Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-12-27
RUSSIAN STATION
. | MOST POWERFUL
Employs $4,000 Watts and
Listening Range Reported
at 1900 Miles.
BY MARTIN CODEL.

Russia has just placed in operation
the highest-powered broadcasting sta.
ton in Europe. Employing $4,000 watt:
of power on long-wave channel anc
having capacity of 100000 watts, its
listening range is reported by Amtorg
the official Russian trading agency in
New York, to be more than 1900 miles
The station, situated just outside Of
Moscow, is the highest powered in reg
ular operation anywhere in the world
The several stations with a capacity OF
100000 to 100000 watts in the United
States are licensed to operate on tenn
porary experimental basis after mid
night only. Fifty thousand watts is the
nlaXimu. power authorized in this
country, and there are only a few of
such power here and none anywhere
else in the world.
Operated by Trade Unions.
The new Russian station is operated
by the All-Union Council of Trade
Unions. Unlike the 750-000-watt radio
telegraph station of American manu-
facture recently delivered to Russia, it
was completely designed and built by a
Soviet electrical trust. The 100000
watt station, the largest code station in
the world, is being installed for an in
ternatlonal communications service
which will link Moscow with New York
and other leading cities of the world in
1890.
Using the low frequency of 800 kilo-
cycles 1888 meters) the new Russian
broadcasting station is operating in a
wave band otherwise reserved by inter-
national treaty for aeronautical serv-
ices. The Soviet government, however,
is, not a Signatory of the radio treaty
drawn up in Washington in 1927, not
having been invited to participate by
the United States Government. Hence
it does not feel bound by the restric-
tons that document imposes.
.Russia's deep interest in radio is evil
denced by the fact that it has the
largest number Of stations in Europe in
regular operation. They number about
20, compared to some 80 each in Ger
many, France and Sweden and % in
the British Isles.
Last reports gave only 100000 receiv-
ing sets in use in the Soviet Union, but
a recent statement by Amtorg showed
that the program of the commiSariat
for posts. telegraphs and radio calls for
the installation of 100000 sets in
1888.
Sets on Street Corners.
The sets are installed at street cor
ners, in schools and in village assembly
halls, and the programs have more of
an educational character than those of
this country. Few sets are privately
owned, the avowed object being to make
radio available first to masses of lis
teners.
The Russian radio production pro-
gram calls for more than S250.000 900
worth of equipment during the next
three years. Most of it is being pro-
duced by its own weak current trust"
which has a patent exchange and tech
nical cooperation agreement with the
Radio Corporation of America. A party
of Russian radio engineers visited this
country last Spring to study American
radio methods.
The giant high-voltage rectifier, ca
pable of an output of 100000 watts, the
largest ever built for radio, represents
the biggest order for radio equipment
placed in this country by Russia. 1t
cost about S600000 OTHERWISE the
Russians purchased only about 1865 900
worth OF radio equipment in the United
States from January through Novem-
Der, 1929, according to the Department
of Commerce.
Following the example of the United
States and Canada, the Russian gov
eminent is encouraging amateur radio
activity. The study of radio is being
stimulated in the schools, and local
amateur radio clubs are sponsored with
the thought of developing radio engi-
neerS from the youth of that country
Copyright, 1929, North American Newspaper
Alliance0