Sunday, July 31, 2016

Clandestine station schedule updates

 The following schedule updates, include clandestine stations currently active on shortwave radio. To learn more about the fascinating world of mystery and intrigue in clandestine broadcasting, refer to my feature, Voices for Change in the summer edition of International  Shortwave Broadcast Guide, available at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FV3FL72/
Gayle Van Horn W4GVH

All times UTC 
Updated A16 schedule of clandestine broadcast on shortwave radio.

Radio Republica
0100-0300 on  9490 ISS 150 kW / 285 deg to Cuba Spanish

Radio Payem e-Doost
0230-0315 on  7460 KCH 500 kW / 116 deg to WeAs Farsi
1800-1845 on  7480 KCH 500 kW / 116 deg to WeAs Farsi

Radio Lead Africa, inactive at present
0300-0400 on  5915 MEY 100 kW / 020 deg to CeAf English Mon/Tue/Fri
0500-0600 on 12060 MEY 100 kW / 015 deg to CeAf English Wed/Thu
0500-0700 on 12060 MEY 100 kW / 015 deg to CeAf English Sat
1900-2200 on  7425 MEY 100 kW / 020 deg to CeAf English Sat/Sun

Denge Kurdistan
0300-0500 on 11600 ISS 250 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Kurdish
0500-1300 on 11600 KCH 300 kW / 116 deg to WeAs Kurdish
1300-1700 on 11600 SCB 100 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Kurdish + 2nd hx 23200
1700-1930 on 11600 ISS 250 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Kurdish
1930-2100 on 11600 SCB 100 kW / 090 deg to WeAs Kurdish + 2nd hx 23200

Radio Tamazuj
0330-0430 on  9600 ISS 250 kW / 134 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
0330-0430 on 11650 MDC 250 kW / 335 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1430-1500 on 15150 NAU 125 kW / 152 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1430-1500 on 15550 ISS 250 kW / 134 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1500-1530 on 15150 MDC 250 kW / 340 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1500-1530 on 15550 SMG 250 kW / 150 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic

Radio Dabanga
0430-0600 on 11645 SMG 250 kW / 146 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
0430-0530 on 13800 MDC 250 kW / 335 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
0530-0600 on 13800 NAU 125 kW / 152 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1530-1630 on 15150 MDC 250 kW / 340 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic
1530-1630 on 15550 SMG 250 kW / 150 deg to EaAf Juba Arabic

Eye Radio (former EDC Sudan Radio Service)
0400-0500 on 11730 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Arabic/English*
1600-1700 on 17730 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Arabic/English*
*including other languages Dinka/Nuer/Shilluk/Bari/Zande/Lutoho

Radio Niger Delta Voice of Peace, inactive at present
0500-0600 on  9515 ISS 250 kW / 170 deg to WeAf English
1900-2000 on 11985 ISS 250 kW / 170 deg to WeAf English till July 5
1900-2000 on 11980 ISS 250 kW / 170 deg to WeAf English from July 6

Radio Dandal Kura International
0500-0700 on  7415 ASC 250 kW / 070 deg to WeAf Kanuri
0700-0800 on 15480 WOF 250 kW / 165 deg to WeAf Kanuri
1800-2100 on 12050 ASC 250 kW / 065 deg to WeAf Kanuri

Republic of Yemen Radio
0600-0900 on 11860 JED 050 kW / non-dir to N/ME Arabic
0900-1800 on 11860 unknown tx / unknown to N/ME Arabic
1800-2300 on 11860 JED 050 kW / non-dir to N/ME Arabic
2300-0600 on 11860 unknown tx / unknown to N/ME Arabic

Manara Radio
0730-0830 on 15440 ISS 150 kW / 170 deg to WeAf Hausa
1600-1700 on 17765 ISS 150 kW / 170 deg to WeAf Hausa

Radio Free Sarawak, inactive at present
1100-1300 on 15420 PUG 250 kW / 280 deg to SEAs Iban Mon-Sat
Suab Xaa Moo Zoo, Voice of Hope
1130-1200 on 11570 TSH 100 kW / 250 deg to SEAs Hmong
2230-2300 on  7530 TSH 100 kW / 250 deg to SEAs Hmong

Voice of Khmer M'Chas Srok
1130-1200 on 17860 TAC 100 kW / 122 deg to SEAs Khmer Thu/Sun

