A somewhat unexpected continuation of the topic: it turns out that very few people know how it is supported long-range and continuous communication with submarines... But such a connection is a very important thing, especially when it comes to nuclear submarine cruisers.
It is clear that if the boat is on the surface, there are no communication problems: traditional radio stations and satellite communication provide communication in both directions and with many ships. But the problem is that nuclear submarines serve in the depths of the ocean, trying not to detect themselves (stealth is the main advantage of submarines). Radio waves have big problems with propagation underwater. How to be?
For example, being at periscope depth, the boat can raise the same periscope and use for radio communications antennas installed on it. The problem is that such a periscope, hung with antennas, will perfectly give out the boat, since it can be detected by a variety of enemy radars. It is interesting that they try to make the periscopes of modern boats in their surface parts inconspicuous (according to the technology, so to speak, "Stealth"). Moreover, they try to minimize the time the periscope remains above the water: for example, the periscope can rise, perform a very fast scan of the horizon, transmit, using a special type of signal, short messages via satellite and immediately hide back under the water.
It should be noted that being at a shallow depth, the boat can receive radio waves of low frequency ("short waves", say) - they penetrate to a certain depth under the surface of the water. In this case, in the general case, radio waves with lower frequencies penetrate somewhat deeper under the surface of the water. For example, this is how it is possible to receive messages from airplanes (there are special aircraft providing relaying messages to submarines).
However, even if submarine cruiser just ascended to the periscope depth, then we can assume that he found himself with a high degree of probability, although he did not actually raise the periscope. The fact is that there is a whole set of tools that allow you to detect large submarines at shallow depths: they can be seen from the satellite, their wake, if the boat is moving, can be detected special radars etc. So, without special need, the boat will not float.
(Illustration: Edward L. Cooper)
For communication, special buoys, lifted from a submerged boat, can be used. Such a buoy, stuffed with radio systems, tied to a boat and exchanging information with it, can float to the surface, or it can remain at a shallow depth, using the effect with radio wave penetration described in the paragraph above. But a buoy is also a half-measure that does not allow for continuous communication.
One acoustic option is underwater placement relay stations with surface radio antennas. Suppose that such a station converts radio signals into acoustic vibrations and transmits them under water, and the boat “receives sound”, being at great depths. Acoustic underwater communication, in theory, works at distances measured in tens of kilometers. If necessary, you can use the duplex mode, that is, the station receives signals from the boat and retransmits them by radio “to the center”. However, you cannot build up the entire ocean with such stations, they can only be placed along traditional patrol areas... (And there are a number of other problems that will be discussed some other time.)
We have already considered several options, but it remains unclear how the conditional "command post" maintains communication with submarines in autonomous navigation at great depths.
The solution here is somewhat unexpected: radio communication is still used. But not simple, but at ultra-low frequencies, super-long waves. It turns out that radio waves thousands of kilometers long (frequency 70-90 Hz) penetrate the deepest oceans. That is, the submarine will be able to receive a signal at such a frequency, even while at maximum depth... True, there are a number of problems with such low-frequency radio waves.
First, they are extremely difficult to emit (the task of receiving is much easier). Indeed, it is unrealistic to build such a huge antenna. One of the ways to broadcast ultra-long electromagnetic waves is the use of the earth's crust itself as an emitter. True, this method requires a huge expenditure of energy and the right choice the location of the generating unit, because geological features ( electrical conductivity, in particular) terrestrial rocks located under the "generator". But radio waves successfully spread throughout the globe.
Second, the low carrier frequency means that it is extremely difficult to create modulation and choose a system coding, which will allow a noticeable amount of information to be transmitted at some speed. After all, 90 Hz is not even close to 900 MHz, at which GPRS barely works.
Thirdly, signals with similar frequencies have to be received against the background of strong interference of various nature, and at the same time the effective transmitter power is very low, despite the fact that the “generating installation” can be powered by an entire power plant.
