|
|
|
Special Topic Report 96-04
|
THE GLOBE WIRELESS NETWORK
by Ary Boender
This WUN special report is a review of the vast maritime network of Globe
Wireless. I'd like to express my gratitude to the people at Globe's for
their kind co-operation and for providing all this info. -Ary Boender-
The Globe Wireless Network
--------------------------
Globe Wireless (formerly KFS World Communications) based in Half Moon
Bay, California, is a maritime communications service provider dedicated
to the modernization of HF radio for marine applications. The new service,
GlobeEmail, is revolutionizing HF radio data communications. A complete
range of data communication services - including electronic mail, fax,
telex and telegrams - is available worldwide. The company offers all
messaging services through the Global Radio Network of HF coastal radio
stations.
o QSL info
Reception data from numerous receiving locations, worldwide, is needed
to confirm the coverage area of the network, and especially the newer
stations. For this reason, the Globe Wireless Engineering Department
is requesting assistance from interested listeners.
Send in your reception reports and you will receive a handsome QSL
card suitable for display in your radio shack. Every listener is
eligible to receive one QSL card for each Globe Wireless coast station
received and correctly reported. Reports are needed from ships at sea,
as well as listeners on shore.
"We find reception reports from listeners extremely useful," said Rod
Deakin, Chief Engineer, Globe Wireless. "They include valuable technical
information and we are happy to send QSL cards in return."
Globe Wireless SITOR transmitters can be easily recognized. They broadcast
a unique "free signal" pattern, followed by the station's call sign, when
not otherwise in use. Similarly, available CW transmitters broadcast a
repetitive "wheel" including the call sign and other information. The 6
traditional maritime HF bands - 4, 6, 8, 12, 16 and 22 megahertz - are
utilized by Globe Wireless stations.
To be of maximum value to the Globe Wireless Engineering staff,
reception reports should contain the following information:
# Date and Time (UTC) of your reception
Call Sign (QRA) of the Globe Wireless network station heard
Either the actual frequency (QRG), or ITU channel number
Mode of transmission heard (SITOR, CW, etc.)
Signal strength (QSA) and quality
Any interference (QRM) heard on frequency, or on adjacent channels
# Did you hear traffic or idle signals? If traffic, whom was Globe
working?
Model number of receiver and type of antenna used
Location (QTH) of your receiving station
Any other comments
Include a complete mailing address with all reports so that Globe may
send your QSL card by return post. Ships are requested to include
either the address of the vessel's home port or the Radio Officer's
personal address. Please send your reception reports for all Global
Radio Network stations to:
GLOBE WIRELESS
ATTN.: ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ONE MEYN ROAD
HALF MOON BAY, CA 94019 USA
o Palo Alto Radio / KFS
Palo Alto Radio, call sign KFS, is a proud and historic radio station
on the West coast of the United States. It has been on the air, conti-
nuously, since 1912, including throughout both World Wars. It is the
flagship station of Globe Wireless.
Transmit site
The KFS transmit site is located in the city of Palo Alto, (Santa
Clara county) California. The Latitude is 37 degrees, 26 minutes and
44 seconds North; the Longitude is 122 degrees, 06 minutes and 44
seconds West; and the ground elevation is 5 feet. The site is in a
marshy area near the southern end of San Francisco Bay. The antenna
complement includes twelve full-wave dipoles, two inverted cones and
a loaded vertical for MF. Seventeen transmitters are in use for CW,
SITOR and GlobeEmail service on MF and HF. Some Press Wireless (World
War II vintage) transmitters are still on-line.
The base of the original antenna tower with its 1921 inscription is
still visible. The landline call sign of the site used to be MX for
Marsh Transmitter.
Receive site
The receivers for KFS are located six miles south of Half Moon Bay,
(San Mateo county) California. The Latitude is 37 degrees, 23 minutes
and 03 seconds North; the Longitude is 122 degrees, 24 minutes and 38
seconds West. The site is on a 150 foot cliff overlooking the Pacific
Ocean. The antenna complement includes three log-periodic dipole arrays,
several wire V-beams and several rhombics. The receivers in use for CW
are Watkins-Johnson model 8271 and for SITOR TCI 8074 are used.
The landline call sign of the site used to be LO for Lobitos Creek
which runs into the ocean on the Southern boundary of the 200 acre
property.
o Hawaii Radio / KEJ
Hawaii Radio, call sign KEJ, is a new coastal radio station constructed
by Globe Wireless in early 1995. It is located on the island of Molokai
in the Hawaiian Islands, Pacific Ocean.
