TORONTO – When it comes to warding off the threat of a zombie apocalypse, what will you have packed in your survival kit? How about a ham radio? The Central Toronto Amateur Radio Club wants to help you learn the possibly life-saving skill (and lost art) of amateur radio operation with a new course it’s offering starting May 1.
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Photo credit: Daniel Hollister, www.thatzombiephoto.com |
Amateur radio, or “ham” radio, is a non-commercial radio service that allows licensed operators to use various types of radio communications equipment to communicate with one another, both locally and around the globe, for both public service and recreational purposes. Ham radio operators are federally licensed by Industry Canada and are allowed to use specially allocated radio frequencies to carry out their operations.
“During a zombie apocalypse, the only reliable form of communication would be using amateur radio, as cellphones and the Internet will become useless,” said club president Don Trynor, himself a licensed amateur radio operator with the call sign of VA3XFT. “By teaching people to use amateur radio, we can provide them with a valuable skill that they can use in times of emergency or natural disaster to stay in communication with one another.”
Okay, so maybe zombies aren’t real – but the course is. The club’s 10-week amateur radio licensing course will cover a variety of topics, such as basic electronics, radio wave propagation, antenna theory, regulations and operating practices, plus much more. Click here for more information.
