Radio SE-TA 2 slated for October 1-2 broadcast

 

Germany 

The upcoming special transmissions of Radio SE-TA 2, via MBR Nauen and Hartenstein Saxony, Germany, will broadcast on Sat/Sun October 1/2

 

All times UTC

1000-1100 on 6095 NAU 125 kW German Sat

1000-1100 on 6115 HST 001 kW German Sun

(Teak Publishing)

Test broadcast from 2021 on 6115 kHz at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43P6EM3TqEw

WRMI shuts down due to Hurricane Ian

 

Hurricane Ian has put all WRMI transmitters off the air at their site in Okeechobee, Florida:

Hurricane update as of 0300 UTC Thursday, September 29: 

All power is out at the transmitter site and all transmitters are off the air until power comes back on. We have no idea when that will be at this point. We have power in our control room and we have Internet service. So our webstream is operating. It's completely dark outside, so we have no idea about antenna damage until perhaps sometime tomorrow. High winds are expected to continue for most or all of Thursday, so power company crews will not be able to do any work. We'll keep you updated here on Facebook.

5 hours earlier WRMI had posted:

Hurricane update as of 2203 UTC Wednesday: 

Winds are getting much higher here, and 15770 kHz has gone down, unfortunately. We still have 7780, 9955 and 5950 kHz on the air.

(WRMI Radio Miami International Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/wrmiradio )

Dear Colleagues and Clients:

Last night Hurricane Ian passed through central Florida. Winds were extremely high, and they caused extensive damage in our antenna field. The winds are still very strong as I write this (1330 UTC Thursday), and we have not been able to assess the extent of the damage yet. Electrical power went out at 0200 UTC Thursday and is still out. The power company, Florida Power and Light, cannot begin to work on power restoration until the winds go down to about 35 miles per hour, and that may not be until later today or tomorrow. So we are off the air, except for our Internet stream, until further notice. Thanks for all of your messages and phone calls. We'll keep you updated.

Jeff

Jeff White, General Manager

WRMI Radio Miami International

10400 NW 240th Street

BBC to Cut 10 Language Services

 

The BBC has announced deep cuts to its World Service output that will result in the loss of hundreds of jobs, saying it has been forced to act by the government’s ongoing licence fee freeze.

In a move that could weaken the UK’s soft power around the world, the corporation will stop producing radio output in 10 languages, including Chinese, Hindi, and Arabic.

BBC Persian will end its audio broadcasts aimed at Iran, with the announcement coming at a time when widespread protests are taking place in the country.

There will also be a change in focus of the World Service’s English-language radio output, with more time dedicated to live news and sports programming at the expense of standalone programmes.

Additional story at: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/sep/29/hundreds-of-jobs-to-go-as-bbc-announces-world-service-cutbacks

late Breaking News: BBC World Service announces language cuts

 

Major cuts to BBC World Service were announced this morning (29 Sept 2022). The details are very extensive, but one headline is that 10 BBC languages will cease being aired by radio and will become online/TV only. They are: Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Persian, Kyrgyz, Tamil, Urdu and Uzbek.

More details:

https://radiotoday.co.uk/2022/09/bbc-world-service-to-end-10-radio-services-and-cut-382-job-positions/ 

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/sep/29/hundreds-of-jobs-to-go-as-bbc-announces-world-service-cutbacks 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2022/bbc-world-service-outlines-move-to-digital-first-service 

(BDXC)

Radio Andorra Archive programs to continue through 2022

          

Christian Milling advises on Facebook that the series of Radio Andorra Archive recordings of the Carte Blanche shows from 1979 will continue to the end of the year on the first Saturday of the month. 

Guest presenters for the forthcoming editions are:

1 October 2022: Sheila, 5 November 2022: Serge Gainsbourg, 3 December 2022: Hervé Vilard

11

Times and frequencies for the October 1 broadcast: 

1900-2000 UTC on 6180 kHz only no broadcast to North America, from Austria.

(BDXC/Oct 2022)

Shortwave Central YouTube channel video additions

 

The following videos have recently been uploaded to the Shortwave Central YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/c/ShortwaveCentral Your likes, comments, and subscription are welcomed. Thank you for your support of my channel.

Medium Wave

Kuwait, Radio Sawa  https://youtu.be/Ay0ndZwOU4c  

Lithuania, Nasha Lenta/Radio Pravda https://youtu.be/GI0Qu9EW72A

Russia, Radio Miriya/Radio Maria https://youtu.be/sKHnPAW3qm0

Shortwave

Germany, Radio Farda relay https://youtu.be/vTmmnKpifBM

Germany, VOA/South Sudan Focus relay https://youtu.be/qGDkh3p7cTQ

Kuwait, Radio Sawa (MW) https://youtu.be/Ay0ndZwOU4c  

Philippines, Voice of America relay  https://youtu.be/y70YlZlqY-g

Northern Marinas, Voice of America relay  https://youtu.be/PC_vJ9RsGMU

São Tomé E Príncipe, Voice of America relay https://youtu.be/AwLEyhJc6DQ

São Tomé E Príncipe, Voice of America-Studio 7 relay https://youtu.be/wrEkgEkqHeg

Thailand, Deewa Radio relay https://youtu.be/-cYe5Bkf8EA

Thailand, Radio Ashna relay https://youtu.be/IhLmZUckOB8

Thailand, Radio Azadi relay https://youtu.be/69UVWaMB1lk

Previous Uploads

Mediumwave 

Spain

RNE 1 Barcelona https://youtu.be/mrPbAULvB8E 

Spain

RNE 5 Barcelona https://youtu.be/ypaHVr6AvmQ

Shortwave

Clandestine

Voice of Freedom https://youtu.be/rM2_L19k4cA

Eritrea

Voice of the Broad Masses-Prgm 1 https://youtu.be/RFPeNQu8zJM

Ethiopia

Amhara Radio https://youtu.be/C9G6slJ12d8

Radio Japan/NHK World 

Hindi (Madagascar relay) https://youtu.be/bnoeKfMcvX0

Japanese (France relay)   https://youtu.be/axSx_kiL0UA

Persian (France relay)  https://youtu.be/yHQhq9MvBRI

Swahili (Madagascar relay) https://youtu.be/j2BfBKHU78k 

Urdu (United Arab Emirates relay)  https://youtu.be/vtBLh01pP3Q

Radio Taiwan International 

Amoy https://youtu.be/73V_v1jzl4s

Cantonese https://youtu.be/TnM1TzDFGrc  

Chinese https://youtu.be/pxXtd_dH9xo

English https://youtu.be/0N3Yg07Rze8

French (Bulgaria relay) https://youtu.be/vCBDFwQmxuU

German https://youtu.be/DkJuqcW-lEU

Hakka https://youtu.be/sxry95wHm_A

Indonesian https://youtu.be/L1iWHAbh6PQ

Japanese https://youtu.be/33PooLeBOhk 

Korean https://youtu.be/97mGtrDnTYU

Spanish https://youtu.be/ZSom8L0-qwI  https://youtu.be/5OrR2W_C7Uw 

Thai https://youtu.be/LiJ_SQxCREo

Vietnamese https://youtu.be/qLy1GAi55gg

(Gayle Van Horn/Teak Publishing)

teakpub@frontier.com 

Cuban monitoring reveals closedowns due to Hurricane Ian

 