Radio ERGO
1200-1300 on 17845 DHA 250 kW / 225 deg to EaAf Somali

Voice of Tibet
1200-1215 on 15542 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1215-1230 on 15548 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1230-1245 on 15573 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1245-1300 on 15567 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1300-1315 on 15518 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1300-1315 on 15558 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1315-1330 on 15528 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1315-1330 on 15558 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1330-1345 on 15528 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1330-1345 on 15557 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1345-1400 on 15522 DB  100 kW / 095 deg to EaAs Chinese
1345-1400 on 15557 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1400-1415 on 15557 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1400-1415 on 15560 MDC 250 kW / 045 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1415-1430 on 15552 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
1415-1430 on 15565 MDC 250 kW / 045 deg to CeAs Tibetan
2300-2310 on  7598 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
2310-2320 on  7593 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
2320-2330 on  7587 DB  100 kW / 131 deg to CeAs Tibetan
All frequencies are jammed by China on xxxx0 / xxxx5
Changes between frequencies vary from 5 to 7 minutes

Que Me
1200-1230 on  9930 HBN 100 kW / 318 deg to EaAs Vietnamese Fri

Radio Free North Korea
1200-1300 on 15630 TAC 100 kW / 076 deg to NEAs Korean

Nippon no Kaze
1300-1330 on  9900 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Korean
1300-1330 on  9950 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Korean
1500-1530 on  9765 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Korean
1500-1530 on  9975 HBN 100 kW / 345 deg to NEAs Korean
1530-1600 on  9765 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Korean
1530-1600 on  9965 HBN 100 kW / 345 deg to NEAs Korean

National Unity Radio
1300-1600 on 11550 DB  100 kW / 071 deg to NEAs Korean

Furusato no Kaze
1330-1400 on  9900 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Japanese
1330-1400 on  9950 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Japanese
1430-1500 on  9560 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Japanese
1430-1500 on  9960 HBN 100 kW / 345 deg to NEAs Japanese
1600-1630 on  9470 TSH 100 kW / 002 deg to NEAs Japanese
1600-1630 on  9960 HBN 100 kW / 345 deg to NEAs Japanese

Shiokaze Sea Breeze
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Chinese Mon
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Tue
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Wed
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs English Thu
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Fri
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Sat
1300-1330 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Sun
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Mon
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Tue
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Wed
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs English Thu
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Fri
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Sat
1330-1400 on  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Sun
1405-1435 on  7325 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Daily
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Chinese Mon
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Tue
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Wed
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs English Thu
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Fri
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Sat
1600-1630 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Sun
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Mon
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Tue
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Wed
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs English Thu
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Fri
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Korean Sat
1630-1700 on  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs Japanese Sun

Voice of Wilderness
1330-1530 on  7620 TAC 100 kW / 076 deg to NEAs Korean

North Korea Reform Radio
1430-1530 on 11570 TAC 100 kW / 076 deg to NEAs Korean
2030-2130 on  7595 TAC 100 kW / 076 deg to NEAs Korean

Radio Warra Wangeelaa-ti
1500-1530 on 15515 TIG 150 kW / 165 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Sat

Living Water Ministry Broadcasting
1530-1630 on  9650 unknown probably PUG to NEAs Korean Wed

Voice of Martyrs
1530-1700 on  7505 TAC 100 kW / 076 deg to NEAs Korean

Radio Al-Mukhtar
1500-1530 on 15205 ISS 100 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Arabic Tue
1530-1600 on 15205 ISS 100 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Tigrinya Tue

Radio Adal
1500-1530 on 15205 ISS 100 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Arabic Wed/Sat
1530-1600 on 15205 ISS 100 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Tigrinya Wed/Sat

Radio Xoriyo
1600-1630 on 17630 ISS 500 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Somali Tue/Sat
1600-1630 on 17870 ISS 500 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Somali Mon/Fri
Transmissions are jammed by Ethiopia with white noise digital jamming

Oromo Voice Radio
1600-1615 on 17850 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Mon
1615-1630 on 17850 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf English Mon
1600-1630 on 17850 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Wed/Sat
Transmissions are jammed by Ethiopia with white noise digital jamming

Radio Ranginkaman/Radio Rainbow
1600-1630 on  7575 KCH 500 kW / 116 deg to WeAs Farsi Mon/Fri

Radio Voice of Independent Oromia
1600-1630 on 17860 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Oromo Sun
Transmissions are jammed by Ethiopia with white noise digital jamming

Radio Munansi
1600-1700 on 15240 WRB 115 kW / 045 deg to ENAm African Music Sat/Sun
1700-1900 on 15240 WRB 115 kW / 045 deg to ENAm Luganda/English Sat/Sun

Dimtse Radio Erena
1700-1730 on 11885 SCB 050 kW / 195 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Dly
1730-1800 on 11885 SCB 050 kW / 195 deg to EaAf Arabic Mon-Sat
1730-1800 on 11885 SCB 050 kW / 195 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Sun

Voice of Oromo Liberation
1700-1730 on 15420 NAU 100 kW / 139 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Wed/Fri/Sun
1730-1800 on 15420 NAU 100 kW / 139 deg to EaAf Amharic Wed
Transmissions are jammed by Ethiopia with white noise digital jamming

