PhosphorSWL
Shortwave & Numbers Stations
Only for iPhone
$0.99 · Designed for iPhone. Not verified for macOS.
Also Included In
iPhone
The ether is full of ghosts.
Tune the shortwave spectrum, browse 10,000+ broadcasts, and explore the world's numbers stations through a Cold War phosphor console.
PhosphorSWL is a shortwave broadcast schedule browser and numbers station reference, rendered through the green phosphor glow of a Cold War signals intelligence console. Your phone becomes a monitoring station — a frequency dial, a schedule grid, a station database, and a curated dossier of every numbers station still whispering into the void.
BROADCAST SCHEDULES
Browse over 10,000 shortwave broadcast entries from the EiBi database — the most comprehensive freely-licensed shortwave schedule resource in existence. Filter by frequency band, time, language, and target area. See what's on air right now. Search for stations by name, country, or frequency. Every broadcast entry includes transmission times, languages, target areas, transmitter sites, and signal path maps showing the great circle route from transmitter to target.
Schedule data refreshes automatically from EiBi, keeping your listings current through seasonal schedule changes.
NUMBERS STATIONS
The centrepiece. A personally curated database of known numbers stations — active, historic, and legendary. ENIGMA designators, frequencies, schedules, operators, signal characteristics, and full station profiles assembled from publicly observable facts.
From E06 "Russian Man" still counting for the GRU, to the ghost of E03 "The Lincolnshire Poacher" — the most iconic numbers station ever recorded, silenced in 2008 after decades broadcasting from RAF Akrotiri. The Buzzer on 4625 kHz. The Pip. The Squeaky Wheel. Cuban DGI digital modes. Chinese military networks. Polish intelligence. Every station for which sufficient factual data exists.
This is not a decoder. It is a field manual for the darkest inhabitants of the radio spectrum.
SCANNER
Scroll the entire shortwave spectrum from VLF submarine communications through every broadcasting band. Band headers mark the boundaries. Tap any entry for full details and signal path mapping.
HF PROPAGATION
Live HF propagation conditions from NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center, derived from the planetary K-index. Band-aware — lower frequencies are more resilient to geomagnetic disturbance than upper HF. The status bar tells you whether the ionosphere is cooperating before you tune in.
THE INTERFACE
Three phosphor colour modes: green (default), amber, and red. Red mode preserves scotopic dark adaptation for night-time listening — the same principle used in military operations rooms, submarine control rooms, and observatory domes.
CRT scanlines. Phosphor glow. A frequency readout rendered in segmented digits. Function key tabs. A UTC clock. No bright colours, no rounded corners, no friendly illustrations. This is a monitoring console, not a lifestyle app.
FAVOURITES
Bookmark any broadcast or numbers station for quick access. Your listening post, organised.
DATA SOURCES
Broadcast schedules: EiBi Shortwave Schedule Database (eibispace.de), freely licensed for third-party use.
Numbers station data: curated from Priyom.org, ENIGMA 2000, Numbers & Oddities, and the Signal Identification Wiki.
Propagation data: NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center (public domain).
All station observations are factual records of publicly receivable radio transmissions.
No subscriptions. No in-app purchases. No ads. No tracking. One price. The ether is full of ghosts. This is a ghost detector.
Ratings & Reviews
- This app hasn’t received enough ratings or reviews to display an overview.
The developer, Stuart Woolley, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- Stuart Woolley
- Size
- 2.5 MB
- Category
- Reference
- Compatibility
Requires iOS 26.4 or later.
- iPhone
Requires iOS 26.4 or later. - Mac
Requires macOS 26.4 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later. - Apple Vision
Requires visionOS 26.4 or later.
- iPhone
- Languages
- English
- Age Rating
4+
- 4+
- Copyright
- © 2006 Stuart Woolley

