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TV Emits Distress Signal, Triggers Search
Yahoo! News ^ | October 19, 2004 | Reuters

Posted on 10/20/2004 9:50:08 AM PDT by El Conservador

EUGENE, Oregon (Reuters) - TV hardly gets much better than this.

An Oregon man discovered earlier this month that his year-old Toshiba Corp. flat-screen TV was emitting an international distress signal picked up by a satellite, leading a search and rescue operation to his apartment in Corvallis, Oregon, 70 miles south of Portland.

The signal from Chris van Rossmann's TV was routed by satellite to the Air Force Rescue Center at Langley Air Base in Virginia.

On Oct. 2, the 20 year-old college student was visited at his apartment in the small university town by a contingent of local police, civil air patrol and search and rescue personnel.

"They'd never seen signal come that strong from a home appliance," said van Rossmann. "They were quite surprised. I think we all were."

Authorities had expected to find a boat or small plane with a malfunctioning transponder, the usual culprit in such incidents, emitting the 121.5 MHz frequency of the distress signal used internationally.

Van Rossmann said he was told to keep his TV off to avoid paying a $10,000 fine for "willingly broadcasting a false distress signal."

Toshiba contacted Rossmann and offered to provide him with a replacement set for free, he said.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Oregon
KEYWORDS: distresssignal; sos; tv
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To: ken5050

"I tend to find techno guys farfetched"

Go reboot your computer....its due!...lol


21 posted on 10/20/2004 10:33:00 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: Dat Mon

Reboot?..when it makes funny noises I just get another one...


22 posted on 10/20/2004 10:34:36 AM PDT by ken5050
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To: Poohbah

"It was broadcasting on 121.5 MHz."

Interesting...I learn something every day here!

Wonder if it was a local oscillator shift, or a broadband noise emmission with enough spectral energy at that frequency to be above the satellites threshold.


23 posted on 10/20/2004 10:36:19 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: ThirdMate
I thought the 121.5 mhz has been phased out in favor of the 406 mhz.

Not yet. In the year 2009, IIRC.

24 posted on 10/20/2004 10:37:25 AM PDT by Chemist_Geek ("Drill, R&D, and conserve" should be our watchwords! Energy independence for America!)
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To: Dat Mon
Someone here on FR explained to me that it was inadequate suppression of a harmonic.
25 posted on 10/20/2004 10:39:09 AM PDT by Chemist_Geek ("Drill, R&D, and conserve" should be our watchwords! Energy independence for America!)
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To: ken5050

"when it makes funny noises I just get another one..."

Let me guess...you're a DOS 5.0 sorta guy...overclocked CPU runnin at 8MHz?....lol


26 posted on 10/20/2004 10:40:23 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: Dat Mon
Wonder if it was a local oscillator shift, or a broadband noise emmission with enough spectral energy at that frequency to be above the satellites threshold.

The latter is my guess.

27 posted on 10/20/2004 10:40:41 AM PDT by Poohbah (SKYBIRD SKYBIRD DO NOT ANSWER...SKYBIRD SKYBIRD DO NOT ANSWER)
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To: El Conservador

Can visualize another Stephen King or John Grisham book on the horizon about this problem.


28 posted on 10/20/2004 10:40:55 AM PDT by lilylangtree (Veni, Vidi, Vici)
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To: Dat Mon

Hz is short for a car rental company, right? Do I in a prize?


29 posted on 10/20/2004 10:41:25 AM PDT by ken5050
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To: Poohbah

That's right Pooh.

I am sure you know that you will gain equal attention transmitting on it's first harmonic (243.0Mhz).


30 posted on 10/20/2004 10:42:05 AM PDT by sargunner
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To: Chemist_Geek

"inadequate suppression of a harmonic"

Sounds like either a very crappy design....(Chinese knock-off by chance?) or a mediocre design coupled with an oscillator frequency shift.

Shouda used a crystal for reference.


31 posted on 10/20/2004 10:44:41 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: ken5050

You get a Kia...with 12 inch wheels. I think they're chrome plated though.


32 posted on 10/20/2004 10:48:24 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: Dat Mon

I know..and the radio comes with a CD/Rom drive...


33 posted on 10/20/2004 10:50:05 AM PDT by ken5050
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To: ken5050

Actually..its an 8-track.

You also get a tape of Joan Jetts greatest hits. Enjoy.


34 posted on 10/20/2004 10:53:39 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: Dat Mon

Listen..in my attic, I actually have a record playerer for cars..it played only 45's..came out in 64, I think..just before the 8 track..the arm was spring loaded, to hold the needle to the vinyl...everytime you hit a bump, it jumped and skipped..


35 posted on 10/20/2004 10:57:47 AM PDT by ken5050
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To: Chemist_Geek
I thought the 121.5 mhz has been phased out in favor of the 406 mhz.

Not yet. In the year 2009, IIRC.


I haven't heard about 121.5 Mc being phased out but I know the 500 kc (600 meters) maritime distress frequency isn't in use anymore. Will they have to fit aircraft with gear that runs on 406 Mc?
36 posted on 10/20/2004 10:58:57 AM PDT by Nowhere Man (We have enough youth, how about a Fountain of Smart?)
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To: ken5050

Amazing....I really do learn something new on this site every day!


37 posted on 10/20/2004 10:59:51 AM PDT by Dat Mon (clever tagline under construction)
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To: Dat Mon
Did you hear the latest quote from John Edwards?......

"When John Kerry is elected president, people like Bill Clinton will get back INTO bed and start having sex again...."

38 posted on 10/20/2004 11:04:27 AM PDT by ken5050
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To: Nowhere Man
Well, the SARSATs won't be monitoring 121.5 after 2009 so ELTs and EPIRBs will have to be 406 MHz models, yes.

I believe that 121.5 (and 243.0) will remain as voice emergency frequencies.

As far as 500 kHz goes, yes, they stopped guarding that frequency a while ago. I believe that GMDSS still requires a watch on 2182 kHz, but I could be wrong - I know less about maritime radio than aeronautical.

39 posted on 10/20/2004 11:12:43 AM PDT by Chemist_Geek ("Drill, R&D, and conserve" should be our watchwords! Energy independence for America!)
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To: Chemist_Geek

Yeah, I did some googling since I read the thread and it seems that 121.5 and 243.0 Mc will still be voice. I was just wondering since those two frequencies are well ingrained in the aviation and maritime communities. I know the military also uses 282.8 Mc for voice comms in times of distress too.


40 posted on 10/20/2004 11:38:14 AM PDT by Nowhere Man (We have enough youth, how about a Fountain of Smart?)
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