For some of us, our brains are like a computer connected to the internet with multiple browser tabs open. We are curious and want to know at least a little bit about everything. While we may never compete on a game show with this vast store of knowledge we’ve accumulated, we can certainly help win trivia night at our favorite local watering hole. So, anyone else curious about maritime communication systems?
Historically Speaking
Originally, communication between ships at sea was very limited. A sailor could sometimes ‘read’ the intent of another ship by watching how aggressively the other vessel sailed or by spotting certain tell-tale signs aboard like excessive canons, pirate flags or boarding parties preparing for war. Not all ships asea were pirates, though. Sometimes ships that sailed for the same countries or companies needed to communicate with one another. That’s where systems like heliographs and semaphore came into use.
Heliographs use the sun to reflect off a surface. Those reflections are then transmitted in patterns such as Morse Code. Semaphore uses the positioning of flags to signal from ship to ship. Each position represents a different letter or number.
Two drawbacks of both systems are the lack of privacy and that communication range is limited to how far you can see between ships. The invention of the radio made both fall out of general use.
Modernization
Today, ship-to-ship, land or submarine communication is about much more than just the radio. First is navigation. Each ship must know where it is on the globe to report back. Connecting with navigational or GPS satellites is how most ships accomplish this.
Radar sends radio signals in a specific direction. Specially trained operators then interpret the radar waves as they bounce off or are absorbed by whatever they hit. Sonar systems transmit sound waves through water that are then reflected back once they’ve hit an object. Again, specially trained operators figure out what the object is.
Who knows what the future of maritime communications will bring. Innovations in tech abound that can be applied to this field. Stay tuned!
