Amateur radio frequency allocations

Amateur radio
Antenna theory Automatic Link Establishment Automatic Packet Reporting System Call signs Amateur radio operator Contesting Direction finding DX communication DX-pedition Emergency communications Frequency allocations Hamfest High speed multimedia High-speed telegraphy Homebrew Internet Radio Linking Project Maritime mobile Operating awards Packet radio Portable operation QRP operation QSL card Satellites Software Skywarn Special event stations Stations Television Vintage radios
Category
v t e

Amateur radio frequency allocation is done by national telecommunication authorities. Globally, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) oversees how much radio spectrum is set aside for amateur radio transmissions. Individual amateur stations are free to use any frequency within authorized frequency ranges; authorized bands may vary by the class of the station license.

Radio amateurs use a variety of transmission modes, including Morse code, radioteletype, data, and voice. Specific frequency allocations vary from country to country and between ITU regions as specified in the current ITU HF frequency allocations for amateur radio.^[1] The list of frequency ranges is called a band allocation, which may be set by international agreements, and national regulations. The modes and types of allocations within each frequency band is called a bandplan; it may be determined by regulation, but most typically is set by agreements between amateur radio operators.

National authorities regulate amateur usage of radio bands. Some bands may not be available or may have restrictions on usage in certain countries or regions. International agreements assign amateur radio bands which differ by region.^[2][3]

Band characteristics

Low frequency

• 2200 meters – 135.7–137.8 kHz – just below the Asian and European longwave broadcast band and far below the commercial AM broadcast band.

Medium frequency

• 630 meters – 472–479 kHz – just below the commercial AM broadcast band and the maritime radio band.
• 160 meters – 1800–2000 kHz (1.8-2 MHz) – just above the commercial AM broadcast band. This band is often taken up as a technical challenge, since long distance (DX) propagation tends to be more difficult due to higher D layer ionospheric absorption. Long distance propagation tends to occur only at night, and the band can be notoriously noisy particularly in the summer months. 160 meters is also known as the "top band". Allocations in this band vary widely from country to country.

