In Morse code, what was the radio distress signal used before the adoption of SOS in 1908?
Cultural legacy of RMS Titanic last to be heard. The most reported is "Nearer, My God, to Thee", though "Autumn" has been mentioned. Finally, a widespread myth is that the internationally recognised Morse code distress signal "SOS" was first put to use when the "Titanic" sank. While it is true that British wireless operators rarely used the "SOS" signal at the time, preferring the older "CQD" code, "SOS" had been used internationally since 1908. The first wireless operator on "Titanic", Jack Phillips, sent both "SOS" and "CQD" as distress calls. The "Titanic" disaster was commemorated though a variety of memorials and monuments to the victims,
SOS SOS ' is the International Morse code distress signal (); the overscore indicates that the normal gaps between the letters should be omitted. It is used as a start-of-message mark for transmissions requesting help when loss of life or catastrophic loss of property is imminent. Other prefixes are assigned for mechanical breakdowns, requests for medical assistance, and a relayed distress signal originally sent by another station. This distress signal was first adopted by the German government radio regulations effective 1 April 1905, and became the worldwide standard under the second International Radiotelegraphic Convention, which was signed on 3 November 1906,