24 Facts About Morse code

Morse code is a method used in telecommunication to encode text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called dots and dashes, or dits and dahs.

Morse code is named after Samuel Morse, one of the inventors of the telegraph.

Morse code is usually transmitted by on-off keying of an information-carrying medium such as electric current, radio waves, visible light, or sound waves.

Morse code was developed so that operators could translate the indentations marked on the paper tape into text messages.

However, the Morse code was expanded by Alfred Vail in 1840 to include letters and special characters, so it could be used more generally.

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When Morse code was adapted to radio communication, the dots and dashes were sent as short and long tone pulses.

The original American Morse code being compared dates to 1838; the later American Morse code shown in the table was developed in 1844.

Radiotelegraphy using Morse code was vital during World War II, especially in carrying messages between the warships and the naval bases of the belligerents.

Morse code was used as an international standard for maritime distress until 1999 when it was replaced by the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System.

Morse code speed is measured in words per minute or characters per minute .

International Morse code today is most popular among amateur radio operators, in the mode commonly referred to as "continuous wave" or "CW".

Relatively limited speed at which Morse code can be sent led to the development of an extensive number of abbreviations to speed communication.

Automatic Transmitter Identification System uses Morse code to identify uplink sources of analog satellite transmissions.

Morse code has been employed as an assistive technology, helping people with a variety of disabilities to communicate.

Morse code can be sent by persons with severe motion disabilities, as long as they have some minimal motor control.

Morse code can be translated by computer and used in a speaking communication aid.

Morse code messages are generally transmitted by a hand-operated device such as a telegraph key, so there are variations introduced by the skill of the sender and receiver — more experienced operators can send and receive at faster speeds.

Morse code is often spoken or written with dah for dashes, dit for dots located at the end of a character, and di for dots located at the beginning or internally within the character.

Morse code is usually sent by hand, it is unlikely that an operator could be that precise with the dot length, and the individual characteristics and preferences of the operators usually override the standards.

People learning Morse code using the Farnsworth method are taught to send and receive letters and other symbols at their full target speed, that is with normal relative timing of the dits, dahs, and spaces within each symbol for that speed.

Prosigns for Morse code are special unwritten procedural signals or symbols that are used to indicate changes in communications protocol status or white space text formatting actions.

Russian and Bulgarian, Russian Morse code is used to map the Cyrillic characters to four-element codes.

Japanese Morse code has a separate encoding for kana script; although many of the codes are used for International Morse, their sounds are mostly unrelated.

Korean Morse code uses the SKATS mapping, originally developed to allow Korean to be typed on western typewriters.