Yes to this! Your rig is already grounded via the third prong on its AC cord. There is no reason to attach any earth ground to a rig and connect it to a ground rod outside the shack. In fact, it is dangerous as it provides lightning a direct path into your rig. I live in FL, and all I do is unplug the coax during thunderstorms. And I should unplug the rig. No physical connection is always better than having some elaborate system that may or may not work. I have had hams say "but lightning will jump the gap!". Then put the coax far from the rig. Problem solved. In any case, lightning will likely fry every electronic component in your house at that point. It's foolish to think that we should emulate broadcast stations that transmit 24/7 and who must have that elaborate system. They insist they are right because NEC code says so. Ever hear of the expression "covering your butt"? I have heard of many a ham who lost their gear due to "RF grounds" (it doesn't exist) connected to rods. It is physics 101.
Thanks for this great feedback!! Anyone living in Florida that understands electricity knows how to deal with lightning;) When I lived in North Caroline - I came to realize how much lightning you guys have to deal with.
I'll share a story here of a dairy farmer, who called the vocational school I was attending asking for help. He said his cows had began refusing to enter the milking barn because the milkers were shocking them. They sent some students out to test the equipment and confirmed that it was all working properly. That didn't satisfy the cows, so they needed to do some more research. As it turned out there was a gas line recently installed near the barn, and they run a wire alongside it, DC current applied to it, so they can trace the line. That was enough to change the potential between the milkers and the concrete pad they were standing on. All we can do is rely on the earth as a conductor, and it's not a very good one.
Thanks for the great story. Cows are sensitive and their hooves have some distance between them - so because the Earth is not a great ground - there is a voltage drop from front hoof to rear hoof - so that sends current right through the heart. If Earth ground was a good ground - then it would be like a bird standing on a high voltage wire - no issues.
I took my multimeter outside and put it in the ground... and touched the other end with my sweaty fingers, i noticed a negative voltage, then a positive,then a negative, its like we were exchanging electrons. I took the multimeter somehwere else recently and that didnt happen again like i expected. Yeah, what is up with the ground?
I am a life member of the ARRL, the book you talked about is like a master collection of information regarding electronics and radio building information and radio operation. I have been a Ham Radio operator for about 40 years now and finally bit the bullet and got my extra class license about 5 years ago. Your cell phone works on digital packets that are burst of information, not to get to deep into it Ham radio developed a lot of what we have today in communication. If you knew half the stuff in the 100 year master set of books from the ARRL you would be one smart cookie.
Ground never made sense to me, I saw that ARRL video about a week ago and it confirmed what I thought about all this grounding everyone keeps harping on.
Electricians call the return path "neutral", which is not as clear as saying "return", but at least we distinguish neutral from ground. (Although many people get confused by the fact that in electrical code, neutral conductors are call "grounded conductors", whereas ground is called "grounding conductor". The reason for that in the code is that the neutral is bonded to the ground at the source of distribution, so it is in fact grounded.) Edit: Electricians call the return path neutral as long as it is not also periodically the source of current, i.e., in a multiphase system with no neutral, each of the conductors has a voltage with reference to earth ground, and also server periodically as return paths, and but are not called neutrals. (This is probably obvious but I realized my previous statement that the return path is called neutral did not rule out that each of the phases in a three phase system were both "line" and "neutral" alternately.)
Thanks for this great feedback! Yes, in AC power - both line and Neutral have current changing directions from plus to minus. When they started grounding one of the conductors - then they needed to know which one was bonded to the 'ground', so they called it Neutral (it's not positive or negative - it is both - just like the 'Line'). The ground conductor does not have to be 'Grounded' with a ground rod to do the important job - and that is to tie all metal chassis to the same conductor - that has no current flowing - until a fault condition. The second job is to take everything off line in case of this fault. Being 'Grounded' protects the system from lightning - to some degree, but it also helps reference the power system to Earth ground - which should have no current flowing - it serves as a reference so that the system does not get charged with static energy. The meaning Earth Ground has to many is a myth.
