A weather satellite is a satellite which is used by meteorologists to gather information about the weather. Weather satellites give meteorologists a view of weather patterns over a very large area. This enables meteorologists to track large weather patterns and make more accurate predictions of future weather behavior. In addition to visual monitoring, weather satellites …
A multimeter is used to take measurements of electrical properties for a circuit such as the voltage, current, or resistance. A modern multimeter combines the abilities of legacy voltmeters, ohmmeters, and ammeters. Some of the uses of a multimeter include electrical testing on electrical power sources, motors, and other electrical circuits or components. They are …
A decoupling capacitor (bypass capacitor) is a device that separates current and voltage levels from two separate sections of the same electronic device. Decoupling capacitors are useful in situations that require an electronic device to fluctuate current or voltage levels without straining the power supply. Decoupling capacitors can be used in electronic devices that have …
An opto isolator is an electronic device that prevents high voltages from components in one side of a circuit from damaging or interfering with components on the other side of the same circuit. Opto isolators regulate voltage levels by converting electricity into a beam of light. This prevents voltage spikes from impacting more than a single …
GPS – A Short Introduction GPS, which stands for Global Positioning System, is a satellite navigation system that can ascertain the latitude and longitude of a GPS receiver device on the Earth. The GPS consists of more than two dozen global positioning satellites orbiting the earth. Each satellite transmits radio signals, which can help determine …
A spark gap consists of two electrodes separated by a small gap that is filled by a gas, usually air. The potential difference across the gap increases until it reaches the level where the gas ionizes and current flows across it for a brief time. The two types of spark gap are the static and …
An Internet repeater is a device that allows amateur radio operators to communicate with each other over the Internet, much like how VoIP software allows telephone operators to communicate with each other over the Internet. Internet repeaters should not be confused with wireless repeaters, which allow users to extend the range of a wireless network. …
The feedhorn is the part of a satellite dish system which gathers the reflected signal from the dish and focuses it towards the LNB. It is a type of horn antenna that is deployed to convey radio signals between the transceiver and the reflector antenna. Horn antennas basically effect a transition between waves propagating through …
Linear amplifiers are electronic circuits that have an output that is proportional to the input of the device while providing additional power to the load. A linear amplifier is normally a variant of a radio-frequency (RF) power amplifier and is used frequently in amateur radio and in laboratory and commercial audio equipment with an output …
A Chebyshev filter can either be analog or digital, and is an improvement on the Butterworth filter as it has a steeper roll-off and a greater passband and stopband ripple. These filters minimize overall error between actual and idealized filter characteristics for the designed range of the filter. The filter was named after Pafnuty Chebyshev, …