Transmit site
The KEJ transmit site is located near Kahalelani, Maui county, Hawaii.
The Latitude is 21 degrees, 10 minutes and 45 seconds North; the Longi-
tude is 157 degrees, 10 minutes and 49 seconds West; and the ground
elevation is 640 feet.
The antenna complement is five quarter-wave vertical's with elevated
ground planes. Five Henry two kilowatt transmitters are in use for
SITOR service on HF.
Receive site
The receivers for KEJ are also located near Kahalelani. The shared
receive antenna is an omni-directional cone array. The receivers in
use are TCI model 8074.
o Goteberg Radio / SAB
Goteberg Radio, call sign SAB, operates Globe Wireless transmitters
from a location in Sweden. The station is owned and maintained by
Telia Mobitel, a Swedish company..
Transmit site
The SAB transmit site is located near G”teberg, Sweden. The Latitude
is 57 degrees, 28 minutes North; the Longitude is 11 degrees, 56
minutes East. Six transmitters are in use for SITOR and GlobeEmail
service on HF.
Receive site
The receivers for SAB are also located near G”teberg, Sweden.
o Slidell Radio / WNU
Slidell Radio, call sign WNU, is a proud and historic radio station
on the Gulf of Mexico coast of the United States near New Orleans,
Louisiana. The station was first constructed to provide communication
with banana boats loading in Central America and sailing to the United
States mainland. It was operated for many years by Tropical Radio and
Telegraph (TRT).
Transmit site
The transmitters for WNU are located near Pearl River, (St. Tammany
parish) Louisiana. The Latitude is 30 degrees, 22 minutes and 12 secs
North; the Longitude is 89 degrees, 47 minutes and 26 seconds West; and
the ground elevation is 26 feet. Twenty one transmitters are in use for
CW and SITOR service on MF and HF.
Receive site
The receivers for WNU are located on Radio Road near Pearl River,
Louisiana... The antenna complement... Most of the receivers in use
are Watkins-Johnson model 8274.
o VCT Radio
VCT is located the island of Newfoundland in the northwest Atlantic
Ocean. The facilities for VCT are provided and operated by NEWEAST
TELEOCEANICS, a Globe Wireless partner. NewEast also operates Tors
Cove Radio (CHC419) that provides HF SSB voice services for an area
of 1500 nautical miles around Newfoundland.
Transmit site
The VCT transmit site is located 40 kilometers south of St. John's,
Newfoundland, Canada. The Latitude is 47 degrees, 14 minutes North;
the Longitude is 52 degrees, 51 minutes West.
Four Collins HF-80 transmitters, with one kilowatt of output power,
are in use for SITOR and GlobeEmail service on HF.
Receive site
The receivers for VCT are located near ???, Newfoundland, Canada.
Most of the receivers in use are made by Collins.
o Awanui Radio / ZLA
Awanui Radio, call sign ZLA, is a new coastal radio station constructed
by Globe Wireless in 1995. It is located on the north island of New
Zealand, in the Southern Pacific Ocean. Operation of the station is
controlled from Globe Wireless headquarters in California.
The transmitter installation is located at a historical radio site on
Wireless Road, between Kaitaia and Awanui, in the North Island. Commis-
sioned in 1913 "Radio Awanui was New Zealand's main station for commu-
nications with ships," according to information provided by the Far
North Regional Museum in Kaitaia, New Zealand. A Telefunken quenched
spark system was used for transmission. The original station was dis-
mantled in 1930 and the area has been used for farming since then. The
call sign used by the original station, ZLA, is once again in use.
Transmit site
The ZLA transmit site is located near Awanui, New Zealand. The Latitude
is 30 degrees, 00 minutes South; the Longitude is 175 degrees, 00 mins
West.
Eight Henry two kilowatt transmitters are in use for SITOR service on
HF. The antennas are individual omni-directional vertical arrays for
each marine band in use.
