by Gerry Vassilatos
 

THE EXPERIMENTS WHICH WILL HERE BE DESCRIBED ARE NOT IN THEMSELVES DANGEROUS. THERE IS DANGER FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT TAKE ORDINARY PRECAUTIONS WHEN USING AC POWERED RADIOS. ANY WORK PERFORMED ON SUCH RADIOS DEMANDS DISCONNECTION FROM THE MAINS DURING ALL PREPARATORY PHASES. NEVER CONNECT WIRES TO ANY RADIO WHICH IS OPERATING. HAZARDOUS SHOCK CAN RESULT. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES PERFORM THESE EXPERIMENTS DURING A STORM! GROUND ANTENNAS ARE DIRECT CONNECTIONS TO EARTH. IF YOU INTEND ON LEAVING THIS SYSTEM IN THE GROUND, WE SUGGEST YOU TARE PRECAUTION BY OBTAINING A INEXPENSIVE LIGHTNING ARRESTER FROM LOCAL RADIO MARKETS

The lore of Ground Antennas is a forgotten chapter in Radio History, the progressive development of private experimenters from 1870 to 1930. Military field radio yet employs the ground antenna to maintain ordinary intercommunication among distributed platoons. Several commercial ground antennas enjoyed great popularity throughout the 1930's, a topic which I have covered in great detail (March Borderlands Journal). Ground antennas are very useful for those who live in mountain-bound locations, where the reception of radio and television signals is distorted or even absent. For short-wave radio receivers, the ground antenna works in an astounding way. You may find this ground antenna so wonderful that every other aerial will pale in its operation by comparison. Understand that the reception of foreign signals through the ground matrix is completely different from that which presupposes the downward "sky beaming" of signals. With ground reception there is no "skipping", no "deep fading", and very little static. Ground reception is the result of direct contact conduction of radio signals.

There are more advanced ground antenna arrangements which we will share, but try these simple suggestions first. Please observe the precautionary notes placed at the beginning of this article When you have, try a simple experiment for yourself. Obtain a copper conduit pi from any hardware store. The cost will not be more than five dollars. Make a small cut into the top of this with a hacksaw. The cut is made three inches from the end so that YOU may twist into it a secure wire lead.

If you wish to establish the very best ground antenna point, find a place where dark green vegetation thrives. Wait until the ground is soft. I usually wait until after a good rainfall before driving my experimental antennas down. You will need an available window. Wire will be dropped from your receiver to the ground antenna, so it is imperative that your window coincide with the ground point which you have selected.

Wear gloves when performing this portion of the experiment. Using A small sledge, carefully drive in a 2 foot long copper conduit pipe. The pipe you choose can be much longer according to your local needs. I left a 4 inch section above the ground for the hookup. Obtain a sufficient length of wire to establish a lead between the pipe and your radio receiver. If using coaxial cable, neatly trim away the outer shielding and cover the frayed ends with rubber tape. If your receiver has only an external antenna, connect the ground lead directly to this antenna. Some popular radio sets are equipped with a small aerial screw terminal. Use this connection point. Now carefully drop this wire from your window to the ground antenna. Close the window to hold the line, and go outside to establish your connection. Twist rubber tape around the connection.

Once attached to your receiver, leave the wire and ground pipe alone. You can attach this ground antenna connection to any kind of radio receiver. I successfully received television signals with a ground antenna, obtaining surprisingly clarified signals an most of the shorter wave channels (7 through UHF) without any other aerial. Your ordinary AM radio reception will be dramatically magnified with the ground antenna. While surprisingly powerful signals will spring into your receiver with the very first contact, time is required for the full and powerful saturation effect to take place You will notice that, soon after you have first introduced the pipe -into the ground, your first received stations will begin to "grow* in strength.
This effect will continue for days, growing in increments of strength and clarity. Fixed volumes begin to reach leveled states in 2 or 3 days, a growth process uncommon with aerial signals. But beyond the signal growth of the strong stations, one begins observing the gradual increase in station numbers with time. Your initially strong stations, those which grew in the course of 3 days, will now become Interspersed by a great population of faint signals.

This "background" population will then increase in magnitude and clarity until your sweep dial in filled with an immense "crackling". By day 4 or 5 with this arrangement, my sweep dial was literally covered with the continual "crackle" of new signals.

Sweeping the dial will thus continually bring in tiny little signal "granules" between the stronger signals, those which normally mask these almost imperceptible stations. The gradual appearance of new stations, the gradual "arrival" of a great many. minor signals, begins manifesting with time. The buried pipe becomes a "receptive site", into which the upwelling currents actively pour. These effects were rediscovered when buried metals began producing their characteristic "tone signatures". A singularly fascinating study, we found that each buried metal literally became "saturated" with ground currents. This saturation process also required a gradual period of time.

With persistent saturation, your ground pipe antenna will continue producing a surprising proliferation of signals. in this growing manner, signals keep appearing from greater and greater distances. Signals have to travel from their sources to you...in straight lines! You Tony therefore understand that the most week and distant stations, those innumerable transmitters which lie In the "geography between" yourself and certain strong foreign stations, will begin to make their appearance. A slow growth period will prove this effect to you. Enjoy the reception!