I received a magazine from ARRL during the 60s.. I was always excited to get the new edition as a kid. I like their handbook as a grown up kid. I like the fact that you beat up on audiophiles. They need a few slaps once in awhile to wake them out of their sleep. There's another kind of grounding you didn't mention. It's being well grounded in understanding of how electronics work. Your channel is a connection to this ground. 😉😉
Eddie, in my early days of my career as an analog engineer, we were taught ground was a reference or return system. With the advent of digital systems, engineers got lazy. Switching speeds were slow, so everything was treated as lumped elements, just tie it together. Only the black magic engineers (RF) cared about returns due to transmission line characteristics. Now with everything being as faster the better, transmission line or distributed characteristics now dominates designs and younger engineers are lost because of the mathematics involved. You see this in your presentations, if there is math involved they do watch. Tinker toy engineers.
Thanks for your great feedback! Yes, paying attention to returns is very important in the faster moving circuits. The SMPS make us power supply guys pretty good signal integrity engineers:) Also, I've been offered EMI design jobs in the past.
Hi Ed. Glad you're still at it. Call it what you want. As an engineer you need to know what all those references/grounds/returns are used for and how to manage them. Some places have engieers whose primary job is to mamage them. I dont see any myth and certainly no controversy, just engineering opportunities. When there is disagreement or different viewpoint just use it as an opportunity to learn and get to a common point rather than bolster your stance and create difference in potential (see what i did there)
Love it Kedrick! There's an idea of what 'ground' is and I mean how it relates to 'Earth Ground'. The Vice president of ARRL did a great job presenting this under the title 'Ground is a Myth'. Very interesting presentation. This about this - people who put dirt (earth) in a box with crystals - and think that this 'grounding' will make their sound system sound better;) There is a belief around 'ground' and that's why she - and I are here to present a more clear picture. To your point - an opportunity to learn about what 'Returns' really are - poorly named as grounds.
Interesting topic Eddie. I agree, as an engineer, it drives me crazy how humans use vague, poorly defined words, and ‘Ground’ is certainly one of those fuzzy words that often lacks specificity in electrical systems. Other single words I find annoying are: ‘Quality (as an adjective)’…which implies ‘Excellent’ but humans love the word Quality for some weird reason. ‘Appropriate’ is another one that drives me crazy…appropriate in what way?, and why? I call these ‘Wimpy Words’ because they do not convey much meaning as a stand-alone word. BTW- I am guilty of using these single words 😂 , but NOT when lightning safety standards are required of course.
As a retired guy of past engineering, and a ham; nothing to do with my last name being Bacon (lol) great rant on return lines as they are and hats off to the ARRL. 👍
Thanks for the feedback! This is interesting! I'd say that it is referenced to Earth ground, but I do understand that it is used for fault current. I believe that they use resistors between Neutral and Earth to limit this fault current.
Doesn't a metal chassis literally connect to GROUND outside of a building and at a utility pole? 'Ground' is therefore appropriate. Not so for a local circuit return path.
Thanks for the great question! Yes, you are correct. But - the main thing about the chassis connection - is that all chassis are tied together - forming a chassis - or safety ground. The second most important thing (IMHO) is that it provides a fault path if there is a Line short to chassis. Yes, the ground rod does tie into the safety ground / Neutral connection, but it is there as lightning protection (not for power) and as a reference to keep the power system from floating above ground. Remember this title - that I love - is from the ARRL conference. ;)
Using one word to cover so many concepts sure has turned into a disaster, but it almost seems like it was inevitable. Many people are first exposed to basic electrical concepts by learning about household or automotive wiring. In one instance we bond the chassis to safety ground and isolate it from the return path, in the other we use the chassis as the return path. This seems to lead to blurring of these concepts early on, and has just compounded over time. I try to be mindful of my choice of words when talking about these things, but this misuse of the term “ground” feels like it has become convention.
