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Posted on 03/25/2006 11:58:57 AM PST by Denver Ditdat
Radio Buffs Lobby to Make Historic 500 kHz a 'Memorial Frequency'
For almost a century, 500 kHz was a lifeline for ships worldwide. Better known as 500 kilocycles, it was the spectrum reserved for ships and the shore stations that communicated with them in Morse Code (sometimes referred to as CW, for continuous wave).
If you're a real radio old-timer, you might refer to the frequency as 600 meters.
"To ensure that SOS calls were always heard, all ship and shore stations were required to monitor 500 kHz at all times," said Richard Dillman, secretary and chief CW operator of the Maritime Radio Historical Society. "At 15 and 45 minutes past the hour, all users were required to go silent, so that any weak SOS calls could make it through."
Over the years, countless distress calls were transmitted and heard on 500 kHz, including those from the Titanic. In fact, it was Titanic's loss that inspired the 500 kHz monitoring rules.
But even in recent times, 500 kHz has been a lifesaver. For instance, when the Holland America passenger ship Prinsendam caught fire and sank in the Gulf of Alaska on Oct. 4, 1980, it was Morse via 500 kHz that brought help. As for the Prinsendam's high-tech satellite radio system? It failed. Without Morse and 500 kHz, help would have arrived too late.
With the demise of commercial Morse traffic, 500 kHz - "we still call it 500 kc," said society President Tom Horsfall - has fallen mostly silent around the world. Exceptions are events such as the annual MHRS' "Night of Nights" Morse broadcasts from restored RCA shore station KPH near San Francisco, which is maintained by society volunteers and the National Parks Service.
"At least two - and soon three - historic ships that have valid ship station licenses use 500 kc to communicate with each other and KPH and KSM," he said. As well, "Recently coast station KLB in Seattle restored operation on 500 kc."
Amateur radio operators are interested in the spectrum. But given the frequency's august history, Dillman, Horsfall and other society members are lobbying to have 500 kHz designated as a "memorial frequency." This, they say, would prevent the spectrum being reallocated by the International Telecommunication Union and keep 500 kHz open for future Morse events such the Night of Nights, which attract listeners around the world.
Dillman is not aware of any similar designation. "The concept of an International Memorial Frequency ... originated with the MRHS," he said. "While we can't speak for the ITU, I think we can say without fear of contradiction that no other frequency has been so designated."
'Sacrilege'
At first, the notion of preserving a piece of radio spectrum as a historic "site" might seem strange. After all, spectrum is not tangible, like a building or artifact, so how can one "preserve" it?
Dillman and Horsfall become passionate about the topic. Arguing that the actual amount of bandwidth removed from use would be "a tiny slice," they say reallocating 500 kHz to other uses would be "sacrilege."
"We've spoken to ship and shore radio operators around the world, and they generally agree that 500 kc is 'hallowed ground,'" said Dillman. "That's why they are hoping that the ITU will agree to setting 500 kc aside as a memorial frequency."
Some ham radio operators seem none too keen about setting 500 kHz off-limits. "This is going too far!" wrote one ham at www.eham.net "History is important, granted, but the fact that many very talented old-timers are growing older and older does not justify turning the radio waves into a memorial. Gads! This is gross!"
(Made aware of this comment, Dillman replied, "Of course the fact that old-timers are old has nothing to do with our proposal.")
Another ham wrote, "I think they should just reallocate 500 kHz for amateur use and then these historical coastal stations can share it as secondary users under that same proposal. I do not agree that 500 kHz should be specifically allocated for historical station use only."
Other hams defend the society's idea. Wrote one ham, "These folks and their organizations are part of commercial maritime radio. They use 5-20 kW transmitters. None of their frequency allocations are in the Amateur Radio Service. In fact, in their proposal for the International Memorial Frequency they state: 'It is important to note that this proposal is not intended to establish a new frequency in the amateur radio service. In fact the aim is quite the opposite.'"
"We don't want anything to change," Horsfall emphasized to Radio World. "We would like all authorizations to stay the same, with the addition that each ITU signatory country could license legitimate historic marine radio projects to use 500 kc."
A decision whether to "memorialize" 500 kc would be made by the ITU. To this end, the MRHS is lobbying contacts within the international body, hoping that they will help turn the MRHS' dream into reality. Dillman said the concept of an International Memorial Frequency has been presented informally to the ITU by a supporter of the idea who attends its meetings.
"At the moment the ITU has not expressed an opinion on the concept," he said.
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LLS
BTW, WEOI here.
But you didn't say what you thought about it.
Cheers,
KG4QMB
Where did "Denver Ditdat" go?
I remember back in the early 90's I was forced to give up my radio frequency of my RC aircraft....
All for cellphones.
--Where did "Denver Ditdat" go?
To the shack?
This is a poorly written article. It is as if I walked into a room where a conversation was already going on, and everyone already knew what the subject was about, and I am attempting to figure it out by what is being said.
Great for a converstation, bad for a news article.
I take it tht a particular frequency that had been used for emergencies is being opened up for other purposes, but some wish to keep this frequency reserved as a memorial for the past.
As I said, I am sure those that have a deep understanding of the subject know what is being discussed but since this is a news forum, not a ham radio forum, I would expect a little more background information, if not in the article, then by the person that posted it.
Why should I care about this?