However, the described problems do not prevent you from using extra-long waves for one-way communication with submarines in the ocean (as well as for the study of the earth's crust).
So, what does autonomous underwater robots have to do with it? And despite the fact that it is a network of such robots that can provide operational and over a wider bandwidth submarine communications... The robots are less visible, and their detection does not provide information about the location of the submarine. Wherein robot network moves, accompanying the boat, but since this is precisely a network stretching over many thousands of square kilometers, the secrecy of the boat's position is preserved.
Further - opinions and discussions
(The messages below are added by site readers through the form located at the end of the page.)For how many years the military has dreamed of getting dispersed underwater surveillance and weapons systems integrated into a wireless network, but these dreams are as desirable as they are elusive ... Over the past decade, the deployment of air and space radio frequency and optoelectronic communication systems has made global exchange of reality for commercial and military systems.
Let us consider solutions that make it possible to expand this communications infrastructure to the underwater world, to fully integrate military submarine platforms and systems into it, and, as a consequence, to increase their combat effectiveness. The rapid development of communication and network infrastructure in the world, the rapid growth of its productivity is determined by civil and military needs. This is facilitated in no small measure by such military systems as, for example, remotely controlled unmanned aerial and ground platforms, which are now capable of performing tasks that in the past could only be performed by manned platforms.
For many of these tasks, if not for most, operator control in real time is the basis for their successful implementation, this concerns, first of all, the confirmation of the purpose and permission to use weapons. As an example, today's PREDATOR UAV operations demonstrate the effectiveness of these rapidly evolving systems. A similar increase in efficiency and practical relevance is necessary in the underwater kingdom.
During a training dive, a senior Canadian Navy sailor instructs a senior sailor from Jamaica and a midshipman from St. Kitts
Despite the fact that Hollywood is trying to convince us that communication underwater is a simple matter (given modern realities, the scripts for films like The Hunt for Red October and Crimson Tide would be significantly more complex), sound waves in water they obey a completely different set of physical laws. Changes in water temperature, density and salinity can alter the path of sound waves, alter the propagation of sound, and even change the fundamental characteristics of sound. Background "noise" can interfere with the correct interpretation of sound ("signs of vital activity" that operators of submarine sonar stations must identify when searching for artificial underwater objects), and weather above the sea surface can have a negative impact on communication in shallow water. As a result, underwater communication remains a problem.
This has not stopped legions of scientists and industrialists trying to solve this problem. Some are expanding and deepening tried and tested theories, others are probing for something even more innovative, what some desperate optimists call ideas.
Tethered buoy for UHF satellite or Iridium satellites;
In the water: disposable UHF tethered buoy, disposable Iridium tethered buoy, buoy - acoustic-radio frequency gateway (BARSH);
Radio room equipment: - Iridium data controller, BARSh controller, Iridium modem controller; launch bay, buoy interface unit;
Air equipment: - controller BARSH, BARSH air launch;
Onshore Equipment and Applications: Iridium Data Controller, Certified Cross-Domain Solution, BARSH Web Portal classified, BARSH Web Portal unclassified
As a person to a person
In the military underwater world the use of divers for covert reconnaissance and / or clearance of mines and obstacles occupies an important place in the hierarchy of operational needs. Special forces, mine clearance divers and their deployment teams all need to operate quietly, discreetly and safely in coastal waters or shallow waters, often under imperfect conditions and under severe stress. Effective and instant communication is a priority for these groups, but the options available are somewhat limited.
Sign language and rope pulling are limited by the limits of visibility and the need to use a limited set of words. The use of torches to transmit simple signals has met with some success, but the consequences of being visible from the shore during covert operations can be fatal to participants and therefore not considered safe for military operations. The use of acoustic generators has the same disadvantages of limited vocabulary and a potentially high probability of detection, and is therefore also deleted from the list.
