Interesting topics in radio outside of amateur radio.
It’s Time to Sync Up: The Reason WWVB Exists WWVB started not as a radio station, but as a measurement problem in need of a reliable solution. By the middle of the 20th century, the United States had reached a quiet inflection point. Electrical, telecom, and broadcast providers; transportation and…
MeshCore repeaters are showing up everywhere these days and I am thrilled to see it happen. As folks place these repeater nodes on high-rise rooftops, hillsides, and on ham and commercial towers, they’re discovering that the key to smooth wide-area repeater behavior isn’t just about height or terrain—it sometimes comes…
The MeshCore Trace Path tool is one of many useful diagnostic features built into the MeshCore client. Similar to how the traceroute utility provides insight into TCP/IP networks, MeshCore Trace Path gives you visibility into how packets travel through the mesh network—whether you’re checking a single station or tracing a…
For a region that’s home to Silicon Valley innovation, it’s surprising and downright embarrassing how far behind the San Francisco Bay Area has fallen in MeshCore deployment and adoption. Across the Pacific Northwest, from Portland to Vancouver, operators are building resilient MeshCore networks that tie communities together with long-range, reliable,…
If you’re interested in off-grid communications with inexpensive hardware, there’s a new name you might be hearing more often: MeshCore. Launched just a couple of months ago, MeshCore is already generating buzz among amateur radio operators and open-source developers for its clean approach to decentralized mesh networking. But what exactly…
On Dec. 11, 2024, the FCC voted to make an additional 1,200 MHz of spectrum in the 6GHz band (roughly from 5.925 to 7.125 GHz) available for unlicensed use. In practical terms, this more than doubles the amount of spectrum available for Wi-Fi and other unlicensed technologies. Before this ruling,…
From AM to FM: The Evolution of CB Radio Widely used by a broad population in the 1970s, CB radio conjures images of truckers trading highway intel, a few dedicated hobbyists with base stations, and plenty of other pop culture references like Smokey and the Bandit, Convoy, and the aptly-titled…
Once confined to research labs, millimeter wave technology or “mmWave” as it’s commonly referred to, is now the backbone of groundbreaking advancements in 5G networking. As mobile carriers and other industries scramble to harness its potential, mmWave technology is not just shaping the future of communications, it’s paving the way…
mmWave technology is a cutting-edge innovation that plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of wireless communication. With its high bandwidth capabilities and groundbreaking applications, mmWave technology continues to amaze tech enthusiasts and industry professionals alike. Here are ten ways mmWave technology is already changing out lives. 1. 📶…
