Technical Information

RF Exposure

On May 3, 2021, new FCC rules took effect regarding amateur responsibility for assuring RF exposure does not exceed safe limits. The limits themselves have been effect since 1996 and have NOT changed.

Here are some links to useful explanatory documents and calculators you can use. The two calculators shown here were independently implemented, but they closely agree in the results they produce.

- ARRL RF Exposure web page
- Frequently asked questions (v1.4 4/27/2021, from ARRL)
- RF Exposure Calculator at Lake Washington Ham Club (derived from code by N6NB)
- RF Safety Calculator (by VP9KF, NOTE: uses metric units)
- FCC OET Bulletin 56 ("Questions and Answers about Biological Effects and Potential Hazards of Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields")
- FCC OET Bulletin 65b ("Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radio frequency Electromagnetic Fields, Additional Information for Amateur Radio Stations")
- "RF Exposure and You" (a free eBook from ARRL, big and somewhat dated, but Chapter 8 includes useful, extensive tables for near-field exposure evaluation)