Evening star., 1922-04-23
How far is Paris-London-Berl

How far is Paris-London-Ber
The man in the street and the
geography class answer in miles to-
day." says bulletin issued from the
Washington headquarters of the Ma
tional Geographic Society. But in a
year, or even a few months, the an
swers may come in quarter-turns of
a little black knob.
For radio is affecting geography
as it is affecting many other fields.
If you can hear voices and music and
perhaps even the hum of traffic in
the streets of a distant city. that city
must straightway lose much Of its
remoteness.
Worlds Longest Radio Waves.
Even today when radio telephony
is in it's infancy and radio telegraphy
is merely a slightly older brother. our
own country seems to be shrinking
rapidly. and nations seem to be
gravitating closer together. 1t Is as
though Europe and America, and
presently the other continents, were
being drawn toward one another by
tightening hawsers of ether waves.
The capstan points for these ethereal
cables--the great radio telegraph
stations-take on a new geographic
interest.
Wave lengths are not an infallible
index to-the power of a radio station
cate comparative strength. at least
roughly. The station which of all
those in the world now regularly
uses the longest waves-23.000 meters
or approximately fourteen mfles-is
near Bordeaux, France. 1t is the
Lafayette station. built by the United
States Navy to facilitate Americas
part in the world war, and since sold
to France. This station. which until
Secently was unchallenged as the
worlds most powerful station. sends
its telegraphic messages with ease
and practically instantaneously. of
course-over the 1000 miles of water
and land that separate Bordeaux from
Washington, and it has been heard
occasionally in French 1ndo-China,
5000 miles to the east.
CHALLENGES for First Place.
"Lafayette's title to first place is
now challenged by commercial sta
tion recently opehed on Long Island.
which. If it is not yet more power
full. will be when additional units are
added. This station sends on the
second longest wave in use. $4,000
meters. or nearly twelve miles. and
is. employed for transmitting mes
sages to Germany, about 1000 miles
away.
Although the United States Navy's
station at Annapolis Md, is as
signed wave Of 17.145 meters
(roughly ten and one-half miles). the
third longest in use, it is easily one
of the worlds most powerful sta
tions. For that matter, so Is the
Navy station at Cavite, Philippine
Islands. operating on $4,000 meters.
The Navy depends on the Annapolis
statfon-which Is operated. incidental
ly, by remote control by means of
keys In the Navy building in Wash :
ington-to transmit messages day IN
and day out over a radius of about
$500 miles. This range includes the
extreme eastern end of the Medtter-
ranean sea, and the same territory can
also be reached from the opposite
The United States Navy has the
most complete system of high-power
land stations for radio telegraphy of
all naval establishments. Southward
of the. great Annapolis station it has
among it's larger units the sending
plant at Cayey, Porto Rico, using a
l0,510-meter wave, and another at
Balboa, Canal Zone. sending on 10.1 11O
meters. The eastern portion of the
Pacific is covered from the continent
by a station at San Diego, Calf, and
uses waves Of $500 meters and the
latter OF 7,100. In the Hawaiian
Islands the Navy has two sending
stations, one using 1880 meters and
the other 8,S75. On Guam is a naval
station which sends on 9,145 meters,
and, finally. in the Philippines is the
13, ,9O0.meter station, which completes
the Nayy's band of radio stations
around the world. In practically no