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Russia Doomsday Radio: Russia’s mysterious shortwave radio station, popularly known as “Doomsday Radio” or UVB-76, once again broke its decades-long monotone buzz and transmitted two coded voice messages on Monday (Sep 8), triggering renewed concerns about its true purpose. The Cold War-era station, operating since the 1970s on frequency 4625 kHz, is normally heard as a repetitive buzzing tone. On Monday, however, listeners reported at least two unusual transmissions in Russian, spelling out codewords, names, and numbers. Among them were the call sign “NZHTI”, the word “HOTEL”, and a sequence of numbers 38, 965, 78, 58, 88, 37.

Clips of the eerie broadcast quickly went viral on social media, with some users speculating that the sequence could represent secret coordinates or coded military instructions. “Those codewords sound straight out of a Cold War thriller. Who’s listening and why now?” wrote one user on X (formerly Twitter).

A Station Steeped In Mystery

The enigmatic signal, based around 18 miles from Moscow, has baffled researchers and radio hobbyists for decades. Officially known by its original call sign UVB-76, the station has been continuously monitored by amateur operators since the early 1980s. Initially, it transmitted only mechanical buzzes, but over time the sound patterns changed, sometimes accompanied by foghorn-like tones or voice messages listing random Russian names, letters, and numbers.

Because of its secrecy, many believe the station is tied to Russia’s military communications network — possibly even serving as a failsafe “Dead Man’s Switch” linked to the country’s nuclear command system. Others have floated far-fetched theories, including UFO beacons and mind-control devices.

Professor David Stupples, an electronic and radio engineering expert at City University of London, told Popular Mechanics that UVB-76 has likely been kept alive by the Russian state as a strategic safeguard. “It is almost certainly the Russian government that is using it,” he said. “If so, it would not be for peaceful purposes.” Freelance radio monitor Ary Boender, who has studied such signals for years, added that while the station’s purpose remains unconfirmed, the persistence of cryptic broadcasts points to an active, well-maintained military function.

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Past Activity Linked To Global Flashpoints

This is not the first time UVB-76 has stirred debate. The station broadcast coded phrases during May 2025, coinciding with a phone call between then US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. More recently, in June 2025, the radio went live again after the United States struck nuclear sites in Iran, transmitting messages with codewords such as PANIROVKA, KLINOK, and BOBINA.

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Since the 1970s, UVB-76 has earned its chilling nickname “Russia’s Doomsday Radio,” because it never seems to go off-air, regardless of global events. The buzzing tone itself is believed to serve as an anti-jamming placeholder, ensuring that the frequency remains open for potential emergency broadcasts. Though Monday’s messages are unlikely to be deciphered by outsiders, their timing — amid heightened global tensions- has revived fears of what the cryptic codes might mean. For now, UVB-76 continues to buzz into the void, leaving listeners to speculate whether it is a relic of the Cold War or a weapon still active in the Kremlin’s arsenal.