Ground is not a myth. It is just a poorly applied term. Early electrical distribution systems in rural areas often just used one wire, to save money. The return path was literally the ground. All earth grounds are not equal due to soil conditions. You can have an earth ground that is a fraction of an ohm or nearly megohms. That is why earth grounds need to be measured to ensure their usefulness. That is why ground mats were developed or multiple ground rods need to be driven to meet safety specifications. With RF things do get a bit weird. What is the return path for a propagating electromagnet wave in free space? However for the antenna to work properly it does need a return path either to ground or the other side of the transmission line. The IEEE has published multiple books on "ground/grounding and bonding." Also as anyone who has worked on old broadcast home radios, has learned, some time you prefer isolation. As a licensed (Extra) HAM and a member of ARRL, their handbooks, even the older ones are a wealth of knowledge.
Thanks for your fantastic feedback! You are right but then there is the 'Myth' in many minds what ground is. I think that's what the presentation at the ARRL meeting was trying to convey. She, the vice president, also used an antenna application as an example. You hit the nail on the head when you said it is a poorly applied term!! Ground is so often used when it should be termed as some sort of return;)
@@KissAnalog I did understand the "Myth" was calling any common return "ground." Your video was useful in putting that in perspective. I just wanted to point out that the earth is often the real ground return path. Lightening is another example of the earth being a conductor.
Antennas most certainly do NOT need a ground. Every vertical is a dipole inverted. The vertical needs its other half in the form of a wire with equal length. A ground does nothing to help your antenna. In fact, it can harm it. Ground is a poor conductor. RF grounds do not exist either. And ground rods? Anyone who puts a second ground rod in the ground outside the shack, and connects the rig to it, risks inviting lightning to fry your rig. As Kristen pointed out, the impedance of one point in the ground will change six feet over. It is notoriously unreliable to do anything...except rob you of power if your antenna is too low when you are located in a location with poor soil conductivity.
yeah I saw somebody having some company in supposed to be audiofile electrician?? they removed the connecting point to the house earth and run some cables in the ground towards the pole in the street for the earth, in his garden what was roughly about halfway from the pole to his house, to me I would thought that would cause any discharge to go up the earth into the house especially with lightning. I tried to point this out and they said I didn't know what was talking about😮 I know there is regulations where you have your earthwire outside situated I think in my country it's 40 m from any electrical supplying pole. what was the point of running an extra wire putting a stake in the ground towards the electricity pole where they could have just kept it where it was they were claiming some better quality of sound if they did it that way yeah right pull the other one.
"We could have another video on how to pronounce Kirchhoff. " In the land of the free and home of the brave, I pronounce it like it rhymes with "pizza".
Word salad, which can only confuse your audience. Yes,, the term "ground" is overused, but, 1) proper management of "return" currents is essential to manage common-mode noise problems, even at audio freqs, 2) at high frequencies, the complex impedance of the grounds becomes important, as mismatches cause reflections to rattle around (again, noise which can effect even digital switching), 3) ground/"return" loops are a real problem, even at audio frequencies, and 4) etc.,, etc. So, "ground is a myth" is fun to say with a smirk, but all the consequences that attend managing return currents (grounding) are still major practical problems in application. Next, the Amateur Radio Relay League is a hobbyist organization, certainly of long-standing (I still have my dad's ARRL antenna handbook), but hardly a place to look for technical authority outside of amateur radio. I'd check with the IEEE, Lastly, your closing example with lightning is simply foolish - static charges, by their definition, don't support current flow. Lightning discharges are certainly important, and impressive, but irrelevant (they're what safety grounds are for) to this discussion.
