Marconi's aerial. Illustration of the experimental aerial that received the first transatlantic radio signal from Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937) in 1901. The aerial was located at St. John's in Newfound- land, USA, and consisted of a wire held aloft by a kite. Marconi broadcast his radio signal from Poldhu in Cornwall, Great Britain. The signal consisted of the letter 'S' in Morse Code:- three 'dots'. Marconi first transmitted a radio signal over a distance of a few kilometres in 1895 and had achieved communication between Britain and France across the English Channel in 1899. He rapidly improved his radio system and in 1907 a transatlantic service was opened for public use.