CUBA   

Due to electricity supply problems by Hurricane Ian, on September 28 no signals were observed  

0500-0700UTC of the usual frequencies of RHC, Radio Rebelde, and Cuban Spy Numbers HM01

All times UTC

Radio Habana Cuba

0500-0600 on  5040 BAU 100 kW / 083&263 to Cuba English

0500-0600 on  6000 QVC 250 kW / 010 deg to ENAm English

0500-0600 on  6060 BAU 100 kW / 010 deg to ENAm English

0500-0600 on  6100 BAU 100 kW / 310 deg to WNAm English

0500-0600 on  6165 BAU 100 kW / 340 deg to WNAm English

0600-0700 on  6060 BAU 100 kW / 010 deg to ENAm English

0600-0700 on  6100 BAU 100 kW / 310 deg to WNAm English

0600-0700 on  6165 BAU 100 kW / 340 deg to WNAm English

and then 1100-1500UTC

1100-1400 on  6000 QVC 250 kW / non-dir to NCAm Spanish

1100-1300 on  6100 BAU 100 kW / 340 deg to WNAm Spanish

1100-1500 on  9535 BEJ 100 kW / 230 deg to CeAm Spanish

1100-1500 on  9710 BEJ 050 kW / 110 deg to SoAm Spanish

1100-1500 on 11760 BAU 100 kW / non-dir to NCAm Spanish

1100-1300 on 13740 BAU 100 kW / 160 deg to SoAm Spanish

1100-1500 on 15140 BAU 100 kW / 130 deg to SoAm Spanish

1200-1500 on 15230 QVC 250 kW / 305 deg to WNAm Spanish

1300-1500 on 13700 BAU 100 kW / 310 deg to WNAm Spanish

Radio Rebelde

0500&1500 on  5025 BAU 100 kW / non-dir to Cuba Spanish

Cuban Spy Numbers HM01 Sun/Mon/Wed/Fri

0502-0554 on 10860 BEJ 050 kW / unknown to Eu/Am Spanish

0602-0654 on 10345 BEJ 050 kW / unknown to Eu/Am Spanish

0702-0754 on  9330 BEJ 050 kW / unknown to Eu/Am Spanish

(DXB 28 Sept 2022)

In Puerto Rico, Radio Stations Cope With Fiona’s Aftermath

 

Challenges include lack of diesel fuel, studio flooding, and broken STL connections

By Paul McLane 

Published: 23 September 2022 Updated 26 September 2022 

Radio stations in Puerto Rico were facing numerous obstacles to returning to normal service five days after Hurricane Fiona swept the U.S. territory.

Roughly half of the archipelago’s 125 stations were either operating with emergency generators or were off the air as of Sept. 22, according to Felix Bonnet, executive director of the Puerto Rico Broadcasters Association.

He told Radio World that numerous factors have hampered stations returning to service. These include lack of power; difficulty accessing transmitter sites due to flooding or forest debris; flooding of studios; damage to towers and antenna tuning units; lack of internet or microwave links; and the absence of personnel who are dealing with storm damage themselves.

“Apart from those issues, there is now a diesel shortage due to demand and distribution logistics,” he said.

“Radio by law in Puerto Rico qualifies as ‘first responders for emergency supplies, but even that privilege is useless because of logistics or scarcity.”

Additional story at Radio World 

https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/headlines/in-puerto-rico-radio-stations-cope-with-fionas-aftermath?

Shortwave schedule updates

 

All times UTC

New schedule of BBC in Farsi 

Effective: 22 September 2022 

Farsi

0330-0430 on 11870 DHA 250 kW 

0330-0430 on 12015 SCB 100 kW 

0330-0430 on 13825 TAC 100 kW 

0430-0530 on 9880 DHA 250 kW 

0430-0530 on 13825 TAC 100 kW 

0430-0530 on 15210 SCB 100 kW 

1600-1700 on 5875 TAC 100 kW 

1600-1700 on 6195 SLA 250 kW 

1830-1930 on 6100 SCB 100 kW 

United States

WINB Radio Red Lion, PA in Hybrid DRM mode:

0700-0945 on 9265 INB 015 kW English Daily &

0700-0930 on 9265 INB 015 kW English Mon-Fri

0930-1100 on 13655 INB 015 kW English Mon-Fri

1100-1400 on 13720 INB 015 kW English Mon-Fri

1400-1500 on 15675 INB 015 kW English Mon-Fri

1500-1700 on 15750 INB 015 kW English Mon-Fri 

(DXB)

Radio Rebelde monitoring observations

 

Observing differing days, each hour and different random combinations from Bauta, Bejucal, and Quivic sites

Cuba

All times UTC

Radio Rebelde on wrong 5040 & 6100 Bauta, 6100 Titan-Quivican, 9535/9710 Bejucal, noted on September 25 from 1100 on  5040*BAU 100 kW / 083&263 to Cuba Spanish. Good/very good via SDR Frostburg/Boca Raton.

* instead of  5025 BAU 100 kW / non-dir to Cuba Spanish Radio Rebelde, scheduled 24 hrs Summer/Winter

1100-1106 on  6000 QVC 250 kW / non-dir to NCAm Spanish, instead of Radio Habana Cuba RHC Summer A-22

1100-1106 on  6100 BAU 100 kW / 340 deg to WNAm Spanish, instead of Radio Habana Cuba RHC Summer A-22

1100-1106 on  9535 BEJ 100 kW / 230 deg to CeAm Spanish, instead of Radio Habana Cuba RHC Summer A-22

1100-1106 on  9710 BEJ 050 kW / 110 deg to SoAm Spanish, instead of Radio Habana Cuba RHC Summer A-22 

1106 on  5040 kHz continues Radio Rebelbe & 6000/6100/9535/9710 kHz continues Radio Habana Cuba!

1330 on  5040*BAU 100 kW / 083&263 to Cuba Spanish. Good via SDR Boca Raton in FL

1630 on  5040*BAU 100 kW / 083&263 to Cuba Spanish Radio Rebelde and continues!!!

* instead of  5025 BAU 100 kW / non-dir to Cuba Spanish Radio Rebelde as scheduled 24h schedule

(DXB)

Weekly Propagation Forecast Bulletins

 

Product: Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

:Issued: 2022 Sep 26 0155 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#                Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

#

Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 19 - 25 September 2022

Solar activity reached moderate levels this week with three M-class flares observed during the period. Region 3102 (S25, L=298, class/area Eki/320 on 18 Sep) produced an M1.0/1n flare at 20/1122 UTC. Region 3107 (S25, L=113, class/area Fai/240 on 24 Sep) produced an M1.0 at 21/0702 UTC. This was followed by the largest event of the period, an M1.7/Sf at 23/1810 UTC from Region 3110 (N16, L=158, class/area Dhi/320 on 25 Sep). Associated with this event were Type II (est. 2453 km/s S.V.) and Type IV signatures. 