High frequency

• 80 meters – 3.5–4.0 MHz (3500–4000 kHz) – Best at night, with significant daytime signal absorption. Works best in winter due to atmospheric noise in summer. Only countries in the Americas and few others have access to all of this band, in other parts of the world amateurs are limited to the bottom 300 kHz (or less). In the US and Canada the upper end of the sub-band from 3.6–4.0 MHz, permits use of single-sideband voice as well as amplitude modulation, voice; this sub-band is often referred to as "75 meters".
• 60 meters – 5 MHz region – A relatively new allocation and originally only available in a small number of countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland, but now continuing to expand. In most (but not all) countries, the allocation is channelized and may require special application. Five channels are available in the US, centered on 5.332, 5.348, 5.368, 5.373, and 5.405 MHz; since most SSB radios display the (suppressed) carrier frequency, in USB mode the dial frequencies would all be 1.5 kHz lower. Voice operation is generally in upper sideband mode and in the USA it is mandatory. The 2015 ITU World Radiocommunications Conference (WRC-15) approved a Worldwide Frequency Allocation of 5.351.5–5.366.5 MHz to the Amateur Service on a secondary basis. The allocation limits amateur stations to 15 Watts effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP); however some locations will be permitted up to 25 W EIRP.
• 40 meters – 7.0–7.3 MHz – Considered the most reliable all-season DX band. Popular for DX at night, 40 meters is also reliable for medium distance (1500 km) contacts during the day. Much of this band was shared with broadcasters, and in most countries the bottom 100 kHz or 200 kHz are available to amateurs. However, due to the high cost of running high-power commercial broadcasting facilities, decreased listener-ship, and increasing competition from Internet-based international broadcast services, many "short wave" services are being shut down, leaving the 40 meter band free of other users for amateur radio use.
• 30 meters – 10.1–10.15 MHz – a very narrow band, which is shared with non-amateur services. It is recommended that only Morse Code and data transmissions be used here, and in some countries amateur voice transmission is actually prohibited. For example, in the US, data, RTTY and CW are the only modes allowed at a maximum 200 W peak envelope power (PEP) output. Not released for amateur use in a small number of countries. Due to its location in the centre of the shortwave spectrum, this band provides significant opportunities for long-distance communication at all points of the solar cycle. 30 meters is a WARC band. "WARC" bands are so called due to the 1979 special World Administrative Radio Conference allocation of these newer bands to amateur radio use. Amateur radio contests are not run on the WARC bands.
• 20 meters – 14.0–14.35 MHz – Considered the most popular DX band; usually most popular during daytime. QRP operators recognize 14.060 MHz as their primary calling frequency in that band. Users of the PSK31 data mode tend to congregate around 14.070 MHz. Analog SSTV activity centers on 14.230 MHz.
• 17 meters – 18.068–18.168 MHz – Similar to 20 meters, but more sensitive to solar propagation minima and maxima. 17 meters is a WARC band.
• 15 meters – 21–21.45 MHz – Most useful during solar maximum, and generally a daytime band. Daytime Sporadic E propagation (1500 km) occasionally occurs on this band.
• 12 meters – 24.89–24.99 MHz – Mostly useful during daytime, but opens up for DX activity at night during solar maximum. 12 meters is one of the WARC bands. Propagates via Sporadic E and by F2 propagation.
• 10 meters – 28–29.7 MHz – Best long distance (e.g., across oceans) activity is during solar maximum; during periods of moderate solar activity the best activity is found at low latitudes. The band offers useful short to medium range groundwave propagation, day or night. Due to Sporadic E propagation during the late spring and most of the summer, regardless of sunspot numbers, afternoon short band openings into small geographic areas of up to 1500 km occur. Sporadic E is caused by areas of intense ionization in the E layer of the ionosphere. The causes of Sporadic E are not fully understood, but these "clouds" of ionization can provide short-term propagation from 17 meters all the way up to occasional 2 meter openings. FM operations are normally found at the high end of the band (Also repeaters are in the 29.5–29.7 MHz segment in many countries).

Very high frequencies and ultra high frequencies

Frequencies above 30 MHz are referred to as Very High Frequency (VHF) region and those above 300 MHz are called Ultra High Frequency (UHF). The allocated bands for amateurs are many megahertz wide, allowing for high-fidelity audio transmission modes (FM) and very fast data transmission modes that are unfeasible for the kilohertz-wide allocations in the HF bands.

• 6 meters – 50–54 MHz
• 4 meters – 70–70.5 MHz
• 2 meters – 144–148 MHz
• 1.25 meters – 219–220 MHz (Canada only), 222–225 MHz (US & Canada)
• 70 centimeters – 420–450 MHz
• 33 centimeters – 902–928 MHz
• 23 centimeters – 1240–1300 MHz
• 13 centimeters – 2300–2310 MHz (lower segment), 2390–2450 MHz (upper segment)

While "line of sight" propagation is a primary factor for range calculation, much of the interest in the bands above HF comes from use of other propagation modes. A signal transmitted on VHF from a hand-held portable will typically travel about 5–10 km depending on terrain. With a low power home station and a simple antenna, range would be around 50 km.

With a large antenna system like a long yagi, and higher power (typically 100 Watts or more) contacts of around 1000 km using the Morse code (CW) and single-sideband (SSB) modes are common. Ham operators seek to exploit the limits of the frequencies usual characteristics looking to learn, understand, and experiment with the possibilities of these enhanced propagation modes.

Sporadic band openings

Occasionally, several different ionospheric conditions allow signals to travel beyond the ordinary line-of-sight limits. Some amateurs on VHF seek to take advantage of "band openings" where natural occurrences in the atmosphere and ionosphere extend radio transmission distances well over their normal range. Many hams listen for hours hoping to take advantage of these occasional extended propagation "openings".

