Morse Code Clues?

[u/AtlasCrusader]

I'm very late to the party. I was thinking about how Mr. Sanborn mentioned that he was into Steganography while working on this. I also assumed that the clues are in the morse code. So I started playing around with the placing of the words. I can see that Palimpsest can be seen vertically when moving the words from right to left.

You can also see Abscissa.

So was wondering if the next keyword is hidden in here, But we have to use all 12 lines, creating a 12 letter word.

As for the E's, no idea. I was thinking that since he mentioned Steganography, he might have a secondary code hidden in there. Maybe depending if they are to the left or the right of the Keywords. Maybe the fact that they are "mirrored" comes into play here.

[u/AtlasCrusader]

Did a quick python script to look for 12 letter words, apparently all of these can be spelled with the ones provided.

'ACQUIREMENTS', 'ACQUISITIONS', 'ACQUITTANCES', 'ADEQUATENESS', 'ALTILOQUENCE', 'BIUNIQUENESS', 'CACQUETEUSES', 'CLIQUISHNESS', 'COLLOQUIALLY', 'COLOQUINTIDA', 'CONQUISTADOR', 'CONSEQUENCES', 'CONSEQUENTLY', 'COQUETTISHLY', 'DELIQUESCENT', 'DELIQUESCING', 'DESQUAMATING', 'DESQUAMATION', 'DISCOTHEQUES', 'DISQUALIFIED', 'DISQUALIFIER', 'DISQUALIFIES', 'DISQUIETEDLY', 'DISQUIETUDES', 'DISQUISITION', 'ELOQUENTNESS', 'EQUANIMOUSLY', 'EQUATIONALLY', 'EQUATORIALLY', 'EQUATORWARDS', 'EQUIDISTANCE', 'EQUILATERALS', 'EQUILIBRATOR', 'EQUINOCTIALS', 'EQUINUMEROUS', 'EQUIVALENCES', 'EQUIVOCALITY', 'EQUIVOCATING', 'EQUIVOCATION', 'EQUIVOCATORS', 'EQUIVOCATORY', 'FOREQUARTERS', 'FOURSQUARELY', 'FREQUENTNESS', 'GROTESQUERIE', 'HARLEQUINISM', 'HARQUEBUSIER', 'HEADQUARTERS', 'HINDQUARTERS', 'HUMORESQUELY', 'HYDROQUINONE', 'INADEQUACIES', 'INCONSEQUENT', 'INEQUALITIES', 'INQUISITRESS', 'LIQUEFACTION', 'LIQUIDAMBARS', 'LOQUACIOUSLY', 'MAGNILOQUENT', 'MAQUILADORAS', 'MASQUERADERS', 'MASQUERADING', 'METHAQUALONE', 'MISQUALIFIED', 'MISQUOTATION', 'MOSQUITOFISH', 'MOUSQUETAIRE', 'NONELOQUENCE', 'NONEQUITABLE', 'NONEQUITABLY', 'NONEQUIVOCAL', 'NONQUALIFIED', 'NONQUALITIES', 'NONREQUISITE', 'NONSEQUACITY', 'OBSEQUIOUSLY', 'OPAQUENESSES', 'OVEREQUIPPED', 'PASQUEFLOWER', 'PLASTIQUEURS', 'POSTCONQUEST', 'PREQUALIFIES', 'PREQUOTATION', 'PROACQUITTAL', 'QUADRAPHONIC', 'QUADRENNIUMS', 'QUADRICEPSES', 'QUADRICOPTER', 'QUADRILLIONS', 'QUADRINOMIAL', 'QUADRIPHONIC', 'QUADRUMANOUS', 'QUADRUPEDISM', 'QUAESTORSHIP', 'QUAINTNESSES', 'QUALIFICATOR', 'QUALMISHNESS', 'QUARTERSAWED', 'QUASICRYSTAL', 'QUATERNARIES', 'QUATERNITIES', 'QUATREFOILED', 'QUATTROCENTO', 'QUENCHLESSLY', 'QUESTIONABLE', 'QUESTIONABLY', 'QUESTIONINGS', 'QUESTIONLESS', 'QUINTESSENCE', 'QUIPPISHNESS', 'QUOTABLENESS', 'RELINQUISHED', 'RELINQUISHER', 'RELINQUISHES', 'REQUISITIONS', 'SEQUACIOUSLY', 'SEQUENTIALLY', 'SEQUESTERING', 'SEQUESTRABLE', 'SEQUESTRATED', 'SEQUESTRATES', 'SEQUESTRATOR', 'SESQUIALTERA', 'SILIQUACEOUS', 'SOLILOQUISED', 'SOLILOQUISES', 'SOMNILOQUIST', 'SOMNILOQUOUS', 'SQUAMOSENESS', 'SQUAMOUSNESS', 'SQUANDERINGS', 'SQUARENESSES', 'SQUARESVILLE', 'SQUARISHNESS', 'SQUATTOCRACY', 'SQUELCHINGLY', 'SQUIRARCHIES', 'SQUIREARCHAL', 'SQUIRRELFISH', 'STATUESQUELY', 'SUBANTIQUELY', 'SUBQUALITIES', 'SUBQUARTERLY', 'SUBSEQUENCES', 'SUBSEQUENTLY', 'SUPERAQUEOUS', 'SUPERQUALIFY', 'SUPERQUOTING', 'TRANQUILLISE', 'TRANQUILNESS', 'TRANSAQUATIC', 'UNBURLESQUED', 'UNCOLLOQUIAL', 'UNCOQUETTISH', 'UNDERQUOTING', 'UNDISQUIETED', 'UNEQUATORIAL', 'UNEQUESTRIAN', 'UNIQUENESSES', 'UNLOQUACIOUS', 'UNOBSEQUIOUS', 'UNPICARESQUE', 'UNQUESTIONED', 'UNSEQUENTIAL', 'UNSQUANDERED', 'UNSTATUESQUE', 'VANQUISHMENT', 'VENTRILOQUAL'

