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

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1. - E1A10

If an amateur station is installed aboard a ship or aircraft, what condition must be met before the station is operated?

Select	Answer
A	Its operation must be approved by the master of the ship or the pilot in command of the aircraft
B	The amateur station operator must agree not to transmit when the main radio of the ship or aircraft is in use
C	The amateur station must have a power supply that is completely independent of the main ship or aircraft power supply
D	The amateur operator must have an FCC Marine or Aircraft endorsement on his or her amateur license

2. - E1B01

Which of the following constitutes a spurious emission?

Select	Answer
A	Any transmitted signal that unintentionally interferes with another licensed radio station
B	An emission outside its necessary bandwidth that can be reduced or eliminated without affecting the information transmitted
C	A signal transmitted to prevent its detection by any station other than the intended recipient
D	An amateur station transmission made at random without the proper call sign identification

3. - E1C12

What types of communications may be transmitted to amateur stations in foreign countries?

Select	Answer
A	Business-related messages for non-profit organizations
B	Messages intended for connection to users of the maritime satellite service
C	Communications incidental to the purpose of the amateur service and remarks of a personal nature
D	All of these choices are correct

4. - E1D05

What class of licensee is authorized to be the control operator of a space station?

Select	Answer
A	Only General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class
B	Any class with appropriate operator privileges
C	All except Technician Class
D	Only Amateur Extra Class

5. - E1E13

Which of these choices is an acceptable method for monitoring the applicants if a VEC opts to conduct an exam session remotely?

Select	Answer
A	Have each applicant sign an affidavit stating that all session rules were followed
B	The exam proctor observes the applicants and reports any violations
C	Record the exam session on video tape for later review by the VE team
D	Use a real-time video link and the Internet to connect the exam session to the observing VEs

6. - E1F09

Which of the following conditions apply when transmitting spread spectrum emission?

Select	Answer
A	The transmission must not be used to obscure the meaning of any communication
B	The transmitting station must be in an area regulated by the FCC or in a country that permits SS emissions
C	A station transmitting SS emission must not cause harmful interference to other stations employing other authorized emissions
D	All of these choices are correct

7. - E2A04

What is meant by the term mode as applied to an amateur radio satellite?

Select	Answer
A	The type of signals that can be relayed through the satellite
B	The satellite's orientation with respect to the Earth
C	The satellite's uplink and downlink frequency bands
D	Whether the satellite is in a polar or equatorial orbit

8. - E2B05

Which of the following is an advantage of using vestigial sideband for standard fast- scan TV transmissions?

Select	Answer
A	The vestigial sideband contains chroma information
B	Vestigial sideband provides high frequency emphasis to sharpen the picture
C	The vestigial sideband carries the audio information
D	Vestigial sideband reduces bandwidth while allowing for simple video detector circuitry

9. - E2C10

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

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

10. - E2D06

Which of the following describes a method of establishing EME contacts?

Select	Answer
A	Time synchronous transmissions alternately from each station
B	Judging optimum transmission times by monitoring beacons reflected from the Moon
C	High speed CW identification to avoid fading
D	Storing and forwarding digital messages

11. - E2E04

What is indicated when one of the ellipses in an FSK crossed-ellipse display suddenly disappears?

Select	Answer
A	Selective fading has occurred
B	One of the signal filters is saturated
C	The receiver has drifted 5 kHz from the desired receive frequency
D	The mark and space signal have been inverted

12. - E3A02

What characterizes libration fading of an EME signal?

Select	Answer
A	A slow change in the pitch of the CW signal
B	A fluttery irregular fading
C	A gradual loss of signal as the Sun rises
D	The returning echo is several Hertz lower in frequency than the transmitted signal

13. - E3B08

What type of HF propagation is probably occurring if radio signals travel along the terminator between daylight and darkness?

Select	Answer
A	Gray-line
B	Sporadic-E
C	Transequatorial
D	Long-path

14. - E3C08

What does the space weather term G5 mean?

