Re: U.S. Lightning Strikes Map
I've noticed an additional site for world-wide lightning stroke display. It combines satellite weather photos, all in time-lapse. With this one, I can see where the atmospherics originate when the U.S. map is quiet. Brazil is quite impressive at VLF.
http://webflash.ess.washington.edu/
Recent frequency spectrum displays from the detection sites are also shown, for frequencies up to 24KHz. Ed
fsk signal 172 khz
Posted by Steve N8YE on January 01, 2007 at 11:07:00.
I've been hearing an fsk signal that is shifting seemingly randon lenght bits between 172.590 and 172.390 khz. It sounds somewhat like slow morse at about 3 wpm. I am hearing it night and day in SE Ohio. Is anyone else hearing it? Perhaps its a computer modem in my neighborhood. Re: Lowfer beacon 'DPC'
..Steve..N8YE
Posted by Denis P Cote on January 01, 2007 at 22:54:27.
In reply to Lowfer beacon 'DPC' posted by Denis P Cote on December 31, 2006
Lowfer 'DPC' is now transmitting QRSS-30 on 173.5 KHz. All reports welcomed.
Denis TH
Posted by lloyd chastant on January 02, 2007 at 17:25:41.
seems like a few weeks since hearing TH..189.36Khz..but coming through tonite good Re: TH
de Lloyd W3NF
Posted by John Andrews, W1TAG on January 03, 2007 at 07:29:27.
In reply to TH posted by lloyd chastant on January 02, 2007
Lloyd,
Carl has been good copy day and night here for the last couple of weeks. TH does disappear in fades, particularly around sunset and sunrise. The frequency is in the range of 189.34 to 189.38 kHz, depending on temperature.
Carl is happy to get reports, and he QSL's promptly.
John Andrews who is this beacon
Posted by tim o'hare on January 06, 2007 at 08:51:31.
Re: who is this beacon
with my local GE almost nulled,i am hearing YWB
looping east to west on 388 khz.i do not see them listed.who are they?
tim o'hare
spokane,wash.
Posted by John Andrews on January 06, 2007 at 13:33:06.
In reply to who is this beacon posted by tim o'hare on January 06, 2007
Tim,
A Google search turns up YWB in West Bank, BC on 389 kHz as a decomissioned beacon. It must still be on!
John Andrews Digital Signal on 520 kHz
Posted by Teapot on January 06, 2007 at 19:14:50.
Ever I got my radio for Christmas I have heard a signal on some digital mode at night from SW Pennsylvania around 520 kHz but I never seemed to tune it presicely...just to 520 kHz.It is only at night and I think it is NAVTEX but I have nothing to decode with.The only way I can describe it is as a dizzy telephone ringing (This may make you laugh....when I thought of this it made me break out in laughter).If you have some expensive stuff you might be able to decode it. Re: Digital Signal on 520 kHz
Posted by John Davis on January 06, 2007 at 19:36:56.
In reply to Digital Signal on 520 kHz posted by Teapot on January 06, 2007
Your surmise is probably correct. Navtex stations transmit on 518kHz, which would be audible on receivers in AM mode tuned to 520. Re: who is this beacon
Posted by Michael Oexner on January 07, 2007 at 02:40:38.
In reply to who is this beacon posted by tim o'hare on January 06, 2007
Hi Tim,
This is YWB-389.0 400 Kelowna/Westbank BC CAN N49 48 38 W119 37 50 DN09ET.
The best online source of NDB logs made my North American listeners is to be found at:
www.classaxe.com/dx/ndb/rna
If you enter YWB there you'll find plenty of logs for it, so it's not decommissioned but rather happily keying away :-)
--
vy 73 + gd DX,
Michael
LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7
Posted by Todd WD4NGG on January 07, 2007 at 08:13:04.
Saturday Nite- Sunday morning Jan 6-7 was the best night yet I have heard for European LW broadcast this year from East Coast USA. Some audio could be heard on almost every 9KHz channel and 153,162,171,183,252 were booming in. Also heard audio on 177,189,207,225,261 and 270 which I don't hear that often and also audio underneath beacon DIW 198 (BBC) and CLB 216 (Monaco). The one channel I have never heard audio on so far is 243. Static was also very low that night. I notice when condx are extra good on LW broadcast that 160 meters is outstanding also. Heard several stateside fellows working the UK and Spain on 160 that night. Hoping condx might be good again Sun Nite Jan 7-8. 73 Todd WD4NGG
Re: LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7
Posted by alan G3NYK on January 07, 2007 at 16:29:42.
