What happens if you don’t put your phone in airplane mode? - Lindsay DeMarchi

Translator: Sin Hang Sophia Leung Reviewer: Aubrey Cheng

Right now, invisible signals are flying through the air all around you.

而家有好多隱形訊號圍繞住你飛嚟飛去

Beyond the spectrum of light your eyes can see,

超越咗你對眼可以見到嘅光譜

massive radio waves as wide as houses

一間屋咁大嘅無線電波

carry information between computers, GPS systems, cell phones, and more.

喺電腦、GPS 系統、手機等等之間 傳送訊息

In fact, the signal your phone broadcasts is so strong,

事實上，你部手機廣播嘅訊號好勁

if your eyes could see radio waves,

如果你對眼可以見到電波

your phone would be visible from Jupiter.

噉喺木星上面都可以睇到你部電話

At least your special eyes would be able to see this if the sky

你對「千里眼」幾乎睇到電波， 前提係空中冇佈滿

wasn’t flooded with interference from routers, satellites, and, of course,

嚟自路由器、衛星同埋

people flying who haven't put their phones on airplane mode.

其他冇將部手機 調校到「飛行模式」嘅乘客干擾

You see, this setting isn't to protect your flight,

其實呢，飛行模式唔係保護你班機

it's to protect everyone else in your flight path.

佢係保護你航道上嘅其他人

Cell phones connect to networks by emitting information

手機連接到網絡嘅方式係

in the form of electromagnetic waves;

透過電磁波傳送訊息

specifically, radio waves,

而其中嘅無線電波

which occupy this band of the electromagnetic spectrum.

就佔據呢個範圍嘅電磁波

These radio waves come in a range of wavelengths,

呢啲無線電波有唔同嘅波長

and let’s imagine your special eyes see the various wavelengths

試幻想吓你對「千里眼」 可以將唔同嘅波長

as different colors.

睇成唔同嘅顏色

When you make a call, your phone generates a radio wave signal

當你打電話嗰陣， 部電話會發出無線電波訊號

which it throws to the nearest cell tower.

畀最接近嘅手機發射站

If you're far from service,

如果你距離服務範圍好遠

your phone will expend more battery power to send a higher amplitude signal

部電話就會用多啲電 去傳送較高波幅嘅訊號

in an effort to make a connection.

為咗要連接到發射站

Once connected, this signal is relayed between cell towers

接通後，訊號就會喺各站之間一路發送

all the way to your call’s recipient.

到接你電話嘅人嗰度

Since your call isn’t the only signal out here,

由於用訊號打電話嘅人唔只你一個

cell towers managing the calls assign each phones involved their own wavelength.

發射站就會為每部打出嘅手機 分配各自嘅波長

This specific color ensures you’re not picking up other people’s calls.

特定嘅顏色確保你唔會接到其他人嘅電話

It’s even slightly different from the wavelength

打出電話嘅波長甚至同你

your phone is receiving information on,

接收訊息嘅波長會有少少唔同

so as not to interfere with that incoming signal.

於是就唔會干擾到傳送畀你嘅電話訊號

But there are only so many colors to choose from.

但係呢個世界就只有幾種顏色

And since the advent of Wi-Fi,

而自從Wi-Fi 面世之後

the demand for ownership of these wavelengths has increased dramatically.

對於波長擁有權嘅需求增加咗好多

With all these signals in the air and a limited number of colors to assign,

空氣當中有咁多訊號， 但係又得咁少顏色可以用

avoiding interference is increasingly difficult.

要預防干擾就越嚟越難

Especially when cell towers receive too many signals at once,

喺發射站收到太多訊號嗰陣尤其嚴重

such as during regional emergencies, when everyone's trying to use their phones.

就好似某地區遇到緊急情況， 所有人都會用電話噉

But other sources of interference are more preventable,

但係其他嘅干擾來源較為預防得到

like phones searching for signals from thousands of meters in the sky.

就好似電話會喺幾千米高空中搵訊號

Phones on planes are very far from cell towers,

喺飛機上嘅電話距離發射站好遠

so they work overtime to send the loudest signals they can

所以佢哋要加倍努力發送最強嘅訊號

in search of service.

令啲乘客用到電話

But since planes travel so quickly,

但係由於飛機飛得好快

the phones might find themselves much closer to a cell tower than expected—

手機可能會比預期更接近發射站

blasting it with a massive signal that drowns out those on the ground.

發出強大訊號，淹沒地面嘅訊號

So when you fly without using airplane mode,

所以當你唔用「飛行模式」

you’re essentially acting as a military radio jammer—

基本上就好似部軍用無線電干擾器噉

sending out giant radio waves that interfere with nearby signals.

發送巨型無線電波，干擾附近嘅訊號

Even on the ground, almost all our electronics emit rogue radio waves,

幾乎所有喺地面嘅電子設備 都會發出雜散嘅無線電波

slowing down our internet and making our calls choppy.

減慢網絡訊號，令通話窒吓窒吓噉

This leads consumers to pay for more bandwidth,

消費者因此需要畀多啲錢買更好嘅寬頻

pushing service providers to take over more of the radio spectrum,

令服務供應商佔用更多無線頻譜

and eventually, send more satellites into the sky—

最終將更多衛星發射到天空

creating a vicious cycle that could eventually blot out the stars.

造成最終可能會遮住星星嘅惡性循環

Though, even without these satellites,

雖然，即使冇呢啲衛星

this system is threatening our relationship with the cosmos.

呢個系統都會傷害我哋同宇宙嘅關係

Radio telescopes used for astronomy

天文學用嘅無線電望遠鏡

rely on a specific band of wavelengths to see deep into space.

依賴特定波長範圍嚟深入觀察太空

However, while this range is supposedly protected,

但係，雖然呢個範圍據說係受保護

the cutoffs aren’t enforced.

但又冇人嚴格執行呢啲限制

For example, the Very Large Array can see signals throughout our solar system

例如，甚大天線陣能夠接收 嚟自太陽系嘅訊號

from 1 to 50 GHz.

頻率範圍由1到50 GHz

But if it tries looking for signals below 5 GHz,

但係如果佢試圖去搵低過5 GHz嘅訊號

its search could be drowned out by a sea of phones on 5G networks.

呢個過程可能會淹沒咗 喺一堆5G網絡嘅手機訊號之中

Today, nowhere on Earth is truly radio quiet.

時至今日，全個地球都離唔開 無線電嘅干擾

Satellites relaying signals around the globe

衛星喺全球範圍內轉發訊號

have blanketed the planet in radio waves.

即係話無線電波已經覆蓋咗成個地球

But there are a few places with less crowded skies,

但都有幾個地方係較為清靜嘅

where radio telescopes can look deep into space.

我哋用無線電望遠鏡深入噉觀察到太空

Here, we can see the black hole at the center of the Milky Way,

可以睇到黑洞就喺銀河系嘅中心

and uncover the secrets of galaxies up to 96 billion light years away.

仲可以發掘到距離我哋96億光年嘅 星系秘密

Well, so long as we’re not blinded by phones

當然，前提係我哋

sending signals from first class.

要唔受頭等艙嘅手機訊號所干擾先啦！