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WAMU Engineering

WAMU's service area, as defined by the FCC, is a radius of about 40 miles from the NW Washington transmitter site. Because FM reception is line-of-site the WAMU coverage area can extend far beyond the boundaries of the service area. It is possible that some listeners within the area (and outside the area) may experience trouble with reception.

WAMU Signal Coverage

WAMU's effective radiated power is 50,000 watts (50kW) in both the horizontal and vertical plans. The vertical component is for your car and portable radios and the horizontal component for reception by a roof mounted antenna similar to a TV antenna. WAMU's transmitter output power is 17,000 Watts (17kW). This power, minus the loss in the transmission line, is multiplied by the gain of the antenna to produce the effective power of 50kW.

There's a lot more to radio than just what you hear. We have lots more information for you from our Director of Engineering John Holt.