Abstract
IN a paper read to the Institution of Electrical Engineers on April 11 by N. Ashbridge, H. Bishop and B. N. MacLarty, a description is given of the new radio broadcasting station at Droitwich in Worcestershire. The station contains two transmitters each performing a separate function. One transmitter works on a ‘long’ broadcasting wavelength in the band 1250-1875 metres and the other on a medium wave-length between 200 and 545 metres. The long-wave transmitter has replaced Daventry 5XX, which worked with a power of about 25 kilowatts. This station was the first broadcasting station in Europe to employ a power in excess of five kilowatts. The other transmitter replaces Daventry 5GB, which was first erected as an experimental transmitter, but afterwards gave tho regional programme service to the Midlands. The present aim of the British Broadcasting Corporation is to supply every potential listener with a service of two distinct programmes. The distribution scheme which is now approaching completion will make one programme available to 98 per cent of the population and the other programme available to 85 per cent. By virtue of the length of the wave on which it works, and its aerial power of 150 kilowatts, the new long-wave transmitter at Droitwich gives vastly greater possibilities of ‘coverage’ than any of the other transmitters in the country, all of which work on medium waves. The other Droitwich transmitter covers the densely populated districts in the Midlands. The Droitwich site was found to fulfil the requirements for a station of this type. The subsoil in the immediate neighbourhood is favourable to the propagation of radio waves. Short high-grade telephone circuits connect it with the nearest studio headquarters. It is suitable for building work, and there is plenty of space for the aerial system. Lastly there is a trustworthy and ample water supply.
Article PDF
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
The Droitwich Broadcasting Station. Nature 135, 613–614 (1935). https://doi.org/10.1038/135613c0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/135613c0