# Why is there often a delay in long distance phone calls? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 27, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757 "2003-06-27T14:21:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/1 "2003-06-27T14:21:55Z")
Often during long distance phone calls there is a delay between your speaking and them hearing and vice versa. Same with news broadcasts overseas (even in friendly areas so it’s not just a government censorship delay). Why does this happen. Is the path really so long that the speed of electrons actually comes into play? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/2 "2003-06-27T14:24:59Z")
Yep. If the signal is routed through a geosynchronous satellite, which orbit at 22,400 miles up, the delay can be pretty close to 1/4 second ((22,400 x 2) / 186,282). ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/3 "2003-06-27T14:27:00Z")
Yes, the path is that long, especially if the it’s being transmitted via satellite. If the signal has to make one or two round trips to outer space and back, the speed of light can make a significant difference. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/4 "2003-06-27T14:29:52Z")
Also electrical signals do not propagate through conductors at the speed of light. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/5 "2003-06-27T14:31:20Z")
And the reason it doesn’t happen on all international calls is that we also have undersea cables. When your call is routed through an undersea cable, the path is much shorter and there is no perceptible delay. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/6 "2003-06-27T14:32:38Z")
Well, **Q.E.D.** you beat me again. I’ve seen this same effect when I’ve watched a college football game carried on ESPN, but listened to the audio from a local radio station. Since the ESPN signal has to bounce back and forth to 2 or 3 satellites before it gets to me, it’s funny to hear the official describing the call a few seconds before I watch him say the same words. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/7 "2003-06-27T16:59:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Fat Bald Guy \* > **I’ve seen this same effect when I’ve watched a college football game carried on ESPN, but listened to the audio from a local radio station… hear the official describing the call a few seconds before I watch him say the same words.** I think this might be an intentional delay. I’ve noticed the same phenomenon and the delay can be 4 or 5 seconds long - there can’t be _that_ many satellites involved. Does anyone know for sure? On the other hand I have tried listening to the NHK (Japan’s national TV) evening news on regular broadcast while watching it on satellite TV, and the delay is almost exactly 1/4 of a second as QED said. ---
**Author:** ![Phage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a4c791/32.png) [@Phage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phage)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/8 "2003-06-27T21:55:54Z")
On TV shows, delay is probably there for censorship purposes. If naked guy drops through the ceiling onto the set you want at least a few seconds to mash the standby button before you feed the video to your audience. Delay can also come from equipment either at the source or relays along the way; not everyone is lighting fast in their response. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2003, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-there-often-a-delay-in-long-distance-phone-calls/184757/9 "2003-06-27T22:10:24Z")
In some cases, TV is delayed by compression/decompression overheads.