FT8: what it is and where to find it on the bands

FT8 sends a short, structured message in 15 second periods and decodes signals well below the noise you can hear. A contact is a fixed exchange of callsigns, locator, report and a final 73.

Everyone gathers on the same dial frequencies, one per band, with the audio spread over a few kilohertz. That is why FT8 spots on a cluster look so similar: the frequency is almost always the dial plus an offset.

It made DX possible for small stations and noisy locations. Many rare entities are now worked on FT8 first, often in the special DXpedition mode.