Futureproofing Pacific broadcasting – transmitter replacement underway
Released at 2:34 pm on 12 December 2023
RNZ has powered down for the last time its 34-year-old shortwave Thompson transmitter, known as “Transmitter 1”, one of two shortwave transmitters that deliver analogue and digital radio broadcasts to the Pacific.
It is part of the preparation for the installation of a new Swiss-made Ampegon shortwave transmitter at its Rangitaiki site.
This project is a milestone for RNZ. For the past 75 years, it has been using shortwave radio to broadcast to the vast Pacific region. Replacing the old transmitter marks a significant step in futureproofing of the service.
Transmitter 1, the 100-kilowatt Thompson unit, was installed just outside of Taupō in 1989, just in time for the Commonweath Games held in Auckland in 1990. Only capable of transmitting in analogue,…