The ionospheric conditions are called Sporadic E and Anomalous enhancement. Less frequently used anomalous modes are tropospheric scatter and Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights). When overhead, moon bounce and satellite relay are also possible.

Sporadic E

Some openings are caused by islands of intense ionization of the upper atmosphere known as the E Layer ionosphere. These islands of intense ionization are called "Sporadic E" and result in erratic but often strong propagation characteristics on the "low band" VHF radio frequencies.

The 6 meter amateur band falls into this category, often called "The Magic Band", 6 meters will often "open up" from one small area into another small geographic area 1000–1700 km away during the spring and early summer months. This phenomenon occurs during the fall months, although not as often.

Tropospheric refraction

Band openings are sometimes caused by a weather phenomenon known as a tropospheric "inversion", where a stagnant high pressure area causes alternating stratified layers of warm and cold air generally trapping the colder air beneath. This may make for smoggy/foggy days but it also causes VHF/UHF radio transmissions to travel or duct along the boundaries of these warm/cold atmospheric layers. Radio signals have been known to travel hundreds, even thousands of kilometers due to these unique weather conditions.

For example: The longest distance reported contact due to tropospheric refraction on 2 meters is 4754 km between Hawaii and a ship south of Mexico. There were reports of the reception of one way signals from Réunion to Western Australia, a distance of more than 6000 km.^[4]

"Tropo-scatter" happens when water droplets and dust particles refract a VHF/UHF signal over the horizon. Using relatively high power and a high gain antenna, this propagation will give marginal enhanced over-the-horizon VHF and UHF communications up to several hundred kilometers. During the 1970s commercial "scatter site" operators using huge parabolic antennas and high power used this mode successfully for telephone communications services into remote Alaska and Canadian northern communities.

Satellite, buried fiber optic, and terrestrial microwave access have relegated commercial use of tropo-scatter to the history books. Because of high cost and complexity this mode is usually out of reach for the average amateur radio operator.

Anomalous trans-equatorial enhancement

F2 and TE band openings from other ionospheric reflection/refraction modes, or sky-wave propagation as it is known can also occasionally occur on the low band VHF frequencies of 6 or 4 meters, and very rarely on 2 meters (high band VHF) during extreme peaks in the 11 year sunspot cycle.

The longest terrestrial contact ever reported on 2 meters (146 MHz) was between a station in Italy and a station in South Africa, a distance of 7784 km, using anomalous enhancement (TE) of the ionosphere over the geomagnetic equator. This enhancement is known as TE, or trans-equatorial propagation and (usually) occurs at latitudes 2500–3000 km within either side of the equator.^[5]

Auroral backscatter

Aurora: An intense solar storm causing aurora borealis (Northern Lights) will also provide occasional HF-low band 6 meter VHF propagation enhancement. Aurora only occasionally affects 2 meters. Signals are often distorted and on the lower frequencies give a curious "watery sound" to normally propagated HF signals. Peak signals usually come from the north, even though the station you are talking to is east or west of you. Most noticeable in the northern latitudes above 45 degrees.

Moon Bounce (Earth-Moon-Earth)

Amateurs do successfully communicate by bouncing their signals off the surface of the moon, called Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) transmission.

The mode requires moderately high power (more than 500 Watts) and a fairly large, high-gain antenna because round-trip path loss is on the order of 270 dB for 70 cm signals. Return signals are weak and distorted because of the relative velocities of the transmitting station, moon and the receiving station. The moon's surface is also very rocky and irregular.

Because of the weak, distorted return signals, Moon bounce communications use digital modes. For example, old-fashioned Morse code or modern JT65, designed for working with weak signals.

Satellite relay

Satellite relay is not really a propagation mode, but rather an active repeater system. Satellites have been highly successful in providing VHF/UHF/SHF users "propagation" beyond the horizon.