Thanks for your feedback. I think you lost the reason for the 'smirk' as you call it. 'Ground' is not important to our circuit - but return currents definitely are. The ARRL might be a 'hobbyist organization' but if you think they are not full of serious engineers - you would be insulting a large group of people and would be wrong in fact. I do read a lot of IEEE stuff - especially on lightning and static discharge. IEEE is full of doctorates that may not have near the physical experience of the members in the ARRL. Radios and Antennas need people that know what they are doing. Have you ever performed an ESD test. It doesn't sound like it. You might be right that static charges do not have current flowing - but like lightning being charged - when they discharge you better believe there is current flowing - obviously not as much as lightning. Your 'Word Salad' is my Rant - as is found in the title of this video. So you may think the Vice President of the ARRL has only an understanding of radio and antennas (which is huge in my book), but maybe you should watch that video (in my links), and see if you change your mind. From the tone of your comment here - I bet you will not watch it.
Yes to this! Your rig is already grounded via the third prong on its AC cord. There is no reason to attach any earth ground to a rig and connect it to a ground rod outside the shack. In fact, it is dangerous as it provides lightning a direct path into your rig. I live in FL, and all I do is unplug the coax during thunderstorms. And I should unplug the rig. No physical connection is always better than having some elaborate system that may or may not work. I have had hams say "but lightning will jump the gap!". Then put the coax far from the rig. Problem solved. In any case, lightning will likely fry every electronic component in your house at that point. It's foolish to think that we should emulate broadcast stations that transmit 24/7 and who must have that elaborate system. They insist they are right because NEC code says so. Ever hear of the expression "covering your butt"? I have heard of many a ham who lost their gear due to "RF grounds" (it doesn't exist) connected to rods. It is physics 101.
Thanks for this great feedback!! Anyone living in Florida that understands electricity knows how to deal with lightning;) When I lived in North Caroline - I came to realize how much lightning you guys have to deal with.
I'll share a story here of a dairy farmer, who called the vocational school I was attending asking for help. He said his cows had began refusing to enter the milking barn because the milkers were shocking them. They sent some students out to test the equipment and confirmed that it was all working properly. That didn't satisfy the cows, so they needed to do some more research. As it turned out there was a gas line recently installed near the barn, and they run a wire alongside it, DC current applied to it, so they can trace the line. That was enough to change the potential between the milkers and the concrete pad they were standing on. All we can do is rely on the earth as a conductor, and it's not a very good one.
Thanks for the great story. Cows are sensitive and their hooves have some distance between them - so because the Earth is not a great ground - there is a voltage drop from front hoof to rear hoof - so that sends current right through the heart. If Earth ground was a good ground - then it would be like a bird standing on a high voltage wire - no issues.
I took my multimeter outside and put it in the ground... and touched the other end with my sweaty fingers, i noticed a negative voltage, then a positive,then a negative, its like we were exchanging electrons. I took the multimeter somehwere else recently and that didnt happen again like i expected. Yeah, what is up with the ground?
You were seeing some sort of Earth Battery type power, although having one of the leads on your skins is odd.
You may have been an antenna, receiving rf and other ambient emf.
Free energy! Take that, Mehdi!!! 😏
I am a life member of the ARRL, the book you talked about is like a master collection of information regarding electronics and radio building information and radio operation. I have been a Ham Radio operator for about 40 years now and finally bit the bullet and got my extra class license about 5 years ago. Your cell phone works on digital packets that are burst of information, not to get to deep into it Ham radio developed a lot of what we have today in communication. If you knew half the stuff in the 100 year master set of books from the ARRL you would be one smart cookie.
Thanks for this great feedback!! Yes, their books are full of great info - and from what I remember - are written in basic english;)
Ground never made sense to me, I saw that ARRL video about a week ago and it confirmed what I thought about all this grounding everyone keeps harping on.
Thanks for your great feedback!
Electricians call the return path "neutral", which is not as clear as saying "return", but at least we distinguish neutral from ground. (Although many people get confused by the fact that in electrical code, neutral conductors are call "grounded conductors", whereas ground is called "grounding conductor". The reason for that in the code is that the neutral is bonded to the ground at the source of distribution, so it is in fact grounded.)
