Morse Code

Morse Code is a method of transmitting information in a series of short and long bursts referred to dots and dashes. These dots and dashes that can be transmitted via sound or light (i.e. ship-to-ship). On top of the encoding of letters and numbers in morse code, skilled operators also use a number of Abbreviations in order to reduce the number of symbols that must be sent to convey a message. Morsenger automatically uses these abbreviations wherever possible.

Audio transmission of Morse Code normally uses a 600–1000 Hz tone. It requires bandwidth as small as 2.4 kHz, meaning that radio receivers can use very narrow filters to pick the signal out of very noisy airwaves, and at low levels compared to the noise. This also makes morse tolerant to noise from nearby frequencies. Audio is normally transmitted at 15 to 25 words per minute.

Optical transmission of Morse Code normally uses a directional light beam that can be interrupted. Depending on the physical arrangement of the light source, it can be highly directional (lasers) or broadcast in all directions (plain light bulb). Optical morse is normally transmitted at around 5 words per minute.

The timing of Morse Code transmission is based on the length of the dot symbol:

• DOT = 1
• DASH = 3 DOTS
• GAP between dots and dashes = 1 DOT
• GAP between characters = 3 DOTS
• GAP between words = 7 DOTS

So the morse representation of "CQ" would be "-.-. --.-" and this would require 28 dot periods to transmit.

Internally, Morsenger represents Morse Code using Morse Symbols.