[time-nuts] Italian Time Station on 10 MHz ?

Marco IK1ODO -2 ik1odo at spin-it.com
Sun Apr 28 16:25:25 EDT 2013


For what I know they have an experimental license by the Telecom 
authority, and operate from Tuscany near Viareggio since two or three 
years. The license has been given on the basis that there are no more 
HF time and frequency signals operating in Europe.
When I knew about it I offered to donate a rubidium standard, to have 
it at least on the right frequency.
I had no answers... they continue to radiate a worthless 
off-frequency signal (IMHO). May be it is a case of "beaconitis" :-) 
(a disease that mandates to activate beacons).
On a similar base, I know of an attempt to restore and put in 
operation the old transmitter of IBF (5 MHz, "Istituto Nazionale di 
Elettrotecnica", now INRIM, the national standard keepers). That was 
a custom built 5 kW (carrier) Continental broadcasting TX. It has 
been found in the underground storage of INRIM, stripped of power and 
modulation transformers, and should be rebuilt to operate at only 1 
kW carrier on the original 5 MHz frequency (Rb or GPS controlled!). 
The plans are to operate it from the original place on the hills near 
Torino, by remote control, as a museum and educative item. I offered 
my workshop to work on it, I hope that the project may go on to again 
hear "IBF, IBF, IBF, standard time and frequency signals from the 
National Electrotechnical Institute, Turin, Italy" from minutes 45 to 
60 on 5 MHz ;-)

Marco IK1ODO / AI4YF




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