I got a portable shortwave radio receiver that takes 4 AA batteries. Mine is a Sangean but there are many different makes & models.
I extend the whip antenna and use alligator clips to attach it to a 100' wire I ran perpendicular to my house. That's it.
From just before dusk to several hours after dusk, I can pick up stations worldwide. I have listened to english broadcasts coming out of asia & europe. Cuba broadcasts all day long on 31 and 25 meters. In a log book I'm recording what frequencies and times I'm picking up stations so I can refer to it all later.
In addition to these worldwide broadcasts, ham radio operators sometimes talk to each other in a modulation called "SSB" - think of it like a trucker CB type of person-to-person communication, but can reach from florida to alaska. With a ham radio, you can flip to single sideband (SSB) mode and listen for these individual communications. Transmitting / talking at these frequencies requires a license. However anyone can pick up a receive-only radio and listen.
So a ham radio provides access to a global network of what are essentially AM radio stations, as well as ability to eavesdrop on individual person to person SSB communications.
Moreover, many ham radio operators are registered to assist in the event of an emergency. So while the other ham operators are responding to the emergency, you'll have exactly the right equipment to listen to all the information & chatter firsthand, without it being filtered through other sources.
In a grid down or SHTF sitauation, it is access to worldwide information without any infrastructure required except some batteries and a long wire.
Small investment, big payoff.
I got a portable shortwave radio receiver that takes 4 AA batteries. Mine is a Sangean but there are many different makes & models.
I extend the whip antenna and use alligator clips to attach it to a 100' wire I ran perpendicular to my house. That's it.
From just before dusk to several hours after dusk, I can pick up stations worldwide. I have listened to english broadcasts coming out of asia & europe. Cuba broadcasts all day long on 31 and 25 meters. In a log book I'm recording what frequencies and times I'm picking up stations so I can refer to it all later.
In addition to these worldwide broadcasts, ham radio operators sometimes talk to each other in a modulation called "SSB" - think of it like a trucker CB type of person-to-person communication, but can reach from florida to alaska. With a ham radio, you can flip to single sideband (SSB) mode and listen for these individual communications. Transmitting / talking at these frequencies requires a license. However anyone can pick up a receive-only radio and listen.
So a ham radio provides access to a global network of what are essentially AM radio stations, as well as ability to eavesdrop on individual person to person SSB communications.
Moreover, many ham radio operators are registered to assist in the event of an emergency. So while the other ham operators are responding to the emergency, you'll have exactly the right equipment to listen to all the information & chatter firsthand, without it being filtered through other sources.
In a grid down or SHTF sitauation, it is access to worldwide information without any infrastructure required except some batteries and a long wire.
Small investment, big payoff.
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