Direct communication between two subscribers in the form of wireless ultrasound systems is becoming an increasingly attractive solution for groups of divers. Water is a medium with good electrical conductivity (and salt water is even better) and radio waves due to its electromagnetic nature very difficult to propagate through it. However, ultrasound is a mechanical rather than an electromagnetic wave (although it is triggered by the use of piezoelectric materials) and thus overcomes one of the most severe physical constraints that affect a diver's sonic image.
Sound travels 4.5 times faster in water than in air (even faster in salt water), which, while providing some operational advantages for covert operations, requires some mental adjustment and restructuring on the part of divers in order to compensate for the desires of the brain associate sounds and travel distances with their "normal" airspace. This is another reason why underwater communication between individuals, at least professionals, tends to be as concise and concise as possible.
However, the need for reliable communications is growing rapidly, and this applies not only to the military sphere, but also to rapidly developing underwater activities - monitoring environment, object protection, archeology and recreational diving. The use of proprietary algorithms and technologies known collectively as DSPComm (Digital Spread Spectrum), in last years has become widespread, allowing us to obtain innovative, cost-effective and, above all, more reliable network solutions than what we had before.
1. After starting, a strong halyard is deployed from the lifting body
2. The mechanism for releasing the rising body is triggered and the body is removed from the surface module
3. The rising body proceeds to ascent and begins to unwind the optical cable when the module ascends to the surface
4. The first stage of the pressurization mechanism activates the ejection nose cone and the float from the buoy body
5. The second stage pressurization mechanism inflates the surface float to the working configuration
6. Working configuration. As the submarine moves away from the launch point of the buoy, the optical cable is unwound both from the surface module and from the rising hull
Military conditions
However, in recent years there has been significant progress in our understanding and in our reaction to the peculiarities of the underwater world, especially when it comes to combat effectiveness. In 2014, the NATO Center for Marine Research and Development (STO CMRE) organized a three-day conference on underwater communications in Italy. The preamble to the CMRE conference states:
« Subsea communication technologies have improved not only with the development of advanced techniques of coherent modulation, demodulation, encoding and decoding, but also in the process of moving from point-to-point connections to multi-hop dedicated networks. At the higher layers of packet communication, significant progress has been made in the development of data networks, MAC (medium access control sublayer), routing and other protocols in order to establish efficient and reliable communication. It is also becoming clear that the subsea frequency range is limited so that there will never be a “one size fits all” solution, so communications systems will need to adaptively reconfigure themselves to changing network topology, environment and application. This results in intelligent programmable modems with high communication reliability at different levels.».
« In stark contrast to the successful RF model for cellular or WiFi systems, the undersea community has no digital standards for modulation, coding or media access, and routing protocols. As a result, each modem manufacturer has developed its own proprietary circuitry and modems, usually unable to communicate with other manufacturer's systems. Currently, the development of modems needs to be directed towards the integration of much more complex protocols, including MAC and routing, thus solving the problem at the physical layer. If we want to achieve compatibility, we must have at least a few real standards for modulation, coding and other protocols that more than one modem can recognize.».
The obvious finding that the underwater environment is a problem as far as standardization is concerned has led to consensus that the high cost conducting experiments at sea, the smartest approach is to use modeling and simulation techniques to develop suitable models for further development. This will introduce some time delay, but it will probably be less if you try to develop new systems based on legacy ones and adopt an iterative development model. The time has come, of course, for a more radical approach, which, apparently, was supported by the CMRE center.
And this radical approach is evident in recent requests for proposals from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for an entirely new generation of submarine communications capabilities and systems. The request, which looks at independent wireless networking systems for both communications and weapons, said: “In the past decade, the deployment of aeronautical and space-based radio frequency and optoelectronic communications systems has made global, pervasive, networked, broadband communications a reality for civilian and military platforms. With the aim of fully integrating military submarine platforms and systems and increasing their combat effectiveness, DARPA is looking for solutions that extend this communications infrastructure to the submarine environment. "
The capabilities that DARPA requires from new systems include:
Targeting and authorizing the use of third-party weapons for underwater platforms and systems deployed in front;
Transmission from air and space networks to submarine platforms in real time and at a high speed of tracking data;
Transmission of sensor data and monitoring data from underwater sensors and platforms to tactical air and space networks;
Submarine network infrastructure to support operations in wide areas through mobile and fixed platforms, sensors and systems, such as unmanned submersibles operating from submarines, all networked with tactical and strategic space and networks; and
Autonomous, designed to work in a networked environment, processing of sensor data, for example, distributed passive and active hydroacoustic stations.
