Morse code
Morse code is a telecommunications method used to encode text characters into standardised sequences of two different signal durations: short signals called "dots" (or dits) and long signals called "dashes" (or dahs). Developed in the 1830s by Samuel Morse and Alfred Vail for the electrical telegraph, it revolutionised long-distance communication by allowing people to transmit text via electrical pulses, flashing lights, or audio tones. [1, 2, 3]
The International Morse Code Alphabet
The standard global variation is International Morse Code, which maps the Latin alphabet, Arabic numerals, and basic punctuation: [1, 2, 3]
Letters
- A: · —
- B: — · · ·
- C: — · — ·
- D: — · ·
- E: ·
- F: · · — ·
- G: — — ·
- H: · · · ·
- I: · ·
- J: · — — —
- K: — · —
- L: · — · ·
- M: — —
- N: — ·
- O: — — —
- P: · — — ·
- Q: — — · —
- R: · — ·
- S: · · ·
- T: —
- U: · · —
- V: · · · —
- W: · — —
- X: — · · —
- Y: — · — —
- Z: — — · ·
Numbers
- 1: · — — — —
- 2: · · — — —
- 3: · · · — —
- 4: · · · · —
- 5: · · · · ·
- 6: — · · · ·
- 7: — — · · ·
- 8: — — — · ·
- 9: — — — — ·
- 0: — — — — —
Rules of Timing
The system relies on strict timing rules based on the length of a single dot: [1, 2, 3]
- Dot: The basic unit of time.
- Dash: Exactly three times longer than a dot.
- Gaps within letters: The silence between dots and dashes in the same letter is one dot long.
- Gaps between letters: The silence between letters is three dots long.
- Gaps between words: The silence between words is seven dots long. [1, 2]
Modern Usage
While it is no longer required for commercial shipping or military infrastructure, Morse code remains highly popular with aviation, amateur radio hobbyists, and as an assistive technology for accessible communication. You can practise encoding and decoding text using the online Morse Code Translator or learn interactively with web tools like Google's Morse Learn experiment. [1, 2, 3, 4]