In reply to LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7 posted by Todd WD4NGG on January 07, 2007
Hi Todd, that was the first half reasonable night for about 14 days. Conditions are creeping back after a severe geomagnetic storm in December (14/15th and again a minor storm on 20th). It is interesting that you find 160m recovering as well as it does not always follow LF conditions.
My LF propagation forecasts daily (almost) on
www.alan.melia.btinternet.co.uk/latest.htm
Usually posted before 1200z. Mainly aimed at 136kHz but useful on BC bands, and I believe, linked on some of the BC DXer sites.
Never miss a chance to do a bit of self promotion !! :-))
Cheers de Alan G3NYK
Re: LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7
Posted by Todd WD4NGG on January 07, 2007 at 20:52:02.
In reply to Re: LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7 posted by alan G3NYK on January 07, 2007
Hi Alan, Re: Digital Signal on 520 kHz
Thanks for address to your LW propagation forecast page. Interesting that my good reception of LW Broadcast seems to agree with the positive Dst numbers from Kyoto. LW Broadcast reception was again good tonight Jan 7-8 although not quite as spectacular as last night. Hope this trend will continue!
73 Todd WD4NGG
Posted by lloyd chastant on January 08, 2007 at 17:52:28.
In reply to Digital Signal on 520 kHz posted by Teapot on January 06, 2007
Yes that indeed is Navtex as John said and you could use either MULTIPSK program (and the Amtor FEC mode within that program) or NAVTEX DECODER program...both free and on the web for decoding the Navtex 518Khz transmissions.. San Jose Adobe building has MEDFER on 1680 kHz
de Lloyd W3NF
Posted by Jim Vander Maaten on January 09, 2007 at 11:58:00.
Check www.sanjosesemaphore.org for information on the Adobe buildings MEDFER
transmitter operations on 1680 kHz. I just found out about the MEDFER xmision, will drive by tonight and listen. Supposed to be heard for 2-3 blocks.
73 jim
A Question: LW Transmitting Powers
Posted by Peter A on January 09, 2007 at 18:25:32.
Hello everyone. I was just wondering if anyone could tell me why Longwave radio stations have such powerful transmitters? For instance, the typical power of a Medium wave station here in New Zealand is anything from 5 to 50 kilowatts, but from what I've read, powers of between 500 to 2000 kilowatts seem to be the norm for longwave stations. Or could it be that the lower a station's frequency, the higher its power rating needs to be in order to transmit effectively?
If anyone could shed some light on this, it would be much appreciated. Re: Digital Signal on 520 kHz
Posted by Eric KD5UWL on January 09, 2007 at 19:26:01.
In reply to Digital Signal on 520 kHz posted by Teapot on January 06, 2007
Yes, get the Navtex decoder online -- copying these messages is easy and a lot of fun to do. I can hear these coastal stations easily on a portable radio with only the internal loopstick right here in central Oklahoma, but decode them using my ham radio audio fed into the computer sound card.
Anymore I always use an isolation transformer when connecting a radio to a computer - rob the transformer from a junker modem card and build an audio cable to go from your radio to the computer, inserting the transformer inline.
Eric Re: A Question: LW Transmitting Powers
Posted by John Andrews on January 10, 2007 at 05:43:30.
In reply to A Question: LW Transmitting Powers posted by Peter A on January 09, 2007
Peter,
I think there are two reasons for the typically higher powers.
First, LW BC stations usually attempt to cover much larger areas, both day and night, than MW stations. As LW signals are less affected by poor ground conductivity than MW signals, the daytime coverage area can be much bigger, even with the same power. But when you are trying to cover entire continents, the extra "push" is necessary.
Second, noise levels at LF are considerably higher than at MF. In recent winter-time comparisons between reception at 500 kHz and 137 kHz, I am finding at least 20 dB more noise (in the same BW) at 137 kHz. The situation in the summer is worse.
Others may chime in with additional reasons.