AMVER = Automated Mutual-assistance VEssel Rescue system
OBS was an atmospheric message of 5 number groupings that provided info back to the NOAA.
Bathy's was also a message of 5 number groupings that provided ocean condition info back to NOAA.
SAR is Search And Rescue.
I haven't heard 'kilocycles' used in a while. Allan Weiner Worldwide, maybe.
Although I did listen to an old radio program, the episode was entitled "Death Tunes in at 790 Kilocycles" earlier in the week.
Looks like it was from 1947.
Tiny Slice! Geeez! That's an understatement if I ever heard one.
We're talking about Morse Code (CW) on 500 KC for the love of pete.
As far as bandwidth goes it's almost nothing.
Good old Morse... the Original Digital mode!
LLS
Well, my first post on this article did not come up for some reason.
"Over the years, countless distress calls were transmitted and heard on 500 kHz, including those from the Titanic. In fact, it was Titanic's loss that inspired the 500 kHz monitoring rules."
I think you're mistaken here. Watch on 500 was in effect at the time of the Titanic. The ship "California" passed within sight but could not be raised as the radio operator had gone off watch for the night.
As a result of the Titanic, The "Auto Alarm" was made required equipment on all vessels that did not maintain a 24 hour operator watch.
Take my word for it if you like. I only spent 40 years on those ships.
Back when they were changing the name from cps to Hz, a friend of mine helpfully posted a conversion nomograph on our bulletin board.
To me it seemed unfair to rip one pioneer's name off the unit of measure only to put another one's on it.
I mean, what did they have against Charles Proteus Steinmetz, anyway?
Harder to make jokes. "I stuck my finger in the lamp socket and it hurts" "50 or 60...."
here is the link of radio frequency allocation:
www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/allochrt.pdf
Why not continue to use it for maritime distress? That certainly is an important category. A lot more important than many other things that have bandwidth dedicated to them.
Steinmetz... Now there was a man who was interesting.
Steinmetz was a bit of a horticulturist. A group of students once paid him a visit, and he showed them his greenhouse.
"See that little lizard on the windowsill?" said he. "The speed with which he makes a circuit of the greenhouse is a function of the ambient temperature. Therefore, with this lizard and a stopwatch, I don't need a thermometer."
To which a student replied, "But, Professor Steinmetz. If you had a stopwatch and a thermometer, you wouldn't need the lizard."
Here I am! Hitting the "post" button and leaving town for the weekend were separated by about ten minutes. Sorry about that!
Why not continue to use it for maritime distress? That certainly is an important category. A lot more important than many other things that have bandwidth dedicated to them.
The systems that took the place of CW distress calls on 500KHz are automated and a lot less expensive than the trained radiomen who kept a 24/7 watch aboard ship. They're also on frequencies that are a lot less affected by the uncertainties of RF propagation. Those two things pretty much put the final nail in the coffin of traditional shipboard radio ops.
I can see the appeal of a memorial frequency. I was an unusual kid, I suppose - on those typical late 60s - early 70s pack-the-kids-and-car-and-drive-off-on-vacation trips, I was the one who loved to stop at every historical marker, museum, and battlefield. My sister would roll her eyes and tag along sulkily while I took it all in. I especially enjoyed those spots that were preserved as closely as possible to the way they looked when the event that made them prominent had happened. It fascinated me (and still does) to see a place the way it must have looked in the 18th or 19th century. I would imagine that I was gazing through the eyes of Ben Franklin, George Custer, or Thomas Edison.
That kind of past gazing is made easier by markers, plaques, buildings, and maps that correlate the present scenery with the way things were. Some of the events of the 20th century made that impractical. For example, most of the folks flying in the airspace once occupied by the great bomber streams en-route to targets in occupied Europe have no idea what occurred there. It's tough to stake out a piece of sky as the one where American and German airmen fought over the fate of Schweinfurt, for example. Radio waves are much the same.
I understand the sentiment, but I'm opposed to setting aside a memorial frequency. Like the battlefields in the sky, there is no easy way to mark its significance to those passing through. Anyone unaware of what 500KHz used to represent will be no more enlightened after tuning through a static-filled slice of bandwidth.
The warriors of those aerial battles of the 40s are memorialized at the airfields where their missions began, and where they ended if they were lucky enough. Maybe we should be satisfied to do the same with radio history. The memorials are the RF stations ashore and the radio rooms of those ships left from the era - the SS Jeremiah O'Brien, the Queen Mary, the USS Texas, and many others. Those are solid and tangible, with radio gear, clocks marked with silence periods, and often, present day ham radio ops who can explain and demo the equipment. That says a lot more than radio silence.
All IMHO, of course.
i "keep hearing" that we US hams MAY get a "small piece of spectrum" for PERMANENT operations around 500K.(yes, i know there have been "temporary permits" given to SOME hams- not me though.)
have you heard BELIEVABLE anything of this???
free dixie,sw
Nope, not yet. I'd like to see that happen. One of these days I may even live on a piece of property large enough to put up a good 500KHz antenna. Right now I have enough troubles getting out on 80m. 120 - forget it!
a "little bird" told me up in G-burg a couple of months ago that there MAY be about 25 more USB "channels" for 60M opened up SOON.
i have my fingers crossed that we do get them, as those are really NICE places for VA-ARES & VA-RACES emergency comms.
free dixie,73,sw
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