In the past decade, the US Navy has funded the Deep Siren program as essential technology its first generation Undersea FORCENET communication system. Developed by Raytheon in collaboration with RRK Technologies and Ultra Electronics, Deep Siren allows submersible submarines to communicate with aerial platforms, surface vessels, other submarines and satellites through the use of single-use acoustic buoys, regardless of the speed or depth of the submarine. Flexible and adaptable Deep Siren system with high level noise immunity, capable of operating in a wide range of acoustic environments, has demonstrated its effectiveness even in the Arctic.
Deep Siren System Hardware
Realizing communication between submarines in the 21st century
Submarines are limited in communication with the surface by one-way messages transmitted at very low speeds at extremely low frequencies (ELF, 3-3000 Hz) or very low frequencies (VLF, 3000-30000 Hz). In order for the boat to be able to respond, or, if necessary, communication of a non-alphanumeric type, it must float to the surface or at least to periscope depth (18 meters) in order to raise the antenna above the water.
Lockheed Martin's Communications at Speed and Depth (CSD) program allows stealth submarines to connect to the US Department of Defense's Global Information Network like any other ship in the fleet. Equipping submarines of the American fleet with disposable high-tech communication buoys will allow for two-way exchange of data and voice and mail messages in real time.
Until recently, large ELF and VLF antennas were considered modern solution ensuring communication between stealth submarines. As part of the program for the study of high-frequency activity upper layers Atmosphere High Frequency Active Auroral Research tested ways to use the upper atmosphere as a replacement for antennas. It turned out that it is possible to excite the ionosphere with high-frequency radio waves, thereby causing it to emit the very low frequency waves necessary to covertly pass through salt water.
Recent research in underwater communications has focused on higher frequency bands in more compact devices. Qinetiq's Seadeep system enables two-way communications with US submarines using blue-green lasers mounted on airborne platforms. Raytheon's Deep Siren project is a set of disposable paging buoys that can transmit messages from satellites to submarines acoustically (the sound of the encoded signal sounds like the trills of crickets), but only in one direction.
Communication at Speed and Depth was the first two-way submarine communications system for submarines. The exact depth at which submarines will be able to deploy buoys is classified, but Lockheed Martin says buoy cables are measured in miles. This is quite enough for the submarine to launch a buoy at a considerable depth and continue to move at normal operating speeds to complete a combat mission.
Lockheed Martin has developed three dedicated buoys with two subcontractors Ultra Electronics Ocean Systems and Erapsco. Two of them are tied to the submarine and interact with it using fiber optic cable. One of them carries equipment for communication with the satellite constellation Iridium, and the second - for communication at ultra-high frequencies. The third buoy is a free-floating acoustic-radio-frequency buoy. It can be air purged or even deflated through a waste disposal device. The batteries of tethered buoys work for up to 30 minutes and after their discharge they are independently flooded. Loose buoys are designed for a three-day deployment.