During the period, a total of 62 C-class and 3 M-class flares were recorded. In addition to Regions 3102, 3107 and 3110, C-class activity was also observed from Regions 3105 (S17, L=210, class/area Dki/490 on 22 Sep) and 3109 (N10, L=257, class/area Dro/040 on 23 Sep). Numerous CME signatures, off of both limbs, were observed in coronagraph imagery throughout the week, but none were determined to have Earth-directed components. 

No proton events were observed at geosynchronous orbit, although the 10 Mev proton flux was slightly elevated above background levels. 

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit was at normal to moderate levels on 19-24 Sep and high levels on 25 Sep with a peak flux of 2,130 pfu observed at 25/1555 UTC. 

Geomagnetic field activity mostly ranged from quiet to unsettled levels with an isolated active period early on 24 September. Quiet to unsettled periods were observed on 19-20 September under weak, diminishing, negative polarity coronal hole high stream influence. Quiet levels were observed on 21 and 22 September, with the exception of an isolated unsettled period late on 22 September. Unsettled to isolated active conditions persisted on 24 and 25 September under weak, positive polarity coronal hole high-speed stream influence. 

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 26 September - 22 October 2022

Solar activity is expected to be low with a chance for M-class (R1-R2, Minor to Moderate) flare activity on 26 September to 04 October and from 08-22 October due to current active regions on the visible disk and returning, active regions. 

No proton events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to reach high levels on 26-28 September, 03-12 October, and 22 October in response to CH HSS influences. 

Geomagnetic field activity is expected to be at unsettled levels on 27-28 September, 01-06 October, 16-17 October, with active levels possible on 01-05 October and 20-21 October. G1-G2 (Minor-Moderate) levels are possible on 01-04 October as well. This enhanced activity is due to CH HSS influences. 

Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt

:Issued: 2022 Sep 26 0155 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#      27-day Space Weather Outlook Table

#                Issued 2022-09-26

#

#   UTC      Radio Flux   Planetary   Largest

#  Date       10.7 cm      A Index    Kp Index

2022 Sep 26     140           8          3

2022 Sep 27     142          10          3

2022 Sep 28     145          10          3

2022 Sep 29     140           8          3

2022 Sep 30     135           8          3

2022 Oct 01     130          25          5

2022 Oct 02     125          50          6

2022 Oct 03     128          30          5

2022 Oct 04     130          20          5

2022 Oct 05     132          12          4

2022 Oct 06     132          10          3

2022 Oct 07     132           8          3

2022 Oct 08     135           8          3

2022 Oct 09     130           8          3

2022 Oct 10     128           8          3

2022 Oct 11     132           8          3

2022 Oct 12     136           8          3

2022 Oct 13     136           8          3

2022 Oct 14     138           8          3

2022 Oct 15     140          10          3

2022 Oct 16     138          10          3

2022 Oct 17     135           8          3

2022 Oct 18     132           8          3

2022 Oct 19     130           8          3

2022 Oct 20     128          12          4

2022 Oct 21     125          12          4

2022 Oct 22     130           8          3

(NOAA)

Radio Angela adds new program

 

NEW PROGRAM:

Radio Angela (WBCQ 5130 kHz), Sep 25, 0100-0400 UTC

(Sept 24, 9pm-Midnight EDT in the Americas)

0100 UTC: Terry Colgan's Austin Saturday Night, a new week 4 monthly, premieres on Radio Angela with the best music Austin, Texas has to offer.

0200 UTC: Julio Cesar Pereira's Ginga Brasil! features 70s prog rock group Som Nosso de Cada Dia.

0300 UTC: Uncle Bill's Melting Pot features funky music from Togo.

(Bill Tilford)

Radio Free Asia frequency updates

 

Frequency changes of Radio Free Asia via Dushanbe

Dushanbe, Tajikistan relay

Tibetan

1300-1400 - 13720 DB  200 kW / 125 deg to CeAs Tibetan, ex 13835 kHz

1300-1400 - 15490 DB  200 kW / 110 deg to CeAs Tibetan, ex 15490 kHz

1300-1400 on 11570 KWT 250 kW / 070 deg to CeAs Tibetan A22 no change

1300-1400 on 15275 DB  250 kW / 110 deg to CeAs Tibetan A22 no change

1300-1400 on 17860 SAI 100 kW / 300 deg to CeAs Tibetan A22 no change

All frequencies jammed by China National Radio CNR-1 "Voice of China"

(DXB 23 Sept 2022)

WEWN-3 frequency update

 

WEWN-3 Radio Catolica Mundial on 5970 Vandiver, Alabama, USA

All times UTC

USA   New schedule of WEWN-3 Radio Catolica Mundial on 5970 kHz via Vandiver

0000-0200 on  5970 EWN 100 kW / 160 deg to CeAm Spanish, instead 0000-1400UT

1200-1400 on  5970 EWN 100 kW / 160 deg to CeAm Spanish, instead 0000-1400UT

1400-2400 on 12050 EWN 100 kW / 155 deg to CeAm tx#2, pls check all the time.

(DXB 23 Sept 2022)

Shortwave Radiogram schedules

 

Hello friends

Summer has transitioned to Autumn -- or vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere. The seasons changed abruptly here in Northern Hemisphere when a cold front brought cooler temperatures and gust winds. Tomorrow (Friday) I will walk three blocks for a 6:50 am dentist appointment. The temperatures will probably be below 50F/10C -- so I'll need a jacket (if I can find it).  

This weekend, our broadcast will include an interesting article about the early history of what eventually was known as Radio Australia. It's from the local newspaper in Shepparton, Victoria, the location of the Radio Australia shortwave transmitting site which, sadly, was taken off the air in 2017.    

Videos of last weekend's Shortwave Radiogram (program 272)  are provided by Darau Bl? in Lithuania and Scott in Ontario (both Friday 1300 UTC). The audio archive is maintained by Mark in the UK. The analysis is prepared by Roger in Germany.

Here is the lineup for Shortwave Radiogram, program 273, 22-27 September 2022, in MFSK modes as noted:

 

 1:34  MFSK32: Program preview

 2:41  MFSK32: SpaceX wants to bring satellite internet to Iran*

 7:17  MFSK64: Origins of Radio Australia*

13:34  MFSK64: This week's images*

28:32  MFSK32: Closing announcements

* with image(s)

Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net

And visit http://swradiogram.net

Twitter: @SWRadiogram or https://twitter.com/swradiogram (visit during the weekend to see listeners' results)

Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/567099476753304

Shortwave Radiogram Gateway Wiki https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Shortwave_Radiogram_Gateway 

Shortwave Radiogram Transmission Schedule

UTC Day UTC Time Frequency Transmitter

Saturday  0230-0300 9265 kHz WINB Pennsylvania

Sunday 2330-2400 7730 kHz WRMI Florida

Monday 0800-0830 5850 kHz  7780 kHz  WRMI Florida

Tuesday 1430-1500 9955 kHz WRMI Florida

The Mighty KBC transmits to North America Sundays at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday 8-10 pm EDT) on 5960 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK is at about 0130 UTC.  Reports to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com . See also http://www.kbcradio.eu/ and https://www.facebook.com/TheMightyKbc/. 

