All radio stations and broadcasting companies will transmit on a certain frequency; this can either be on medium wave, FM, short wave or long wave. The location of a radio station on a dial will depend on whereabouts that broadcast is coming from and how many other stations are active in that particular area. Because of this it is quite easy to trace the location of the broadcaster from the radio waves that they are sending out.
Radio silence is when all radio broadcasts, either fixed or mobile are asked to stop broadcasting, usually for safety and security reasons. The military will often send out a request for radio silence in order to protect troops or prevent the location of troop movements from being disclosed, either in the form of an audible message or tracking of radio waves and their position. Radio silence can be called at any time by army generals and different military organizations follow different procedures. Once the order or request has been made, only the originator of the initial request can then end the period of radio silence. Radio stations affected are allowed to broadcast a brief message explaining the situation.
It is not just the military who can call for radio silence. Any activity which requires full secrecy and discretion, such as space missions can lead to the halting of broadcasts.
In recent years, the term radio silence has been used to describe a period where someone refuses to answer calls or text messages. A definition in the Urban Dictionary is 'When a person doesn't return phone calls or text messages, most commonly used when trying to develop a relationship with someone'. An example being "The girl seemed pretty into me when I met her at the bar, but when I called her the next day, I got total radio silence".
Radio silence is when all radio broadcasts, either fixed or mobile are asked to stop broadcasting, usually for safety and security reasons. The military will often send out a request for radio silence in order to protect troops or prevent the location of troop movements from being disclosed, either in the form of an audible message or tracking of radio waves and their position. Radio silence can be called at any time by army generals and different military organizations follow different procedures. Once the order or request has been made, only the originator of the initial request can then end the period of radio silence. Radio stations affected are allowed to broadcast a brief message explaining the situation.
It is not just the military who can call for radio silence. Any activity which requires full secrecy and discretion, such as space missions can lead to the halting of broadcasts.
In recent years, the term radio silence has been used to describe a period where someone refuses to answer calls or text messages. A definition in the Urban Dictionary is 'When a person doesn't return phone calls or text messages, most commonly used when trying to develop a relationship with someone'. An example being "The girl seemed pretty into me when I met her at the bar, but when I called her the next day, I got total radio silence".