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

2. - E1A03

What is the maximum legal carrier frequency on the 20 meter band for transmitting USB AFSK digital signals having a 1 kHz bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	14.349 MHz
B	14.070 MHz
C	14.100 MHz
D	14.149 MHz

3. - E1B12

What must the control operator of a repeater operating in the 70 cm band do if a radiolocation system experiences interference from that repeater?

Select	Answer
A	File an FAA NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) with the repeater system's ERP, call sign, and six-character grid locator
B	Reduce the repeater antenna HAAT (Height Above Average Terrain)
C	Cease operation or make changes to the repeater to mitigate the interference
D	All these choices are correct

4. - E1C08

What is the maximum permissible duration of a remotely controlled station's transmissions if its control link malfunctions?

Select	Answer
A	30 seconds
B	3 minutes
C	10 minutes
D	5 minutes

5. - E1D07

Which HF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	Only the 40, 30, 20, 15, 12, and 10 meter bands
B	All HF bands
C	Only the 40, 20, 17, 15, and 10 meter bands
D	Only the 40, 20, 17, 15, 12, and 10 meter bands

6. - E1E06

Who is responsible for the proper conduct and necessary supervision during an amateur operator license examination session?

Select	Answer
A	Each administering VE
B	The VE session manager
C	The VEC coordinating the session
D	The FCC

7. - E1F04

Which of the following geographic descriptions approximately describes "Line A"?

Select	Answer
A	A line roughly parallel to and east of the U.S. Pacific coastline
B	A line roughly parallel to and south of the border between the U.S. and Canada
C	A line roughly parallel to and west of the U.S. Atlantic coastline
D	A line roughly parallel to and north of the border between the U.S. and Mexico

8. - E2A01

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

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

9. - E2B04

How is color information sent in analog SSTV?

Select	Answer
A	Color lines are sent sequentially
B	Color is sent in a color burst at the end of each line
C	Color is amplitude modulated on the frequency modulated intensity signal
D	Color information is sent on a 2.8 kHz subcarrier

10. - E2C04

Which of the following frequencies are sometimes used for amateur radio mesh networks?

Select	Answer
A	HF frequencies where digital communications are permitted
B	Frequencies shared with various unlicensed wireless data services
C	The 60 meter band channel centered on 5373 kHz
D	Cable TV channels 41 through 43

11. - E2D05

What is one advantage of the JT65 mode?

Select	Answer
A	Easily copied by ear if necessary
B	Uses only a 65 Hz bandwidth
C	Permits fast-scan TV transmissions over narrow bandwidth
D	The ability to decode signals which have a very low signal-to-noise ratio

12. - E2E03

How is the timing of FT4 contacts organized?

Select	Answer
A	Alternating transmissions at 7.5 second intervals
B	Stations take turns on alternate days
C	By exchanging ACK/NAK packets
D	It depends on the lunar phase

13. - E3A10

Which type of atmospheric structure can create a path for microwave propagation?

Select	Answer
A	Dust devil
B	The jet stream
C	Wind shear
D	Temperature inversion

14. - E3B04

What is meant by the terms "extraordinary" and "ordinary" waves?

Select	Answer
A	Long-path and short-path waves
B	Independent waves created in the ionosphere that are elliptically polarized
C	Refracted rays and reflected waves
D	Extraordinary waves describe rare long-skip propagation compared to ordinary waves, which travel shorter distances

15. - E3C10

What does the 304A solar parameter measure?

Select	Answer
A	The ratio of x-ray flux to radio flux, correlated to sunspot number
B	The solar emission at 304 GHz, correlated to x-ray flare levels
C	The solar wind velocity at 304 degrees from the solar equator, correlated to solar activity
D	UV emissions at 304 angstroms, correlated to the solar flux index

16. - E4A09

Which of the following is good practice when using an oscilloscope probe?

Select	Answer
A	Never use a DC-coupled probe to measure an AC circuit
B	Never use a high-impedance probe to measure a low-impedance circuit
C	All these choices are correct
D	Keep the signal ground connection of the probe as short as possible

17. - E4B06

How much power is being absorbed by the load when a directional power meter connected between a transmitter and a terminating load reads 100 watts forward power and 25 watts reflected power?

Select	Answer
A	75 watts
B	125 watts
C	100 watts
D	25 watts

18. - E4C15

What is reciprocal mixing?

Select	Answer
A	Two out-of-band signals mixing to generate an in-band spurious signal
B	Local oscillator phase noise mixing with adjacent strong signals to create interference to desired signals
C	In-phase signals cancelling in a mixer resulting in loss of receiver sensitivity
D	Two digital signals combining from alternate time slots

19. - E4D09

What is the purpose of the preselector in a communications receiver?

Select	Answer
A	To allow selection of the optimum RF amplifier device
B	To increase rejection of signals outside the desired band
C	To store often-used frequencies
D	To provide a range of AGC time constants

20. - E4E06

What is one type of electrical interference that might be caused by a nearby personal computer?

Select	Answer
A	A whining type noise that continually pulses off and on
B	A clicking noise at intervals of a few seconds
C	A loud AC hum in the audio output of your station receiver
D	The appearance of unstable modulated or unmodulated signals at specific frequencies

21. - E5A15

Which of the following increases Q for inductors and capacitors?

Select	Answer
A	Higher self-resonant frequency
B	Lower reactance
C	Lower self-resonant frequency
D	Lower losses

22. - E5B11

What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 25 ohms, R is 100 ohms, and XL is 50 ohms?

Select	Answer
A	76 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
B	76 degrees with the voltage leading the current
C	14 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
D	14 degrees with the voltage leading the current

23. - E5C06

What does the impedance 50-j25 represent?

