If one traces the history of amateur radio, then the notion that it is just another hobby should be questioned. The International Telecommunications Union in its table of radio regulations identifies amateur radio as a service. A radiocommunication service is a service involving the transmission, emission and/or reception of radio waves for specific telecommunication purposes. A technology pastime would be a better of way of describing what amateur radio really is and would be more in line with how the ITU views it in ITU regulations 1.56 and 1.57.

There are many facets to amateur radio. If one goes back to the early days of radio, the Marconi era, radio amateurs were called the radio experimenters. They were fascinated by the emergence of wireless communication, and with the lack of any components or equipment at the time, they had to experiment and make their own receiving sets as they were called. The radio experimenters proved to the world that shortwaves were not useless as generally accepted at that time and opened worldwide communication. As the radio world became more formalised and regulated, the radio experimenters became radio amateurs but their urge to experiment continued and they continued to contribute to the body of knowledge of radio, as they do today. One good example of this is the use of satellite in low earth orbits. Like shortwaves once considered of little or no commercial value, low earth satellites are now widely deployed in GPS and satellite internet networks. Radio amateurs are by nature driven by science and experimentation. Unlike the commercial world, they have no budget or time frame to meet and are only driven by their passion. This was clearly Illustrated at the recent Science Forum South Africa where two amateur radio organisations joined forces.

Read the full article about this interesting past time here