“This is a Music Show” Most of the show is a music show, but the host transmits some MFSK-64 text and image near the end of the broadcast.  It’s transmitted on WRMI, Thursdays at 0200-0300 UTC on 5850 kHz (Wednesday evening in the Americas). Also look for a waterfall ID at the beginning of the show. thisisamusicshow@gmail.com  www.twitter.com/ThisIsAMusicSho/    @ThisIsAMusicSho  https://thisisamusicshow.com

Pop Shop Radio from British Columbia, Canada, includes "a whole variety of pop music, such as records from the 1960s and 1970s that were played on Top-40 radio stations not only in North America but also on offshore radio and stations like Radio Luxembourg." The programs now include some MFSK text and an image. Website: popshopradio.ca. Twitter: @popshopradio1  Email: radiopopshop@gmail.com.

Thanks for your reception reports!

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott, KD9XB

Producer and Presenter

Shortwave Radiogram

Reporting on international broadcasting at https://twitter.com/kaedotcom 

DX Central YouTube Channel begins Season 3, on September 23

 On Friday, September 23, 2022, at 6:45 PM (CDT) (2345 UTC) DX Central begins its third season on the air. The highly popular YouTube channel, hosted by Loyd Van Horn, from North Shore studios in Mandeville, Louisiana, specializes in AM and FM DX, equipment reviews, airchecks, tips, tricks, and how-to videos.  

Loyd is the 2022 International Radio Club of America (IRCA) Ric Heald award winner for his support of the AM radio hobby.

New to the hobby? Learn more about DX with his DX 101 pages at dxcentralonline.com. Find out about AM DX Home on the Road videos, AM DX Airchecks-By State, and MUCH MORE!

Did you miss the DX Central Live - Season 3 Live Stream Run Through? Go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xG6Vjl83UAg as well as links of not to be missed past editions.

Follow on Twitter at DX Central (Loyd Van Horn W4LVH) @DXCentral

Follow on Instagram @DXCentral 

Subscribe to DX Central at  https://www.youtube.com/c/DXCentral

DX Central Archive editions: 

DX 101 Spreadsheets and Logbook Analysis for AM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gPe0fnvgKo

DX 101 Reviewing SDR recordings for AM/FM DX https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm5--fpCzj0

DX 101 The Top 10 Countries From North/South America You Can Try to Hear TONIGHT https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lm5--fpCzj0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qzRlI_rviA

                                              DX Central ... Because we’re all about radio!

Weekly Propagation Forecast Bulletin

 

Product: Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

:Issued: 2022 Sep 19 0622 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#                Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

#

Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 12 - 18 September 2022

Solar activity reached high levels this week, with six M-class flares observed during the period. Region 3098 (N18, L=053, class/area Ehc/860 on 14 Sep) produced the largest event, an M7.9 flare at 16/0949 UTC. This was followed at 16/1559 UTC by an M6.2/Sn flare from the same region. The remaining M flares, all associated with Region 3098, ranged from M1.1 to M2.6. Of the 11 regions numbered, 

Region 3098 was the largest, most magnetically complex, and most productive. It was responsible for 39 C-class flares in addition to the M-flares described above. Throughout the week there were several CMEs but none were Earth-directed. 

No proton events meeting alert criteria were observed at geosynchronous orbit, although the 10 MeV proton flux was slightly elevated above background levels, most likely in response to an event on the far side of the sun. 

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit was elevated at the beginning of the week but subsequently fell below the 1000 pfu threshold after the arrival of a transient feature on the 14th described below. It remained at normal-moderate levels for the remainder of the week. 

Geomagnetic field activity ranged from quiet to active levels. The active conditions were observed on the synoptic periods straddling 14-15 Sept and associated with influences from an unattributed transient feature. The disturbed conditions were preceded by a 30 nT sudden impulse observed at 2315 UTC (Boulder Magnetometer) on September 14th. 

An extended quiet period followed until 18 September when conditions rose to unsettled levels in response to coronal hole high-speed stream influences. Solar wind speed in this coronal hole reached the mid 500 km/s range. 

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 19 September - 15 October 2022

Solar activity is expected to be low with a chance for M-class (R1-R2, Minor-Moderate) flares on 19 Sep - 02 Oct as old Region 3089 (S22, L=194) returns. This region was previously responsible for 5 M-class events and continues to be active based on the imagery of the SE limb. Region 3098 is expected to return around 29 September, bringing the potential for a continued chance of M-class flare activity through the end of the period. 

No proton events are expected at geosynchronous orbit.

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to reach high levels on 20-23 September and 01-11 October in response to CH HSS influences. 

Geomagnetic field activity is likely to reach minor (G1) storm levels on the 22-23 Sep with the arrival of a HSS associated with a positive polarity coronal hole. Another positive polarity coronal hole and HSS are expected to bring minor (G1) to moderate (G2) storm conditions on 30 Sep - 03 Oct. 

Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt

:Issued: 2022 Sep 19 0622 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#      27-day Space Weather Outlook Table

#                Issued 2022-09-19

#

#   UTC      Radio Flux   Planetary   Largest

#  Date       10.7 cm      A Index    Kp Index

2022 Sep 19     138          10          3

2022 Sep 20     135           5          2

2022 Sep 21     135           5          2

2022 Sep 22     133          20          5

2022 Sep 23     128          18          5

2022 Sep 24     126          12          4

2022 Sep 25     130           8          3

2022 Sep 26     125           8          3

2022 Sep 27     120           8          3

2022 Sep 28     120           8          3

2022 Sep 29     122           8          3

2022 Sep 30     122          22          5

2022 Oct 01     122          50          6

2022 Oct 02     122          30          5

2022 Oct 03     120          20          5

2022 Oct 04     122          12          4

2022 Oct 05     122          15          4

2022 Oct 06     122          12          4

2022 Oct 07     122          10          3

2022 Oct 08     125           8          3

2022 Oct 09     122           8          3

2022 Oct 10     120           5          2

2022 Oct 11     118           8          3

2022 Oct 12     118           5          2

2022 Oct 13     116           5          2

2022 Oct 14     116           5          2

2022 Oct 15     116          12          4

(NOAA)

PBS in the Philippines on Shortwave

 

During its more than three-quarters of a century of on-air shortwave service, PBS, the Philippine Broadcasting Service has always been quite tenuous, even at its very best.  Radio Philippinas, the shortwave service of the Voice of the Philippines, has at times been dependent upon borrowed facilities and donated equipment, sometimes quite old, and sometimes no longer reliable.

On September 4, 1947, the United States government signed a document on behalf of the Voice of America for a new and somewhat temporary relay station at Malolos, some thirty miles north of the national capital Manila.  VOA  took out a lease for five buildings at the Bulacan Trade School, mainly imported Quonset Huts, and a total of five transmitters were installed; two @ 50 kW mediumwave, and three shortwaves for international coverage.  At one stage VOA operated a Manila address at 964 Taft Avenue.

