Cherry Ripe (numbers station)
Encyclopedia
Cherry Ripe was the nickname of a mysterious, powerful shortwave
numbers station
that used several bars from the English folk song "Cherry Ripe" as an interval signal
. The station was believed to be operated by the British Secret Intelligence Service
and to have emanated from Australia. It was thought to have previously broadcast from Guam
. It consisted of an electronically synthesised English-accented female voice reading groups of five numbers, e.g. "3-5-7-6-1". It is likely that the station was used to communicate messages to undercover agents operating in other countries, to be decoded using a one-time pad
.
Cherry Ripe had a more famous and much more active Middle-Eastern cousin, the Lincolnshire Poacher
, which also used several bars from the English folk song of the same name as its interval signal. The Lincolnshire Poacher had long been suspected as being operated by Britain and had been detected as emanating from RAF
Akrotiri
on Cyprus
. Apart from the interval signal, the format and voice of the two stations was identical, though as of July 2008 the Lincolnshire Poacher appears to no longer be active. In December 2009 Cherry Ripe also went offline.
, frequencies MHz.
Shortwave
Shortwave radio refers to the upper MF and all of the HF portion of the radio spectrum, between 1,800–30,000 kHz. Shortwave radio received its name because the wavelengths in this band are shorter than 200 m which marked the original upper limit of the medium frequency band first used...
numbers station
Numbers station
A numbers station is a shortwave radio station of uncertain origin. In the 1950s, Time magazine reported that the numbers stations first appeared shortly after World War II and were using a format that had been used to send weather data during that war.Numbers stations generally broadcast...
that used several bars from the English folk song "Cherry Ripe" as an interval signal
Interval signal
An interval signal, or tuning signal, is a characteristic sound or musical phrase used in international broadcasting and by some domestic broadcasters...
. The station was believed to be operated by the British Secret Intelligence Service
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
and to have emanated from Australia. It was thought to have previously broadcast from Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. It consisted of an electronically synthesised English-accented female voice reading groups of five numbers, e.g. "3-5-7-6-1". It is likely that the station was used to communicate messages to undercover agents operating in other countries, to be decoded using a one-time pad
One-time pad
In cryptography, the one-time pad is a type of encryption, which has been proven to be impossible to crack if used correctly. Each bit or character from the plaintext is encrypted by a modular addition with a bit or character from a secret random key of the same length as the plaintext, resulting...
.
Cherry Ripe had a more famous and much more active Middle-Eastern cousin, the Lincolnshire Poacher
Lincolnshire Poacher (numbers station)
"The Lincolnshire Poacher" was the nickname of a mysterious, powerful shortwave numbers station that used two bars from the English folk song "The Lincolnshire Poacher" as an interval signal. The radio station was believed to be operated by the British Secret Intelligence Service and emanated from...
, which also used several bars from the English folk song of the same name as its interval signal. The Lincolnshire Poacher had long been suspected as being operated by Britain and had been detected as emanating from RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Akrotiri
RAF Akrotiri
Royal Air Force Station Akrotiri, more commonly known as RAF Akrotiri , is a large Royal Air Force station, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. It is located in the Western Sovereign Base Area, one of two areas which comprise Akrotiri and Dhekelia, a British Overseas Territory, administered as a...
on Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. Apart from the interval signal, the format and voice of the two stations was identical, though as of July 2008 the Lincolnshire Poacher appears to no longer be active. In December 2009 Cherry Ripe also went offline.
Schedule
This schedule was accurate as of January 2006. All times are UTCCoordinated Universal Time
Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
, frequencies MHz.
| Sunday - Friday | |
|---|---|
| 00:00 | 18.864 21.866 |
| 01:00 | 19.884 21.866 |
| 10:00 | 20.474 23.461 |
| 11:00 | 18.864 23.461 14.730 |
| 12:00 | 18.864 23.461 |
| 13:00 | 18.864 21.866 |
| 14:00 | 18.864 20.707 |
| 22:00 | 18.864 24.644 |
| 23:00 | 18.864 21.866 |
External links
- Cherry Ripe on the Global Frequency Database
- Cherry Ripe station profile on SpyNumbers
- The Lincolnshire poacher with some details on Cherry Ripe includes recording