Select	Answer
A	25 ohms resistance in series with 50 ohms capacitive reactance
B	50 ohms resistance in series with 25 ohms capacitive reactance
C	25 ohms resistance in series with 50 ohms inductive reactance
D	50 ohms resistance in series with 25 ohms inductive reactance

24. - E5D13

How many watts are consumed in a circuit consisting of a 100-ohm resistor in series with a 100-ohm inductive reactance drawing 1 ampere?

Select	Answer
A	100 watts
B	200 watts
C	70.7 watts
D	141.4 watts

25. - E6A05

How does DC input impedance at the gate of a field-effect transistor compare with the DC input impedance of a bipolar transistor?

Select	Answer
A	An FET has higher input impedance
B	An FET has lower input impedance
C	They are both high impedance
D	They are both low impedance

26. - E6B06

Which of the following is a common use of a Schottky diode?

Select	Answer
A	As a VHF/UHF mixer or detector
B	As a constant voltage reference in a power supply
C	As a variable capacitance in an automatic frequency control circuit
D	As a rectifier in high current power supplies

27. - E6C01

What is the function of hysteresis in a comparator?

Select	Answer
A	To cause the output to change states continually
B	To prevent input noise from causing unstable output signals
C	To allow the comparator to be used with AC input signals
D	To increase the sensitivity

28. - E6D08

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

Select	Answer
A	Powdered-iron cores generally maintain their characteristics at higher currents
B	Powdered-iron cores generally require fewer turns to produce a given inductance
C	Powdered-iron cores use smaller diameter wire for the same inductance
D	Powdered-iron cores generally have greater initial permeability

29. - E6E03

Which of the following materials is likely to provide the highest frequency of operation when used in MMICs?

Select	Answer
A	Gallium nitride
B	Silicon nitride
C	Silicon
D	Silicon dioxide

30. - E6F02

What happens to the conductivity of a photoconductive material when light shines on it?

Select	Answer
A	It stays the same
B	It increases
C	It becomes unstable
D	It decreases

31. - E7A11

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

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

32. - E7B10

In Figure E7-1, what is the purpose of R1 and R2?

Select	Answer
A	Self bias
B	Feedback
C	Voltage divider bias
D	Load resistors

33. - E7C08

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

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

34. - E7D13

What is the equation for calculating power dissipated by a series linear voltage regulator?

Select	Answer
A	Input voltage multiplied by input current
B	Output voltage multiplied by output current
C	Input voltage divided by output current
D	Voltage difference from input to output multiplied by output current

35. - E7E03

What is a frequency discriminator stage in a FM receiver?

Select	Answer
A	An FM generator circuit
B	An automatic band-switching circuit
C	A circuit for filtering two closely adjacent signals
D	A circuit for detecting FM signals

36. - E7F08

What is the function of decimation?

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

37. - E7G10

What absolute voltage gain can be expected from the circuit in Figure E7-3 when R1 is 1800 ohms and RF is 68 kilohms?

Select	Answer
A	0.03
B	76
C	38
D	1

38. - E7H13

Which of the following is a technique for providing highly accurate and stable oscillators needed for microwave transmission and reception?

Select	Answer
A	Use a GPS signal reference
B	Use a rubidium stabilized reference oscillator
C	All these choices are correct
D	Use a temperature-controlled high Q dielectric resonator

39. - E8A04

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

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

40. - E8B07

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

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

41. - E8C05

What is the approximate bandwidth of a 13-WPM International Morse Code transmission?

Select	Answer
A	26 Hz
B	52 Hz
C	104 Hz
D	13 Hz

42. - E8D01

Why are received spread spectrum signals resistant to interference?

Select	Answer
A	The receiver is always equipped with a digital blanker
B	The high power used by a spread spectrum transmitter keeps its signal from being easily overpowered
C	Signals not using the spread spectrum algorithm are suppressed in the receiver
D	If interference is detected by the receiver it will signal the transmitter to change frequencies

43. - E9A11

Which of the following factors determines ground losses for a ground-mounted vertical antenna operating in the 3 MHz to 30 MHz range?

Select	Answer
A	Distance from the transmitter
B	Take-off angle
C	Soil conductivity
D	The standing wave ratio

44. - E9B10

What is the principle of a Method of Moments analysis?

Select	Answer
A	A wire is modeled as a single sine-wave current generator
B	A wire is modeled as a series of segments, each having a uniform value of current
C	A wire is modeled as a single sine-wave voltage source
D	A wire is modeled as a series of segments, each having a distinct value of voltage across it

45. - E9C08

What is a folded dipole antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A dipole one-quarter wavelength long
B	A half-wave dipole with an additional parallel wire connecting its two ends
C	A type of ground-plane antenna
D	A dipole configured to provide forward gain

46. - E9D11

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

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

47. - E9E02

What is the name of an antenna matching system that matches an unbalanced feed line to an antenna by feeding the driven element both at the center of the element and at a fraction of a wavelength to one side of center?

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

48. - E9F08

Which of the following is a significant difference between foam dielectric coaxial cable and solid dielectric cable, assuming all other parameters are the same?

Select	Answer
A	Foam dielectric has higher velocity factor
B	All these choices are correct
C	Foam dielectric has lower loss per unit of length
D	Foam dielectric has lower safe operating voltage limits

49. - E9G07

On the Smith chart shown in Figure E9-3, what is the only straight line shown?

Select	Answer
A	The resistance axis
B	The voltage axis
C	The current axis
D	The reactance axis

50. - E9H10

How can the output voltage of a multiple-turn receiving loop antenna be increased?

Select	Answer
A	By winding adjacent turns in opposing directions
B	By utilizing high impedance wire for the coupling loop
C	By reducing the permeability of the loop shield
D	By increasing the number of turns and/or the area

Figure E7-1

Figure E7-3

Figure E9-3