Radio Assenna
1700-1800 on 15245 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Tigrinya Thu/Sat

Eritrean Forum Medrek
1700-1800 on 15245 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Tigrinya Sun-Tue/Fri
1700-1800 on 15245 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Arabic Wed
1800-1900 on 15245 ISS 250 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Arabic Sat

Sedoye Bahar Voice of Spring
1730-1800 on  7495 KCH 500 kW / 116 deg to WeAs Farsi Thu/Fri

Radio Front for Independence of Oromo RKWO
1730-1800 on 17765 ISS 150 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Oromo Sun
Transmissions are jammed by Ethiopia with white noise digital jamming

Radio Publique Africaine
1800-1830 on 15480 ISS 250 kW / 145 deg to SoAf Kirundi
1830-1900 on 15480 ISS 250 kW / 145 deg to SoAf French

Radio Biafra
1800-2100 on 11700 SCB 100 kW / 195 deg to WeAf English

Lutheran World Federation Voice of Gospel(Sawtu Linjilia)
1830-1900 on 15315 ISS 500 kW / 180 deg to WCAf Fulfulde

Radio Free Gambia, inactive at present
1900-2000 on 15465 ISS 100 kW / 207 deg to WeAf Various* Fri
* including: English, Fula, Krio, Mandingo, Serer and Wolof.

Stream of Praise Music Ministries
2100-2130 on  7530 TSH 100 kW / 250 deg to EaAs Cantonese/Chinese
DX Mix # 960)

Friday, July 29, 2016

VOA Radiogram Weekend Schedule

Hello friends,
Last weekend's experiment with the transmission of an html-formatted VOA News story resulted in many successful decodes, but also several failures. The failures were mainly due to the base64 compression of the transmitted file, which requires all of the received characters to be received correctly. On shortwave, as we know, perfection is often elusive.
This weekend, we will transmit another html-formatted VOA News story. This time we will use Flwrap, another Fldigi add-on program. See details and instructions here: http://voaradiogram.net/post/148147415237/experimenting-with-web-pages-via-shortwave .
Because Flwrap does not require the html to be compressed, if the checksum fails, you have a Plan B: Copy the text in the Fldigi from through , paste it to a text editor (like Notepad), save it as an .html file, and open it in a browser.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 174, 30-31 July 2016, all in MFSK32 centered on 1500 Hz:

1:31  Program preview
 2:41  Great Red Spot may heat Jupiter's atmosphere*
 8:31  High-speed travel in near-vacuum tube*
12:44  Strange purple orb in Pacific Ocean**
18:43  Three images
26:08  Closing announcements*

* with image

** formatted for Flwrap

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com .


VOA Radiogram transmission schedule
(all days and times UTC):
Sat 0930-1000 5745 kHz
Sat 1600-1630 17580 kHz
Sun 0230-0300 5745 kHz
Sun 1930-2000 15670 kHz
All via the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station in North Carolina.

The Mighty KBC will broadcast to North America this weekend for one hour: Sunday 0000-0100 UTC (Saturday 8-9 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via shortwave. A minute of MFSK32 will be at about 0032 UTC. Reports for KBC reception to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and possibly other modes (and they have been experimenting with html/svg content) :

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida

Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany
Look for any additions or changes to the DigiDX schedule at http://www.digidx.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/digidx/


IBC (Italian Broadcasting Corporation) has a broadcast to Europe on 6070 kHz, Wednesdays, 2000-2200 UTC, with MFSK32 and Olivia 16-500 at 2030-2100 UTC. And IBC has added MFSK32 transmissions via WRMI in Florida: Friday 0125-0200 UTC on 9955 kHz (Thursday 9:25 pm EDT), part of its 0100-0130 broadcast. And Saturday at 0155-0200 UTC (Friday evening 9:55 pm EDT), on 11580 kHz, part of its 0130-0200 broadcast.  See http://ibcradio.webs.com/ for the complete schedule and contact information.

Thanks for the many helpful reception reports from last weekend. I have compiled the gallery for program 172, 16-17 July, and am now responding to reports from that weekend.

I hope you can tune and write in this weekend.
Kim
Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net
Twitter: @VOARadiogram

DX Stamp Service August Specials




Dear Customer,
Below are specials for August 2016. Keep kool!
 If you need a current stamp list or supply list, I can mail or email it to you.

 NEWS:  NEW PRICES on Stateside Mailers and Stateside Returns. Request updated supplies price sheet.

MORE NEWS:    Italy on special AND new specials for Stateside envelope sets!

BIGGER NEWS!!!:Check out the NEW updated and LOWER  PRICED! 47c postage deals!! Get mailing!!

IDEA:  Slightly damaged Deluxe QSL Album only $34.00 -or- buy 2 for only $60.!!

NEW RATES: Something's rotten in the state of Denmark. On July 1st rate jumped from 16 Kr. to 25 Kr. for economy rate!