1.BARSH with a TDU kit is ejected from the TDU (Waste Removal Unit), the main ballast speeds up the ejection of the buoy
2. BARSH rotates and the main ballast is separated from the buoy
3. BARSH sinks
4. Auxiliary ballast is released to the specified depth or after a specified time. BARSH becomes positively buoyant and floats
5. BARSH with the TDU set floats to the surface. Post-launch time may take several minutes depending on throw depth and speed
6. The BURSH float inflates and removes the parachute cover. Cover release frees the TDU kit from the BARSH case
7. BARSH begins the standard deployment sequence. TDU kit performs flooding sequence
8. The buoy begins to work as an acoustic-radio frequency gateway
Security is not just a concern of the military
In parallel with developments in the field of military submarine communications, much attention is paid to improving the understanding and, therefore, more rational exploitation of the underwater environment for more peaceful purposes. Agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are already using acoustic generators and processors to transmit data to help predict and mitigate the potential impact of marine events such as tsunamis and hurricanes. Researchers at the University of Buffalo are now seriously looking for alternatives to the traditional model, in which submersible sensors transmit data via acoustic methods to surface buoys, where sound waves are converted into radio waves for transmission, usually via satellite, to terrestrial networks. This paradigm - currently in widespread use - is uneconomical and often prone to interface incompatibility and interoperability issues.
The answer here seems obvious - the creation of the underwater Internet. With funding from the National Science Foundation, a group at the University of Buffalo is experimenting with sensor / transceiver station designs that will provide real networking capabilities underwater, although the concerns of bandwidth and high bandwidth need to be fully addressed. The main problem, however, is that the work carried out in this area will have a very serious impact on security issues. With a growing population of coastal areas and an even faster growth in sea-going merchant traffic, the oceans are becoming an even more important and vulnerable aspect of national and regional security - and the problem is not limited to governments.
The increasing proliferation of robotic systems, both surface vessels and submersibles, to ensure safety in harbors, offshore oil rigs and important coastal facilities such as transport interchanges and power plants has led to a rapid increase in the demand for secure communications, especially for communications with large volumes. data transmission. The operation of high-speed submarine networks will help to significantly simplify some of the logistical problems facing the fleets and maritime security structures of many countries.
Loudspeakers alone, however, are unlikely to provide a long-term solution to meet the needs of subsea communications. Although they can provide this service over long distances, their fundamental drawback is associated with low data transfer rates and high delays. In this regard, the famous Woodshole Oceanographic Institute is currently working on optical communication systems that could theoretically overcome these limitations.
The Institute has already successfully demonstrated robust and reliable communications at speeds up to 10 Mbps using simple automatic systems installed at depth. The potential impact of this technology is significant, for example, in that the tethered ROVs currently used in drilling rig maintenance can be replaced by simple (even disposable) battery-powered systems, thus significantly reducing costs.
As food security becomes in this century the main problem state and much attention is paid to marine farms, as a partial solution to it, the need for reliable and safe communication between robotic farms and the surface administration should fully become the main concern of this very state. When it comes to maritime applications, underwater optical communication systems offer a tremendous advantage in being highly resistant to jamming or external interference. As a result, the level of communication security is significantly improved - an advantage that QinetiQ North America actively uses based on its 15 years of experience in this field.
There seems to be no intractable problem when it comes to scientific ingenuity. The use of experience gained on the ground, in the air, in the underwater world, the use of existing technologies, such as optical communications, and the development of special algorithms are all in order to take into account and take advantage of the unique characteristics of the marine environment. In all likelihood, the world of underwater communications expects a significant rise in interest from the maritime security structures and the scientific community, as well as the armed forces of many countries. There are, of course, a lot of problems, ranging from the difficulties of achieving high data rates through acoustic communications to the limited range of optical systems operating under the surface of the water. However, the prospects are bright, given the resources allocated for solving the problem, including financial ones. This is despite the fact that we live in an age of financial asceticism in the scientific research sphere. So an interesting story awaits us ... perhaps.
/Alex Alexeev, topwar.ru/
From the earliest days of submarines, their effectiveness as warships was associated with the readiness to receive orders through the then emerging new method of transmitting signals - radio. In 1910, the first radio station was installed on a submarine of the Baltic Fleet. It made it possible to communicate a submarine on the surface with a coastal radio station at a distance of up to 40 miles (1910 can be called the year of birth of communications with submarines in Russia). By the end of 1913, 5 submarines of the Baltic Fleet and 2 submarines of the Black Sea Fleet were armed with radio stations. Since 1916, none of the ships entering the fleet without radio equipment has not been accepted.
