Beidweiler Longwave Transmitter
The Beidweiler longwave transmitter is a high-power broadcasting transmission site owned by RTL Group and operated by RTL company Broadcasting Center Europe. It was used to transmit the French-speaking programme of RTL on longwave frequency {{frequency|234|kHz}} until 1 January 2023. Based in Beidweiler, Luxembourg, the transmission site is situated at 49°43'58" N and 6°19'08" E and went into service in 1972 as replacement of the old Junglinster Longwave Transmitter. Junglinster remained in use as a backup site and for additional broadcast services.
Construction
The facility uses a directional antenna consisting of three {{convert|290|meter|foot|adj=on}} tall guyed masts, each equipped with a cage antenna. The output of this array is mostly directed toward Paris. When the site was inaugurated in 1972 it operated with a transmission power of 1400 kilowatts, which was pushed up to 2000 kW in 1974, making it one of the most powerful broadcasting stations in the world at the time.{{Cite web |last=Engle |first=Steve |title=Competing in the Ether — Building transmission sites |url=http://h-europe.uni.lu/?page_id=3543 |website=H-Europe}}
History
In 1994, the facility's transmitters were replaced with Thomson-Csf TRE 2175 units, which in turn were replaced by a new Transradio TRAM/P 1500 LS solid-state transmitter in 2011 that could support DRM digital radio broadcasting.{{Cite news |last=Zank |first=Harald |date=2011-07-27 |title=Transradio Delivers System to RTL |language=en-US |work=Radio World |url=https://www.radioworld.com/tech-and-gear/transradio-delivers-system-to-rtl |access-date=2022-10-25}} The maximum power of the site is 1500 kW (reduced to 1000 kW at night);{{Cite web|url=https://pa3fwm.nl/signals/rtl234kHz-power|title=RTL 234 kHz power, April 2018 / August 2020}} since 2020, the output power has been set to 750 kW daytime or 375 kW at night.{{Cite web|title=MWLIST quick and easy: Europe, Africa and Middle East - 234 kHz|url=http://www.mwlist.org/mwlist_quick_and_easy.php?area=1&kHz=234|access-date=October 9, 2020}}
In 2019, RTL Group and Luxembourgish energy company {{ill|Enovos|lb}} began work on an extensive solar generation facility at Beidweiler.{{Cite news |date=2019-07-16 |title=Beidweiler et Junglinster: RTL Group et Enovos à l'initiative du plus grand parc photovoltaïque du pays |language=fr |trans-title=Beidweiler and Junglinster: RTL Group and Enovos at the initiative of the largest photovoltaic park in the country |work=RTL: 5 minutes |url=https://5minutes.rtl.lu/actu/luxembourg/a/1377238.html |access-date=2022-10-25}} The first phase of the project, consisting of 16,100 photovoltaic solar panels, was connected to the national energy grid in 2020. A second group of panels went online in 2021. Together with a similar solar generation facility at Junglinster, the transmission sites make up the largest solar facility in Luxembourg, generating almost 10.5 gigawatt-hours of energy per year.{{Cite web |last=Du Murr |first=Irene |date=2022-02-24 |title=Focus on the country's large-scale photovoltaic installations |url=https://www.spuerkeess.lu/en/blog/lets-talk-business/focus-on-the-countrys-large-scale-photovoltaic-installations/ |access-date=2022-10-25 |website=Spuerkeess |language=en}}
In October 2022, RTL parent company Groupe M6 announced plans to cease broadcasting from the site, citing the need to reduce electricity consumption.{{Cite news |last=Ross |first=T Carter |date=2022-10-25 |title=RTL Plans 234 kHz Exit for Year-End |language=en-US |work=Radio World |url=https://www.radioworld.com/global/rtl-plans-234-khz-exit-for-year-end |access-date=2023-01-02}} Transmissions from Beidweiler stopped on 2 January 2023, with listeners advised to switch to FM, DAB+, or streams delivered via digital TV and mobile apps.{{Cite news |date=2023-01-02 |title=RTL France has stopped long wave broadcasting |language=en-US |url=https://today.rtl.lu/news/luxembourg/a/2011664.html |access-date=2023-01-02}}
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- http://www.skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?b7751
- {{Structurae|id=20010726|title=Langwellensender Beidweiler}}
- https://theantennasite.com/countries/luxembourg/beidweiler-ruedelastation.html
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{{coord|49.73033|N|6.32058|E|source:placeopedia|display=title}}
Category:Radio masts and towers in Europe
Category:Transmitter sites in Luxembourg