AM broadcasting

AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave bands also. Once AM was the only commercially important method for broadcast signal modulation. Today, it competes with FM broadcasting for mobile reception of music and speech, as well as with various digital modes distributed from terrestrial and satellite transmitters.

History
AM was the dominant method of broadcasting during the first eighty years of the 20th century and remains widely used into the 21st. AM broadcast radio (as opposed to point-to-point communication) began with the first, experimental broadcast on Christmas Eve, 1906, by Canadian experimenter Reginald Fessenden, and was used for small-scale voice and music broadcasts up until World War I. San Francisco, California, radio station KCBS claims to be the direct descendant of KQW, founded by radio experimenter Charles "Doc" Herrold, who made regular weekly broadcasts in San Jose, California, as early as June 1909. On that basis KCBS has claimed to be the world's oldest broadcast station and celebrated its 100th anniversary in the summer of 2009. The great increase in the use of AM radio came late in the following decade as radio experimentation increased worldwide following World War I. The first licensed commercial radio services began on AM in the 1920s. XWA of Montreal, Quebec (later CFCF, now CINW) claims status as the first commercial broadcaster in the world, with regular broadcasts commencing on May 20, 1920. The first licensed American radio station was started by Frank Conrad, KDKA in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Radio programming boomed during the "Golden Age of Radio" (1920s1950s). Dramas, comedy and all other forms of entertainment were produced, as well as broadcasts of news and music.

Operation
AM radio technology is simpler than frequency modulated (FM) radio, Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB), satellite radio or HD (digital) radio. An AM receiver detects amplitude variations in the radio waves at a particular frequency. It then amplifies changes in the signal voltage to drive a loudspeaker or earphones. The earliest crystal radio receivers used a crystal diode detector with no amplification. In North American broadcasting practice, transmitter power input to the antenna for commercial AM stations ranges from about 250 to 50,000 watts. Experimental licenses were issued for up to 500,000 watts radiated power, for stations intended for wide-area communication during disasters including Cincinnati station WLW, which used such power on occasion before World War II. WLW's superpower transmitter still exists at the station's suburban transmitter site, but it was decommissioned in the early 1940s and no current commercial broadcaster in the U.S. or Canada is authorized for such power levels. Some other countries do authorize higher power operation (for example the Mexican station XERF formerly operated at 250,000 watts). Antenna design must consider the coverage desired and stations may be required, based on the terms of their license, to directionalize their transmitted signal to avoid interfering with other stations operating on the same frequency.

AM broadcasting

Medium-wave (medium frequency, MF) and short-wave (high frequency, HF) radio signals act differently during daytime and nighttime. During the day, MF signals travel by groundwave, diffracting around the curve of the earth over a distance up to a few hundred miles (or kilometers) from the signal transmitter. However, after sunset, changes in the ionosphere cause MF signals to travel by skywave, enabling radio stations to be heard much farther from their point of origin than is normal during the day. This phenomenon can be easily observed by scanning the medium wave radio dial at night. As a result, many broadcast stations An example of the difference in range of an AM radio signal at different times. are required as a condition of license to reduce their broadcasting power significantly (or use directional antennas) after sunset, or even to suspend broadcasting entirely during nighttime hours. Such stations are commonly referred to as daytimers. In Australia medium wave stations are not required to reduce their power at night and consequently stations such as the 50,000-watt 3LO can be heard in some parts of New Zealand at night. In the United States and Canada, some radio stations are granted clear channel status, meaning that they broadcast on frequencies with few other stations allocated, allowing an extended coverage area when skywave propagation takes over at night, starting at or near local sunset. Relatively few stations enjoy clear-channel status. The vast majority of local MW stations rely on ground-wave coverage only, limiting their target market to their own local area. Non-clear channel stations typically have reduced coverage at night, due to noise and a mish-mash of other stations propagating in via skywave after dark. The area covered by a local station at night without significant skywave interference is known as the nighttime interference-free (NIF) contour, and is typically specified in mV/m (signal strength). The higher the NIF value, the stronger the local signal must be to override nighttime interference, resulting in a smaller coverage area and fewer listeners able to hear the station without interference. The hobby of listening to long distance signals is known as DX or DX'ing, from an old telegraph abbreviation for "distance". Several nonprofit hobbyist clubs are devoted exclusively to DXing the AM broadcast band, including the National Radio Club and International Radio Club of America. Similarly, people listening to short wave transmissions are SWLing.

