Deutschlandsender Herzberg/Elster, Radio transmitter site in Brandenburg, Germany
Deutschlandsender Herzberg/Elster was a long-wave radio transmitter built on flat land in the Elster region of Brandenburg. The steel lattice mast stood 337 meters tall and carried a lens-shaped platform about 25 meters across at its top.
The mast was built between 1936 and 1939 and was at that point the second-tallest structure on Earth, after the Empire State Building. After German reunification the station was shut down and the tower was eventually demolished.
For decades the tower was a landmark that people across the flat region around Herzberg used as a reference point when traveling. Long before arriving in town, you could spot the mast on the horizon and know where you were.
The remains lie in open fields north of Herzberg an der Elster and can be reached on foot along field paths, where sturdy shoes are a good idea given the uneven ground. The site has no shelter, so visiting in settled weather makes the experience more comfortable.
Instead of standard aircraft warning lights, the tower used military searchlights because ordinary lamps interfered with the broadcast signal. The beams pointed upward toward the lens platform and were visible across the flat countryside at night.
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