Conventionally, four stages can be distinguished in the development of radio communications with submarines.
The first stage was from 1910 to the middle of the last century. This period is characterized by the study of the propagation of radio waves in the water column, the organization of scientific institutions and industrial enterprises, the development of communication documents, the development of submarine communication facilities and their serial production. In 1932, the Scientific Research Marine Institute of Communications was created under the leadership of Academician A. Berg. In 1938, the Communications Directorate of the People's Commissariat of the Navy was formed. At the same time, the "Blokada-2" fleet radio armament system was developed, which included 7 types of radio transmitters and 5 types of radio receivers. These were radio equipment for long-wave and short-wave communications.
Radio communication with submarines in pre-war period was carried out in the long-wave and short-wave ranges. Communication sessions were conducted when the submarine was on the surface, which reduced its secrecy, both from radio reconnaissance and from visual means of observation, although these sessions were carried out mainly at night, during the hours of charging the battery.
Reducing the time the radio signals are broadcast on the air and the duration of the stay of the submarine in the surface or periscope position during a communication session becomes the most important task, along with the timely and reliable transmission of signals and messages. This task was successfully solved in the period from the 1950s to the 1970s - at the second stage of the development of communications with submarines. In the mid-1950s, the doctrine of creating an ocean-going nuclear missile fleet was adopted. An important place in it was assigned to the development of communications with submarines. In December 1955, a resolution of the USSR Council of Ministers "On measures to ensure communications with submarines" was adopted, providing for the construction of 177 facilities, including command posts, radio centers of the Navy, as well as the Air Force and Air Defense of the fleets. The naval communications system that exists now is largely the result of the implementation of the 1955 government decree.
By this time, the construction of the main short-wave radio centers, the development and equipment of submarines with powerful short-wave transmitters, ultra-high-speed communication equipment (UBD), the "Frame" antenna and the towed "Paravan" antenna device. This is how the state task of controlling submarines in a submerged position and increasing the secrecy of their actions was accomplished. The submarine's immersion depth when receiving signals was 50 meters, the transmission time of one message was 0.7 seconds.
The evolutionary development of submarines has put forward additional requirements for the naval communications system in terms of secrecy, reliability, and reliability. These tasks were solved at the third stage of development (mid-1970s - mid-1990s). This period includes the construction of the most powerful VLF radio station "Hercules" satellite system"Parus" and automated communication lines.
Requirements for reducing the number of submarine crews and reducing the weight and size characteristics of communications equipment determined the need to create automated communications complexes. The first domestic automated complex communications submarines was put into service in 1972, and its modernized version - in 1974. Both complexes were installed on submarines of the Northern Fleet. An invaluable contribution to the development of communications with submarines was made by the Scientific Council established in 1978 under the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences on the complex problem "Radiophysical Methods for Studying Seas and Oceans." It was headed by Academician V. Kotelnikov, Vice-President of the USSR Academy of Sciences. The Council was able to organize research with the involvement of the country's leading research organizations on a wide range of problems of communication with submarines. Today the work of this council is headed by Academician E. Velikhov.
A further reduction in the time for delivering combat control signals, primarily to the naval strategic nuclear forces, could be ensured by organizing a sessionless communication with submarines. Real steps in this direction have been made with cable towed antenna devices. The first modification of such an antenna was put into service in 1980, it allowed continuous towing at low speeds and provided radio reception in the super-long-wave range. Subsequent modifications to this antenna expanded its capabilities. Tests were carried out to receive signals from the "Parus" navigation-communication satellite system. To master the ultra-low-frequency range of signal transmission to deep-submerged submarines in 1985, an experimental center for long-distance communication at ultra-low frequencies was commissioned on the Kola Peninsula. The result of the third stage of development was the creation of a global communication system with submarines, ensuring the solution of combat missions anywhere in the World Ocean.
