Nikola Tesla - The Founder of High-Frequency and Radio Engineering Page 14

d) Tesla’s Radio Station in Colorado of 200 Kilowatts in 1899

That Tesla’s high-frequency apparatuses were practically capable of wireless transmissions over the greatest distances was proven by the experiments in Colorado in Western America, which Tesla conducted in 1899 with a large radio station of 200 kilowatts. Figure 2 shows Tesla’s transmitting radio station in Colorado. From this it is clearly visible that Tesla used a vertical antenna without complicated transverse wires, and when we compare the antenna of a modern Viennese radio station from 1932 and new large Russian stations from recent years, we see that even in terms of antenna construction, after almost forty years of wandering and futile experimentation, we are again approaching Tesla’s basic systems and constructions, which is the best proof that Tesla’s fundamental works are of lasting value, as they are based on scientific principles and countless scientific discoveries and experiments that not only laid the foundations of today’s radio technology but also showed the direction in which future development must proceed.

In his historical experiments in Colorado, which lasted from the beginning of 1899 until mid-1900, Tesla achieved wireless telegraphy and telephony over distances of more than 100 kilometers and, in more than 20 patents, described various special apparatuses for transmitting and receiving radio stations, for the most diverse wavelengths, ranging from several tens of meters to several tens of kilometers. In these patents Tesla, on the basis of the experiments performed, proved that for radiotelegraphic purposes over very long distances it is possible to utilize electromagnetic waves of several kilometers in length, such as those produced by his high-frequency dynamos of 20,000 to 30,000 periods, because such long waves can travel across the Earth’s surface from one pole to the other. Tesla further showed in these patents how wave energy can be amplified and accumulated in receiving stations, so that even very small quantities of received energy can be utilized. Furthermore