Receive site
The receivers for ZLA are also located near Awanui, New Zealand, about
ten miles from the transmit site. The shared antenna is an omni-direc-
tional discone. The receivers in use are TCI 8074.
o New Station - Bahrain Radio / A9M
Bahrain Radio is located in the central Arabian Gulf and offers superb
coverage of the INDIAN OCEAN and extended coverage from the EASTERN
MEDITERRANEAN SEA to the WESTERN PACIFIC OCEAN
Globe's construction crew is currently busy in the desert atmosphere
on the island of Bahrain in the Arabian Gulf constructing antennas and
installing transmitters, receivers and radio equipment. This station is
expected to become operational later this summer.
o New Station - Perth Radio / VIP
Located in the Southwest corner of the Australian continent, Perth
Radio offers excellent coverage of the Eastern Indian Ocean and the
Southwestern Pacific Ocean.
TELSTRA, the Australian telephone company, will be using existing radio
equipment for Globe Wireless services. Installation of the new data
equipment and the connection to Half Moon Bay is expected to be completed
by this fall.
o More new stations
MCI and Globe Wireless have recently announced an agreement under which
Globe will acquire the licenses of MCI coastal stations CHATHAM RADIO/WCC
and SAN FRANCISCO RADIO/KPH. The changeover of services is expected to be
completed by September.
o Dixon Transmit Site
Globe Wireless has acquired a radio transmitting location previously
used by the VOICE OF AMERICA. The former DIXON RELAY STATION, located
eight miles Southeast of Dixon, California, will be used to connect
vessels in the Pacific Ocean with land based electronic mail systems,
including the Internet.
The history of the Dixon Relay Station goes back more than fifty years.
Construction began for the radio transmitting facility at the 640 acre
Dixon site in 1943. The Voice of America used the Dixon location,
starting in 1944, to broadcast information and entertainment to short-
wave radio listeners in Asia and the Pacific. Until 1963, the NATIONAL
BROADCASTING COMPANY (NBC) operated the site under contract to the US
Government. Transmissions from the Dixon Relay Station ceased in 1983.
The VOA used three COLLINS 250 kilowatt transmitters and two GENERAL
ELECTRIC 100 kilowatt transmitters when the facility was operational.
Still remaining on the site are two massive dipole curtain arrays and
ten rhombic antennas, most still in operating condition. Skeletons of
the GE and Collins transmitters also remain.
Globe Wireless plans to install transmitters and antennas for its
maritime public coast station KFS at the new site. The current KFS
transmitter location, in Palo Alto, California, will be phased out of
operation over the next few years.
According to company officials, Globe Wireless may also relocate the
transmitters for public coast station KPH to the new Dixon location.
Transfer of that station's license to Globe Wireless from MCI INTER-
NATIONAL is pending FCC approval. The MCI station currently transmits
from Bolinas, California.
AERONAUTICAL RADIO, INC. (ARINC) will sub-lease space at the Dixon site
from Globe Wireless. ARINC is installing transmitters to communicate
with the flight crews of aircraft flying over the Pacific Ocean and
South America.
o Global Radio Network frequencies and services
Effective: 3 March 1995, the following ITU NBDP channels and frequencies
listed below are in use by the coastal radio stations in the Global Radio
Network. Most channels are in operation 24 hours a day.
Xmit frequencies
Channel Shore Ship c/s
------- ------------------ ---
401 4210.5 4172.5 WNU
402 4211.0 4173.0 ZLA
403 4211.5 4173.5 KFS
416 4217.5 4180.0 VCT
418 4218.5 4181.0 SAB
4300.4 4154.5 KEJ
602 6315.0 6263.5 ZLA
603 6315.5 6264.0 KFS
625 6326.0 6275.0 KEJ
626 6326.5 6275.5 SAB
627 6327.0 6281.0 WNU
632 6329.5 6283.5 VCT
802 8417.0 8377.0 ZLA
803 8417.5 8377.5 KFS
819 8425.5 8385.5 WNU
830 8431.0 8391.0 KEJ
837 8434.5 8394.5 SAB
838 8435.0 8395.0 VCT
1202 12580.0 12477.5 ZLA
1203 12580.5 12478.0 KFS
1219 12588.5 12486.0 WNU
1257 12607.5 12505.0 WNU
1263 12610.5 12508.0 VCT
1265 12611.5 12509.0 KEJ
1291 12624.0 12522.0 SAB
1347 12652.0 12555.0 SAB
1602 16807.5 16684.0 ZLA
1647 16829.5 16706.5 KFS
1657 16834.5 16711.5 WNU
1673 16842.5 16719.5 KEJ
1676 16844.0 16721.0 VCT
1691 16851.5 16728.5 SAB
2203 22377.5 22285.5 KFS
o Traffic Lists
The combined network traffic list is broadcast from all stations via
Sitor-B, as noted.
c/s station / location traffic list
-----------------------------------------------------------------
VCT St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada H +05
KEJ Hawaii, Pacific Ocean H +15
KFS Palo Alto (San Francisco) California, USA H +25
SAB Goteborg Radio, Sweden H +35
ZLA Awanui, New Zealand H +45
WNU Slidell Radio, Louisiana, USA H +55
o Super CW-stations
# Palo Alto Radio / KFS
Palo Alto Radio, call sign KFS, is a proud and historic radio station
on the West coast of the United States. It has been on the air, conti-
nuously, since 1912, including throughout both World Wars. It is the
flagship station of the Globe Wireless CW Super-Stations.
