[AT] Garden tractor???/Now RF hazard

[Steve W.]

Larry Goss wrote:
> RF can do funny things.  A colleague in Oklahoma used to tell me of
> their transmission building in Alaska having florescent tubes lying
> on the girders -- just the tubes.  They lit up without being
> connected to any power source.
> 
> When my uncle ran the "House of Magic" programs for GE back in the
> late 40's - early 50's, he generated enough radiation on stage that
> he could hold up a florescent tube and have just part of it light up
> by blocking the radiation with his hand and arm.  Fun stuff.
> 
> Larry

One of the "fun" items sold to CB-ers in the 70s-80s was a light that
they could attach to the antenna that lit up when you transmitted and
would pulse with your voice. IIRC it averaged about 5-7 bucks.
What was this "magic" light. Nothing more than a common NE2 neon light
in a plastic sleeve. The RF power at 4 watts on 29mhz is enough to light
them up. They would pulse because the standard mode of operation was
Amplitude Modulation.
Still see them from time to time at shows.



RF energy can be fun stuff. The primary reason for the fencing of the
broadcast towers is due to the RF voltage present while they are in
operation. If you were to touch that tower for even an instant when it
was in use you would regret it. At broadcast frequencies you can usually
plan on one volt per watt input. Even when a station is down you have to
ground the tower to keep atmospheric RF and static electric build up
from killing you.

The tower you see is the actual antenna. The ground below it is the
other half of the system. This is why many of the towers have large flat
areas that are swampy or damp. That makes the ground plane half of the
antenna operate better.


-- 
Steve W.