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Matt Blaze@federate.social to Photography@fedia.io · 6 months ago

Shortwave "Discone" Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Transmitter Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.

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Shortwave "Discone" Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Transmitter Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.

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Matt Blaze@federate.social to Photography@fedia.io · 6 months ago
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Shortwave “Discone” Antenna, Former AT&T High Seas Radio Transmitter Site, Ocean Gate, NJ, 2009.

All the pixels, none of the per-minute toll charges, at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4141766569

#photography

  • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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    6 months ago

    These places are what the Internet looked like a century ago.

    • Jake Miller@federate.social
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      6 months ago

      @mattblaze@federate.social Wow! That’s really interesting, thanks! I wonder if we are going to regret being dependent on satellites for all comms in the next decade or so - the risk/threat profile seems to have changed since 1999.

    • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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      6 months ago

      I should note that while the site had a number of discone antennas like this one, they were mostly there as backups in case the main antennas (including truly massive wire rhombics pointing toward various oceanic regions) or transmitter combiners failed. The old Bell System did not mess around.

      • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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        6 months ago

        Here, by the way, is what I believe was the last published frequency list and schedule for the High Seas service. (A souvenir of my last visit to the station before it went off the air.)

        • Michael Katzmann🐈@mastodon.radio
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          6 months ago

          @mattblaze@federate.social nice short call signs in CW!

        • Rich Stein (he/him)@mastodon.social
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          6 months ago

          @mattblaze@federate.social
          My Dad was in the Coast Guard before and after the Korean War, and a couple of his tours were “weather patrol” between Newfoundland and Bermuda. In addition to taking observations using wx balloons and radiosondes (I believe), he talked about regularly patching airplanes into the marine operator system. I was surprised to hear him talk about that — i.e., seems like aviation did not have the same communications infrastructure, so the piggyback was necessary.

        • Steve Yaeger@mastodon.social
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          6 months ago

          @mattblaze@federate.social What gorgeous typesetting.

          • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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            6 months ago

            @steveyaeger@mastodon.social especially the waves made of dingbats under each station name.

            • Jonathan Koomey@mastodon.energy
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              6 months ago

              @mattblaze@federate.social @steveyaeger@mastodon.social Here’s info on the receiving station at Pt Reyes, from the NPS: https://www.nps.gov/places/point-reyes-kph.htm

              • Jonathan Koomey@mastodon.energy
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                6 months ago

                @mattblaze @steveyaeger I recall seeing those antennas as recently as ten years ago, but they had clearly fallen into disrepair even then.

                • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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                  6 months ago

                  @jgkoomey @steveyaeger There were actually three HF receiver sites at Point Reyes. There was the AT&T radiotelephone station KMI (which was completely razed about 10 years ago), which was next door to the still-alive-and-kicking RCA radiotelegraph station KPH (worth a visit when open). And up the road a bit is the still-active (but remotely controlled) Coast Guard station NMC.

                  KMI had this spiffy sign, which I’m told was saved and is in storage somewhere.

                  • Jeremy_N1ZZZ@mastodon.radio
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                    6 months ago

                    @mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social

                    KPH still lives on Saturday afternoons. I copy their CW, RTTY, & SITOR transmissions from as far away as the East China Sea on my ship. They also activate K6KPH on the amateur bands. https://www.radiomarine.org/

                  • Erich M.@chaos.social
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                    6 months ago

                    @mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy @steveyaeger@mastodon.social

                    Point Reyes, hmm that rings a bell in me. I am sure I intercepted this station as well. Need to look it up my qsl archive.

                  • Alatar the Blue@hostux.social
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                    6 months ago

                    @steveyaeger@mastodon.social @mattblaze@federate.social @jgkoomey@mastodon.energy there are some really cool videos on the MRHS website about KHS, but probably the most interesting is DA sending the last sign off. https://www.radiomarine.org/mrhs-videos

                  • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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                    6 months ago

                    @jgkoomey @steveyaeger
                    What I appreciate about this is that the logo dates the sign to the 90’s, when high seas HF radiotelephone was already no longer exactly a growth business for AT&T, but someone still loved the place enough to make a beautiful carved wooden sign for it.

        • The Psychotic Network Ferret@infosec.exchangeB
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          6 months ago

          @mattblaze@federate.social WOO!

        • k8quinn@social.vivaldi.net
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          6 months ago

          @mattblaze@federate.social

          The Marine Radio Historical Society has restored the CW (Morse code) stations at Point Reyes and operates KPH KSM and KFS (as well as ham station K6KPH, mostly on Saturdays.

          More info at:

          https://www.radiomarine.org

          #radio #AmateurRadio

          Photo is of KPH during one of its operations.

          • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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            6 months ago

            @k8quinn@vivaldi.net yes, great folks!

          • Douglas@mastodon.social
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            6 months ago

            @k8quinn @mattblaze I’ve been wanting to visit KPH. It looks like a really interesting place!

            If I was a mariner today, I would want to make sure I’ve got a couple of short wave radios in case satellites become unavailable…

            • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
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              6 months ago

              @douglasvb @k8quinn It’s absolutely worth a visit, and they’re really nice people.

              • Douglas@mastodon.social
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                6 months ago

                @mattblaze@federate.social @k8quinn@vivaldi.net I think we might go that way in January for a long weekend so we’ll be sure to stop by.

                I’ve passed the building many times in the last 30 years but until a year or so ago I didn’t realize what it was!

      • jbaggs@infosec.exchange
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        6 months ago

        @mattblaze@federate.social It makes sense they’d use something more omnidirectional / lower gain, and broad spectrum for backups.

      • Lot⁴⁹@mstdn.social
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        6 months ago

        @mattblaze@federate.social Often felt that if AT&T leadership had been visionary, instead of focused on charging you $1.50/month for a long handset cord, there’d be no Internet or cable teevee.

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