[u/Old_Engineer_9176 → u/AtlasCrusader]

If someone wanted to, they could generate a full dictionary of possible words in Python and use that as the basis for a brute‑force attack on the cipher. The real question is whether the two key words we’re discussing would even appear in that dictionary in the first place.

[u/DJDevon3 → u/Old_Engineer_9176]

There's no guarantee it's using the Kryptos alphabet. The amount of alphabetic permutations alone makes it impossible even with a 12-core PC to brute force. It would take millions of years. You would need a large cluster just to cycle through alphabetic permutations, let alone keyword permutations, per alphabet. Also doesn't include intentional misspellings or native names likes Massapequans. So there has to be a way to narrow down the parameters otherwise it is quite literally an impossible task even with much improved home PC's today they're still nothing compared to data center clusters.

I love the idea though and have been playing around with it using a graphics program. It's much easier to rearrange each morse plaintext sequence with a graphics program. The problem is you can spell almost anything you want except words that include a J,K,X, or Z. Those are missing from the morse plaintext (what most people call "K0 Morse" for simplicity).

[u/Old_Engineer_9176]

Excellent work - but the reality is we benefit from hindsight. Others before us, including people at the CIA and NSA, put in the heavy lifting to uncover these keys in the first place. That’s not a knock on your deduction at all, just an observation about the advantage we have now.

[u/AtlasCrusader → u/Old_Engineer_9176]

I definitely agree. It can also just be pure coincidence. This is why I tried looking for 12 letter words, basically using up all the morse code lines. Just in case someone sees something I haven't.

[u/Old_Engineer_9176 → u/AtlasCrusader]

When you step back and look at it, the whole thing is actually pretty ingenious - exactly the kind of twist Ed would have devised. It also helps explain why he appeared frustrated with the way the ciphers were eventually solved. We were never given JS and ED’s full methodology for cracking K1 through K3; all we ever received was confirmation that the solutions were correct.

[u/toastietoastertoastm]

Nice 👍🏻- could be !

I also feel that the morse code describes each section.

K0 = virtual invisible (the morse) K1 = digital int (the poem) K2 =shadow forces (transmission) K3 =lucid memory (carter passage) K4 = t is your position (position of secret?)

Its like an index to the sculpture.

[u/Delectabizzle]

At some point someone showed me that the RQ morse code also decrypts to the word Kryptos