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First Radio Transmission
1895: Marconi is the first scientist to achieve successful radio transmission. -
First Radio Factory
1898: Marconi opened the first radio factory, on Hall Street, Chelmsford, England, employing around 50 people. -
U.S. Patent For Invention of Radio
1904: The U.S. Patent Office reversed its decision, awarding Marconi a patent for the invention of radio. -
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Broadcasting Of Synthesized Music and Opera
Lee de Forest, inventor of the radio tube, attempted to broadcast synthesized music and opera in New York City between 1907 and 1909. -
Titanic Sinking: Radio Contact With Ships
1912: The RMS Titanic sank. While in distress, it contacted several other ships via wireless. After this, wireless telegraphy using spark-gap transmitters quickly became universal on large ships. The Radio Act of 1912 required all seafaring vessels to maintain 24-hour radio watch and keep in contact with nearby ships and coastal radio stations. -
First Clear Human Speech Transmitted
1919: First clear transmission of human speech, (on 9XM) after experiments with voice (1918) and music (1917). -
Pictures Transmitted
1920s: Radio was first used to transmit pictures visible as television. -
First Radio Broadcast in Stereo
1925 in music - Birth of Celia Cruz, B.B. King and Pierre Boulez, Big record labels begin using electric microphones for recording; 78 RPM adopted as standard for records; BBC makes first radio broadcast in stereo; Wozzeck by Alban Berg premieres in Berlin, Carl Ruggles, Portals. Debut of the Grand Ole Opry. -
Radio City Music Hall Opened
The 12-acre (4.9 ha) complex in midtown Manhattan known as Rockefeller Center was developed between 1929 and 1940 by John D. Rockefeller, Jr., on land leased from Columbia University. -
First FM Radio Patented
1933: FM radio was patented; Edwin H. Armstrong invented it. FM uses frequency modulation of the radio wave to minimize static and interference from electrical equipment and the atmosphere, in the audio program. -
First Experimental FM Radio Station
1937: W1XOJ, the first experimental FM radio station, was granted a construction permit by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). -
Pocket Radio
1954: Regency introduced a pocket transistor radio, the TR-1, powered by a "standard 22.5V Battery". -
Color Television
1963: Color television was commercially transmitted, and the first (radio) communication satellite, TELSTAR, was launched. In the late 1960s, the U.S. long-distance telephone network began to convert to a digital network, employing digital radios for many of its links. -
Satellite Navigation
1970s: LORAN became the premier radio navigation system. Soon, the U.S. Navy experimented with satellite navigation. -
GPS
1987: The GPS constellation of satellites was launched.
