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  Divis transmitting station (Northern Ireland) | |
| Location | Hannahstown, County Antrim |
|---|---|
| Mast height | 140.7 metres (462 ft) |
| Coordinates | 54°36′27″N6°00′34″W / 54.6075°N 6.009444°W /54.6075; -6.009444 |
| Grid reference | NW4111830995 |
| BBC region | BBC Northern Ireland |
| ITV region | UTV |
| Local TV service | NVTV |
Divis transmitting station is the main high-power UHF and BBC National FM/DAB station that servesBelfast,County Antrim and parts ofCounty Down.
Situated just outside Belfast, it is the primary UHF/FM main station inNorthern Ireland and was originally Northern Ireland's main BBC 405-line television transmitter, coming into operation in this capacity on 21 July 1955. As such, it was the first permanent television transmitter to be established within the island of Ireland. It was built byJ. L. Eve Construction, which also built the similar-heightMeldrum transmitting station for north-east Scotland, at the same time.
Although one of three UHF main stations in Northern Ireland, it is the only one to feature a stayed mast; the other stations atBrougher Mountain andLimavady both utilising smaller self-supporting towers. Stayed masts are however located at the UHF relay stations at Derry andStrabane (respectively former BBC and ITA405-line relays) and at Black Mountain, the former ITA 405-line (and Channel 5) main station sited adjacent to Divis. It is owned and operated byArqiva.
The Divis station is located in a range of hills directly overlooking Belfast from the west, in an area which was controlled by theMinistry of Defence until it was sold in 2004 to theNational Trust and subsequently opened to the public. It is sited between the peaks of Divis Mountain and Black Mountain and is ironically closer to the latter than the transmitter that is named after it.
Divis was opened by the BBC on 21 July 1955 as its permanent 405-line Band I transmission facility serving Northern Ireland. It superseded the temporary station atGlencairn, which was one of two transmitters (the other beingPontop Pike) to be rushed into operation on 1 May 1953, in time for the televised Coronation ofQueen Elizabeth II. Although the BBC had by this time already obtained the Divis site, the need to construct the long access road was the primary factor preventing its immediate use.
Divis was designated as a medium-power transmitter, on which type of installation the second phase of BBC Band I stations were based. In this respect, Divis was grouped with permanent installations atMeldrum,North Hessary Tor, Pontop Pike,Rowridge,Sandale andTacolneston. Transmissions from Divis were on VHF Channel 1 at a peak output of 35 kW vision e.r.p.[further explanation needed]
In due course, a number of relay stations were established across Northern Ireland to enhance coverage from Divis, most notably at Derry’sSheriff's Mountain transmitter which opened in December 1957, andBrougher Mountain in County Fermanagh which opened in February 1964, the latter being the site of a future UHF main station.[1]
In the meantime, theIndependent Television Authority (ITA) built its equivalent 405-line VHF Band III station close to Divis. Located atBlack Mountain quarry, less than two miles to the south-west, this came into operation on 31 October 1959 and utilised a taller 750-ft mast.
Divis became the UHF main station for Belfast and the surrounding area withBBC2 being the first regular service commencing on 18 March 1967. Colour UHF transmitters for BBC1 and ITV came into operation in September 1970.
Both this site and Black Mountain are dual ring-fenced for security.
It was announced that the 152.5m transmitter mast at Divis would be removed and replaced by a new guyed steel mast (192.7 m). This meant for a period of time there would be two broadcast masts at the site in preparation for the digital switchover in the Ulster region which occurred in October 2012. However a new 152m guyed mast has been constructed and the original mast remains to carry VHF and DAB services.
The Divis site contributes significantly to thetelecommunications network for much of Northern Ireland.
Digital television services broadcast on the following frequencies with the following powers:
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator | System |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 474.166 MHz | 21+ | 100 | PSB2 (D3&4) | DVB-T |
| 490.000 MHz | 23 | 50 | COM4 (SDN) | DVB-T |
| 498.000 MHz | 24 | 100 | PSB3 (BBC B) | DVB-T2 |
| 514.000 MHz | 26 | 50 | COM5 (ARQ A) | DVB-T |
| 522.000 MHz | 27 | 100 | PSB1 (BBC A) | DVB-T |
| 546.000 MHz | 30 | 50 | COM6 (ARQ B) | DVB-T |
| 594.000 MHz | 36 | 10 | LTVmux | DVB-T |
| 690.000 MHz | 48 | 0.01 | NIMM (RTÉ) | DVB-T2 |
| 746.000 MHz | 55 | 8.9 | COM7 (Closed) | DVB-T2 |
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 489.833 MHz | 23- | 2.3 | SDN (Mux A) |
| 513.833 MHz | 26- | 2.3 | BBC (Mux B) |
| 538.000 MHz | 29 | 2.3 | BBC (Mux 1) |
| 569.833 MHz | 33- | 2.3 | Digital 3&4 (Mux 2) |
| 578.166 MHz | 34+ | 1.6 | Arqiva (Mux D) |
| 690.000 MHz | 48 | 2 | Arqiva (Mux C) |
Analogue television services were broadcast on the following frequencies:
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 471.25 MHz | 21 | 500 | Channel 4 |
| 495.25 MHz | 24 | 500 | UTV |
| 519.25 MHz | 27 | 500 | BBC Two Northern Ireland |
| 551.25 MHz | 31 | 500 | BBC One Northern Ireland |
| 775.25 MHz | 59 | — | TG4 |
All of the above channels, except TG4, were broadcast at a power of 500 kW. As well as providing direct reception for most TV viewers in Northern Ireland, all the other analogue transmitters in the province sourced their output, either directly or indirectly, from Divis. TG4, a channel operated by a state-owned body of theRepublic of Ireland, was broadcast at a very low power and not relayed to any other transmitters.Channel 5 was broadcast from the nearbyBlack Mountain transmitting station.
FM radio service broadcast on the following frequencies and with the following powers:
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 90.1 MHz | 250 | BBC Radio 2 |
| 92.3 MHz | 250 | BBC Radio 3 |
| 94.5 MHz | 250 | BBC Radio Ulster |
| 96.0 MHz | 125 | BBC Radio 4 |
| 99.7 MHz | 250 | BBC Radio 1 |
| 101.9 MHz | 250 | Classic FM |
DAB radio broadcasts on the following frequency:
| Frequency | Block | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 225.648 MHz | 12B | 10 | BBC National DAB |