Morse Code and its enduring significance
April 27th, 2009 - 11:11 pm ICT by GDMorse Code refers to the encoding of characters with the use of rhythm for transmitting telegraphic information. Morse Code was originally created by Samuel F. B. Morse in the early 1840s. Samuel Morse was born on 27th April 1791 and today is his birthday. Samuel Morse was an American painter of historic scenes but he gained worldwide fame with his discovery of Morse Code.
The Morse Code uses a standard form of long and short elements that represent alphabets, numbers and some special characters. These elements may consist of marks, sounds or pulses in off keying. They are commonly referred to as “dots” and “dashes” or “dits” and “dahs”. Time elapsed between the signals conveyed plays an important role in determining the meaning of the code and it is measured in words per minute.
Morse Code was extensively used in early radio communication. In fact in the first part of the 20th century, most of the high speed international communication was done with the help of Morse Code. Since its inception in the 1840s there has been a vast development in the different applications of Morse Code. Nowadays, the Morse Code is very popular with amateur radio operators. All the professional pilots and sailors need to know the basic functioning of the Morse Code and its utilities.
The VORs and NDBs, which are navigational aids in aviation, transmit their identity in Morse Code constantly. Morse code is one of the most effective means for communication because the technique used is very simple and can be handled by all who have a basic understanding of its different codes.
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Tags: 1840s, 20th century, amateur radio operators, american painter, aviation, dots and dashes, inception, international communication, morse code, navigational aids, ndbs, professional pilots, pulses, radio communication, rhythm, sailors, samuel morse, signals, speed international, worldwide fame