Edit: Electricians call the return path neutral as long as it is not also periodically the source of current, i.e., in a multiphase system with no neutral, each of the conductors has a voltage with reference to earth ground, and also server periodically as return paths, and but are not called neutrals. (This is probably obvious but I realized my previous statement that the return path is called neutral did not rule out that each of the phases in a three phase system were both "line" and "neutral" alternately.)
Thanks for this great feedback! Yes, in AC power - both line and Neutral have current changing directions from plus to minus. When they started grounding one of the conductors - then they needed to know which one was bonded to the 'ground', so they called it Neutral (it's not positive or negative - it is both - just like the 'Line'). The ground conductor does not have to be 'Grounded' with a ground rod to do the important job - and that is to tie all metal chassis to the same conductor - that has no current flowing - until a fault condition. The second job is to take everything off line in case of this fault. Being 'Grounded' protects the system from lightning - to some degree, but it also helps reference the power system to Earth ground - which should have no current flowing - it serves as a reference so that the system does not get charged with static energy. The meaning Earth Ground has to many is a myth.
I received a magazine from ARRL during the 60s.. I was always excited to get the new edition as a kid.
I like their handbook as a grown up kid.
I like the fact that you beat up on audiophiles. They need a few slaps once in awhile to wake them out of their sleep.
There's another kind of grounding you didn't mention. It's being well grounded in understanding of how electronics work.
Your channel is a connection to this ground. 😉😉
Thanks so much for your great feedback! Let's stay grounded;)
Eddie, in my early days of my career as an analog engineer, we were taught ground was a reference or return system. With the advent of digital systems, engineers got lazy. Switching speeds were slow, so everything was treated as lumped elements, just tie it together. Only the black magic engineers (RF) cared about returns due to transmission line characteristics. Now with everything being as faster the better, transmission line or distributed characteristics now dominates designs and younger engineers are lost because of the mathematics involved. You see this in your presentations, if there is math involved they do watch. Tinker toy engineers.
Thanks for your great feedback! Yes, paying attention to returns is very important in the faster moving circuits. The SMPS make us power supply guys pretty good signal integrity engineers:) Also, I've been offered EMI design jobs in the past.
HI Eddie, I love the video. It was awesome. Great information. Thank you.💯
Thank you! I appreciate you!
Hi Ed. Glad you're still at it. Call it what you want. As an engineer you need to know what all those references/grounds/returns are used for and how to manage them. Some places have engieers whose primary job is to mamage them. I dont see any myth and certainly no controversy, just engineering opportunities. When there is disagreement or different viewpoint just use it as an opportunity to learn and get to a common point rather than bolster your stance and create difference in potential (see what i did there)
Love it Kedrick! There's an idea of what 'ground' is and I mean how it relates to 'Earth Ground'. The Vice president of ARRL did a great job presenting this under the title 'Ground is a Myth'. Very interesting presentation. This about this - people who put dirt (earth) in a box with crystals - and think that this 'grounding' will make their sound system sound better;) There is a belief around 'ground' and that's why she - and I are here to present a more clear picture. To your point - an opportunity to learn about what 'Returns' really are - poorly named as grounds.
Interesting topic Eddie. I agree, as an engineer, it drives me crazy how humans use vague, poorly defined words, and ‘Ground’ is certainly one of those fuzzy words that often lacks specificity in electrical systems. Other single words I find annoying are: ‘Quality (as an adjective)’…which implies ‘Excellent’ but humans love the word Quality for some weird reason. ‘Appropriate’ is another one that drives me crazy…appropriate in what way?, and why? I call these ‘Wimpy Words’ because they do not convey much meaning as a stand-alone word. BTW- I am guilty of using these single words 😂 , but NOT when lightning safety standards are required of course.
Thanks so much!!