Broadcast frequency bands

AM radio is broadcast on several frequency bands. The allocation of these bands is governed by the ITU's Radio Regulations and, on the national level, by each country's telecommunications administration (the FCC in the U.S., for example) subject to international agreements. The frequency ranges given here are those that are allocated to stations. Because of the bandwidth taken up by the sidebands, the range allocated for the band as a whole is usually about 5 kHz wider on either side. Long wave is 153279kHz, with 9kHz channel spacing generally used. Long wave is only used for radio broadcasting in ITU region 1 (Europe, Africa, and parts of Asia), and is not allocated elsewhere. In the United States, Canada, Bermuda, and U.S. territories, this band is mainly reserved for aeronautics navigational aids, though a small section of the band could theoretically be used for microbroadcasting under the United States Part

AM broadcasting 15 rules. Due to the propagation characteristics of long wave signals, the frequencies are used most effectively in latitudes north of 50. Medium wave is 5311,611kHz in ITU regions 1 and 3, with 9kHz spacing, and 5401610kHz in ITU region 2 (the Americas), with 10kHz spacing. ITU region 2 also authorizes the Extended AM broadcast band between 1610 and 1710kHz. Medium wave is by far the most heavily used band for commercial broadcasting. This is the "AM radio" that most people are familiar with. Short wave is approximately 2.326.1MHz, divided into 14 broadcast bands. Shortwave broadcasts generally use a narrow 5kHz channel spacing. Short wave is used by audio services intended to be heard at great distances from the transmitting station. The long range of short wave broadcasts comes at the expense of lower audio fidelity. The mode of propagation for short wave is different (see high frequency). AM is used mostly by broadcast services other shortwave users may use a modified version of AM such as SSB or an AM-compatible version of SSB such as SSB with carrier reinserted. Frequencies between the broadcast bands are used for other forms of radio communication, and are not broadcast services intended for reception by the general public.

Limitations
Because of its susceptibility to atmospheric and electrical interference, AM broadcasting now attracts mainly talk radio and news programming, while music radio and public radio mostly shifted to FM broadcasting in the late 1970s in the developed countries. However, in the late 1960s and 1970s, top 40 rock and roll stations in the U.S. and Canada such as WABC and CHUM transmitted highly processed and extended audio to 11kHz, successfully attracting huge audiences. In the UK during the 1980s, BBC Radio 4 (a largely speech channel) had an FM location, whereas BBC Radio 1, a music channel, was confined to AM broadcasts over much of the UK. Frequency response is typically 40Hz5kHz with a 50 dB Signal to noise(S/N) ratio. The limitation on AM fidelity comes from current receiver design. Moreover, to fit more transmitters on the AM broadcast band in the United States, maximum transmitted audio bandwidth is limited to 10.2kHz by a National Radio Systems Committee (NRSC) standard adopted by the FCC in June 1989, resulting in a channel occupied bandwidth of 20.4kHz. The former audio limitation was 15kHz resulting in a channel occupied bandwidth of 30kHz. AM radio signals can be severely disrupted in large urban centres by metal structures, tall buildings and sources of radio frequency interference (RFI) and electrical noise, such as electrical motors, fluorescent lights, or lightning. As a result, AM radio in many countries has lost its dominance as a music broadcasting service, and in many cities is now relegated to news, sports, religious and talk radio stations. Some musical genres particularly country, oldies, nostalgia and ethnic music survive on AM, especially in areas where FM frequencies are in short supply or in thinly populated or mountainous areas where FM coverage is poor.

Other distribution methods

Stereo transmissions are possible (see AM stereo), and hybrid digital broadcast systems are now being used around the world. In the United States, iBiquity's proprietary HD Radio has been adopted and approved by the FCC for medium wave transmissions, while Digital Radio Mondiale is a more open effort often used on the shortwave bands, and can be used alongside many AM broadcasts. Both of these standards are capable of broadcasting audio of significantly greater fidelity than that of standard AM with current bandwidth limitations, and a theoretical frequency response of 016kHz, in addition to stereo sound and text data. While FM radio can also be received by cable, AM radio generally cannot, although an AM station can be converted into an FM cable signal. In Canada, cable operators that offer FM cable services are required by the CRTC to distribute all locally available AM stations in this manner. In Switzerland a system known as "wire broadcasting"

