{"id":34242,"date":"2018-09-21T10:53:13","date_gmt":"2018-09-21T14:53:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=34242"},"modified":"2018-09-21T10:53:13","modified_gmt":"2018-09-21T14:53:13","slug":"ieee-spectrum-long-running-u-s-federal-radio-stations-beloved-by-hams-in-danger-of-shutdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/09\/ieee-spectrum-long-running-u-s-federal-radio-stations-beloved-by-hams-in-danger-of-shutdown\/","title":{"rendered":"IEEE Spectrum: “Long-Running U.S. Federal Radio Stations, Beloved by Hams, in Danger of Shutdown”"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

A WWV Time Code Generator<\/p><\/div>\n

(Source: IEEE Spectrum Magazine<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Several public radio stations that have broadcast the time of day continuously for nearly 100 years are on the chopping block<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Julianne Pepitone<\/p>\n

Starting in May 1920, the U.S. federal WWV radio stations have broadcast the official time without fail. For ham radio fans, hearing the friendly \u201cNational Institute of Standards and Technology Time!\u201d announcement is a comforting old refrain. For others, it\u2019s a service they\u2019ve never heard of\u2014yet in the background, it\u2019s what keeps the clocks and appliances in their daily lives automatically ticking along on time.<\/p>\n

But after 98 years, this constant companion could soon go off the air. The proposed 2019 U.S. presidential budget calls for a 34 percent cut in NIST funding; in response, the Institute compiled a\u00a0budget-use plan<\/a>\u00a0that would eliminate the WWV stations.<\/p>\n

At first blush it might sound like the natural end to a quaint public service from a bygone era. Do we really need radio-broadcast time signals in an era of Internet-connected devices and GPS?<\/p>\n

Many would argue: Yes, we really do.\u00a0More than 50 million<\/a>\u00a0devices in the United States\u2014including wall clocks, wristwatches, and industrial appliances\u2014keep time through the signal from\u00a0NIST\u2019s WWVB station<\/a>, operating from a site near Fort Collins, Colo., where it reads the time directly from an atomic clock. These radio-equipped clocks are permanently tuned to WWVB\u2019s low-frequency 60 kHz signal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWWVB is the pacemaker for the world around us, even if we don\u2019t realize it,\u201d says\u00a0Thomas Witherspoon<\/a>, editor of shortwave radio news site\u00a0The SWLing Post<\/em><\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s why factory workers and schools don\u2019t need to drag out the stepladder every time we switch between Daylight and Standard Time. Without WWVB, these devices won\u2019t magically update themselves.\u201d[…]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Click here to read the full article including comments from WWVB’s Station Manager.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Source: IEEE Spectrum Magazine) Several public radio stations that have broadcast the time of day continuously for nearly 100 years are on the chopping block By Julianne Pepitone Starting in May 1920, the U.S. federal WWV radio stations have broadcast the official time without fail. For ham radio fans, hearing the friendly \u201cNational Institute of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,43],"tags":[7321,7322,7323,68,7202,948,7223,426,7203],"class_list":["post-34242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-shortwave-radio","tag-ieee","tag-ieee-spectrum","tag-julianne-pepitone","tag-wwv","tag-wwv-closure","tag-wwvb","tag-wwvb-closure","tag-wwvh","tag-wwvh-closure"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-8Ui","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":33716,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/08\/nist-official-response-to-closure-questions\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":0},"title":"NIST: Official response to closure questions","author":"Thomas","date":"August 23, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"I've just received the following formal response from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) regarding the\u00a0President\u2019s NIST FY 2019 budget request: (Source: NIST) NIST has a long-standing history of providing time and frequency services through our radio stations and we appreciate that many people use these services.\u00a0\u00a0 NIST\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/wwvFtCollinsbuilding.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/wwvFtCollinsbuilding.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/wwvFtCollinsbuilding.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36125,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/02\/fy-2019-nist-budget-looks-good-for-time-stations\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":1},"title":"FY 2019 NIST budget looks good for time stations","author":"Thomas","date":"February 15, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to the number of SWLing Post readers who have forwarded this article from the ARRL News\u00a0that notes the WWV Special Event Station, planned for later this year, is a go. This is great news indeed. With regards to the FY2019 budget uncertainty surrounding NIST radio stations WWV, WWVH\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/MattDeutch-WWVB-1024x600.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/MattDeutch-WWVB-1024x600.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/MattDeutch-WWVB-1024x600.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":34153,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/09\/marketplace-time-may-be-up-for-timekeeping-radio-stations\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":2},"title":"Marketplace: “Time may be up for timekeeping radio stations”","author":"Thomas","date":"September 12, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: Marketplace\u00a0via Richard Cuff) The Trump administration wants to shut down two shortwave radio stations that broadcast time signals from the nation\u2019s master clock. The administration's budget proposal would eliminate nearly $27 million in funding from the National Institute of Standards and Technology\u00a0for the two stations.\u00a0WWV, based in Fort Collins,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/WWV-10MHz-Sign.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/WWV-10MHz-Sign.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/WWV-10MHz-Sign.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":33632,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/08\/lennarts-wwvh-5-mhz-qsl\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":3},"title":"Lennart’s WWVH 5 MHz QSL and a quick NIST update","author":"Thomas","date":"August 19, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor,\u00a0Lennart Weirell, who writes: I saw the recent posting of a QSL card from WWV. Here is my QSL card from WWVH, Hawaii 5 MHz from 2006 [above]. Thanks for sharing this excellent QSL, Lennart! Update on shutdown of WWV, WWVH and WWVB Post Readers:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WWVH-2006-11-21-697x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WWVH-2006-11-21-697x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WWVH-2006-11-21-697x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":33521,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/08\/nist-fy2019-budget-includes-request-to-shutdown-wwv-and-wwvh\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":4},"title":"NIST FY2019 budget includes request to shutdown WWV, WWVH, and WWVB","author":"Thomas","date":"August 10, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to a number of\u00a0SWLing Post readers who have pointed out the NIST\u00a02019 Presidential Budget request which has now been posted online and includes a desired reduction of: \"$6.3 million supporting fundamental measurement dissemination, including the shutdown of NIST radio stations in Colorado and Hawaii\" I've always considered WWV\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "International Broadcasting"","block_context":{"text":"International Broadcasting","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/international-broadcasting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-TimeCodeGenerator-1024x582.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-TimeCodeGenerator-1024x582.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-TimeCodeGenerator-1024x582.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":33657,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2018\/08\/information-from-the-nist-regarding-possible-closure-wwv-radio-stations\/","url_meta":{"origin":34242,"position":5},"title":"Information from the NIST regarding possible closure WWV radio stations","author":"Thomas","date":"August 20, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Regarding the NIST FY2019 budget which includes a request to shutdown WWV, WWVH, and WWVB, many of you have been asking if there has been an update. We will keep you posted as this budget moves through the process, but in the meantime I'll share the feedback and links provided\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-Main-Building-1024x463.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-Main-Building-1024x463.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/WWV-Main-Building-1024x463.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34242\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}