The three shortwave transmitters at Malolos were two RCA units, Model number M1733OA, at 50 kW each with dual channel operation.  The RCA serial numbers were No 524 & 527, and there was another RCA 7½ kW Model ETA MI725, No 4654.  A total of ten rhombic antennas were installed, and programming was beamed to China in Chinese and English.

When in use with the relay of VOA programming, the shortwave transmitters were identified in VOA scheduling as Manila 1, Manila 2, and Manila 3.  When they were on air with PBS programming, they were identified on-air as PBS Malolos.  

A set of temporary co-ordinating studios for PBS was installed in an already available public building in Manila, on the fourth floor of the Ramon Roces Building.  Occasional additional programming was prepared in the United States by United Nations Radio in New York.

In the era immediately following the end of World War 2, the shortwave scene in the Philippines was so convoluted and mixed up, with so many stations relaying the programming from other stations, and utilizing a strange mixture of various designated callsigns, that it is almost impossible to trace who was who back at that time.  (However, in fairness to the postwar Far East Broadcasting Company in Manila, it should be stated that they generally operated their network of mediumwave and shortwave stations in conformity with their registered callsigns.)

When conditions began to return to somewhat normal during the latter part of the 1940s and into the 1950s, the registered callsigns for PBS shortwave were listed in the DUH series.  Consecutive callsigns identified consecutive shortwave frequencies, as DUH2 on 6170 kHz, DUH3 on 9570 kHz, DUH4 on 9615 kHz, and DUH5 on 11840.  These four DUH callsigns identified the usage of shortwave channels as was the custom back then, not the usage of the specific shortwave transmitters.  

The change for the initial prefix for radio station callsigns in the Philippines from the K prefix to the D prefix occurred unexpectedly and without prior announcement on January 1, 1949.  This sudden move caught the international radio world as an unexpected surprise.

In 1954, the powerful new Voice of America relay station at Poro Point, some 150 miles north of the national capital Manila was taken into service, on both mediumwave and shortwave.  At this stage, the VOA usage of the six-year-old Malolos station, Manila VOA, was retained with its regular scheduling of VOA programming.  In addition, PBS programming on shortwave continued from Malolos according to their prior scheduling.      

However, a huge new VOA shortwave relay station was taken into regular service at Tinang, some 50 miles north of Manila in 1968, with ultimately a dozen huge transmitters at 250 kW each.  In addition, a total of 31 curtain antennas were installed.  At that stage, the VOA usage of the now twenty-year-old somewhat temporary station at Malolos was discarded, and whatever was left of its serviceable equipment was donated to PBS. 

In 1967 for example, PBS was listed with two hours of daily programming on callsign DUB4 with 5 kW on 3286 kHz.  During the next year (1968), PBS shortwave was shown with callsign DUB4 now on 3156 kHz together with callsign DUH2 on 6170 kHz, maybe with 50 kW or whatever was available.  Two years later again (1970), after VOA Tinang was activated, PBS was shown with 7½ kW on 9580 kHz, and maybe with 50 kW on 11950 kHz. 

These days (2022), Radio Pilipinas PBS is listed with a nationwide network of two dozen or more mediumwave and FM relay stations.  Their programming on shortwave is provided by VOA at their huge relay station at Tinang.

The current scheduling for PBS shortwave via Tinang is as follows:-

Filipino Service

17:30 - 19:30 local, 01:30 - 03:30 UTC

9.960 MHz, 12.120 MHz, 15.190 MHz

Japan, Russia, China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe, Middle East, and Northern Africa

English Service

02:00 - 03:30 local, 10:00 - 11:30 UTC

12.010 MHz, 15.640 MHz, 17.820 MHz

Radyo Pilipina's programs can also be heard via live audio streaming in the internet from 11:30 pm to 12:00 noon of the next day PST.

PBS Manila on shortwave issued many QSL cards, though at times somewhat spasmodically.  Their QSL was generally an oversized card, with handwritten details confirming the reception of their programming.

(AWR-Wavescan (NWS 700)

Shortwaveservice broadcast schedule to 29 October

 

SHORTWAVESERVICE Kall/Deutschland broadcast schedule

to 29. October 2022)

*** Alle Zeiten in MESZ / all times in CEST (UTC+2) ***

3985 kHz

 17:00 Radio Popexpress („Popmusik vom Feinsten“ und „Sahne für die Ohren“)

17:00-17:30 Radio Tirana (dt)

17:30-18:00 Radio Slowakei International (fr)

18:00-19:00 SRF Echo der Zeit (dt)

19:00-19:30 Radio Bulgarien (dt)

19:30-20:00 Radio Bulgarien (en)

20:00-20:30 Radio Slowakei International (dt)

20:30-21:00 Radio Slowakei International (fr)

21:00-21:30 SRF4 Tageszusammenfassung (dt)

6005 kHz

10:00-11:00 Radio Ukraine International (ukrainisch)

11:00-11:30 Radio Slowakei International (en)

11:30-12:00 Radio Prag (dt)

12:00-12:30 Radio Slowakei International (dt)

12:30-13:00 SRF Rendez-Vous (dt)

13:00-13:30 Radio Slowakei International (en)

13:30-14:00 Radio Slowakei International (fr)

14:00-14:30 Voice of Mongolia (en)(Mo-Sa), So: R. Amathusia (nl)

14:30-15:00 Radio Tirana (en)(Mo-Sa), So: R. Amathusia (nl)

15:00-15:30 Radio Slowakei International (dt)

15:30-16:00 Radio Slowakei International (fr)

16:00-16:30 Radio Slowakei International (sp)

16:30-17:00 Radio Slowakei International (en)

17:00-17:30 Polskie Radio (dt)

17:30-18:00 Radio Slowakei International (en)

6085 kHz

Täglich (Daily)

09:00-19:00 Radio MiAmigo International*

*Deutsch / Englisch / Niederländisch, Programmplan unter:

http://www.radiomiamigo.international/english/sw-schedule.html

(WWDXC)

Radio Station 2CM: The Very First Radio Broadcasting Station in Australia

 

According to radio historians, the very first radio broadcasting license in Australia was awarded to Charles Maclurcan due to his regular Sunday evening broadcasts over experimental amateur station 2CM.  The program content for each weekly broadcast was published in a radio magazine in advance, and each program was avidly followed by anywhere up to 5,000 listeners each week.

Charles Dansie Maclurcan was born in Brisbane Australia on August 2, 1889.  His mother Hannah was an accomplished businesswoman who managed the family hotel businesses throughout her entire life, and she was also a specialist cook who produced and published a whole series of annual cooking and recipe books.  Her first husband died young, and likewise, her second husband (Donald Maclurcan, father to Charles Maclurcan) died young also. 

After his many years of schooling, Charles Maclurcan took employment in electrical engineering, and he early showed an interest in the unfolding development of wireless and radio.  Together with his sister's husband, Cyril Lane, they established a radio/wireless company in Sydney in 1910, for which an experimental amateur station XDM was built.  

This wireless station XDM was installed on the rooftop of the family's two-storeyed Wentworth Hotel on Lang Street in downtown Sydney, from which frequent wireless contact under the callsign LMX was made with shipping in nearby Sydney Harbour.  Two radio masts were installed on the flat roof, and as an interesting addition, Maclurcan also installed a model railway system underneath the wireless aerials.  

