A Russian Doomsday Radio dating back to the Soviet era which normally now just emits a buzzing sound has now crackled back into life with apparent coded messages
Russia’s mysterious Doomsday Radio has suddenly burst into life with Vladimir Putin’s military appearing to issue secret codes.
The bizarre station – a Cold War relic – has been on air for half a century and usually transmits just humming sounds, leading to its nickname The Buzzer. In Soviet times it was believed to be sending secrets and it still sometimes cackles into life transmitting the coded messages, often at times of high tension in the world.
The latest messages may be related to the Grom-2025 – or Thunder-2025 – missile drills expected imminently. Codes issued on Tuesday say: NZhTI 33438 DON QUIXOTE 1745 1643 and NZhTI 34948 DYROKOL 0091 5671. The meaning of Dyrokol is Hole Punch.
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A third coded message today stated: NZhTI 07377 POSAZHENY 9051 8779. The meaning of this is a person who replaces the parents of the groom or the bride in a folk wedding ceremony. The shortwave radio messages are seen as being transmitted by Russian Strategic Forces networks, linked to Putin’s nuclear strike capability.
These Doomsday Radio broadcasts are not apocalyptic launch orders but are perhaps encrypted test or readiness messages issued on the Strategic Rocket Forces high frequency network. The timing coincides with the likely start of Russia ’s annual strategic nuclear forces exercise, known as Grom-2025.
This involves Russia’s Strategic Rocket Forces (RVSN) along with the Navy’s submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) forces and long-range aviation. In recent days, Russia has warned civilian air traffic and shipping to stay away from swathes of the Arctic Ocean, and the vicinity of the Kamchatka Peninsula.
The warnings in the Arctic apply to the Barents, Kara, Laptev, and East Siberian seas. The Russian defence ministry has not officially announced the drills but NATO spy planes – notably American P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft – have been noticed monitoring the Barents Sea.
Some warnings last until 3 November. The area covers seas where there has been repeated speculation that Putin is seeking to test his Burevestnik new nuclear-powered cruise missile, nicknamed the ‘Flying Chernobyl’.
It can reportedly fly for days to look for weak spots before striking an enemy. It has been hailed as a “miracle” and “unstoppable” weapon yet tests are seen as being behind timetable.
It is not clear if the ongoing war games involve the Burevestnik. Such warnings are issued to notify sailors and shippers worldwide of dangerous areas due to military rocket, missile, or artillery firings in the Russian High North, so vessels can avoid accidental entry and risk.