Amateurs have sponsored the launch of dozens of communications satellites since the 1970s. These satellites are usually known as OSCARs (Orbiting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio). Also, the ISS has amateur radio repeaters and radio location services on board.

Amateur television

Amateur television (ATV) is the hobby of transmitting broadcast- compatible video and audio by amateur radio. It also includes the study and building of such transmitters and receivers and the propagation between these two.

In NTSC countries, ATV operation requires the ability to use a 6 MHz wide channel. All bands at VHF or lower are less than 6 MHz wide, so ATV operation is confined to UHF and up. Bandwidth requirements will vary from this for PAL and SECAM transmissions.

ATV operation in the 70 cm band is particularly popular, because the signals can be received on any cable-ready television. Operation in the 33 cm and 23 cm bands is easily augmented by the availability of various varieties of consumer-grade wireless video devices that exist and operate in unlicensed frequencies coincident to these bands.

Repeater ATV operation requires specially-equipped repeaters.

See also slow-scan television.

Below the MW broadcast band

See also 500 kHz, 630-meter band and 2200-meter band

Historically, amateur stations have rarely been allowed to operate on frequencies lower than the medium-wave broadcast band, but in recent times, as the historic users of these low frequencies have been vacating the spectrum, limited space has opened up to allow for new amateur radio allocations and special experimental operations.

Since parts of the 500 kHz band are no longer used for regular maritime communications^{[citation needed]}, some countries permit amateur radio radiotelegraph operations in that band. Many countries, however, continue to restrict these frequencies which were historically reserved for maritime and aviation distress calls.^[6]

The 2200 meter band is available for use in several countries, and the 2007 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-07) made it a worldwide amateur allocation. Before the introduction of the 2200 meter band in the UK in 1998, operation on the even lower frequency of 73 kHz had been allowed between 1996 and 2003.

ITU Region 1

ITU Region 1 corresponds to Europe, Russia, Africa and the Middle East. For ITU region 1, Radio Society of Great Britain's band plan will be more definitive (click on the buttons at the bottom of the page).

• Low Frequency (LF) (30 to 300 kHz)
  • 2200 meters (135.7 kHz to 137.8 kHz)
• Medium Frequency (MF) (300 kHz to 3 MHz)
  • 630 meters (472 kHz to 479 kHz)
• High Frequency (HF) (3 MHz to 30 MHz)
  • see Table of amateur MF and HF bandplans
• Very High Frequency (VHF) (30 to 300 MHz)
  • 8 metres (39.9 to 40.7 MHz), Republic of Ireland, Slovenia and South Africa. Beacons in UK and Denmark
  • 6 metres (50 to 52 MHz), Some ITU Region 1 countries
  • 5 metres (58.5 to 60.1 MHz), Republic of Ireland. The Beacon in UK
  • 4 metres (69.9 to 70.5 MHz), Some ITU Region 1 countries
  • 2 metres (144 to 146 MHz)

• Ultra High Frequency (UHF) (300 MHz to 3 GHz)
  • 70 cm (430 MHz)
  • 23 cm (1.3 GHz)
  • 13 cm (2.3 GHz)

• Microwave frequencies
  • 9 cm (3.4 GHz)
  • 6 cm (5.7 GHz)
  • 3 cm (10 GHz)
  • 12 mm (24 GHz)
  • 6 mm (47 GHz)
  • 4mm (76 GHz)
  • <2 mm (134 and 247 GHz)

Table of amateur MF and HF bandplans

The following charts show the voluntary bandplans used by amateurs in ITU Region 1. Unlike the US, slots for the various transmission modes are not set by the amateur's license but most users do follow these guidelines.