We are now at the fourth stage in the development of the submarine communications system. Its primary tasks in the development of communications with submarines are:
- mastering the range of extremely low frequencies to achieve great communication depths
- further modernization of the naval super-long-wave communications
- introduction of the achieved methods of jamming protection into the short-wave communications of the Navy
- creation of digital communication channels for the Navy
- creation of promising hydroacoustic communication systems and the search for ways to implement unconventional methods, channels and types of communication
- creation and equipping of submarines effective means emergency communication. An example is the "Nadezhda" pop-up emergency information device of the COSPAS-SAR-SAT system.
In the 80s of the last century, any aul boy knew that a few kilometers from our aul there is a training ground with high towers (masts) that keep in touch with submarines, and the Voice of America even broadcast about this.
True, this information became the object of ridicule and various anecdotes. But we, the Aul boys, lived with a firm conviction that we were right.
Years passed ...
Recently, a lot of information has appeared on the Internet, which was previously considered secret, also on the public satellite maps you can see different military objects. So what kind of landfill is located a few kilometers from our village?
The entry of ships of the USSR fleet into the vastness of the World Ocean in the 1960s, the need to ensure communication with submerged submarines at long ranges, the secrecy of submarines when transmitting information, automation of the information exchange process, high-quality communication under conditions of electronic countermeasures, required a transition from scattered communication systems fleets to a single and permanent one. Therefore, the country's leadership decided to build domestic radio stations and communication centers. This is how the stations appeared: "Antey" (1964) in Belarus; "Prometheus" (1974) in Kyrgyzstan; Atlant (1970), Goliath (1952), Hercules (1962), Hercules and Zeus in Russia.
http://www.astrosol.ch/networksofthecisforces/vlfmorsedigmodenetwork/5379039f1707a4601/index.html
As you can see, all the stations bear names associated with gods and ancient mythology. The task for all stations is the same - the transmission of information coming from General Staff The Armed Forces of Russia and the General Staff of the Navy, our submarines, which are on alert in different regions of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. In addition to the orders of the naval authorities, signalmen work in the interests of other services of the Armed Forces and combat arms, broadcasting signals for checking clocks according to the standard system of uniform time. This encrypted broadcasting is carried out in the VLF radio frequency range due to the presence of powerful transmitters capable of providing communication at a distance of more than 10,000 km.
It all started with Goliath:
In the area of interest to us, there is the most powerful super-long-wave radio station "Hercules"
RSDN-20 - phase radio navigation system "Alpha" - Russian system long-distance radio navigation, designed to determine the coordinates of aircraft, ships and submarines.
The fact that the main focus of the naval station of interest to us can be understood from this article: “Almost the same story is with the point of long-distance communication with submarines of the Navy in Vileika. If Belarus "asks" for this object from its territory, then Russia will lose an important (but not key!) Link in the control of the naval forces. In the region of Novgorod and Krasnodar there are similar stations for receiving and transmitting data. As the military say, "just a hint" of the termination of the lease ($ 7-10 million per year) is enough to immediately switch communication systems to Russian facilities. "... http://www.izvestia.ru/news/320549
It is clear that such a neighborhood of these objects cannot cause joy.
The foreign press notes that coastal radio stations, especially of the VLF range, with their bulky antenna fields, are subject to influence from the enemy. According to the American command, with the outbreak of hostilities, most of the radio centers can be destroyed. Therefore, it believes that for more reliable control of submarines, and primarily missile ones, communication systems with increased survivability, propagation range and depth of underwater signal transmission are needed.
And the deputy. the commander of the Antey station says:
"
The life of our object, you understand, is short-lived - a probable enemy will not allow us to transmit information constantly. But for that threatened period, we will have quite enough time so that we have time to necessary information transfer to submarines ".
http://vpk-news.ru/articles/4597
Let's hope that the Almighty will save us from the war.
Right there, however, the question arises, do the VLF transmitter's radiation harm the surrounding area? Moreover, as they say, the most powerful emitting station is located on "Hercules".