As a retired guy of past engineering, and a ham; nothing to do with my last name being Bacon (lol) great rant on return lines as they are and hats off to the ARRL. 👍
Thank you for your comment! Yes - the ARRL is alive and well and still doing great work;)
We have hydro generators in our province that use earth ground as a reference/return
Thanks for the feedback! This is interesting! I'd say that it is referenced to Earth ground, but I do understand that it is used for fault current. I believe that they use resistors between Neutral and Earth to limit this fault current.
Doesn't a metal chassis literally connect to GROUND outside of a building and at a utility pole? 'Ground' is therefore appropriate. Not so for a local circuit return path.
Thanks for the great question! Yes, you are correct. But - the main thing about the chassis connection - is that all chassis are tied together - forming a chassis - or safety ground. The second most important thing (IMHO) is that it provides a fault path if there is a Line short to chassis. Yes, the ground rod does tie into the safety ground / Neutral connection, but it is there as lightning protection (not for power) and as a reference to keep the power system from floating above ground. Remember this title - that I love - is from the ARRL conference. ;)
What I learned in school, "Ground is just a path with less resistance than you."
Thanks for your feedback! The problem with the name Ground - is which one are they referring to?
What I thought was click bait hooked me, then I learned stuff 😂 Subscribed
LOL - love it! Thank you!
Nice to hear the correct information out there from a EE to enjoy.
Appreciate the feedback!
"Ground is a Myth"
I try hard not to walk on it.
Nice ;)
Using one word to cover so many concepts sure has turned into a disaster, but it almost seems like it was inevitable. Many people are first exposed to basic electrical concepts by learning about household or automotive wiring. In one instance we bond the chassis to safety ground and isolate it from the return path, in the other we use the chassis as the return path. This seems to lead to blurring of these concepts early on, and has just compounded over time.
I try to be mindful of my choice of words when talking about these things, but this misuse of the term “ground” feels like it has become convention.
Thank you for this very insightful feedback. I understand the wording options - this subject has made this so misleading;)
Where is the link to the book please?
Sorry - the links are in the description now;)
couldn't you have given us a link to this April, how am I supposed to find it
Yes - thank you - the links are in the description now;)
@KissAnalog ...how 'bout her phone number...
@@KissAnalog ok thanks
Ground is not a myth. It is just a poorly applied term. Early electrical distribution systems in rural areas often just used one wire, to save money. The return path was literally the ground. All earth grounds are not equal due to soil conditions. You can have an earth ground that is a fraction of an ohm or nearly megohms. That is why earth grounds need to be measured to ensure their usefulness. That is why ground mats were developed or multiple ground rods need to be driven to meet safety specifications.
With RF things do get a bit weird. What is the return path for a propagating electromagnet wave in free space? However for the antenna to work properly it does need a return path either to ground or the other side of the transmission line. The IEEE has published multiple books on "ground/grounding and bonding."
Also as anyone who has worked on old broadcast home radios, has learned, some time you prefer isolation.
As a licensed (Extra) HAM and a member of ARRL, their handbooks, even the older ones are a wealth of knowledge.
Thanks for your fantastic feedback! You are right but then there is the 'Myth' in many minds what ground is. I think that's what the presentation at the ARRL meeting was trying to convey. She, the vice president, also used an antenna application as an example.
You hit the nail on the head when you said it is a poorly applied term!! Ground is so often used when it should be termed as some sort of return;)
@@KissAnalog I did understand the "Myth" was calling any common return "ground." Your video was useful in putting that in perspective. I just wanted to point out that the earth is often the real ground return path. Lightening is another example of the earth being a conductor.
