The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-09-04
Method Discovered of C0mmuni.
eating With Submerged
Submarines.
YOUTHS ARE LUCKY FINDERS
Revelations Come When Researchers
Are at Work on Something Else
Single Turn Loop Brings
Amazing Results.

SnOro or sea. HOW lnlS is zone ant
how it came to be discovered that /
could be done not until now has beer
made public. Like a good many othe
revelations it came when the research
ers were at work on another problem
The scientists of the radio section
of the bureau of standards stumbled
on it's secret and the lucky ones to sus
pect it were two young assistants mo-
long out of high school. Their expert
ments and the development of what is
known as the loop aerial" for Subma-
rine radio communication by the bu-
and perfect, and producing such won
derful results, that the navy has
adopted it and is equipping all its I'm
dersea craft with his style of loop.
In the fall of 1917 a series of expert
ments was undertaken by the bureau
to develop an apparatus for the detec-
ton of enemy submersibles. J. A.. Will
~loughby and p. D. Lowell were en-
gagged in the work. They had a notion
that a closed or rubber encased coil
of wire offered the best chances for
success. They made one and threw
it one night into a tank of fresh water
on the grounds of the bureau near
Chevy Chase, Md, a suburb of Wash
ington.. To their delight they received
a signal from the big radio station at
Arlington. The next night they sub
merged the coil in the tidal basin of
the Potomac near the new navy build
ing. Again the signal anne with no
difference in strength whether the loop
or coil was suspended in air or sunk in
the river.
Discovery Significant.
The significance of this discovery
struck both young men. Here was a
way possibly to detect the presence OF
enemy submarines, but surely to talk
with our own, which was equally i'm
portant, had been thought impossible.
This was in November.
In December Improvements in the
submerged coil brought the reception
of signals from Lyons, France; Paris
and San Diego, Cal. BY March last
year excellent signals were received
on a single turn coil $50 feet long by
sixty feet high having a wave length
of 100 meters by $4,000 meters.
In April Mr.. Willoughby discussed
with Lieutenant Commander HI. P. st.
Clair of the radio division of the navy,
the use of loops on submarines for
both transmission and reception under
water. Both he and Mr.. Lowell were
sent to New London to work under
Commander Mcdowell in charge of the
base, to install the apparatus for a try
out on submarine D-1. 1t is a simple
cOntrivance, the metal frame of she
itself being a part of it,
this being used as a ground" just as
the earth is used in hand ~telegraphy.
The circuit is thus made complete. AS
finally perfected the loop consists of
two insulated wires grounded at the
ends Of the hull carried over
supports to the coming tower
thence through "radio-lead-ins"
sending apparatus. A single turn
oop was used on the d.. With its
submerged three feet signals were
'eceived from a submarine chaser
h~ree-quarters of a mile away.
Boat Used as "Ground."
A new type Of loop was tried on the
]. S. S. G-3, in which the lead-in wires
vere brought in from the upper side
f the loop instead of the lower and
be entire loop was insulated from the
ull. Better, but not satisfactory, re-
ults were obtained. Up to this time
ne frame of the boat had not been
sed as a ground" !,
The lower side of the loop was re-
loved and the ends of the wire fas-
,ned to the bow and stern. The top Y
f the loop was submerged eight feet; $
gnals from Nauen, Germany, were c
early heard. Very sharp indications :
direction were obtained when under
alter or on top Of it. And soOn other
atoms were heard, including Carnar-
N, England Rome, Italy, and varl-
is merchant vessels. Later expert v
ents showed that communications "
n be carried on at sea under all con- Il
lions more efficiently with the closed =
Op aerial than with the Ordinary :
ltenna now in general use.
When a submarine equipped with
e perfected apparatus is submerged
y North American or European sta
N can be received as distinctly as a
len it is. on the surface. The maxi 3.
I'M depth of submergence at which e,
mails can be heard is determined by G.
2 wave length. +;
Signals can be transmitted from the Pc
p to a distance of ten or twelve e.
les when the submarine is com Pc
'tely submerged, the maximum dis 81
ice being obtained when the top of o.
} loop is practically at the surface. ga
e distance decreases to two or three ST.
les when the loop is eight or nine TO
t below the surface. ST.