You can watch a video of the 3D images here. These X-rays were then used to build a virtual 3D replica of the internal workings of the machine – providing a unique glimpse at the layers of mechanics that allowed messages to be so thoroughly encoded. Aptly, the machine was sent to the Alan Turing Building, where a series of X-ray radiographs were taken using X-ray Computed Tomography. To provide an idea of exactly what the codebreakers were up against, we were recently lucky enough to get a peek inside an Enigma machine. Cracking it was a near impossible task, and for every day those messages weren’t deciphered, valuable supplies could be prevented from reaching Britain, and lives put at risk. In fact, between the rotors and the plug board, there were over 150 million million million (no, that’s not a mistake) possible combinations for each message intercepted by the Allies. There was also a plug board, which allowed the operator to add an extra layer of encryption. Inside the machine was a minimum of three rotors that would rotate every time a key was pressed to ensure that a different result was generated each time – even if the same key was pressed twice. Indecipherable The Enigma’s rotors and plug board The light board would display the actual message, which would be copied down by the operator. That operator would use the same daily key code to set up their own machine in the same way, and they could then simply input the cyphered text on the keyboard. Once a coded message was produced by one machine, it was sent via Morse code to an Enigma operator based elsewhere. Each Enigma operator had a book of codes – a different one for each day – which instructed them on how to set up the machine for that day. The machines had a typewriter keyboard to input the messages and a light board that would spell out the encrypted version. While it might look like a clunky typewriter, the Enigma machine was very good at its job. Crucial to the Axis efforts at this time were the Enigma machines that allowed them to share classified information secretly by encrypting it. However, German submarines were used to form a blockade and stop these supplies getting through. At this time, the UK was extremely reliant on imports from the US and Canada to keep the population going and fighting. The German Enigma machine was integral in providing the Axis powers with the upper hand during World War II – particularly during the Battle of the Atlantic. More than 70 years after the Enigma was cracked by Alan Turing and his colleagues at Bletchley Park, innovative technology housed at The University of Manchester has provided a detailed peek beneath the bonnet of the German wartime cipher machine. Cracking stuff: how Turing beat the Enigmaĭepartments Heritage Our partners Robotics and AI 28th November 2018
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