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WWVH Photo Gallery

See & hear: How It
Works
Colorado
(WWV)
Colorado
(WWVB)
Hawaii
station

The station's surroundings. After serving the Pacific area for 23 years from the Island of Maui, Hawaii, Radio Station WWVH was relocated to the western edge of the Island of Kauai, Hawaii in 1971. The facility is located near Kekaha at Kokole Point. Around the clock, continuous broadcast services from Hawaii supplement those from WWV in Fort Collins, Colorado, by providing coverage in the Pacific Basin.

    Entrance
    WWVH entrance
    Station entrance to WWVH in Barking Sands, Kauai
    Sunset
    Sunset at WWVH
    View from WWVH, Niihau Island on left horizon
    Station house
    WWVH station house
    WWVH in Barking Sands, Kauai
    In the foreground is the weather instrument tower, in background, standby 2.5 MHz monopole
    Old Station
    WWVH at old site (1948-71)
    WWVH in Kihei, Maui 1948 to 1971.
    Antennas left to right: 10.0 MHz, 5.0 MHz, Reception, 15.0 MHz, and 2.5 MHz
    Buildings left to right: Office, transmitter, generator & shop

Clocks & antennas. Several cesium atomic clocks provide the precise timing information broadcast by WWVH, these signals are amplified by transmitters (below) and broadcast from several antennas. Three atomic frequency standards at WWVH provide optimum timekeeping ability. These "atomic clocks" are kept in as close agreement as possible with the UTC(NIST) time scale located in Boulder, Colorado.

    Clocks
    WWVH equipment
    Time and Frequency Rack: Digital recorders, Multi-channel chart recorder, Clock A, Clock B; Clock C, & Error detection/auto-switching system
    15 MHz antenna
    WWVH 15 MHz antenna
    15 MHz antenna array. Two half-wave vertical dipoles separated by a quarter-wave length and driven 90 degrees out of phase
    Sunset
    WWVH antennas at sunset
    Antennas left to right: Standby 2 broadband and 2.5 MHz dipole
    Antenna field
    WWVH antenna field
    Left to right: 20.0 MHz array (abandoned), 15.0 MHz array, 10.0 MHz array, 2.5 MHz dipole, Standby 1 (SB1) broadband, and Standby 2 (SB2) broadband

Transmitters. These transmitters amplify the time signal that is sent to the antennas.

    Left view
    WWVH transmitters - left view
    Transmitters from left to right: Primary 5.0 MHz (10kW), Standby 5.0 MHz (5kW), and Standby 15.0 MHz (5kW)
    Center view
    WWVH transmitters - center view
    Transmitters from left to right: Standby 15.0 MHz (5kW), Primary 10.0 MHz (10kW), and Primary 15.0 MHz (10kW)
    Console panels left to right: oscope and multi-channel recorder; modulation, carrier and master control for transmitters; and station status, RF exiters and audio amplifiers
    Right view
    WWVH transmitters - right view
    Transmitters from left to right: Primary 2.5 MHz (5kW), Standby 10.0 MHz (5kW) and Standby 2.5 MHz (5kW)
    10,000 Watt
    WWVH transmitter - interior view
    WWVH Typical Interior of a 10000 Watt Class C Plate Modulated Transmitter
    Top left: Final tuning circuit

    Top right: PA and modulator tubes

    Bottom Left: High voltage power supply, control panel

    Bottom Right: Modulator transformer, screen power and choke

    At WWVH, only one clock is "on the air" at any time. The other two permit clock comparison and emergency or standby service. Satellite synchronization methods are used to keep WWVH clocks "in step" with NIST/Boulder standards.

    A time code generator allows recorded voices and special announcements to be programmed automatically into the broadcast format. This information provides modulation through a synthesizer for the four standard broadcast frequencies. A female voice announces WWVH's time, thus allowing distinction from WWV's male voice. The RF signals are amplified through high power transmitters and fed to the antenna systems. The antennas are modified half-wave dipole phased arrays with the exception of the 2.5 MHz and standby monopoles.

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