{"id":36571,"date":"2019-03-12T07:18:14","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T11:18:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=36571"},"modified":"2019-03-12T07:18:14","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T11:18:14","slug":"cnn-travel-features-the-abandoned-duga-radar-site-near-chernobyl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/03\/cnn-travel-features-the-abandoned-duga-radar-site-near-chernobyl\/","title":{"rendered":"CNN Travel features the abandoned Duga Radar site near Chernobyl"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

(Source: CNN Travel<\/a> via Heath Hall)<\/p>\n

(CNN) \u2014 The peaceful untouched forest north of Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, is a perfect spot to enjoy the outdoors — save for one fact.<\/p>\n

It contains the radiation-contaminated Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, established in 1986 after the world’s worst nuclear disaster sent a wave of radiation fallout across Europe.<\/p>\n

Since 2011 it’s been a major draw for adventurous tourists, but the forests here conceal another legacy of the Cold War, with a far more sinister and mysterious reputation.<\/p>\n

The Duga radar.<\/p>\n

Though once a closely guarded secret, this immense structure can be seen for miles around, rearing up through the mist over the horizon — a surreal sight.<\/p>\n

From a distance, it appears to be a gigantic wall. On close inspection, it’s an enormous, dilapidated structure made up of hundreds of huge antennas and turbines.<\/p>\n

The Duga radar (which translates as “The Arc”) was once one of the most powerful military facilities in the Soviet Union’s communist empire.<\/p>\n

It still stands a towering 150 meters (492 feet) high and stretches almost 700 meters in length. But, left to rot in the radioactive winds of Chernobyl, it’s now in a sad state of industrial decay.<\/p>\n

Anyone exploring the undergrowth at its feet will stumble upon neglected vehicles, steel barrels, broken electronic devices and metallic rubbish, the remainders of the hasty evacuation shortly after the nuclear disaster.[…]<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Click here to continue reading the full article and explore the photo gallery at CNN Travel.<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Source: CNN Travel via Heath Hall) (CNN) \u2014 The peaceful untouched forest north of Ukraine’s capital, Kiev, is a perfect spot to enjoy the outdoors — save for one fact. It contains the radiation-contaminated Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, established in 1986 after the world’s worst nuclear disaster sent a wave of radiation fallout across Europe. Since […]<\/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":[8,545,3,305,288],"tags":[441,2405,7665,2404,4648,2403],"class_list":["post-36571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","category-ham-radio","category-news","category-nostalgia","category-radio-history","tag-cnn","tag-duga-3","tag-heath-hall","tag-russian-woodpecker","tag-the-russian-woodpecker","tag-woodpecker"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-9vR","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27519,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/08\/a-close-look-at-the-russian-woodpecker-duga-3\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":0},"title":"A close look at the Russian Woodpecker (Duga-3)","author":"Thomas","date":"August 10, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: news.com.au via Ian P) ON MAPS, this site was marked as a children\u2019s playground. That couldn\u2019t be further from the truth. When the Chernobyl nuclear explosion happened in 1986, it shook the world in many ways. Not only did it put the now ghost town of Pripyat on the\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\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":37457,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2019\/05\/photo-gallery-stephen-makes-a-pilgrimage-to-the-duga-2-site\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":1},"title":"Photo Gallery: Stephen makes a pilgrimage to the Duga site","author":"Thomas","date":"May 15, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Stephen Cooper who shares photos from his recent visit to the Duga\u00a0Soviet Union era over-the-horizon (OTH) radar system near Chernobyl. The following photo gallery contains images of the antenna, control room, training room and server room. Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge images\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-15-of-34-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-15-of-34-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-15-of-34-300x225.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-15-of-34-300x225.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":42307,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2020\/03\/bbc-reel-the-secret-soviet-radar-hidden-in-chernobyls-shadow\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":2},"title":"BBC Reel: “The secret Soviet radar hidden in Chernobyl\u2019s shadow”","author":"Thomas","date":"March 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: BBC Reel) In a remote forest, a few kilometres from the Chernobyl power plant, the huge Duga-2 radar tower stands as relic of Soviet mismanagement. Click here to view on BBC Reel.","rel":"","context":"In "Ham Radio"","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-18-of-34.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-18-of-34.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-18-of-34.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Stephen-Cooper-DUGA-2-OTH-RADAR-18-of-34.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8232,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2013\/12\/photos-of-duga-3-a-k-a-the-woodpecker\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":3},"title":"Photos of Duga-3, a.k.a. the “Woodpecker”","author":"Thomas","date":"December 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"The website Artificial Owl has posted some incredible photos of Duga-3--better known to many SWLs and amateur radios operators as the \"Woodpecker.\" What an incredible structure. Click here to view the photos.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Duga-3-Woodpecker","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15173,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2015\/10\/a-v-club-reviews-the-russian-woodpecker\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":4},"title":"A.V.Club reviews “The Russian Woodpecker”","author":"Thomas","date":"October 16, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post reader, Charles, who writes: Thomas, you might find this movie review of \"The Russian Woodpecker\" interesting. Looks like the film is more conspiracy than investigative reporting. Too bad. Having dealt with Woodpecker noise during\u00a0my ham radio career, it would have been fun to know more\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Duga-3-Woodpecker","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Duga-3-Woodpecker.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48954,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/05\/radio-waves-the-woodpecker-gutter-antenna-air-travel-with-radios-and-a-spy-in-every-embassy\/","url_meta":{"origin":36571,"position":5},"title":"Radio Waves: The Woodpecker, Gutter Antenna, Air Travel With Radios, and “A Spy in Every Embassy”","author":"Thomas","date":"May 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Radio Waves:\u00a0 Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio Because I keep my ear to the waves, as well as receive many tips from others who do the same, I find myself privy to radio-related stories that might interest\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0readers.\u00a0 To that end:\u00a0Welcome to the\u00a0SWLing Post\u2019s Radio Waves, a\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\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Soviet-Radio-Dial-e1539517556232.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36571","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=36571"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36571\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}