An Indiana county that will experience totality during the April 8 solar eclipse is cranking up the power on its Travelers’ Information Station to help visitors.
Morgan County operates TIS station WQSI562 on 1700 AM from the county seat of Martinsville. The entire county lies within the path of totality. Martinsville will see more than four minutes of darkness, among the longest in the Hoosier State, and the county website is providing extensive information for the expected rush of visitors.
As required under Part 90 of FCC rules, the TIS station normally runs at 10 watts. For the period April 1–15, the county requested special temporary authority to increase transmit power to 100 watts and raise the antenna to 72 feet. The normal maximum is 49 feet.
The commission granted the STA. It said a total solar eclipse meets the criteria for a temporary, non-recurring service where regular authorization is not appropriate.
“The station will provide a locations and details of free events and viewing sites throughout Morgan County,” said Abigail Worth, Morgan County EMA director.
Worth said the announcements on the TIS will also include eclipse viewing safety tips, traffic and travel reminders and information on other methods for receiving updates pertaining to the county. They’ll also have the ability to update the station’s announcements in real time.
[Related: “TIS Is a Stalwart of Our Radio Landscape” ]
The county anticipates hundreds of thousands of motorists traveling through on April 8. It said the existing TIS would not be able to cover all of the stretch of Interstate 69 that traverses the county as well as State Route 67.
Information Station Specialists is Morgan County’s supplier of the electronics, antenna and transmitter; the company also helped prepare the STA application.
ISS is providing an ASPiSYS ASM100-100 AM transmitter and producing the eclipse announcements that will be heard on the station.
With the gridlock that occurred not far from the region during the 2017 solar eclipse, including in neighboring Kentucky, the county sees the value in having a TIS station for an event like the eclipse.
“This method of informing has been around for a long time and is available in virtually every vehicle and a well-known as a method of finding information on local news when traveling,” Worth said.
[Related: “Special Glasses Won’t Help During an Internet Eclipse”]