160 metres

160 Metres		1810 1838	1838 1840	1840 1843	1843 2000
IARU Region 1

80 metres

80 Metres	3500 3570	3570 3600	3600 3620	3620 3800
IARU Region 1

60 metres

60 Metres	5258.5 5264		5276 5284		5288 5292		5298 5307		5313 5323		5333 5338		5351.5 5366.5 UK 5354 5358		5362 5374,5		5378 5382		5395 5401.5		5403.5 5406.5
IARU R1 (WRC-15) & UK													WRC-15 Alloc.
Also additional channels allocated to WRC-15 Band (or channel) for Bahrain*, N. Macedonia,[7] Portugal, Republic of Ireland and Israel.

60 Metres	5250 5450
Bulgaria, Denmark
5370-5450 Estonia, 5260-5410 Norway, 5275-5450 Kenya, 5060-5450 Somalia.

40 metres

40 Metres	7000 7040	7040 7050	7050 7060	7060 7100	7100 7200
IARU Region 1
Note: 7000-7300 Somalia

30 metres

30 Metres	10100 10130	10130 10150
IARU Region 1

20 metres

20 Metres	14000 14070	14070 14099	B	14101 14350
IARU Region 1

17 metres

17 Metres	18068 18095	18095 18109	B	18111 18168
IARU Region 1

15 metres

15 Metres	21000 21070	21070 21110	21110 21120	21120 21149	B	21151 21450
IARU Region 1

12 meters

12 Metres	24890 24915	24915 24929	B	24931 24990
IARU Region 1

10 metres

10 Metres	28000 28070	28070 28190	B	28225 29200	29200 29300	29300 29510	29510 29700
IARU Region 1

Key

	= CW and data ( < 200 Hz bandwidth)
	= CW, RTTY and data ( < 500 Hz Bandwidth)
	= CW, RTTY, data, NO SSB ( < 2.7 kHz)
	= CW, phone and image ( < 3 kHz bandwidth) SECONDARY
	= CW, phone and image ( < 3 kHz bandwidth)
	= CW, data, packet, FM, phone and image ( < 20 kHz bandwidth)
	= CW, RTTY, data, test, phone and image
	= Reserved for satellite links
	= Reserved for beacons

ITU Region 2

ITU Region 2 consists of the Americas, including Greenland.

The frequency allocations for hams in ITU Region 2 are:

ITU band	Band name	Frequencies (kHz/MHz/GHz)
		Lower end	Upper end
5 - LF (kHz)	2200 meters	135.7 kHz	137.8 kHz
	1750 meters	Power restricted, but no license required in unallocated 160–190 kHz broadcast band
6 - MF (kHz)	630 meters	472 kHz	479 kHz
	160 meters	1800	2000
7 - HF (MHz)	80 meters	3.5 MHz	4.0 MHz
	60 meters	Channelized: 5.332, 5.348, 5.358.5, 5.373, 5.405 or 5.351.5–5.366.5 or 5.250–5.450
	40 meters	7.0	7.3
	30 meters	10.1	10.15
	20 meters	14.00	14.35
	17 meters	18.068	18.168
	15 meters	21	21.45
	12 meters	24.89	24.99
	10 meters	28.0	29.7
8 - VHF (MHz)	6 meters	50 MHz	54 MHz
	2 meters	144	148
	1.25 meters	219	220
		222	225
9 - UHF	70 centimeters	420 MHz	450 MHz
	33 centimeters	902	928
	23 centimeters	1240	1300
	13 centimeters	2300	2310
		2390	2450
10 - SHF (GHz)	9 centimeters	3.3 GHz	3.5 GHz
	5 centimeters	5.650	5.925
	3 centimeters	10.0	10.5
	1.2 centimeters	24.00	24.25
11 - EHF	6 millimeters	47.0	47.2
	4 millimeters	75.5	81.0
	2.5 millimeters	122.5	123.0
	2 millimeters	134	141
	1 millimeter	241	250

Special note on the channeled 60 meter band

(ARRL 60-Meter Operations [1]

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is the primary user of the 60 meter band. Effective 5 March 2012 the FCC has permitted CW, USB, and certain digital modes on these frequencies by amateurs on a secondary basis.