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

15. - E4A14

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

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

16. - E4B04

If a frequency counter with a specified accuracy of +/- 0.1 ppm reads 146,520,000 Hz, what is the most the actual frequency being measured could differ from the reading?

Select	Answer
A	1.4652 kHz
B	14.652 Hz
C	1.4652 Hz
D	0.1 MHz

17. - E4C04

How is the noise figure of a receiver defined?

Select	Answer
A	The ratio of thermal noise to atmospheric noise
B	The ratio of the noise bandwidth in Hertz to the theoretical bandwidth of a resistive network
C	The ratio of atmospheric noise to phase noise
D	The ratio in dB of the noise generated by the receiver to the theoretical minimum noise

18. - E4D11

Why are third-order intermodulation products created within a receiver of particular interest compared to other products?

Select	Answer
A	The third-order product of two signals which are in the band of interest is also likely to be within the band
B	The third-order intercept is much higher than other orders
C	Third-order intermodulation produces three products for every input signal within the band of interest
D	Third-order products are an indication of poor image rejection

19. - E4E16

What current flows equally on all conductors of an unshielded multi-conductor cable?

Select	Answer
A	Reactive current only
B	Return current
C	Differential-mode current
D	Common-mode current

20. - E5A06

What is the magnitude of the circulating current within the components of a parallel LC circuit at resonance?

Select	Answer
A	It equals 1 divided by the quantity 2 times Pi, multiplied by the square root of inductance L multiplied by capacitance C
B	It equals 2 multiplied by Pi, multiplied by frequency, multiplied by inductance
C	It is at a maximum
D	It is at a minimum

21. - E5B01

What is the term for the time required for the capacitor in an RC circuit to be charged to 63.2% of the applied voltage?

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

22. - E5C11

What do the two numbers that are used to define a point on a graph using rectangular coordinates represent?

Select	Answer
A	The tangent and cotangent values
B	The coordinate values along the horizontal and vertical axes
C	The sine and cosine values
D	The magnitude and phase of the point

23. - E5D12

How many watts are consumed in a circuit having a power factor of 0.2 if the input is 100-VAC at 4 amperes?

Select	Answer
A	80 watts
B	400 watts
C	50 watts
D	2000 watts

24. - E6A10

In Figure E6-2, what is the schematic symbol for an N-channel dual-gate MOSFET?

Select	Answer
A	6
B	4
C	5
D	2

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

26. - E6C07

What best describes a pull-up or pull-down resistor?

Select	Answer
A	A resistor in a keying circuit used to reduce key clicks
B	A resistor connected to an op-amp output that only functions when the logic output is false
C	A resistor connected to the positive or negative supply line used to establish a voltage when an input or output is an open circuit
D	A resistor that insures that an oscillator frequency does not drive lower over time

27. - E6D04

Which materials are commonly used as a slug core in a variable inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Teflon and Delrin
B	Ferrite and brass
C	Cobalt and aluminum
D	Polystyrene and polyethylene

28. - E6E12

Why are high-power RF amplifier ICs and transistors sometimes mounted in ceramic packages?

Select	Answer
A	To provide a low-pass frequency response
B	Better dissipation of heat
C	Enhanced sensitivity to light
D	High-voltage insulating ability

29. - E6F11

What is the approximate open-circuit voltage produced by a fully-illuminated silicon photovoltaic cell?

Select	Answer
A	12 V
B	1.5 V
C	0.1 V
D	0.5 V

30. - E7A11

What type of logic defines "1" as a high voltage?

Select	Answer
A	Positive Logic
B	Negative logic
C	Assertive Logic
D	Reverse Logic

31. - E7B03

Which of the following components form the output of a class D amplifier circuit?

Select	Answer
A	A high-pass filter to compensate for low gain at low frequencies
B	A matched load resistor to prevent damage by switching transients
C	A low-pass filter to remove switching signal components
D	A temperature compensating load resistor to improve linearity

32. - E7C08

Which of the following factors has the greatest effect in helping determine the bandwidth and response shape of a crystal ladder filter?

