Brief Music Intrusion Reported on Russia’s UVB-76 ‘Doomsday Radio’
Reports indicate a short pirate signal overlapped the station’s usual buzzer without disrupting its transmission.
Overview
- State media and hobbyist monitors reported that at about 16:45 Moscow time the UVB-76 frequency carried unexpected music.
- Fragments of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and a song from the Soviet cartoon The Bremen Town Musicians were heard before the audio stopped.
- Listeners also caught stray conversations and attempted singing attributed to radio pirates who briefly broke into the channel.
- The station’s characteristic buzzing marker remained audible during the incident, indicating the original signal persisted.
- UVB-76 has broadcast since the 1970s with a steady tone and occasional coded words, and authorities have not confirmed any compromise or impact.