-5

Figure E9-1