Subj : Ham Radio Glossary (B)
To   : All
From : Daryl Stout
Date : Fri Jul 10 2020 12:26 am

From QRZ.Com, the Icom handout, and Part 97 Of The FCC Rules -
Ham Radio Glossary - An overview of amateur radio terms.

Backscatter
Form of ionosphere propagation via the E and F layers allowing stations
to hear other stations within the skip zones.

Balun
A simple transformer used to change and unbalanced input to a balanced
output.

Band
A range of frequencies

Bandplan
A list of what modes can be operated on a range of frequencies, per
amateur radio license class.

Bandwidth
The width of a frequency band outside of which the mean power of the
transmitted signal is attenuated at least 26 dB below the mean power
of the transmitted signal within the band.

Bank
Memory Bank

Barefoot
Refers to running your transmitter without an amplifier (in other words,
the "power out" is being produced entirely by the transmitter, without
any assistance from an amplifier).

Battery Memory Effect
Common to Nicked Cadmium (Ni-Cad), and Ni-MH (Nickel Metal Hydride)
batteries, the condition where if you fail to completely discharge the
battery prior to recharging, you will get considerably less usage time
the next time you use it. Lithium Ion (Li-ion) batteries are free from
this effect.

Beacon
An amateur station transmitting communications for the purposes of
observation of propagation and reception or other related experimental
activities.

BCI
Broadcast Interference

BFO
Beat Frequency Oscillator

Bird
1. nickname for "satellite", in the case of Amateur Radio, examples include
RS-12/13 (Radio Sputnik) and AO-40 (AMSAT-OSCAR).
See http://www.amsat.org/amsat/sats/n7hpr/satsum.html and
http://www.hampubs.com/satellite .

2. brand name of a high-end, high quality directional wattmeter.

Birdie
A signal produced within a radio, typically by it's microprocessor or
related circuitry, that appears at specific intervals across the tuning
dial of a receiver. Usually it is a product of mixed intermediate
frequencies within the radio. Considered bad form.

BNC
Bayonet Neill-Concelman. A type of antenna connector.

Boat Anchor
Slang for a large, heavy, usually old radio, typically restored (courtesy
of VE3FFK).

BPF
Band Pass Filter

BPSK
"Binary Phase Shift Keying"; a modulation technique used in LowFER and
MedFER operation, as well as HF operation. For more information, see