In later years, Charles Maclurcan revealed that he had a hidden motive back then for his early emphasis on wireless and radio development; he wanted to impress a particular girl.  However the girl was not impressed, and she later married somebody else, though young Charles did continue to develop his avid interest in radio.   

In the year 1912, 23-year-old Charles Maclurcan went on a tour of Europe.  However, while he was away, a fire destroyed the wireless equipment on the roof of the Wentworth Hotel, which almost spread to the entire hotel itself.  The rooftop wireless station was never rebuilt.  

During World War 1, Maclurcan was permitted to continue with the further development of his wireless experiments, and together with his many official radio contacts, he was the only amateur radio station in Australia that was still permitted on the air.  His wartime duties were conducted in cooperation with the Australian army, and for this purpose, he was granted the honorary rank of Major.

The belligerent animosities of World War 1 ended at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month (Monday, November 11) in 1918 and during those four years of tragic human events over in Europe, wireless had become radio.  With a somewhat unsteady peace on the horizon, radio was seen in the post-war era as an excellent medium for the mass communication of entertainment and information, and as we know that was the coming new direction for program broadcasting. 

In September 1920, the Australian government removed all wartime restrictions, and amateur radio operators were permitted back on the air once again.  At the same time, business enterprises were giving serious consideration to establishing radio broadcasting stations in the major cities throughout the continent.  

In fact, at that stage, amateur radio stations were encouraged to provide programming for the public interest, entertainment, and information, and that is exactly what Charles Dansie Maclurcan observed as the direction for his amateur radio station.  He began his well-planned 90-minute Sunday evening programs during the following year 1921, a little more than one hundred years ago.   

At that stage, Charles Maclurcan was already married to Winifred Josephine Kenna of the nearby Sydney suburb of Homebush, and they already had three sons, the youngest still an infant.  They were living in the parental home "Namanula" in Agnes Street, in suburban Strathfield, and 32-year-old Maclurcan began his 90-minute Sunday night broadcasts over longwave station 2CM, with just 7 watts on 214 kHz.  

The electronic equipment was installed upon a bench at the side wall of their garage, and the two wooden masts were standing on vacant property adjacent to their suburban home.  At the end of each broadcast, Maclurcan would sign off with the adage: Don't forget to wind up the clock and put the cat out.  Or perhaps occasionally: Don't forget to wind up the cat and put out the clock.

On Sunday evening March 18, 1923, 19-year-old actress Josie Melville was a guest in the Maclurcan home in Strathfield, and she was coaxed, in spite of her reticence at the microphone, to sing two pieces of music, apparently unaccompanied.  One was Look for the Silver Lining, which you heard as our opening music in this program, sung by Marion Harris from the same era as Josie Melville.  There are no known recordings of Josie Melville singing, one hundred years ago.

After nearly four years of broadcasting his very popular Sunday evening programs, Charles Macluran made his final broadcast over 2CM on Sunday evening February 17, 1924.  There were already half a dozen radio broadcasting stations on the air in Australia and several more were in the planning stages.  

Radio broadcasting station 2CM was no longer needed, and in any case, Charles Dansie Maclurcan was packed and ready to make a voyage to the United States.  From then onwards, station 2CM was just another amateur shortwave communication station, like so many others in Australia. 

During the following year (1924), some of the 2CM radio equipment was incorporated into the first transmitter that was taken into use by the commercial station 2HD, which was inaugurated by Harry Douglas in Hamilton, Newcastle on January 27, 1925.  

Radio entrepreneur Charles Dansie Maclurcan, 2CM, died in Sydney in 1956 at the age of 67, and he was acknowledged and appreciated for his contribution to the development of wireless and radio in Australia in the earlier years. 

It was Prime Minister Billy Hughes who signed license no 1 for station 2CM.  As a result of his support for the station, and its ultimately worldwide impact on radio broadcasting, the Australian government took an action, stating that Maclurcan's 2CM had provided a unique and needed radio broadcasting service in the era just before regular broadcasting stations became airborne, and in honor of the original station 2CM, this callsign must never be issued again.

(AWR/Wavescan (NWS 701)

Radio Europa to air September 18

 

On Sunday, September 18, 2022 at 1500 UTC (17:00 Dutch time) on 6175 kHz, we are going to try something. A very good acquaintance of ours Henk has made a program in Dutch and perhaps in English.

The program is the Packman Show, which will air for one hour, and includes parts from the years of the old ship channels when there were many ships in the waters-making programs.

(edited for clarity by Teak Publishing)

mvgr Radio Europe/BDXC 16 Sept 2022)

Shortwave Radiogram schedule updates

 

Hello friends

Our only transmission mishap last week was that WINB's 9265 kHz was missing last Thursday. It was back by Friday. And it's on the air as I type this, hoping that this email is finished before the Thursday 2330-2400 UTC broadcast.

Videos of last weekend's Shortwave Radiogram (program 271)  are provided by Darau Bl? in Lithuania and Scott in Ontario (both Friday 1300 UTC). The audio archive is maintained by Mark in the UK. Analysis is prepared by Roger in Germany.

Here is the lineup for Shortwave Radiogram, program 272, 15-20 September 2022, in MFSK modes as noted:

 

1:38  MFSK32: Program preview

2:45  MFSK32: Spacecraft prepares to collide with asteroid*

9:03  MFSK64: Shortage of seeds used for Dijon mustard*

13:32  MFSK64: This week's images*

28:41  MFSK32: Closing announcements

* with image(s)

Please send reception reports to radiogram@verizon.net

And visit http://swradiogram.net

Twitter: @SWRadiogram or https://twitter.com/swradiogram (visit during the weekend to see listeners' results)

Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/567099476753304

Shortwave Radiogram Gateway Wiki https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Shortwave_Radiogram_Gateway 

Shortwave Radiogram Transmission Schedule

UTC Day UTC Time Frequency Transmitter

Friday 1500-1530  15750 kHz DRM  WINB Pennsylvania

Saturday  0230-0300  9265 kHz WINB Pennsylvania

Sunday  2330-2400  7730 kHz WRMI Florida

Monday 0800-0830  5850 kHz  7780 kHz WRMI Florida

Tuesday 1430-1500  9955 kHz  WRMI Florida

The Mighty KBC transmits to North America Sundays at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday 8-10 pm EDT) on 5960 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK is at about 0130 UTC.  Reports to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com . See also http://www.kbcradio.eu/ and https://www.facebook.com/TheMightyKbc/. 

“This is a Music Show” Most of the show is a music show, but the host transmits some MFSK-64 text and image near the end of the broadcast.  It’s transmitted on WRMI, Thursdays at 0200-0300 UTC on 5850 kHz (Wednesday evening in the Americas). Also look for a waterfall ID at the beginning of the show. thisisamusicshow@gmail.com  www.twitter.com/ThisIsAMusicSho/    @ThisIsAMusicSho  https://thisisamusicshow.com

Pop Shop Radio from British Columbia, Canada, includes "a whole variety of pop music, such as records from the 1960s and 1970s that were played on Top-40 radio stations not only in North America but also on offshore radio and stations like Radio Luxembourg." The programs now include some MFSK text and an image. Website: popshopradio.ca. Twitter: @popshopradio1  Email: radiopopshop@gmail.com.

