Fascinating and educational. In the US, amateur radio licensees are allowed 1 W EIRP maximum 135.7-137.8 kHz: CW, Phone, Image, RTTY/Data. I know it’s been tried before but would be fun to use a tethered helium balloon to dangle a VLF antenna. I’ve never done any ham transmitting below the 160 meter band so this would be new territory for me.
I've read that the TACAMO aircraft can actually command a missile launch with no involvement from personnel at the launch site...this is for the case where the command capsule has been destroyed but some of the individual missile tubes have survived. Presumably done via the VLF link.
Don't know if this can be done at any time or if there is some kind of dead-man's-switch, enabling the launch-by-radio circuit only if no humans survive in the command capsule.
David, thanks for reading and for your comment. VLF data rates are very low. I’m unsure of the mechanisms of how Nuclear launches are initiated but I imagine it takes more than just a low data rate radio signal. There is almost certainly failsafe’s and a human(s) in the loop somewhere, as well as physical switches. I’ve done a piece adjacent to dead-mans switches before.
I asked Grok for information on the launch-by-radio capability. Seems that it is UHF, so would have to be line-of-sight from the aircraft...maybe a couple of hundred miles.
Well done and interesting. My dad was a Marine Corps instructor for early warning radar in the 1950's and would enjoy your posts. He loved electronics. He often took me to Radio Shack to buy components.
Ok. How about British radar before and during the Battle of Britain for a topic? Take care.
I stopped reading after the preamble, but I'm sure you know your radio stuff.
It’s okay I know you are only here for my early morning notes.
Fascinating and educational. In the US, amateur radio licensees are allowed 1 W EIRP maximum 135.7-137.8 kHz: CW, Phone, Image, RTTY/Data. I know it’s been tried before but would be fun to use a tethered helium balloon to dangle a VLF antenna. I’ve never done any ham transmitting below the 160 meter band so this would be new territory for me.
I've read that the TACAMO aircraft can actually command a missile launch with no involvement from personnel at the launch site...this is for the case where the command capsule has been destroyed but some of the individual missile tubes have survived. Presumably done via the VLF link.
Don't know if this can be done at any time or if there is some kind of dead-man's-switch, enabling the launch-by-radio circuit only if no humans survive in the command capsule.
David, thanks for reading and for your comment. VLF data rates are very low. I’m unsure of the mechanisms of how Nuclear launches are initiated but I imagine it takes more than just a low data rate radio signal. There is almost certainly failsafe’s and a human(s) in the loop somewhere, as well as physical switches. I’ve done a piece adjacent to dead-mans switches before.
Thanks!
https://substack.com/@radiostack/note/p-178236540?utm_source=notes-share-action&r=6d1snh
I asked Grok for information on the launch-by-radio capability. Seems that it is UHF, so would have to be line-of-sight from the aircraft...maybe a couple of hundred miles.
https://x.com/i/grok/share/6efe732bd6df40f6bce4859f3b4ecb33
Well done and interesting. My dad was a Marine Corps instructor for early warning radar in the 1950's and would enjoy your posts. He loved electronics. He often took me to Radio Shack to buy components.
Ok. How about British radar before and during the Battle of Britain for a topic? Take care.
I just don’t know if I can be the mobile transmitter you speak of, Raj. Feeling kind of bad rn.