John Andrews, W1TAG Re: A Question: LW Transmitting Powers
Posted by Warren K2ORS/WD2XGJ/WD2XSH/23 on January 10, 2007 at 05:44:51.
In reply to A Question: LW Transmitting Powers posted by Peter A on January 09, 2007
Peter,
Longwave stations have to overcome a much higher level of static caused primarily by lightning strikes and thus need to run higher power. I am told that the the background noise on longwave is 20dB (10x the voltage) of the background voltage on medium wave.
Warren
Re: San Jose Adobe building has MEDFER on 1680 kHz
Posted by jim vander maaten on January 10, 2007 at 16:37:14.
In reply to San Jose Adobe building has MEDFER on 1680 kHz posted by Jim Vander Maaten on January 09, 2007
What is the San Jose Semaphore’s soundtrack?
The soundtrack for the semaphore can be heard via a low-power radio broadcast on AM 1680, which can be picked up within 2-3 blocks of the Semaphore's location. It can also be heard as part of the Semaphore's on-line simulcast. The audio is composed of several layers: a mechanical-sounding tick of the disks as they turn and come to rest, musical beeps and tones, and voices recorded by the artist. One voice is the artist’s friend Elisa Zuritsky singing numbers, and the other is sampled from a short-wave radio broadcast of an encrypted “numbers station” transmission the artist recorded while on a trip to the mid-east in 1990. Information about numbers station broadcasts is here.
I drove by today and confirm that the range using my car radio is about 2 to 3 blocks. Nightime recption is not as good, other stations!
73 Re: LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7
jim
Posted by Alan G3NYK on January 11, 2007 at 03:24:21.
In reply to Re: LW Broadcast Marvelous Sat. Nite Jan 6-7 posted by Todd WD4NGG on January 07, 2007
Hi Todd, I think the positive Dst reported on my site was a "typo". (I forgot to change the color! )The index has been very slow to change recently and is stuck in the -10 to -20nT range. This normally points to improving conditions, with better conditions as it moves towards zero.
There is quite a lot of room for improvement at the moment, transatlantic propagation on 136kHz is disappointing.
Cheers de Alan G3NYK strange signal
Posted by Bill Hensel on January 11, 2007 at 20:38:31.
While listening for HCN Mike Midekes beacon on 510.4 at 0148utc I heard the letters EM followed buy the sound of a machine gun ( a data burst) it happened a second time in 2 or 3 seconds....then no more....
I wonderwhat this was? Re: Denmark ceasing on LW
Posted by Mike Terry on January 18, 2007 at 23:09:25.
In reply to Re: Denmark ceasing on LW posted by Mike Terry on January 07, 2007
January 18th, 2007
by Andy Sennitt
Media Network
(excerpted)
Stig Hartvig Nielsen writes: On 14 February 2007 at 2330 UTC the 300 kW
transmitter in Kalundborg operating on 243 kHz will be switched off for the
last time. And starting 15 February there will be a strong reduction of
airtime on the 250 kW transmitter in Kalundborg operating on 1062 kHz. This
is the new schedule in UTC: 0445-0507, 0730-0807, 1045-1130, 1645-1716,
2145-2205.
The news in Danish from KNR, Greenland, currently heard Mo-Fr 1755-1800 UTC
will be discontinued on 1062 and will only be available on DR P1 (on FM and
the Internet).
The reason for the closure of 243 kHz and the reduced schedule on 1062 kHz
is the fact that hardly anyone in Denmark listen to LW and MW - and due to
the high cost of running the transmitters.
Additional information (in Danish) and photograph of the transmitter here
http://www.radionyt.com/artikel/default.asp?id=13404
The full article and program schedule can be found at:
(Media Network http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/ )
ip heard in ar
Posted by PAUL DAULTON on January 21, 2007 at 00:27:15.
I COPIED IP BEACON ON 185301.1KHZ THIS AM.01/21/07 AT 0100 AM LOCAL TIME. "NWNJ" beacon still active
REC USED TS50 ANT 75METER DIPOLE. DISTANCE OF 350 MILES. I HAVE COPIED MO AND
WEB THIS SEASON. HOPE TO HAVE MY OWN BEACON ON IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
PAUL K5WMS
Posted by JOHN BOGATH on January 24, 2007 at 09:12:43.
