Terrible Analogies

While wandering about the vast dank recesses and dusty tomes of the ‘net this past weekend I happened upon a quick mention of something called “callsign UBV-76″. The writer mentioned the unending signal of UBV-76 while waxing eloquently about the amateur radio scene of his youth. This casual, offhanded, throwaway reference piqued my interest. It seemed like a code or a secret handshake used only within the confines of a highly specialized and overlooked subset of society.

Damn it, I had to know more.

Curious, I did a bit of research and came up with the following:

UVB-76 is the callsign of a shortwave radio station that usually broadcasts on the frequency 4625 kHz (AM full carrier). It’s known among radio listeners by the nickname The Buzzer. It features a short, monotonous buzz tone, repeating at a rate of approximately 25 tones per minute, for 24 hours per day. The station has been observed since around 1982.In rare occasions, the buzzer signal is interrupted and a voice transmission in Russian takes place. Only three to four such events have been noted.

There is much speculation; however, the actual purpose of this station remains unknown.

This signal has been interrupted only three times since its discovery.  At each interruption a Russian voice could be heard reciting a series of letters, numbers, and names, the latter of which possibly being a phonetic alphabet.

Some people theorize that this station is used to direct the Russian military in times of crisis, while others believe that it serves as a sort of “dead man switch” for a doomsday weapon.

I love the mysterious, the alien, and the unexplained.  It’s stuff like that that makes my world go ’round (well, that and artichokes).  I hope you take a moment to read up on this topic.  Information can be found at the UVB-76 wiki page and a recording of the buzzer can be heard here.