• Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
    2·
    11 days ago

    KNBR is a 50KW “Class A” (formerly “clear channel”) mediumwave (AM) rado station broadcasting on 680 KHz, serving the San Francisco Bay area (and, at night, most of the west coast of the US). Opened in 1922, It was originally known as KPO, (later KNBC, and still later KNBR), and soon became the flagship station for the National Broadcasting Company (NBC)'s new western radio network. It is currently owned by Cumulus Media and now broadcasts a sports format.

    • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
      2·
      11 days ago

      Mediumwave (AM) broadcast radio uses lower frequencies than other modern broadcasting and so requires much larger antennas (generally getting larger and larger as the frequency gets lower on the dial). This often entails highly customized antenna designs engineered for the particular site and station frequencies. For most radio stations (FM, TV, etc), the towers are there simply to get the relatively small antennas up high, but for AM stations like KNBR, the towers generally ARE the antennas.

      • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
        2·
        11 days ago

        The taller tower (550 feet) at right is the main KNBR antenna, built in 1949. It employs an unusual “pseudo-Franklin” design; it’s actually an array of two antennas stacked atop one another. The 400 foot lower section is insulated from the ground. The upper 150 foot section is insulated from the lower section. The large (50 foot) diameter “capacitance hat” at the top (reminiscent of the Parachute Jump at Coney Island) electrically lengthens the top section, saving 250 feet of additional height.

          • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
            2·
            11 days ago

            @iris@neuromatch.social Oh god, it’s complicated.

            The basic idea is that the radiated current in a vertical antenna approaches zero at the end, and so is not fully efficient. By extending radials outward, you’re allowing additional current to flow to the end of the vertical section by providing a capacitive path to ground (between the radials and the ground).

            Modeling this is not for faint of heart.

        • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
          2·
          11 days ago

          This distinctive stacked dual antenna arrangement is used to lower the radiation angle of the antenna, concentrating transmitted power to the “ground wave” and reducing energy that would otherwise be sent upward into the sky.

          The smaller (300 foot) freestanding mast in the background left is not in current use. It can be used as an emergency spare antenna for KNBR during maintenance of the taller main antenna.

          • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
            2·
            11 days ago

            The antenna is in the final approach and takeoff flightpath for SFO airport’s runways 28L/R (and 10L/R), and so the site has special markings to warn pilots of a collision hazard. In addition to the usual tower lights and red/white paint, 3-dimensional “HAZ” warnings were installed around the field. These are easily visible in areal photos; see, e.g., https://earth.google.com/web/@37.5471204,-122.23429544,0.73120256a,577.14725587d,35y,0.01179999h,0t,0r/data=CgRCAggBQgIIAEoNCP___________wEQAA

            • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
              1·
              11 days ago

              Also, important safety tip: you can get closer to this tower without clearly trespassing or jumping fences than any other 50KW broadcast antenna I’ve ever seen. I measured a field strength of over 80V/m a bit outside the antenna fence, which is an incredibly strong signal (though still within the OSHA limits at the frequency involved).

              Resist any temptation to jump the fence and climb the (energized) tower. You’ll be electrocuted as soon as you touch it.

              • Zoarial94 :donor:@infosec.exchange
                1·
                10 days ago

                @mattblaze@federate.social With towers over 200ft, the FAA requires lights on the top, and these towers can make the systems that power and monitor the lights act very funky. I never had the pleasure, but I worked with people who did.

                • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
                  1·
                  10 days ago

                  @Zoarial94@infosec.exchange yeah, they make special tower light monitoring systems specifically for AM radio stations. Also, maintaining the lights is definitely a job I Do Not Want.

      • vxo@digipres.club
        1·
        11 days ago

        @mattblaze@federate.social oh that’s a funky antenna! Most AM antennas aren’t that intricate.

        Apparently that’s a “pseudo Franklin” design (I’d call it more like a collinear) with a capacity hat.

        KFBK Sacramento has the only true Franklin antenna design on an AM station in the USA and it’s reeeeeally funky looking. It does with two towers what some more conventional AM directionals take four to EIGHT to accomplish. It’s kinda boss.

      • Nicklas Johnson 🏳️‍🌈@tech.lgbt
        0·
        11 days ago

        @mattblaze
        And quite often it seems if they can get an AM broadcast tower just above some swampy saltwater, they will. I suspect that this gets better performance out of the radials that surround the vertical element, but I’ve never gotten around to asking an engineer about it. We have quite a few low-lying marshy areas with towers just inside in the Bay Area. The easiest ones to see are around the Bay Bridge and San Mateo bridge, but there’s also a directional set of 3 right next to 101 in San Mateo for KZDG 1550 AM.

        • Matt Blaze@federate.socialOP
          0·
          11 days ago

          @spatula Yes, the ground resistance is actually the most important factor in determining mediumwave antenna efficiency. Part of the license process involves getting an extensive site survey for this.