You cannot always believe everything that you read, or in this case, do not read. Despite recent deletion from the LowFER beacon "active" list, "NWNJ" has been on-the-air every weekend (Friday @ 4 PM-ET to Monday @ 4 PM-ET) on 189.659 KHz. The mode is CW at approximately 10 wpm. "NWNJ" will also be active "24/7" during cold spells, such as now. Antenna current today is 160+ ma, and the beacon should have at least a 100 mile range radius. Any and all reports will be welcomed and QSLed. -73- John Re: "NWNJ" beacon still active
Posted by John Andrews on January 24, 2007 at 09:53:53.
In reply to posted by JOHN BOGATH on January 24, 2007
John,
That's the good news. The bad news is that I have been looking for it every couple of weeks this winter, and haven't caught it yet, either visually or by ear. TH has been doing quite well since Carl fixed some problems this fall, and is pretty much 24/7 at my QTH in central MA. Now that I know you're on during this spell, I'll set a trap and see what I catch! I now have a narrow audio filter that should help considerably.
John Andrews, W1TAG Re: "NWNJ" beacon still active
Posted by John Davis on January 24, 2007 at 23:51:33.
In reply to posted by JOHN BOGATH on January 24, 2007
We can only report what people tell us. :-)
Glad to have you back on the list. I do need to confirm one thing with you, John: is there no longer a b in your e-mail address? The one I had from 2000 indicated "johnb" (at) nac-dot-net.
Good luck with coverage this winter!
John D. Re: "NWNJ" beacon still active
Posted by John Andrews on January 25, 2007 at 18:45:12.
In reply to Re: posted by John Andrews on January 24, 2007
John Bogath:
Finally succeeded in copying NWNJ tonight at 0235 UTC. The frequency is 189.669 kHz, 10 Hz higher than published. A VERY filtered clip can be heard at:
http://www.w1tag.com/files/NWNJ.wav
That's the R75 being run through an HP 3581A Wave Analyzer running in a 10 Hz BW.
John Andrews, W1TAG Beacon MKP
FN42ch
Posted by Teapot on January 26, 2007 at 10:10:45.
There is a beacon called MKP coming from McKeesport,PA Near Pittsburgh.If you are into DXing (or even if you're not) you can try picking it up and post a reply about it.
Re: "NWNJ" Beacon Still Active
Posted by Teapot on January 26, 2007 at 10:21:03.
In reply to Re: posted by John Andrews on January 25, 2007
I'll say that doesn't sound much like Morse code as far as I've heard.It sounds like a nearly steady high-pitched tone. Re: Thanks for the report, John.
Posted by John Bogath on January 26, 2007 at 10:23:04.
In reply to Re: posted by John Andrews on January 25, 2007
That's great news, John. You haven't heard me until now because this winter has been very mild. "NWNJ" is located in a hardwood forest, and the trees absorb much of the RF until temps get below freezing for a while. I am suprised that my frequency is still "aging" upwards. It has been doing that since 1974, HA. The crystal that controls the "NWNJ" frequency is an FT-241-type (WWII era). Re: "NWNJ" Beacon Still Active
I would have thought it would have settled down by now, HA.
Thanks again; I will get a QSL out to you. -73- John
Posted by John Andrews on January 26, 2007 at 12:17:47.
In reply to Re: posted by Teapot on January 26, 2007
Listen carefully...the amplitude variation is there, and follows N W N J (spaces between the letters are fairly long). This is what you expect on very weak signals and narrow bandwidths.
John Andrews, W1TAG Re: Thanks for the report, John.
Posted by John Andrews on January 26, 2007 at 12:22:24.
In reply to Re: Thanks for the report, John. posted by John Bogath on January 26, 2007
John,
Jay Rusgrove, W1VD, had better copy of you today in Burlington, CT. He's about 70 miles closer than I am. I'll try again tonight to get a cleaner signal, but may have more luck during the day on Saturday when the local noise is lower.
I've had no luck sending email to you directly -- it just bounces.
John A. ZM Beacon
Posted by Steve Sykes on January 27, 2007 at 09:42:15.
Does anyone know who the ZM beacon on 186 belongs to? It is my first Lowfer station heard.
