HF

networking

Stands for: high frequency

High frequency, 3 to 30 MHz: the shortwave range where signals refract off the ionosphere and travel worldwide.

This is the band that makes intercontinental contact possible with modest equipment, because sky wave propagation does the work that power cannot. A hundred watts into a wire antenna can reach another continent, which no amount of power at 2.4 GHz will achieve. The cost is variability: conditions shift with the time of day, the season, and solar activity, so choosing the right frequency for the path is the core operating skill. International broadcasting, long-distance maritime and aeronautical services, and most amateur DX live here.

Also known as: shortwave, high frequency, 3-30 MHz

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