Frequency Lookup for WaveCap-SDR

This skill helps find frequencies and band plans for various radio services.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

Finding frequencies for marine/aviation/amateur bands
Looking up broadcast stations by location
Verifying frequency allocations
Discovering what's on a frequency
Planning SDR monitoring scenarios
Creating new recipes for specific bands

Common Frequency Bands

VHF Marine (156-162 MHz)

Channel 16 (156.800 MHz) - International Distress/Safety/Calling Channel 9 (156.450 MHz) - Recreational calling (US) Channel 6 (156.300 MHz) - Intership safety

Full band plan: https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/marine-communications-channel-table

Aviation (118-137 MHz)

121.500 MHz - Emergency frequency Typical ranges:

Tower: 118.0-121.4 MHz
Ground: 121.6-121.9 MHz
ATIS: Varies by airport

Find local frequencies: https://www.airnav.com

NOAA Weather Radio (162-163 MHz)

WX1: 162.550 MHz WX2: 162.400 MHz WX3: 162.475 MHz WX4: 162.425 MHz WX5: 162.450 MHz WX6: 162.500 MHz WX7: 162.525 MHz

Coverage map: https://www.weather.gov/nwr/

FM Broadcast (88-108 MHz)

US band: 88.1-107.9 MHz (odd tenths only) Europe/Asia: 87.5-108.0 MHz

Find local stations:

Amateur Radio (Ham)

2 meters: 144-148 MHz (FM repeaters typically 145-147 MHz) 70 cm: 420-450 MHz HF bands: 3.5, 7, 14, 21, 28 MHz

Repeater directory: https://www.repeaterbook.com

Public Safety / Trunking

VHF: 150-174 MHz UHF: 450-470 MHz, 806-824 MHz

Database: https://www.radioreference.com

Online Resources

RadioReference.com - Comprehensive frequency database

Trunked systems
Talkgroup IDs
Local agencies

SignalWiki - Signal identification

Decode unknown signals
Modulation types

WebSDR - Remote SDR receivers

Listen without hardware
Check propagation

FlightAware/FlightRadar24 - Aviation tracking

Find airport frequencies
Track aircraft

Usage Examples

Find Marine Channels

VHF Marine channels are spaced 25 kHz apart
Channel number = (Frequency - 156.000) / 0.025
Channel 16 = 156.800 MHz
Channel 9 = 156.450 MHz

Find Local FM Stations

Visit https://radio-locator.com and enter your ZIP code

Find NOAA Weather

Find nearest transmitter at https://www.weather.gov/nwr/

Find Aviation Frequencies

Visit https://www.airnav.com and search for airport code (e.g., KSEA)

Integration with WaveCap-SDR

After finding frequencies, create a recipe:

recipes:
  my_frequencies:
    name: "My Frequencies"
    capture:
      center_hz: 156800000  # Center on Ch 16
      sample_rate: 250000
      gain_db: 35
    channels:
      - {name: "Ch 16", offset_hz: 0, mode: "fm"}
      - {name: "Ch 9", offset_hz: -350000, mode: "fm"}

Or use presets for quick tuning.

Band Plan Quick Reference

Service	Frequency Range	Typical Use
AM Broadcast	530-1700 kHz	Radio stations
Ham 160m	1.8-2.0 MHz	Amateur HF
Marine SSB	2-4 MHz	Long-range marine
Ham 80m	3.5-4.0 MHz	Amateur HF
Ham 40m	7.0-7.3 MHz	Amateur HF
Ham 20m	14.0-14.35 MHz	Amateur HF
Ham 10m	28-29.7 MHz	Amateur HF
CB	26.965-27.405 MHz	Citizens Band
Ham 6m	50-54 MHz	Amateur VHF
FM Broadcast	88-108 MHz	Radio stations
Aviation	118-137 MHz	Air traffic control
Ham 2m	144-148 MHz	Amateur VHF
Marine VHF	156-162 MHz	Maritime
NOAA WX	162.400-162.550 MHz	Weather
Ham 70cm	420-450 MHz	Amateur UHF
GMRS/FRS	462-467 MHz	Personal radio

Files in This Skill

SKILL.md: This file - frequency reference and lookup guide

Notes

Frequencies vary by country (this guide is US-centric)
Always check local regulations before transmitting
Some frequencies require licenses (ham, marine, aviation)
SDR receiving is legal, transmitting requires proper licensing
Band plans change - verify with official sources
Use RadioReference.com for most comprehensive database

frequency-lookup