# Slidell Radio / WNU
Slidell Radio, call sign WNU, is a proud and historic radio station
on the Gulf of Mexico coast of the United States near New Orleans,
Louisiana.
- Palo Alto Radio, KFS, broadcasts via CW on 476, 8558.4, 12844.5,
17026 and 22581.5 kHz
- Traffic lists are broadcast by KFS at 25 minutes past each hour. The
combined traffic list is sent from all CW Super-Station locations.
- KFS broadcasts Pacific High Seas weather at 0450, 1050, 1650 and
2250 UTC.
- KFS broadcasts the American Radio Association (ARA) newsletter on
Sunday at 0517 UTC.
- Slidell Radio, WNU, broadcasts via CW on 478, 4310, 8570, 12826.5,
17117.6 and 22575.5 kHz
- Traffic lists are broadcast by WNU at 55 minutes past each hour. The
combined traffic list is sent from all CW Super-Station locations.
- WNU broadcasts Gulf of Mexico/Caribbean Sea weather at 0350, 0950,
1550, and 2150 UTC.
- Operating Frequencies.
Palo Alto ship
------------------------------------
4 MHz 4274.0 4185.0
8 MHz 8444.5 8558.4 8368.5
12 MHz 12695.5 12844.5 12552.5
16 MHz 17026.0 17184.8 16736.5
22 MHz 22581.5 22282.5
Slidell ship
-------------------------------------
4 MHz 4294.0 4183.0 4310.0
6 MHz 6389.5 6278.0
8 MHz 8525.0 8570.0 8367.0
12 MHz 12826.5 12869.0 12551.0
16 MHz 17038.0 17117.6 16735.0
22 MHz 22575.5 22281.5
o GlobeTOR
The GlobeTOR auto-forward radio telex service extends the benefits of
modern computer E-Mail forwarding technology to maritime communications.
This "time shift" capability allows both ship and shore users to send
and respond to messages at their convenience. For SHIP-TO-SHORE traffic,
messages are delivered to the shore destination immediately upon filing
by the ship. After normal business hours, messages can be delivered to
alternate shore destinations (e.g., by telephone to key management at
home). This service is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a
week.
For SHORE-TO-SHIP messages, the ship's call sign is broadcast several
times each hour in the Global Radio Network traffic list. Pending
traffic is listed by, and available from, all Global Radio Network
stations. Arrangements can be made to immediately deliver messages by
automatically calling cooperating ships.
The "time shift" capability of the automatic forwarding technology means
the shipboard Radio Officer can send his telex message, for instance,
even if the destination telex machine is otherwise engaged. There is
never a busy signal!
Ship to shore messages are normally delivered electronically within
seconds, often while the ship is still in contact with the station.
Shipboard operation
By using the proper command, the ship originating a message may specify
the delivery method to be used when forwarding to a shore destination.
Methods currently available include automatic telex (AUTOTLX+), elec-
tronic mail (EMAIL+), facsimile (FAX+), cable telegram (TGM+) and radio
telex letter, via the U.S. Postal Service (RTL+).
o GlobeWeather
No matter what ocean, sea, bay, lake, river or port you are sailing in,
you can obtain the latest available weather conditions and forecasts
from one, reliable, source - GlobeWeather. Weather agencies from around
the world feed information into the GlobeWeather database 24 hours a day.
Never again will you have to wait hours for the next scheduled weather
broadcast. GlobeWeather can provide the products you need, when you need
them. - any time, night or day, from any Global Radio Network coast
station, worldwide.
o GlobeEmail
In the last twenty years, almost all of the technological advancements
in commercial marine communications have been directed at satellite.