Finland's forever stamp, 1LK, (1KL), covers 50g domestic and did cover 20g Priority International. Now, it only covers 20g International economy. Seems to be working ok tho.

If you hear of or notice any new rates, let me know.

NEW PRICES: Denmark econ. rate now priced at $4.00, up from $3.00 - Denmark priority rate dropped. 

IN STOCK AGAIN:  
STAMPS ON BACK ORDER: Moldova


U.S. DISCOUNT POSTAGE DEALS!!

 

Save Big on your domestic mailings 

 with colorful vintage stamps!

HAPPY  MAILING!!


47c Units
Forever

in  2 stamps

in 5 stamps
x 100
$45.00

$40.00


x 200
$85.00

$65.00


x 500
$207.00

$157.00 


Awaiting a pile of low values...then the 5 stamp unit deal will return...
Let's Try Those Postage Grab Bags Again!!
Made up with mostly 20c and some 33c and up values, singles to sheets.
                                       $200 FV for $140.   -:-   $500 FV for $320.                                       
No Charge for shipping Discount Postage & Grab Bag Offers 

International Rate (Hurry!! Only 2 Left!!)









100 x $1.15 in 3 stamps: $90 ppd.

ORDER NOW!

 AUGUST 2016  DX  STAMP  SPECIALS

2 Germany-$2.60    2 Russia-$2.60    3 Japan-$3.90  

2 Italy-$7.00    2 UK-$3.00    2 France-$3.60    2 Spain-$4.00

 AUGUST 2016  DX  SUPPLY  SPECIALS

200/200 European Air or Plain Mailers and Returns -$40.00

400/400 European Air Mailers and Air Returns - $75.00

600/600 European Air Mailers and Air Returns - $100.00

200/200 Stateside Mailers and Returns - $25.00

500/500 Stateside Mailers and Returns - $45.00

Priority Mail Shipping Rates: Orders up to $40.00 add $9.00, orders from $41.00 to $100.00 add $15.00. orders from $101.00 to $150.00 add $20.00, orders over $150.00 add 15%. When ordering supplies and stamps, the stamps ride free, just use supply total to figure shipping costs. Shipments to Canada and overseas ship at a greater cost. (07/2015 modified)
Stamps Only Orders: Just add $1.00 P&H for posting to USA, add $2.00 for posting to Canada.

 William Plum
12 Glenn Road
Flemington, NJ 08822
908 788 1020
Email: plumdx@msn.com

Dayton Hamvention looks for new location in 2017



Dayton  Hamvention 2017 News Update
The Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA) regrets to inform our many vendors, visitors and stakeholders that, unfortunately, HARA has announced the closing of their facility.  We have begun execution of our contingency plan to move Hamvention 2017 to a new home. DARA and Hamvention have enjoyed many successful years working together with HARA Arena and we wish the Wampler family the best. DARA and Hamvention have been working on a contingency plan in the event HARA would become unavailable. We have spent many hours over the last few
years evaluating possible locations and have found one in the area we believe will be a great new home! Due to logistics and timing issues, we will make a formal announcement introducing our new partner. This information will be coming soon. We all believe this new venue will be
a spectacular place to hold our beloved event. Please rest assured we will have the event on the same weekend and, since it will be in the region, the current accommodations and outside events already planned for Hamvention 2017 should not be affected.
We look forward to your continued support as we move to a new future with The Dayton Hamvention.
Ron Cramer
General Chairman
Dayton Hamvention 2017

Radio New Zealand Internatioal updates summer schedule


All times UTC

Frequency changes of Radio New Zealand International from July 29:
0659-1058 7245 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Daily, ex 9700
1059-1258 7245 RAN 100 kW / 325 deg English to NW  Pacific AM Daily, ex 9700
1651-1858 6170 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Sat, ex 7330
Videos via SDR New South Wales, Sydney at 1000UT and 1100UT:

Radio New Zealand International
Effective from: 29 Jul 2016
2051-0458 on 15720 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Daily
0459-0658 on 11725 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Daily
0659-1058 NF  7245 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Daily, ex 9700
1059-1258 NF  7245 RAN 100 kW / 325 deg English to NW  Pacific AM Daily, ex 9700
1259-1650 on  6170 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Daily
1651-1858 NF  6170 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Sat, ex 7330
1859-1958 on  9700 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Sat
1959-2058 on 11725 RAN 050 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific AM Sat
1659-1850 on  5975 RAN 035 kW / 035 deg English to Cook/Tonga/Samoa DRM Sun-Fri
1851-1950 on  9760 RAN 035 kW / 035 deg English to Cook/Tonga/Samoa DRM Sun-Fri
1951-2050 on 11690 RAN 035 kW / 035 deg English to All Pacific DRM Sun-Fri
Expect schedule changes from time to time to take account of propagation to our target audience. NB: Every month on the first and third Wednesday
2230-0600 UTC, it is maintenance day at our transmitter site Rangitaiki.
(DX Bulgaria)