Antennas most certainly do NOT need a ground. Every vertical is a dipole inverted. The vertical needs its other half in the form of a wire with equal length. A ground does nothing to help your antenna. In fact, it can harm it. Ground is a poor conductor. RF grounds do not exist either. And ground rods? Anyone who puts a second ground rod in the ground outside the shack, and connects the rig to it, risks inviting lightning to fry your rig. As Kristen pointed out, the impedance of one point in the ground will change six feet over. It is notoriously unreliable to do anything...except rob you of power if your antenna is too low when you are located in a location with poor soil conductivity.
yeah I saw somebody having some company in supposed to be audiofile electrician?? they removed the connecting point to the house earth and run some cables in the ground towards the pole in the street for the earth, in his garden what was roughly about halfway from the pole to his house, to me I would thought that would cause any discharge to go up the earth into the house especially with lightning. I tried to point this out and they said I didn't know what was talking about😮
I know there is regulations where you have your earthwire outside situated I think in my country it's 40 m from any electrical supplying pole.
what was the point of running an extra wire putting a stake in the ground towards the electricity pole where they could have just kept it where it was they were claiming some better quality of sound if they did it that way yeah right pull the other one.
Wow - I would like to see the schematic of this. I'm sure we could see the unfortunate reality of this.
Man, I love when you lough at these audio grounding boys 😂
LOL - it is hard not to poke the bear;)
Glad you picked that up! I watched that video and thought it was great. Thanks for your video!
Thanks so much! I was happy to see the corroboration;)
We could have another video on how to pronounce Kirchhoff. 😁
LOL - yes - we could;)
"We could have another video on how to pronounce Kirchhoff. "
In the land of the free and home of the brave, I pronounce it like it rhymes with "pizza".
You have a very nice shirt - it makes you think of vacation, summer - I like it
Thanks - I bought it for the channel - or that's what I told my wife;)
Word salad, which can only confuse your audience. Yes,, the term "ground" is overused, but, 1) proper management of "return" currents is essential to manage common-mode noise problems, even at audio freqs, 2) at high frequencies, the complex impedance of the grounds becomes important, as mismatches cause reflections to rattle around (again, noise which can effect even digital switching), 3) ground/"return" loops are a real problem, even at audio frequencies, and 4) etc.,, etc. So, "ground is a myth" is fun to say with a smirk, but all the consequences that attend managing return currents (grounding) are still major practical problems in application. Next, the Amateur Radio Relay League is a hobbyist organization, certainly of long-standing (I still have my dad's ARRL antenna handbook), but hardly a place to look for technical authority outside of amateur radio. I'd check with the IEEE, Lastly, your closing example with lightning is simply foolish - static charges, by their definition, don't support current flow. Lightning discharges are certainly important, and impressive, but irrelevant (they're what safety grounds are for) to this discussion.
Thanks for your feedback. I think you lost the reason for the 'smirk' as you call it. 'Ground' is not important to our circuit - but return currents definitely are.
The ARRL might be a 'hobbyist organization' but if you think they are not full of serious engineers - you would be insulting a large group of people and would be wrong in fact.
I do read a lot of IEEE stuff - especially on lightning and static discharge. IEEE is full of doctorates that may not have near the physical experience of the members in the ARRL. Radios and Antennas need people that know what they are doing.
Have you ever performed an ESD test. It doesn't sound like it. You might be right that static charges do not have current flowing - but like lightning being charged - when they discharge you better believe there is current flowing - obviously not as much as lightning.
Your 'Word Salad' is my Rant - as is found in the title of this video.
So you may think the Vice President of the ARRL has only an understanding of radio and antennas (which is huge in my book), but maybe you should watch that video (in my links), and see if you change your mind. From the tone of your comment here - I bet you will not watch it.
Ground is and has always been a reference point!!!
Nothing else...The real question is does lightening go from ground to sky or sky to ground???
Lmao
Great question is - what is Ground a reference point to? And - secondly - are you referring to Earth Ground?
Ham Radio discriminates!
Thanks for your feedback - but who do they discriminate?
great, vid 73 n4jrs
Thanks so much! So, I take it that you are an ARRL member:) Did you attend the conference?