Search and Rescue

[bojangle]

I just watched a video on Amazon that was a true story. "6 Below" miracle on the mountain. The rescued man used a handheld fm radio tuned to 95.5 receive only. The search and rescue somehow got a fix location from the radio on him and a helicopter was able to complete a near death rescue. Is this possible?? I didn't think this was possible. If I am wrong can someone explain?

Curios

 

[ScannerSK]

Some receivers transmit a strong enough signal from the mixing process that it could be possible to receive this signal from maybe 1000 feet or so distance. It seems unlikely however not entirely impossible. If the intermediate frequency were 10.7 MHz or similar, the signal tends to broadcast with greater strength in my experience than if it the radio were using a 455 KHz intermediate frequency. On old dual-conversion scanner radios, they would typically broadcast a weak signal 10.7 MHz (I.F.) below the frequency being received/monitored.

 

[wtp]

years ago i used that exact thing to know when the wife got home, she only ever wanted to listen to 1 FM radio station.
so i know it works, cheaper radios seem to 'put out' more signal.

IIRC 103.9 and i used 114.6 on a pro-2004, i would slightly hear what the station was playing or a dead carrier.
that was over 25 years ago.

 

[mmckenna]

No, it's not realistic. Can it be done? Sure, under perfect conditions.

Radios should be shielded well enough to keep those sorts of local oscillator emissions to an absolute minimum.

But, remember, it's a movie, nothing is real and they just grabbed some random radio off the prop shelf and used it.

 

[bojangle]

That makes sense to me now. Prop radio for the movies!!
Thanks for the response......

 

[wtp]

this was covered on Gilligan's island by the professor and an AM radio !