AM broadcasting (Telefonrundspruch in German) transmitted AM signals over telephone lines in the longwave band until 1998, when it was shut down.[1]

Microbroadcasting
Some microbroadcasters and pirate radio broadcasters, especially those in the United States under the FCC's Part 15 rules, broadcast on AM to achieve greater range than is possible on the FM band. On mediumwave (AM), such radio stations are often found between 1610kHz and 1710kHz. Hobbyists also use low-power AM transmitters to provide local programming for antique radio equipment in areas where AM programming is not widely available or is of questionable quality; in such cases the transmitter, which is designed to cover only the immediate property and perhaps nearby areas, is connected to a computer or music player.

References
[1] http:/ / www. biennophone. ch/ telefonrundspruch. htm

External links
"Building the Broadcast Band" the development of the 5201700 kHz MW (AM) band (http://www.oldradio. com/archives/general/buildbcb.html) Chrome and Glass Shine Again: Hams Give Second Life to Legendary Transmitters With Names Like RCA, Collins, Gates and Raytheon (http://www.radioworld.com/article/chrome-and-glass-shine-again/17197)

Article Sources and Contributors

Article Sources and Contributors

AM broadcasting Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=526098213 Contributors: 121a0012, 1m y0ur targ, A Softer Answer, Abdull, Academic Challenger, Aldie, Andromeda321, Anomalocaris, Antandrus, Antifumo, Armando, Az1568, B.d.mills, BD2412, BNutzer, BarretB, Bearcat, Blainster, Blake, Blanchardb, Bmmxc damo, Bongwarrior, Bryan Derksen, Bwilkins, Cabe6403, Callidior, Can't sleep, clown will eat me, Charles Gaudette, Chbarts, CodeCat, Coinchon, Colin99, CompRhetoric, Crockspot, Danbonsai, Dexter Nextnumber, Dicklyon, Digital infinity, DocWatson42, Dposse, Dxinginfo, Dysprosia, Egil, Elaragirl, Emmette Hernandez Coleman, EoGuy, Epbr123, Epolk, Ericamick, Ericd, Erpel13, Esoltas, Evice, Ewlyahoocom, Excirial, Eyreland, Fedir, Ferengi, Fonzy, GABaker, Gaussgauss, Gimboid13, Glenn, Graham87, GrahamN, Gwen Gale, Haikupoet, Hajor, Hans Adler, Harksaw, Harryzilber, Harumphy, Heartanatomy, Hertz1888, HorsePunchKid, Husond, Igoldste, Ike, Imroy, Infrogmation, Iridescent, JTN, Jagwar, Jakes18, Jayron32, Jnestorius, Jpbowen, Jusdafax, Kbh3rd, KelisFan2K5, Khazar, Kiand, Koavf, Leslie Mateus, Light current, Lightmouse, Liquid77, Lir, Loren.wilton, LuckyLouie, MacGyverMagic, Magioladitis, Mahmudmasri, Mako098765, Manway, Mare420, Masciare, Mattdp, Mayawi, Mboverload, McCart42, Mdebets, Miami33139, Mild Bill Hiccup, Mipadi, Mlaffs, Mortense, Mulad, Mydotnet, Mysid, Neckro, Patrick, Pekaje, Penubag, Peripitus, Philip Trueman, RPharazon, Raccoon Fox, RandallJones, Rbrwr, Rcooley, Reactor, Retired username, RexNL, Rich Farmbrough, Ringopox555, RingtailedFox, Rossami, Rune.welsh, Sceptre, SchuminWeb, Sean13zz, Sectumsempra, Sepia tone, Simon South, SimonP, Snickerdo, Stereorock, Suffusion of Yellow, TBH, Teravolt, The Original Wildbear, The Thing That Should Not Be, Thorwald, Tide rolls, Trilobite, Vrray people107, Wfeidt, WikianJim, Will, Willking1979, Wmahan, Wtshymanski, XP1, YUiCiUS, Yamamoto Ichiro, Zahid Abdassabur, 222 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

File:Skywave Effect of AM.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Skywave_Effect_of_AM.png License: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Contributors: Closeapple, Jmabel, Mrgoogfan, Mrwojo, Tony Wills, 3 anonymous edits

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