GB70GB - Great Baddow Research Centre

GB70GB is a Special Special Event callsign issued by Ofcom for the 70th anniversary of the opening of the Research Centre at Great Baddow - home to what was originally Marconi's Research Laboratories; and also later on home to famous staff including Spycatcher author (Peter Wright) and Chris Cockrell (Hovercraft inventor).

A special amateur station will be operated by members of the Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society on Saturday, October 3.

Opened just before the outbreak of WW2, its 47 acres were immediately camouflaged by nets and painted roads to protect it against air raids (unlike the Marconi factory at New St in central Chelmsford which did get bombed) where it was home to strategic wartime magnetron and quartz crystal production.

Baddow is also home to the last surviving fully-intact 360ft Chain Home radar mast from the Battle of Britain - itself coming up to its own anniversary in Feb 2010 (75th anniversary of the Daventry experiment).

Pre-registered visitors on October 3 will see a series of exhibits on Baddow's history and technology from turn of the century Marconi heritage right up to present day innovations at what is now known as BAE Systems Advanced Technlogy Centre.

Operation will be on the bands from 7MHz upwards depending on conditions and site tests using a Comet-250 vertical.

The station plans to commence at 10am local and features displays which will be demonstrating three centuries of radio technology.

The Great Baddow Mast
http://www.chelmsford.gov.uk/media/pdf/7/m/
Great_Baddow_Mast_A4.pdf

Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society
http://www.g0mwt.org.uk/