Longwave transmitter Grimeton

This system has the only still functioning machine transmitter in the world, which on special occasions, such as the open day named after the inventor Ernst Fredrik Werner Alexanderson , either on the last Sunday in June or on the first Sunday in July, on the frequency 17.2 kHz to transmit a short Morse code is put into operation.

An Alexanderson antenna with twelve 2.2 km long copper wires, which are suspended from six towers that look like huge high - voltage pylons (height 127 m, width of the transverse arms 46 m), serves as the transmitting antenna .

history

The transmitter was commissioned on December 1, 1924, initially with a wavelength of 18,600 m (16.13 kHz). The official opening was on July 2nd, 1925. The Swedish King Gustav V and the inventor were present. Originally, the transmitter in Grimeton was part of a network of 17 transmitters of the same design, which were equipped with 200 kW Alexanderson alternators . Although more stations were planned, only nine stations in the United States , Hawaii , Wales , Poland and Sweden actually went live. The transmitter was originally used for communication between Grimeton Radio and Radio Central in Long Island , USA. After the Second World War , when intercontinental radio links were increasingly implemented via shortwave connections , the Swedish military still used the transmitter for communication with its submarines , as the electromagnetic waves in this frequency range can penetrate a few meters deep into salt water .

In 1995 the plant, which was still in perfect working order, was closed due to the decreasing interest from the military.

The transmitter in Grimeton also includes some shortwave antennas and a 260 meter high guyed steel truss mast built in 1966 for broadcasting VHF radio and TV programs.

museum

As a result of the efforts of interest groups to secure the facility, the station was made a national Swedish industrial monument in 1996, thus ensuring that the maintenance measures are financed for an unlimited period of time. The long-wave transmitter in Grimeton is now on the list of the most important places in Sweden.

At the turn of the millennium, the Swedish King Carl XVI. Gustaf received a New Year's message around the earth based on the first message broadcast via Grimeton. It is estimated that the message was received by around 100 people around the world.

On July 2, 2004, the transmission system was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO . It is the 13th UNESCO World Heritage Site in Sweden. In addition, Grimeton is the anchor point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage .

Even today, the transmitter is put into operation every year on Alexanderson Day and Christmas. It is also used on special occasions, e.g. B. broadcast at UN events. There are also test broadcasts that are usually not announced. The regular transmissions are received by radio enthusiasts all over the world. The operators look forward to a reception report after such broadcasts. These reports are summarized in a table and sent by email or can be downloaded from the sender's homepage. This results in a regular audience of 200 to 300 people, whereby it can be assumed that significantly more people will hear the transmissions, since not everyone gives a reception report. On Alexanderson Day 2013 there was a reception report from South Africa for the first time.

photos

Alexanderson alternator in the station building
control panel
Log-periodic shortwave antenna next to the old radio station (Varberg, Sweden)
Entrance hall UNESCO World Heritage Site (Grimeton)

literature

Grimeton radio station, Varberg, Sweden (brochure published by the Tourist Office in Varberg, Sweden)
Britta Nystrom: Grimeton radio stations - en etnologisk studie över verksamhet och vardag.
Harald Lutz: Long-wave reception with the PC. beam-Verlag, Marburg 2004, ISBN 3-88976-047-3 , pp. 49–60 (only available from beam-Verlag!)

Web links

Commons : Varberg Radio Station - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

http://grimeton.org/ (homepage of the transmitter)
http://www.tekniskamuseet.se/templates/Page.aspx?id=3367 (Swedish)
SAQ received with a standard PC
Longwave transmitter Grimeton. In: Structurae (transmission towers of the long-wave transmitter Grimeton)
Longwave transmitter Grimeton. In: Structurae (VHF and TV transmission mast Grimeton)
Friends of the "Alexander - Grimeton Veteranradios Vänner" association
TV documentary about the world cultural heritage Grimeton from the series "Treasures of the World"
Online VLF receiver operated by Wouter Weggelaar PA3WEG
Sending out with Christmas greetings

Individual evidence

↑ Reports of Transmission (reception reports summarized by the transmitter)

[1] Reports of Transmission (reception reports summarized by the transmitter)