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"Wavescan" is a weekly program for long distance radio hobbyists produced by Dr. Adrian M. Peterson, Coordinator of International Relations for Adventist World Radio. AWR carries the program over many of its stations (including shortwave). Adrian Peterson is a highly regarded DXer and radio historian, and often includes features on radio history in his program. We are reproducing those features below, with Dr. Peterson's permission and assistance.


Wavescan 469, December 28, 2003

The Wandering North Magnetic Pole

It was somewhere around one thousand years ago that the Chinese developed the earliest ancestor of the magnetic compass. They discovered that a small piece of magnetic iron would always point in a northerly direction when floated carefully on a piece of wood or straw.

It is thought that this valuable aid to navigation was introduced to seafarers in the Mediterranean areas soon after its introduction in China. As time went by, the crude piece of floating iron was replaced by a double pointed arrow pivoted carefully on a central point.

However, European sailors soon discovered that the direction that is shown by the magnetic compass can vary according to where in the world the ship happens to be located. It was conjectured that the North Magnetic Pole was located somewhere at the top of the North American continent.

In 1829, an English explorer, James Clark Ross, set sail on his uncle's ship in search of the specific location of the elusive Magnetic Pole in Canada's North West Passage. Their ship was trapped in the ice for four years, though they believed that they had found the exact location, on an island called Boothia Felix.

In 1904 the Scandinavian explorer, Roald Amundsen, discovered that the North Magnetic Pole was moving northwards. It is calculated that the North Magnetic Pole has moved in an irregular elliptical pattern during the past 400 years, and that it can move as much as 40 kilometers in a year. Since the year 1931, this mobile magnetic wonder has moved a distance of 1,000 kilometers.

A few weeks back, the TV entertainment program, "Candid Camera", made reference to the wandering North Magnetic Pole. They quoted a CNN news report which stated that the North Magnetic Pole was moving across Canada towards Alaska and that it would be located in Siberia sometime next year.

Back in the early years of wireless experimentation, several attempts were made to use the earth's magnetic field as an aid to the international propagation of a wireless signal. Some authorities state that the natural resonant frequency of the earth is just 7 Hertz, or 7 cycles per second.

Different locations on the earth's surface were tried and different procedures were implemented in an attempt to capitalize on the earth's magnetic field and its natural radio frequency, but there was no indication of any enhancement of the transmitted signal due to these factors.


Year End Review

The olde year in the new century, 2003, is almost ended and the new year 2004 is just on the horizon. The past year has been quite tumultuous for the international radio world, and many significant changes and developments have taken place.

Many knowledgeable radio authorities would state that the most significant development in international radio during the past year was the official commencement of digital shortwave broadcasting. The DRM consortium in Europe launched a regular shortwave service in the digital mode at mid-year, and this implementation was highlighted at the European DX Convention at Konigstein near Frankfurt in Germany.

In the United States, the NASB organization took another step in the same direction with the inauguration of a series of digital shortwave broadcasts from two different locations. In the digital mode, these broadcasts are on the air from a VT Merlin transmitter at Rampisham in England, and in the analog made the same programming is on the air from station WRMI in Miami, Florida.

However, at the same time as digital shortwave broadcasting is making a successful introduction, analog broadcasting is still a major communication medium throughout the world. New analog shortwave transmitters have been installed in Mongolia, in several countries of Africa, and at the AWR station on the island of Guam. All India Radio has also installed two new high powered replacement transmitters, and China has installed a score of new shortwave transmitters at 500 kW each.

The new HCJB station in Australia is in the process of stabilizing its new equipment, a new Gospel station is planned for installation on the island of Madagascar, and All India Radio is poised ready to begin a new 24 hour news channel on shortwave, with the use of many of its home service shortwave stations.

Many of the major shortwave stations continue to relay their programming from relay transmitters located closer to their target areas. The BBC, Voice of America, Radio France International, NHK Tokyo and Radio Australia can be heard from their own home-based stations as well as from regional relay transmitters.

This is also true with the gospel shortwave stations as well, and the programming from TWR, HCJB, FEBA and FEBC, as well as Adventist World Radio, can be heard from distant relay transmitters. In addition, while the home based shortwave transmitter was off the air for repairs, RNZI in New Zealand took out a temporary relay from Radio Australia, Shepparton.

In addition to the leasing of time on shortwave relay transmitters, another matter of radio progress has been the establishment in key areas of additional relay transmitters in the FM band by the large international radio organizations. However, even though this procedure can be quite successful, yet some countries in Africa have closed some of these dedicated relay transmitters due to unresolved political differences.

However, at the same time as there have been several major developments of a positive nature in the international radio world, there have also been several significant negative developments. Most of the announced closures of shortwave services are brought about by a decrease in funding.

For example, All India Radio states that they will not repair or renovate ailing shortwave transmitters in their home service network. Radio Denmark and Radio Mediterranean announce that they are closing their shortwave services at the end of the year, and several organizations are reducing their language output as an economy measure. FEBA Radio closed their shortwave station in the Seychelles Islands at mid-year, though the BBC in the Seychelles remains on air.

On the QSL scene, new cards have been issued by NASB in North America and by AWR in England. Station HCJB is making available any of their older QSL cards still in stock, and both Radio Prague International and Radio Slovakia International have issued a series of QSL cards for the year. Radio Free Asia in Washington, DC sent their representative over to the EDXC convention in Germany to announce that they are now issuing a new series of QSL cards at regular intervals.