From our other sites
The story
A news report revealing that Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) still uses Morse code communication became a hot topic on 5ch. Exchanges using signal lamps and telegraph keys might look old-fashioned, but Morse code remains a valid method today because the very long wave (VLF) band used to reach submarines can only transmit an on/off signal — it can’t carry a human voice. The thread buzzed with a mix of technical discussion and idle chatter: some pointed out the irony in the article’s phrase “without relying on radio waves” (isn’t VLF still radio?), others brought up the story of SOS Morse beeps being cut from the intro of a hit song, and still others swapped notes on how Morse code has been depicted in anime and movies.
“Dit-dit-dit, dah-dah-dah…” — this kind of communication is still in active use today! Why does the JMSDF keep using it?
Communication methods using signal lamps and telegraph keys
When most people hear “Morse code,” they probably picture an old war movie with the classic “dit-dit, dah-dah” exchanges.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
You can even have everyday conversations with it.
I could never memorize kana Morse code (wabun code, the Japanese syllabary version of Morse).
I learned it from The Kindaichi Case Files.
"Shiarā Oscar Shiarā" (a nonsensical mnemonic chant for memorizing kana Morse, as used in that manga)
Because the ultimate form of digital is analog, after all.
But the Midway codes were completely cracked, weren't they? lol
Isn't this mechanism not analog at all, but actually encoded digital communication?
It's not sending information as a continuous value, so it's digital, right?
Johnny Got His Gun.
Amuro: "Optical communication?!" (Gundam reference)
"Kill… me…" (the famous Morse-tapped line from Johnny Got His Gun)
Esss-Ohh~ Esss!
Because it could be mistaken for a genuine distress signal,
the Morse beeps at the start of the intro were cut from broadcasts.
Of course, it goes without saying it's also useful for emergency communications lol
The only frequency band that can reach a submarine is very long wave (VLF), and the only communication it can carry is a Morse-style on/off signal.
Since VLF frequencies are lower than the frequency range of the human voice, voice can't be transmitted on it.
VVV VVV
That's the code used for test transmissions.
Maybe they mean things like signal lamps?
Morse code is just a method for encoding letters,
so the medium used to transmit that code can be anything.
10-4, 10-10 (CB radio codes: "10-4" = understood, "10-10" = transmission complete)
"YL" (ham radio slang for a female operator, "young lady")
or is that sense of humor just too old-fashioned?
The Black Jack episode about amateur radio got swapped out for a dial-up computer network (BBS) storyline in the anime adaptation.
Re: #108
The medium carrying the code can be radio waves, light, sound — anything at all.
The telephone pole: "Yeah, fair enough." (pun: 電信柱 literally means "telegraph pole")
Are they stupid or something?
Couldn't you substitute light for it too?
Like turning a light on and off.
Hmm, well, "it's still electromagnetic waves" is a pretty strained argument.
I think there was a scene like that in Aegis of the Ruined Nation (Bōkoku no Aegis).
Ugh, that guy's been glancing over here for a while — is he some kind of pervert?
That song from Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
looks like it could be decoded as Morse code.
I've got a coworker who's also into amateur radio, so we actually use it in important meetings lol. It's super handy lol
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
Behind this topic lies a constraint of the very long wave (VLF) band used to communicate with submarines. VLF can’t carry a continuous waveform like voice — it can only send information by switching the signal on and off — which makes it a natural fit for encoded communication like Morse code. On the thread, opinions split over whether Morse code counts as “analog” or “digital.” Sending information purely through signal on/off is binary and leans digital, but the operational side — where a human adjusts the length and spacing of dots and dashes by feel — could be seen as more analog. There was also pushback on the original article’s phrase “without relying on radio waves,” since signal lamps still use light, which is itself a form of electromagnetic wave — meaning it’s technically radio waves after all, strictly speaking. It’s a communication method that turns out to be surprisingly deep, open to discussion from both a technical-definition angle and a real-world-usage angle.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (News Speed+) thread “JMSDF’s “Dit-dit-dit, dah-dah-dah…” Communication Still in Active Use! The Reason They Keep Using It Without Relying on Radio Waves.”
Leave a Reply