Monitoring Voice of Greece

Voice of Greece QSL (Gayle Van Horn Collection)
Voice of Greece on 9420 and 11645 kHz on July 29:
All times UTC

0500-0600 on  9420 AVL 170 kW / 323 deg to WeEu Greek tx#3
0500-0600 on 11645#AVL 100 kW / 182 deg to NoAf Greek tx#1
0600-0700 on  9420 AVL 170 kW / 323 deg to WeEu Greek*tx#3
0600-0700 on 11645 AVL 100 kW / 182 deg to NoAf Greek*tx#1
0700-0805 on  9420 AVL 170 kW / 323 deg to WeEu Greek tx#3
0700-0805 on 11645 AVL 100 kW / 182 deg to NoAf Greek tx#1
#till 0557UT co-ch Radio Dabanga Arabic via SM di Galeria.
*including in Serbian, Romanian, Polish, Albanian&Italian.
Missing Spanish, Russian, Arabic, on 29 July. Off air at 0805UT
(DX Bulgaria)

Return to the Shortwave Scene on Guam - Trans World Radio KTWR

KTWR QSL (Gayle Van Horn Collection)
The Australian monthly magazine Radio & Hobbies for October 1975 gives us the first notification that Trans World Radio TWR was planning to establish a twin broadcasting facility on the island of Guam.  The highly honored international radio monitor in New Zealand, the late Arthur Cushen, stated in his monthly column, Listening Around the World, that TWR had already received a license for this new station which would operate with 10 kW on 770 kHz mediumwave and with two shortwave transmitters at 100 kW for coverage into Asia. 

            At the time, Trans World Radio was in an era of expansive growth, and Arthur Cushen went on to state that this new Guam station would be their fifth radio broadcasting facility, after Monte Carlo in Europe, Bonaire in the Caribbean, Cyprus in the Mediterranean, and Swaziland in Africa.  At this stage, TWR had already established an office facility in Agana and they planned that their first unit in Guam would be their new mediumwave station.   

            Their new shortwave station was constructed near the town of Merizo right towards the southern end of the island of Guam.  The actual location is just a little inland from Bile Bay on the west coast, a                       Two years later, in June 1977, the new KTWR shortwave station was ready to go on the air with test transmissions, and at this stage the programming consisted entirely of test tones and test announcements.  Trans World Radio issued a special QSL card acknowledging these initial transmitter tests.

            Regular program broadcasting began three months later on September 4 (1977), and by then, two 100 kW Harris transmitters Model SW100 were in use, with two TCI wide band curtain antennas.  Transmitter KTWR1 was hard wired to Antenna 1 at 285˚, and KTWR2 was hard wired to Antenna 2 at 315˚.

            Three years later (1980), Trans World Radio received FCC approval for the installation of two more shortwave transmitters at 100 kW, the same Model Harris SW100.  At the same time, the transmitter building was enlarged to accommodate the two additional units, and three new curtain antennas were also installed.  Test broadcasts from the two new transmitters and antennas took place during the following year (1981).

            In April 1999, a fifth transmitter and a sixth curtain antenna were installed; however, the 100 kW transmitter on this occasion was manufactured by the HCJB facility located at Elkhart in Indiana.   Then give two more years (2001) and the two early curtain antennas were replaced by two similar units with reflectors.

            However at this stage, two of the early 100 kW transmitters were removed and replaced by two higher powered units rated at 250 kW each with digital DRM capability.  During the installation of the new high powered transmitters, there was a rearrangement of transmitter locations within the building, and the earlier KTWR3 was removed for sale.   

            Friday November 11, 2011 was an auspicious day for Trans World Radio KTWR down near the town of Merizo on the island of Guam.  On that date, a special dedication ceremony honored the installation of the ultra-modern new equipment, and a special quarter hour program in the digital DRM mode marked the occasion. 

            This special shortwave broadcast in the digital mode was broadcast at 0900 UTC on 17640 kHz.  The entire dedication ceremony was broadcast live from KTWR, and in addition, this special event programming was relayed throughout the United States via the several hundred FM and mediumwave stations in the nationwide Moody Bible Radio Network.    

            In recent time KTWR has been involved in two interesting and significant radio experiments, in addition to the transmission of shortwave programming in the digital mode.  During the past three years, Trans World Radio has been installing three huge solar arrays for the generation of electricity at the rate of 60 kW hours per day from each array.  When totally completed, this cost saving equipment will save the station around $50,000 for electricity each year.  Then, just last month by special arrangement, one of the 250 kW transmitters at shortwave KTWR beamed an experimental digital internet signal to Thailand that allowed the download of a complete Bible on a smart phone.