The FCC Report and Order permits the use of digital modes that comply with emission designator 60H0J2B, which includes PSK31 as well as any RTTY signal with a bandwidth of less than 60 Hz. The Report and Order also allows the use of modes that comply with emission designator 2K80J2D, which includes any digital mode with a bandwidth of 2.8 kHz or less whose technical characteristics have been documented publicly, per Part 97.309(4) of the FCC Rules. Such modes would include PACTOR I, II or III, 300-baud packet, MFSK, MT63, Contestia, Olivia, DominoEX and others.

On 60 meters hams are restricted to only one signal per channel and automatic operation is not permitted. In addition, the FCC continues to require that all digital transmissions be centered on the channel-center frequencies, which the Report and Order defines as being 1.5 kHz above the suppressed carrier frequency of a transceiver operated in the Upper Sideband (USB) mode. As amateur radio equipment displays the carrier frequency, it is important for operators to understand correct frequency calculations for digital "sound-card" modes to ensure compliance with the channel-center requirement.

The ARRL has a detailed band plan for US hams showing allocations within each band.

RAC has a chart showing the frequencies available to amateurs in Canada.

Table of amateur MF and HF allocations in the United States and Canada

160 m	1800–2000
Canada
United States	1800-2000
General, Advanced, Extra

80 / 75 m	3500 - 4000
Canada
United States	3500- 3525	3525-3600	3600-3700	3700-3800	3800-4000
Novice / Technician
General
Advanced
Extra

60 m	5330 - 5406
Canada	5332.0		5348.0		5358.5		5373.0		5405.0
United States	5332.0		5348.0		5358.5		5373.0		5405.0
General, Advanced, Extra
Basic (Hon.), Code, Adv.
Note: US licensees operating 60 m are limited to 100 watts PEP ERP relative to a 1/2 wave dipole. Canadian operators are restricted to 100 watts PEP.[8]

40 m	7000 - 7300
Canada
United States	7000-7025	7025-7125	7125-7175	7175-7300
Novice / Technician
General
Advanced
Extra

30 m	10100-10150
Canada
United States
Note: US limited to General, Advanced and Extra licensees; 200 watts PEP

20 m	14000 - 14350
Canada
United States	14000-14025	14025-14150	14150-14175	14175-14225	14225-14350
General
Advanced
Extra

17 m	18068 - 18168
Canada
United States	18068-18110	18110-18168
General, Advanced, Extra

15 m	21000 - 21450
Canada
United States	21000-21025	21025-21200	21200-21225	21225-21275	21275-21450
Novice / Technician
General
Advanced
Extra

12 m	24890 - 24990
Canada
United States	24890-24930	24930-24990
General, Advanced, Extra

10 m	28000 - 29700
Canada
United States	28000-28300	28300-28500	28500-29700
Novice / Technician
General, Advanced, Extra
Note: The 10 meter table is one-third scale, relative to the other tables

Key

	= CW, RTTY and data (US: < 1 kHz bandwidth)
	= CW, RTTY, data, MCW, phone (AM and SSB), and image (narrow band SSTV modes only)
	= CW, phone and image
	= CW and SSB phone (US: Novice & Technician 200 Watts PEP only)
	= CW, RTTY, data, phone and image
	= CW (US: Novice & Technician 200 Watts PEP only)
	= CW, Upper sideband suppressed carrier phone, 2.8 kHz bandwidth (2K80J3E) data (60H0J2B and 2K80J2D), 100 Watts ERP referenced to a 1⁄2 wave dipole
	= CW, RTTY and data (US: < 1 kHz Bandwidth; Novice & Technician 200 Watts PEP)

ITU Region 3

ITU region 3 consists of Australia, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, the South Pacific, and Asia south of Siberia. The IARU frequency allocations for hams in ITU Region 3^[9] are:

ITU band	Band name	Frequencies (MHz)
		Lower end	Upper end
5 - LF	2200 meters	135.7 kHz	137.8 kHz
6 - MF	630 meters	472 kHz	479 kHz
	160 meters	1.8	2.0
7 - HF	80 meters	3.5	3.9
	60 meters	5.351.5	5.366.5
	40 meters	7.0	7.3
	30 meters	10.1	10.15
	20 meters	14	14.35
	17 meters	18.068	18.168
	15 meters	21	21.45
	12 meters	24.89	24.99
	10 meters	28	29.7
8 - VHF	6 meters	50	54
	2 meters	144	148
9 - UHF	70 centimeters	430	450
	23 centimeters	1240	1300

Bands above 1300 MHz: Societies should consult with the amateur satellite community for proposed satellite operating frequencies before deciding local bandplans above 1300 MHz.

Not all Member Unions follow this plan. As an example, the ACMA does not allow Australian Amateurs to use 3.700 MHz to 3.768 MHz and 3.800 MHz to 3.900 MHz, allocating this region to Emergency and Ambulatory services (Allocations can be found conducting a search of the ACMA Radcomms register [2]. )

The Wireless Institute of Australia has charts for Amateur frequencies for Australia.

The New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters (NZART) has charts for Amateur frequencies for New Zealand.

The Japanese have charts for Amateur frequencies in Japan^[10]

Space operations

Radio amateurs may engage in satellite and space craft communications; however, the frequencies allowed for such activities are allocated separately from more general use radio amateur bands.

Under the International Telecommunication Union's rules, all amateur radio operations may only occur within 50 kilometres (31 mi) of the Earth's surface. As such, the Amateur Radio Service is not permitted to engage in satellite operations; however, a sister radio service, called the Amateur Satellite Service, exists which allows satellite operations for the same purposes as the Amateur Radio Service.

In most countries, an amateur radio license conveys operating privileges in both services, and in practice, the legal distinction between the two services is transparent to the average licensee. The primary reason the two services are separate is to limit the frequencies available for satellite operations. Due to the shared nature of the amateur radio allocations internationally, and the nature of satellites to roam worldwide, the ITU does not consider all amateur radio bands appropriate for satellite operations. Being separate from the Amateur Radio Service, the Amateur Satellite Service receives its own frequency allocations. All the allocations are within amateur radio bands, and with one exception, the allocations are the same in all three ITU regions.

Some of the allocations are limited by the ITU in what direction transmissions may be sent (EG: "Earth-to-space" or up-links only). All amateur satellite operations occur within the allocations tabled below, except for AO-7, which has an up-link from 432.125 MHz to 432.175 MHz.

International amateur satellite frequency allocations
Range	Band	Letter1	Allocation[11]	Preferred sub-bands2	User status[11]	Notes[11]
HF	40 m		7.000 MHz - 7.100 MHz		Primary
	20 m		14.000 MHz - 14.250 MHz		Primary
	17 m		18.068 MHz - 18.168 MHz		Primary	Entire amateur radio band
	15 m	H	21.000 MHz - 21.450 MHz		Primary	Entire amateur radio band
	12 m		24.890 MHz - 24.990 MHz		Primary	Entire amateur radio band
	10 m	A	28.000 MHz - 29.700 MHz	29.300 MHz - 29.510 MHz	Primary	Entire amateur radio band
VHF	2 m	V	144.000 MHz - 146.000 MHz	145.800 MHz - 146.000 MHz	Primary
UHF	70 cm	U	435.000 MHz - 438.000 MHz		NIB3
	23 cm	L	1.260 GHz - 1.270 GHz		NIB3	Only uplinks allowed
	13 cm	S	2.400 GHz - 2.450 GHz	2.400 GHz - 2.403 GHz	NIB3
SHF	9 cm	S2	3.400 GHz - 3.410 GHz		NIB3	Not available in ITU region 1.
	5 cm	C	5.650 GHz - 5.670 GHz		NIB3	Only uplinks allowed
			5.830 GHz - 5.850 GHz		Secondary	Only downlinks allowed
	3 cm	X	10.450 GHz - 10.500 GHz		Secondary
	1.2 cm	K	24.000 GHz - 24.050 GHz		Primary
EHF4	6 mm	R	47.000 GHz - 47.200 GHz		Primary	Entire amateur radio band
	4 mm		76.000 GHz - 77.500 GHz		Secondary
			77.500 GHz - 78.000 GHz		Primary
			78.000 GHz - 81.000 GHz		Secondary
	2 mm		134.000 GHz - 136.000 GHz		Primary	Entire amateur radio band
			136.000 GHz - 141.000 GHz		Secondary
	1 mm		241.000 GHz - 248.000 GHz		Secondary	Entire amateur radio band
			248.000 GHz - 250.000 GHz		Primary
1 AMSAT band letters. Not all bands have been assigned a letter by AMSAT. 2 For some allocations, satellite operations are predominantly concentrated in a sub-band of the allocation. 3 Footnote allocation. Use is only allowed on a non-interference basis to other users, as per ITU footnote 5.282.[11] 4 No amateur satellite operations have yet occurred at EHF; however, AMSAT's P3E is planned to have an R band down-link.