Thanks for your reception reports!

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott, KD9XB

Producer and Presenter

Shortwave Radiogram

Reporting on international broadcasting at https://twitter.com/kaedotcom 

Weekly Propagation Forecast Bulletins

 

Product: Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

:Issued: 2022 Sep 12 0610 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#                Weekly Highlights and Forecasts

#

Highlights of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 05 - 11 September 2022

Solar activity was at low to moderate levels over the period. Moderate levels were observed on 05 Sep due to an M1 (R1-Minor) flare at 05/1805 UTC from Region 3089 (S22, L=194, class/area Ekc/580 on 29 Aug). Region 3089 produced a total of 69 C-class flares and 5 M-class flares during its transit on the visible disk between 25 Aug and 05 Sep. This region was responsible for the majority of the C-class flaring on the first two days of the period (05-06 Sep). Low levels were observed during the rest of the period with C-flare activity mostly from Regions 3096 (N16, L=023, class/area Dso/130 on 08 Sep), 3098 (N18, L=051, class/area Eai/160 on 11 Sep), and 3100 (S25, L=352, class/area Cai/080 on 11 Sep). Beginning on 11 Sep, Region 3098 grew moderately and developed a BG magnetic structure. No Earth-directed CMEs were observed. 

A slight increase in the greater than 10 MeV proton flux was observed beginning late on 09 Sep possibly due to a far-sided event on 08 Sep. However, flux levels never exceed 1.5 pfu. 

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit was at high levels throughout the period (05-11 Sep) due to CH HSS influence with a peak flux of 22,600 pfu observed at 08/1815 UTC. 

Geomagnetic field activity ranged from quiet to G1 (Minor) storm levels. The period began under the influence of a positive polarity CH HSS. Solar wind speed reached a peak of 668 km/s at 05/0045 UTC and decreased to around 500-570 km/s on 06-09 Sep. A further decrease in speed to 400-500 km/s came on 10-11 Sep. Total field ranged from 5-8 nT. The geomagnetic field responded with unsettled to G1 (Minor) storm conditions on 05 Sep, reached active levels on 06-09 Sep, and finished with quiet to unsettled levels on 10-11 Sep. 

Forecast of Solar and Geomagnetic Activity 12 September - 08 October 2022

Solar activity is expected to be at low levels, with a slight chance for M-flares (R1-R2, Minor-Moderate) on 12-17 Sep, due primarily to flare potential from Region 3098 and the return of old Region 3088 (S27, L=300). On 18 Sep - 01 Oct, solar activity is expected to increase to low levels, with a chance for M-flares, due to the return of old Region 3089. Very low to low levels are expected to return on 02-08 Oct. 

A slight chance exists for an S1 (Minor) solar radiation storm on 12-25 Sep due to the return of old Region 3088 which produced an S1 proton event on 27 Aug. 

The greater than 2 MeV electron flux at geosynchronous orbit is expected to reach high levels on 12-17 Sep, 20-23 Sep, and 26 Sep - 08 Oct due to CH HSS influence. 

Geomagnetic field activity is expected to reach unsettled to active levels on 13-18 Sep, 23 Sep - 08 Oct, with G1 (Minor) levels likely on 17 Sep, 30 Sep - 03 Oct, and G2 (Moderate levels likely on 01 Oct, due to recurrent CH HSS activity. 

Product: 27-day Space Weather Outlook Table 27DO.txt

:Issued: 2022 Sep 12 0610 UTC

# Prepared by the US Dept. of Commerce, NOAA, Space Weather Prediction Center

# Product description and SWPC web contact www.swpc.noaa.gov/content/subscription-services

#

#      27-day Space Weather Outlook Table

#                Issued 2022-09-12

#

#   UTC      Radio Flux   Planetary   Largest

#  Date       10.7 cm      A Index    Kp Index

2022 Sep 12     150           8          3

2022 Sep 13     148          10          3

2022 Sep 14     143           8          3

2022 Sep 15     140           8          3

2022 Sep 16     136          15          4

2022 Sep 17     130          20          5

2022 Sep 18     125          12          4

2022 Sep 19     120           5          2

2022 Sep 20     125           5          2

2022 Sep 21     125           5          2

2022 Sep 22     120           5          2

2022 Sep 23     120          12          4

2022 Sep 24     120          10          3

2022 Sep 25     120          14          4

2022 Sep 26     120          14          4

2022 Sep 27     120          14          4

2022 Sep 28     120           8          3

2022 Sep 29     120           8          3

2022 Sep 30     125          22          5

2022 Oct 01     125          50          6

2022 Oct 02     125          30          5

2022 Oct 03     125          20          5

2022 Oct 04     125          12          4

2022 Oct 05     125          15          4

2022 Oct 06     125          12          3

2022 Oct 07     130          10          3

2022 Oct 08     130           8          3

(NOAA)

Link to Radio Angela broadcast schedules

 

Follow the September broadcast schedule of WBCQ's Radio Angela at:

http://wbcq.com/radio-angela-schedule-september-2022.pdf

Brazil's post office launches stamps on Radio's First 100 Years

 

Merco Press

South Atlantic News Agency

September 9 2022

Empresa Brasil de Comunicação (EBC) and the Post Office launched a stamp on Sept. 7 in Rio de Janeiro marking the 100th anniversary of the first radio broadcast in the country, exactly one century after the Declaration of Independence.

The ceremony took place during the intermission of the event held by Rádio MEC at the Theatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro featuring the theater's orchestra conducted by maestro Felipe Prazeres and the UFF National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the Argentinean Javier Logioia.

Radio broadcasting in Brazil is still on the rise, combining information, culture, and entertainment. Form and content are reinvented in these moments of transition.

In 1922, a major exhibition was held in Rio de Janeiro, then the country's capital, from September 7 of that year through July 24, 1923, to demonstrate the country's potential. The event promoted inventions, such as the one that required the setting up of transmission stations such as the ones on Corcovado Hill, previously only telegraphic, and Praia Vermelha.

The new structures were deployed to demonstrate the use of sound and voice over long distances, with repeater antennas in the mountainous regions of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The idea was to show a technological advance capable of making transmissions through the air without the use of wires.

One of the outstanding transmissions on that September 7, 1922, took place from the area of the pavilions from which President Epitácio Pessoa addressed the nation. Another highlight was the introduction of Carlos  Gomes' opera “O Guarani”, which was broadcasted from the Theatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro that same day.

The noisy transmissions needed improvement, but the novelty caught the attention of those who visited the fair or traveled through the surrounding areas and heard the sound communication. Those experiments officially marked the beginning of radio in the country with wireless, long-distance transmission.

One of the main pioneers of radio broadcasting in Brazil was Edgard Roquette Pinto (1884-1954), who convinced the Brazilian Academy of Sciences to sponsor the creation of Radio Sociedade do Rio de Janeiro, now MEC Radio, which began operating the following year. His defense of educational radio encouraged Roquette Pinto to donate the station to the Ministry of Education in 1936. Even so, he continued to run the station until 1943. He also created, in 1934, the Radio School of Rio de Janeiro, which today carries his name: Radio Roquette-Pinto.