            Trans World Radio KTWR on Guam has always been a reliable verifier of listener reception reports from their office in Agana, and more recently directly from the station at its Merizo address.  Over the past nearly forty years, KTWR has issued a host of colorful QSL cards, in English and at times also in Japanese.  These QSL cards often depict delightful island scenes in full color.
(AWR-Wavescan/NWS 387)

Monday, July 25, 2016

Weekly Porpagation Forecast Bulletins


Product: Weekly Highlights and Forecasts
:Issued: 2016 Jul 25 0218 UTC
# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center
# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/weekly.html
#
#                Weekly Highlights and Forecasts
#
Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 18 - 24 July 2016

Solar activity was low on 18-20 and 22 July with multiple C-class flares from Regions 2565 (N04,L=175, class/area Dho/320 on 16 July) and 2567 (N05, L=166, class/area Dki/380 on 21 July). The largest flare during that period was a C4.6 from Region 2567 at 20/2215 UTC.
Moderate solar levels were observed on 21 and 24 July with four M-class flares observed from Region 2567. The largest flare during that period was an M2.0 observed at 24/0620 UTC. Activity reached high levels on 23 July with three M-class flares from Region 2567.

The first was an M5.0, which peaked at 23/0211 UTC. The second was an M7.6/2b flare with an associated 310 sfu Tenflare. The final was an M5.5/3b, which peaked 15 minutes later at 23/0531 UTC had accompanying Type II (729 km/s shock velocity) and Type IV radio emissions, as well as a 900 sfu Tenflare. Two CMEs were observed in coronagraph imagery lifting off the west limb at 23/0524 UTC and 23/0548 UTC. Both CMEs were determined to not have an Earth-directed component.

No proton events were observed at geosynchronous orbit. However, a slight enhancement to near 1 pfu was observed at 23/0725 UTC due to the flare activity from early on 23 July.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit was at high levels on 18-19 July, normal levels from 20-23 July, and moderate levels on 24 July.

Geomagnetic field activity reached minor storm levels on 19-20 and 24 July due to the shock arrival of two CMEs. The first shock  arrival was likely associated with flare activity on 16 July and was
observed at the ACE spacecraft at 19/2310 UTC with a speed of approximately 450 km/s. The Bt component increased from near 5 nT to 17 nT and Bz reached a maximum southward deviation of -12 nT. Minor storm levels were observed from 19/2355 until 20/0600 UTC. The second shock enhancement was observed near 24/1450 UTC and likely associated with flare activity on 20 July. Wind speeds increased from near 400 km/s to 470 km/s accompanied by a Bt enhancement from
5 nT to 13 nT and southward deflection of Bz to -9 nT for nearly three hours. Minor storm conditions were observed with this event during the 24/1800-2100 UTC synoptic period. Geomagnetic field
activity was quiet on 18, 21-23 July with a nominal solar wind.

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 25 July - 20 August 2016

Solar activity is expected to be very low to low for the first half of the period with a chance for M-class flares from 05-19 August due to the return of old Region 2567.

No proton events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to be at normal to moderate levels for the majority of the period with high levels from 05-15 August due to recurrent CH HSS
events.

Geomagnetic field activity is expected to reach active levels on 25-27 July due to lingering CME effects and the arrival of a positive polarity CH HSS. Active to minor storm levels are expected
on 29 July, 03-05, 08, and 10 August due to recurrent CH HSS activity. Mostly quiet to unsettled conditions are expected for the remainder of the period.

Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt
:Issued: 2016 Jul 25 0218 UTC
# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center
# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/wwire.html
#
#      27-day Space Weather Outlook Table
#                Issued 2016-07-25
#
#   UTC      Radio Flux   Planetary   Largest
#  Date       10.7 cm      A Index    Kp Index
2016 Jul 25      75           8          3
2016 Jul 26      75          15          3
2016 Jul 27      70          12          3
2016 Jul 28      70           8          3
2016 Jul 29      70          20          5
2016 Jul 30      70          12          3
2016 Jul 31      70           8          3
2016 Aug 01      70           5          2
2016 Aug 02      70           5          2
2016 Aug 03      70          20          5
2016 Aug 04      70          20          5
2016 Aug 05      80          15          4
2016 Aug 06      95          10          3
2016 Aug 07     105          10          3
2016 Aug 08     105          20          5
2016 Aug 09     105           8          3
2016 Aug 10     105          12          4
2016 Aug 11     105          10          3
2016 Aug 12     105           8          3
2016 Aug 13     105           5          2
2016 Aug 14     105           5          2
2016 Aug 15     105           8          3
2016 Aug 16     105          12          3
2016 Aug 17     100           5          2
2016 Aug 18      90           8          3
2016 Aug 19      85           8          3
2016 Aug 20      80           5          2
(NOAA)

Sunday, July 24, 2016

QSLing the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race

Kyle Bush wins 2015 Brickyard 400 NASCAR race

The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Amateur Radio Club (W9IMS) will conduct the third of its three 2016 special events, commemorating the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race, starting at midnight Indianapolis time (0400 UTC) Monday, July 18, and continuing through the afternoon of Sunday, July 24 (local time).