See also

• List of amateur radio frequency bands in India

References

v t e International amateur radio frequency allocations
Range	Band	ITU Region 1	ITU Region 2	ITU Region 3
LF	2200 m	135.7–137.8 kHz
MF	630 m	472–479 kHz
	160 m	1.810–1.850 MHz	1.800–2.000 MHz
HF	80 / 75 m	3.500–3.800 MHz	3.500–4.000 MHz	3.500–3.900 MHz
	60 m	5.3515–5.3665 MHz Broken into channels and sub-bands, which vary by country.
	40 m	7.000–7.200 MHz	7.000–7.300 MHz	7.000–7.200 MHz
	30 m[w]	10.100–10.150 MHz
	20 m	14.000–14.350 MHz
	17 m[w]	18.068–18.168 MHz
	15 m	21.000–21.450 MHz
	12 m[w]	24.890–24.990 MHz
	10 m	28.000–29.700 MHz
VHF	6 m	50.000–52.000 MHz (50.000–54.000 MHz)[y]	50.000–54.000 MHz
	4 m[x]	70.000–70.500 MHz	N/A
	2 m	144.000–146.000 MHz	144.000–148.000 MHz
	1.25 m	N/A	220.000–225.000 MHz	N/A
UHF	70 cm	430.000–440.000 MHz	430.000–440.000 MHz (420.000–450.000 MHz)[y]
	33 cm	N/A	902.000–928.000 MHz	N/A
	23 cm	1.240–1.300 GHz
	13 cm	2.300–2.450 GHz
SHF	9 cm	3.400–3.475 GHz[y]	3.300–3.500 GHz
	5 cm	5.650–5.850 GHz	5.650–5.925 GHz	5.650–5.850 GHz
	3 cm	10.000–10.500 GHz
	1.2 cm	24.000–24.250 GHz
EHF	6 mm	47.000–47.200 GHz
	4 mm[y]	75.500 GHz[x] – 81.500 GHz	76.000–81.500 GHz
	2.5 mm	122.250–123.000 GHz
	2 mm	134.000–141.000 GHz
	1 mm	241.000–250.000 GHz
THF	Sub-mm	Some administrations have authorized spectrum for amateur use in this region; others have declined to regulate frequencies above 300 GHz, leaving them available by default.
[w] HF allocation created at the 1979 World Administrative Radio Conference. These are commonly called the "WARC bands". [x] This is not mentioned in the ITU's Table of Frequency Allocations, but individual administrations may make allocations under "Article 4.4". ITU Radio Regulations.. See the appropriate Wiki page for further information. [y] This includes a currently active footnote allocation mentioned in the ITU's Table of Frequency Allocations. These allocations may only apply to a group of countries.
See also: Radio spectrum, Electromagnetic spectrum