Amateur Radio

An amateur radio license is like a driver’s license. It allows the holder to transmit on parts of the radio spectrum that were previously inaccessible.

For SSI as a whole, handheld VHF/UHF radios are an excellent tool. They have been used for communications between vehicles for the high altitude balloons group, communications between the two sites for optical communications tests, for high-power WiFi links, for real-time balloon tracking, and for rocket recovery. It is strongly recommended that anyone who participates in SSI regularly get their ham radio license. Currently, the amateur radio club (W6YX) on campus sponsors free licensing exams for Stanford students. SSI is in the process of making this certification even more accessible by hosting regular licensing exams.