 Amateur radio operators who work W9IMS qualify for a special QSL card, as do SWLs who submit reception reports. (The club also awards a certificate, but that requires QSOs during or reception reports for all three 2016 W9IMS special events, including the Grand Prix of Indianapolis and the Indianapolis 500 in May.)    

 Please include a SASE with all QSL requests, which should be sent to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Amateur Radio Club, P.O. Box 30954, Indianapolis, IN 46230. For additional information, including a list of scheduled operators, go to www.w9ims.org

W9IMS usually operates on or near the following frequencies: 7.240, 14.245 and 18.140, and possibly 144.240 SSB and 146.52 simplex FM on the morning of race day, July 24. Check spots on DX Summit – www.dxsummit.fi – to find out whether W9IMS is on the air at any given time. 
(Brian Smith W9IND) 



Saturday, July 23, 2016

From the Isle of Music set for Monday evening broadcast



Our July 26 (July 25 in the Americas on WBCQ) program includes more of María Felicia Pérez, director of Coro Exaudi, winner of the Choral Music category in Cubadisco 2016, and we will feature some Cuban Rock by Miel con Limón, winner of the Rock category in Cubadisco this year along with some new charanga by Orquesta Aragon, nominated in Traditional Popular Music this year. We will also play some Timba from the 1990s by Dan Den.

Two options for listening on shortwave:
WBCQ, 7490 KHz, Tuesdays 0000-0100 UTC
(8pm-9pm EDT Mondays in the Americas)
Channel 292, 6070 KHz, Tuesdays 1900-2000 UTC
(2100-2200 CEST)
See our Facebook page for more information.
(Tilford Productions)

Summer frequency updates

All times UTC

New clandestine station, Eritrea Radio Muhtar/Idhaa-tu Sautiya(or Radio Adal, according to David Kernick via email on Sat July 16):
1500-1600 on 15205 ISS*100 kW / 125 deg to EaAf Arabic/Tigrinya Tue/Wed/Sat * according latest changes of Media Broadcast.

Other changes of Media Broadcast MBR, published on July 19

Bible Voice Broadcasting
0200-0215 on 11945 ERV 100 kW / 125 deg to SoAs English Tue, ex MDC
0200-0230 on 11945 ERV 100 kW / 125 deg to SoAs English Thu/Sat, ex MDC
0200-0300 on 11945 ERV 100 kW / 125 deg to SoAs English Sun, ex MDC
0300-0315 on  7310 MOS 300 kW / 126 deg to N/ME Arabic Dardasha 7, ex NAU
1400-1415 on 17650 NAU 250 kW / 095 deg to SoAs English Sun, cancelled
1400-1430 on 17650 ISS 250 kW / 083 deg to SoAs English 1st Sat, cancelled
1700-1730 on 15160 NAU 100 kW / 145 deg to CeAf Dinka, cancelled

Pan American Broadcasting
1430-1445 on 15205 SCB 100 kW / 090 deg to SoAs English Sun, ex NAU

Voice of Oromo Liberation
Effective from: 22 July
1700-1730 on 15420 NAU 100 kW / 139 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Wed, unchanged
1730-1800 on 15420 NAU 100 kW / 139 deg to EaAf Amharic Wed, unchanged
1700-1730 on 15420 NAU 100 kW / 139 deg to EaAf Afar Oromo Fri, addtional
1700-1730 on 15420 ISS 100 kW / 130 deg to EaAf Amharic Sun, ex 1700-1800

Shiokaze Sea Breeze
Effective from: 20 July
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Chinese Mon
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Japanese Tue
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Wed
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 English Thu
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Fri
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Japanese Sat
1300-1330 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Sun
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Mon
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Japanese Tue
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Wed
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 English Thu
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Fri
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Korean Sat
1330-1400 NF  5965 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Japanese Sun
1405-1435 NF  7325 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 5935 Japanese Daily
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Chinese Mon
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Japanese Tue
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Wed
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 English Thu
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Fri
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Japanese Sat
1600-1630 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Sun
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Mon
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Japanese Tue
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Wed
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 English Thu
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Fri
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Korean Sat
1630-1700 NF  5915 YAM 300 kW / 280 deg to NEAs, ex 6165 Japanese Sun
(DX Bulgaria)

