Special commemorative broadcast to mark the debut of FM

Broadcasting history buffs - mark your calendars!

A special commemorative FM broadcast Saturday, June 11, at noon EDT will mark the 70th anniversary of Maj Edwin H. Armstrong's first public demonstration of wideband frequency modulation (FM).

The broadcast will emanate from Armstrong's 400-foot-tall experimental tower in Alpine, New Jersey, overlooking the Hudson River. An area landmark that also served several New York City broadcasters in the wake of the September
11, 2001, terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center, the gigantic structure is now owned by CSC Management Inc, headed by Charles Sackerman Jr.

He and Steve Hemphill, WA3ZAE, owner of Solid Electronics
Laboratories - a Pennsylvania broadcast equipment manufacturer - have secured a Special Temporary Authority (STA) from the FCC to conduct the FM broadcast on Armstrong's original frequency of 42.8 MHz at a power of 250 W ERP. They'll use the experimental/STA call sign WA2XMN, reminiscent of Armstrong's W2XMN call sign.

The program itself will consist of David Ossman's dramatic production of "Empire of the Air," based on the book by Tom Lewis. They also plan to air excerpts from a 1941 test broadcast between member stations of the original New England Yankee Network, featuring actual voice recordings of Armstrong, Yankee Network Chief Engineer Paul deMars and others. They'll also rebroadcast the final signoff of Armstrong's pioneer FM station W2XMN/KE2XCC. The station went silent February 25, 1954, following Armstrong's death by suicide.

For those lacking an FM radio that can tune to 42.8 MHz, the broadcast will be simulcast via WFDU(FM) 89.1 MHz, which also will provide a streaming webcast.

The entire program will be rebroadcast on the Web at 7 PM EDT on June 14 and 16. A recording of the complete broadcast will be available for download. Additional information about the commemorative broadcast and the Alpine tower site is available on the CSC Management web
site.

Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The American Radio Relay League

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