"Terrestrial" radio

[Mark Casey]

Radio using an earth site transmitter station where the recieving station is 
also an earth site, using propagation in the earth's atmosphere, whether 
analog or digital,  is "terrestrial" and satellite radio, with the exception 
of the urban (earth station) "boosters", is not. Internet Radio is not truly 
terrestrial as it is purposely sent by signal over wire and cable and not 
"over the earth through free space", unless you want to count wifi. It's a 
good question whether or not "Internet Radio" even meets the technical 
definition of  "radio".
Mark Casey, K1MAP


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Eli Polonsky" <elipolo@earthlink.net>
To: <boston-radio-interest@lists.BostonRadio.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2012 3:47 PM
Subject: "Terrestrial" radio (was "Can WBCN lead listeners...")


I'm getting annoyed by the wide misuse of the word
"terrestrial" by radio listeners these days. The
word literally means "on the Earth" or "from the
Earth", as in that humans are "terrestrial" beings,
and space aliens are "extra-terrestrials". (Anyone
remember the cheesy '70s sci-fi movie "ET"?)

Many people are now labeling any form of radio that
is not conventional analog broadcast radio as not
being "terrestrial", including HD radio and internet
radio.

As far as I know, the only type of radio that is not
"terrestrial" is satellite radio (such as Sirius/XM)
because the signal (that we receive) is rebroadcast
from a satellite up in space.

HD radio is broadcast from the same transmitters as
their parent analog stations, ON THE EARTH, so it's
making me cringe when I keep hearing people refer to
HD radio as not being "terrestrial".

I don't see anything about internet radio that would
classify it as not being "terrestrial" either, though
I keep hearing people also calling it not "terrestrial"
as opposed to analog radio (though some wireless forms
are rebroadcast via satellites).

I wonder if it will become one of those words that will
have its official dictionary definition changed due to
wide misuse?

Eli Polonsky