Euro weekend relays


Saturday HLR:
10.00 to 16.00 UTC, on 7265 KHz
RGI on Sunday:
09.00 to 10.00 UTC, on 7310  via shortwaveservice.com
Internet repeats:
15.00 to 17.00 UTC via  Coloradio.org + laut.fm/jukebox
Good reception ! Reports welcome at:  radiogloria@aol.com
RGI Website: http://rgi.fmkompakt.de

Sunday HLR:
09.00 to 12.00 UTC on 9485 kHz
E-mail: redaktion@hamburger-lokalradio.de  Thank you!
HLR FM-DAB+ Program via the Internet :    www.hamburger-lokalradio.net  Daily 24 h
Hobart Radio International:
Full Schedule A16: http://www.hriradio.org/p/current-schedule.html
Please note we have a new transmission on 15770 commencing this Sunday at 2100UTC via WRMI.
Please Email: hriradio@gmail.com   Thank you!
For outside the listening area please try the Twente/Netherlands Web RX at http://websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901/
You can also hear many European free and alternative stations via the Internet at: http://laut.fm/jukebox

Radio Channel 292  Transmission schedules:
http://www.channel292.de/schedule-for-bookings/ 
Radio Mi Amigo Transmission schedules:
www.radiomiamigo.es/shortwave
Good Listening!
73s
Tom Taylor
European Music Radio:
website: www.europeanmusicradio.com
email:    emrshortwave@gmail.com

Weekend VOA Radiogram Schedule

Hello friends,

Italian Broadcasting Corporation, IBC, has new MFSK32 transmissions. See the information below.

I have not been able to do a character-by-character analysis of all the reports on last weekend's Battle of the 55-wpm Modes, but it generally appears to me that MFSKI16 was best, followed by Olivia-8-1000, with BPSK63F most prone to errors. (In defense of BPSK63F, however, it has the narrowest bandwidth, and thus will be the most welcome on the amateur bands.)

Roger in Germany reminded us that BPSK63F, because it involves phase shift keying, may not work as well in AM mode, because, with fading, the two sidebands can be out of phase. The frequency shift keying of MFSK and Olivia suffer less from this phenomenon. I decoded the three modes using SSB on various receivers, but it still seems that BPSK63F had the most errors. Several listeners and I also decoded BPSK63F in AM mode (and a good signal) with 100% success.

Meanwhile, the html VOA Radiogram transmission schedule was received perfectly in many parts of the world, even where the MFSK32 images were fuzzy. (See some examples.)

This weekend, VOA Radiogram will again transmit an html document. This time, instead of using the Flmsg blank form, we will use the Flmsg file transfer form. When the content is all received, the file transfer window will open. You can save the document and open it when convenient.  (The photo in the document will come to your PC via the Internet rather than shortwave.) (See instructions at http://voaradiogram.net/post/147385924137/this-weekend-again-web-pages-via-shortwave )

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 173, 23-24 July 2016, all in MFSK32, all centered on 1500 Hz:

 1:32  Program preview
 2:52  New map of cerebral cortex*
 9:21  X-shaped configuration at center of Milky Way*
14:41  US Navy will visit New Zealand*
19:04  Amateur radio numbers decline in Germany*
22:17  Kepler telescope discovers planets (Flmsg html file transfer)
27:18  Closing announcements  
* with image
** information about using Flmsg is at http://bit.ly/29Yen0J

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com

VOA Radiogram transmission schedule
(all days and times UTC):
Sat 0930-1000 5745 kHz
Sat 1600-1630 17580 kHz
Sun 0230-0300 5745 kHz
Sun 1930-2000 15670 kHz
All via the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station in North Carolina.

The Mighty KBC will broadcast to North America Sunday at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday evening 8-10 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK32 will be transmitted at about 0130 UTC. It will be another Flmsg blank form, so an html item will pop up as a new window on your browser. (The large photo will come to your PC via the Internet rather than shortwave.) Reports for this KBC reception to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and possibly other modes (and they have been experimenting with html/svg content) :

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida

Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany
Look for any additions or changes to the DigiDX schedule at http://www.digidx.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/digidx/


IBC (Italian Broadcasting Corporation) has a broadcast to Europe on 6070 kHz, Wednesdays, 2000-2200 UTC, with MFSK32 and Olivia 16-500 at 2030-2100 UTC. And IBC has added MFSK32 transmissions via WRMI in Florida: Friday 0125-0200 UTC on 9955 kHz (Thursday 9:25 pm EDT), part of its 0100-0130 broadcast. And Saturday at 0155-0200 UTC (Friday evening 9:55 pm EDT), on 11580 kHz, part of its 0130-0200 broadcast.  See http://ibcradio.webs.com/ for the complete schedule and contact information.

Thank you for a large number of reports from last weekend. There was obviously much interest in the experimental nature of the program. I will start to compile a gallery of images today and hope to send them out by the end of the weekend.

I hope you can tune in and write in this weekend.
Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net
Twitter: @VOARadiogram