Easiest route Hike or private road. Prominence 382 m | Elevation 2,763 m Mountain range Oquirrh Mountains | |
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Similar Lake Mountain, Kessler Peak, Swasey Mountain, Deseret Peak, Bald Mountain | ||
Farnsworth Peak is a peak located on the northern end of the Oquirrh Mountain range, approximately 18 miles (29 km) south west of Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The mountain is named for Philo Farnsworth, the inventor of the first completely electronic television. It is used mainly for radio and television transmission, but could potentially become part of a ski resort owned by nearby Kennecott Land. On the eastern side of the mountain, the land is completely private, and access is restricted. The peak can be reached by hiking from the Tooele side, which is mostly public land. The Bureau of Land Management land extends from Ridge Peak west to the base of the mountain. Public access to this land is available off SR-36 near Lake Point. Several cattle gates need to be opened and closed, but are access roads to hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding areas.
Contents
- Map of Farnsworth Peak Utah 84006 USA
- Radio and television use
- FM Terrestrial stations with transmitters on Farnsworth Peak
- FM HAM radio repeaters on Farnsworth Peak
- Television stations
- Lightning incident
- References
Map of Farnsworth Peak, Utah 84006, USA
Radio and television use
Farnsworth Peak, in local radio terms, refers to three separate radio transmitter sites. They are known as "Big Farnsworth," "The KSTU Site," and "Little Farnsworth." Each site hosts a number of transmission towers which broadcast radio and television stations. Extensive studies of RF radiation from the site were conducted in 2003 in an effort to aid engineers who work on the mountain.
FM Terrestrial stations with transmitters on Farnsworth Peak
Farnsworth Peak contains a vast majority of Salt Lake FM signals. The following is a complete list of FM stations with transmitters located on (or around) Farnsworth Peak.
FM HAM radio repeaters on Farnsworth Peak
Local television networks KSL-TV, KSTU and other sites on Farnsworth Peak have provided space for HAM radio repeater operation. Farnsworth peak serves as a major hub, connecting western and southern Utah to the Utah Intermountain Intertie main hub repeater a top the Snowbird Tram on Hidden Peak.
Television stations
Farnsworth Peak is home to several full service television stations. KSL-TV is perhaps the best known transmitter site on the mountain, but the peak houses transmitters for KSTU-TV, the local FOX affiliate, KUCW (The CW), and KUTV (CBS) among others. KTMW, an independent station and KUPX, the local Ion affiliate, now broadcast their digital signals from Little Farnsworth Peak about 0.45 miles to the south. KSL-TV was the first television station to use the mountain for broadcasting. It also is responsible for transmitters on the mountain, having engineers on site for periods of time in case of emergencies. A large number of the television stations located on the peak previously carried their analog signals from the same sites. Farnsworth Peak was one of the first places in the United States to construct a facility specifically for digital television transmission. Specifically, Farnsworth Peak houses transmitters for the following stations:
Lightning incident
On September 13, 2009, lightning struck the tower carrying a majority of the area's digital television signals. The lightning strike took eight stations in total off the air, and damaged the combiner for the tower. According to the engineers on site, the combiner was leaking oil. The lightning strike of the tower also caused a failure of the waveguide switch control system, which caused it to display improperly. An engineer on site was able to correct that situation within hours, but the combiner would not be working for a few more hours. By the next day, the problem had been fixed and the stations were back on the air and all were in working order.