This is in marked contrast to the military, where high frequency (HF)
radio has received significant technological research. Globe Wireless
has taken the concepts developed by the military over these two decades
(and recently declassified), plus the availability of computer-controlled
HF radios, to build a global communications system. The system is much
cheaper to operate than a satellite system while at the same time
offering the capabilities of such a system and then some.
GlobeEmail is an automated system, both on the shore side, and on the
ship. Every GlobeEmail ship has a copy of a software program written
by Globe and a dual mode modem. The user on the ship uses the simple
e-mail interface in this program to send and receive messages, much the
same as we do on Internet. Another part of this program is in control
of the HF radio. It scans the radio, sampling every Global Radio Network
channel and keeps a table of the six best, at any point in time. It also
watches the Out Box of the E-mail program, and when a message is placed
there, it automatically links with (any) one of Globe's shore stations
and sends it. Since all of the Globe stations are connected via landlines,
the message actually comes to California for processing, no matter what
station the ship calls. Shore to ship messages are automatically sent in
a similar way. Like there are function commands for telex, direct dial-
ling telex, fax and many other services, there are also commands for the
e-mail service. For Internet the command is INTyyy+, for instance, and
for a private cc:Mail system the command is CCMyyy+ ('yyy' is replaced
with the actual e-mail address, as appropriate). Ships not equipped with
GlobeEmail can use these commands also. In the case of GlobeEmail, the
initial connection is always made in SITOR. If the message is text only,
and short, it is just sent in SITOR, if not both the ship and the shore
station will switch to a special form of CLOVER so that full binary data
can be transferred.
GlobeEmail is strictly a computer-to-computer connection. To prevent an
error in the address line (SITOR is not always error-free), a four digit
error-detecting code is added at the beginning of the messages.
Globe Wireless designed GlobeEmail to overcome the deficiencies of
past marine communications systems - radio and satellite. GlobeEmail
is a software system that provides easy, intuitive message creation,
that controls the radio to send (and receive) messages automatically,
and that transmits any file - text, graphic or binary - much faster
than has previously been possible via radio. This is the latest High
Frequency radio technology, spawned by the military but reduced to
commercially reasonable costs, to extend modern office communications
to ships at sea. It literally makes marine communications as easy
and as reliable as electronic mail at a cost far less than satellite.
A new radio modem removes the restriction of alphanumeric characters
and allows the transmission of any file that can be sent on a phone
line. Facsimiles, word processing documents, spreadsheets, diagrams,
maps, data files and even computer programs can now be sent by radio.
The speed has increased tenfold today and will be increased another
fourfold within a year. Sophisticated, error-correcting, transmission
protocols have increased the reliability to an estimated 99.98%.
A network of stations around the world, linked to a central control
point, provides coverage world-wide, including the polar regions.
In each characteristic - speed, reliability, coverage - GlobeEmail
exceeds Standard C satellite performance.
The combination of sophisticated Digital Signal Processing mathematics
and computer control technology with ionosphere transmission of radio
waves produces the lowest available underlying marine communications
costs. Globe Wireless does not have to pay for, and thus its prices
need not cover, the cost of satellites and complicated earth stations.
Globe Wireless customers need not install expensive shipboard satellite
equipment, but can instead use standard HF radios and inexpensive
computers.. All of these lead to a long-term lower cost of GlobeEmail
than of satellite.
Furthermore, GlobeEmail prices are based on delivered kilobits of info,
not the time the circuit is open, as do most satellite systems. This
eliminates the cost of expensive retries and dropped links that the
satellite customer's incur where little or no usable data is actually
transmitted.
GlobeEmail uses a patented modem technology that allows HF radio to
transmit binary files. Before the introduction of GlobeEmail, radio
telex (SITOR) was the most sophisticated protocol available to ships.
Radio telex has a very limited character set and is unable to transmit
files such as word processing documents, spreadsheets, or interact with
on line services. A new technology, named CLOVER, brings all of these
features to HF radio. This new technology also dramatically improves
the throughput available on HF radio. Radio telex operates at 50 bits
per second. GlobeEmail, using CLOVER, will move data at a rate of 2400
bits per second.
CLOVER is robust even under the poorest propagation conditions due
to its use of a very low base data rate that relies upon differential
modulation between pulses. The CLOVER signal fits perfectly within
existing channel allocations because it consists of a time sequence
of amplitude-shaped pulses. Its data throughput is always the highest
possible since the CLOVER modem is capable of shifting among ten
different modulation modes using various combinations of frequency,
phase-shift and amplitude modulation.
Last Modified:
|