Select	Answer
A	The amplitude of the signals passing through the filter
B	The gain of the RF stage preceding the filter
C	The DC voltage applied to the quartz crystal
D	The relative frequencies of the individual crystals

33. - E7D04

Which of the following types of linear voltage regulator usually make the most efficient use of the primary power source?

Select	Answer
A	A shunt regulator
B	A shunt current source
C	A series current source
D	A series regulator

34. - E7E08

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

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

35. - E7F08

What is the function of decimation with regard to digital filters?

Select	Answer
A	Attenuating the signal
B	Converting data to binary code decimal form
C	Reducing the effective sample rate by removing samples
D	Removing unnecessary significant digits

36. - E7G11

What absolute voltage gain can be expected from the circuit in Figure E7-4 when R1 is 3300 ohms and RF is 47 kilohms?

Select	Answer
A	7
B	0.07
C	28
D	14

37. - E7H01

What are three oscillator circuits used in Amateur Radio equipment?

Select	Answer
A	Colpitts, Hartley and Pierce
B	Pierce, Fenner and Beane
C	Taft, Hartley and Pierce
D	Taft, Pierce and negative feedback

38. - E8A04

What is "dither" with respect to analog to digital converters?

Select	Answer
A	A method of decimation by randomly skipping samples
B	An abnormal condition where the converter cannot settle on a value to represent the signal
C	An error caused by irregular quantization step size
D	A small amount of noise added to the input signal to allow more precise representation of a signal over time

39. - E8B02

How does the modulation index of a phase-modulated emission vary with RF carrier frequency (the modulated frequency)?

Select	Answer
A	It varies with the square root of the RF carrier frequency
B	It does not depend on the RF carrier frequency
C	It increases as the RF carrier frequency increases
D	It decreases as the RF carrier frequency increases

40. - E8C06

What is the necessary bandwidth of a 170-hertz shift, 300-baud ASCII transmission?

Select	Answer
A	0.1 Hz
B	0.3 kHz
C	1.0 kHz
D	0.5 kHz

41. - E8D07

What is a common cause of overmodulation of AFSK signals?

Select	Answer
A	Excessive numbers of retries
B	Ground loops
C	Excessive transmit audio levels
D	Bit errors in the modem

42. - E9A05

What is included in the total resistance of an antenna system?

Select	Answer
A	Radiation resistance plus space impedance
B	Radiation resistance plus ohmic resistance
C	Transmission-line resistance plus radiation resistance
D	Radiation resistance plus transmission resistance

43. - E9B03

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

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

44. - E9C13

What is the main effect of placing a vertical antenna over an imperfect ground?

Select	Answer
A	It causes increased SWR
B	It changes the impedance angle of the matching network
C	It reduces losses in the radiating portion of the antenna
D	It reduces low-angle radiation

45. - E9D09

What is the function of a loading coil used as part of an HF mobile antenna?

Select	Answer
A	To increase the SWR bandwidth
B	To lower the losses
C	To lower the Q
D	To cancel capacitive reactance

46. - E9E03

What is the name of the matching system that uses a section of transmission line connected in parallel with the feed line at or near the feed point?

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

47. - E9F09

What is the approximate physical length of a solid polyethylene dielectric coaxial transmission line that is electrically one-quarter wavelength long at 7.2 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	50 meters
B	10 meters
C	24 meters
D	6.9 meters

48. - E9G04

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

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

49. - E9H02

Which is generally true for low band (160 meter and 80 meter) receiving antennas?

Select	Answer
A	They must be erected at least 1/2 wavelength above the ground to attain good directivity
B	Atmospheric noise is so high that gain over a dipole is not important
C	All of these choices are correct
D	Low loss coax transmission line is essential for good performance

50. - E0A01

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

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

Figure E6-2

Figure E7-4

Figure E9-1