73 Re: ZM Beacon
KD2OM
Posted by John Andrews on January 27, 2007 at 12:26:20.
In reply to ZM Beacon posted by Steve Sykes on January 27, 2007
Steve,
ZM belongs to Bob Raide, W2ZM, in Penn Yan, NY. The beacon is currently on 187.32 with regular speed CW, and I'm listening to it in Massachusetts (265 miles) as I type.
John Andrews, W1TAG Re: ZM Beacon
Posted by Steve Sykes on January 27, 2007 at 13:25:15.
In reply to Re: ZM Beacon posted by John Andrews on January 27, 2007
Thanks John. I only live about 25 miles away, it shows up at 186.75 on my R8. My antenna is a K9AY and Wellbrook Loop. It doesn't move the s-meter but is about the same in either antenna. I have been trying to hear a lowfer station for many years, and am pleased even though it isn't very far away. Re: Thanks for the report, John.
Thanks,
73
Steve
KD2OM
Posted by John Bogath on January 27, 2007 at 21:15:33.
In reply to Re: Thanks for the report, John. posted by John Andrews on January 26, 2007
Sorry about the e-mail, John. I had to shut it down a little while ago because of hackers. They have been able to slip passed the anti-viral and anti-spyware software on my computer; no matter which product I use. I am beginning to suspect a problem at the ISP.
Thanks for the update about Jay, W1VD. If he wants to make it official, I'll be glad to send him a QSL, too.
Re: ZM Beacon
Posted by John Davis on January 27, 2007 at 21:35:06.
In reply to Re: ZM Beacon posted by Steve Sykes on January 27, 2007
Hi Steve,
Might want to avail yourself of the LowFER info available at this site. On the homepage, click the Low/Med/HiFER link. The links at the bottom of that page let you choose between the LF or MF/HF beacon listings, and the Operator Contact list. ZM has been there since last week.
Regards,
John
ZM BEACON
Posted by PAUL DAULTON on January 27, 2007 at 21:45:08.
IF YOU ARE NEW TO LOWFER BEACON HUNTING I WOULD YOU SUGGEST YOU CHECK OUT
THE www.w3eee.com site. STEVE HAS A GRABULATOR ON 185.3 KHZ. I HAD CASUALLLY
LOOKED FOR BEACONS FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS THEN LAST YEAR I FOUND STEVES' SITE
IT WAS AN GREAT HELP TO ME .
PAUL K5WMS Re: ZM BEACON
Posted by Peter Barick on January 28, 2007 at 06:27:00.
In reply to ZM BEACON posted by PAUL DAULTON on January 27, 2007
Hi,
Just an elaboration on Paul's mention of the "Grabulator."
This term may be strange and unknown to some casual readers here. So what is it? Seeing it (actually there are four at the W3EEE site) tells more than words but here is a line from one, Live Lowfers, tuned to 185.300kHz. "The 'Grabulator': Periodically refreshing spectrum-vs.-time display, usually once a minute, as captured by 'Argo'. ..." Moreover, it's like a live traffic cam on local tv news. Except here the display shows any QRSS (slow code, cw) sinals picked up at the W3EEE site.
Just checked and presently displayed on the 'Live Lowfers' are WM, graphically, and TAG in code depiction. Note too, the frequency is presented accurately at the right margin.
A marvelous service as well as effort, thanks to Steve. Re: ZM BEACON
Peter
Posted by Steve Sykes on January 28, 2007 at 07:49:03.
In reply to Re: ZM BEACON posted by Peter Barick on January 28, 2007
Thank you, I have the Grabulator viewing now. My receiver is tuned to dial indicator of 185.30 in cw mode with the 500hz filter in. I have Argo running on my computer. I would guess I should see similar displays on the grabulator and my computer assuming similar system performance. Russian Alpha
I will keep an eye on it today.
73
Steve
Posted by Les Layton on January 29, 2007 at 20:56:58.
The Russian Alpha system appears to be back on the air with strong signals heard on approx. 14.9, 12.6, and 11.9 kHz on January 30, 2007 at 0400-500 UTC. Receiver here is Drake R7 with 18 ft. vertical antenna.
Les Layton
Las Vegas, NV
potrzebie