Rádio MEC was given an FM channel in 1983 and is known as Brazil's Classical Music Radio, with concerts and jazz programs. The two stations have been part of EBC since 2008 and offer content that focuses on culture, education, and children.

The 1930s marked the Golden Age of Radio. Technical investment expanded the scope from shortwave to medium wave and then to AM. In this context, Rádio Nacional do Rio de Janeiro went on the air on September 12, 1936, from the building of the newspaper A Noite.

Nacional was taken over by the federal government in the 1940s. The station invested in technology to increase its reach and in the production of new products. The station became hegemonic with a series of diverse attractions including soap operas, while the news show Repórter Esso made a name for itself.

Competition from television undermined the station's dominance from the 1950s on. Even so, Rádio Nacional remains with quality productions on the air and, since 2008, is part of the EBC. The main programming content involves journalism, sports, and cultural attractions.

(Source: Agencia Brasil)

https://en.mercopress.com/2022/09/09/brazil-s-post-office-launches-stamps-on-radio-s-first-100-years

(Mike Terry/BDXC)

The Radio Scene at the End of the Highway

 

Grassy Hill Lighthouse Cooktown

The July (2022) issue of the Australian DX News presents an interesting story about plans for an amateur DXpedition to the Grassy Hill Lighthouse overlooking the small northern town of Cooktown, at the end of the highway in far northern Queensland.  This readable feature article reminds us that there have been three different eras associated with the radio scene in Cooktown, and that is our 

opening topic in this edition of the weekly DX program, Wavescan.

Actually the Cooktown locality featured quite prominently in the very early history of Australia, some 18 years even before the first European settlement at Sydney Harbour in 1788.  It was on June 17, 1770, that the famous Captain James Cook, together with his 86 crewmen aboard the damaged ship, the HMS Endeavour, landed and went ashore at what is now Cooktown, the last northern town on the eastern coast of the Australian continent.  

The Endeavour was damaged and it sprang a leak while traversing the shallow coral formations in what is now known as the Great Barrier Reef.  The ship was repaired during the 48 days that the English exploration party remained ashore, and that was the first European settlement on the continent of Australia, though it was only temporary in duration.

Cooktown, so named in honor of Captain Cook's exploratory visit, lies a hundred miles north of Cairns, and during its gold rush days one and a half centuries ago, it registered a population of 18,000 residents.  These days the population figure in this mostly abandoned old town stands at around 300, though the locals tell us that the number of residents has begun to increase in recent time.

The local historians tell us, they say, that the first mango trees in Australia were planted at Cooktown; and her Majesty Queen Elizabeth made a state visit there in 1970, by ship.  The highway from the south was paved just before the turn of the century, though the roadway north from Cooktown is simply a track that is navigable only by a four wheel drive vehicle.

It was back in the year 1911, that officials from the Royal Navy declared that there was a need for a wireless station at Cooktown, as a communication intermediary between the island of New Guinea and the populated Australian cities further south.  Two years later on June 12, 1913, the planned new wireless station at Cooktown was taken into regular service.  

The new wireless station was constructed on the ridge a little below the lighthouse on Grassy Hill.  The station was constructed by the Father Shaw wireless company using the Balsillie wireless system, though it was soon afterwards taken over and absorbed into the AWA Coastal Wireless Network.  

A 200 ft tall solid wooden mast was erected, with supporting guy wires holding it in position.  The spark transmitter was rated at 5 kW, and the lone receiver was simply a complicated commercial crystal set.  The appropriate AWA callsign for this longwave wireless relay station was VIC, with the C indicating Cooktown.

By the time World War 1 began in August 1914, there were 19 AWA coastal stations on the air in Australia and neighboring Pacific Islands, though 5 of these stations were ranged along the Pacific coast of Queensland.  Soon after the end of the war, there were 27 of these AWA coastal stations in Australia and the Pacific in regular communication usage (1922).

During World War 2, the Royal Australian Air Force installed a radar station on Grassy Hill, and it was protected against possible Japanese overflights by a disguise that gave it the appearance of a regular family residence.  The radar facility was closed in 1945, after the end of the war, and coastal station VIC was closed four years later again in 1949; it was no longer needed as an intermediary relay station for wireless communication between New Guinea and the Australian mainland.  The wooden mast was subsequently destroyed by fire, and the two solid buildings now form part of the residence for a local family. 

Beginning in 1959, the local residents began what has since become an annual event; a 

traditional festival for locals and visitors alike, honoring in Cooktown the visit of Captain Cook some two centuries earlier.  The local Aborigines, descendants of those who met the English visitors so long ago, also participate each mid-year in the commemorative events.  

That brings us to the second radio era in Cooktown.  Soon after the annual Cooktown Fair was inaugurated, station 4CA in Cairns constructed a small 10-watt mediumwave broadcasting transmitter for use in Cooktown.  The transmitter was installed in a local store in Cooktown, and the antenna was a simple 60 ft longwire that ran up a nearby electrical pole.

This special event, and we might add an informal venture, was on the air each year for the 

Anniversary Festival, with current announcements and information for the general public.  During the events of one particular year, the local school children were invited to operate the small and temporary mediumwave broadcasting station. 

In more recent years, there is now a third radio era for the Cooktown area if you please, with several downlink AM and FM stations.  The available information tells us that there have been two mediumwave downlink stations, 4AY at Ayr on 1611 kHz, and also 4CA at Cairns at one stage.  A total of six FM downlink stations have been shown, with the ABC on 105.7 MHz (Far North programming) and 107.3 MHz (Radio National programming), and four commercial network stations.  On each occasion, the downlink slave transmitters have all been quite low powered, in the range of approximately 50 watts each. 

And to this day, there is still no paved highway running up further north from Cooktown.

(NWS 706/AWR Wavescan)

Unusual Radio Antennas

 

In our program today, we present our third batch of unusual radio receiving antennas, some of which date way back almost one hundred years.  During the year 1925 for example, an unusual experiment was conducted, we presume in the United States, in which the exhaust gas from an airplane engine was used as the receiving and transmitting antenna.  

As the news item in Radio News for June 1925 states: The exhaust gas from an aircraft engine is at a very high temperature, which is heavily ionized, and it can therefore be used to conduct electricity.  The experiment was considered to be successful, and the procedure was granted a patent.

Over the years, there have been many tests to determine the value of an underground antenna system for the reception of radio signals.  In 1927 for example, three consecutive issues of the (then) popular American radio magazine, Radio News (August, September, and October) carried information regarding experiments with underground radio antennas.  The purpose of these experiments was to determine the possibility of eliminating static which was often evident in the reception of mediumwave programming.

The Radio News article in 1927 suggested digging a hole three feet in diameter and four feet deep, and to bury a coil of copper wire in the hole.   A lead-covered wire connected the buried copper coil to the receiver.  According to the advocate of this procedure, Professor Dr. James H. Rogers of Hyattsville MD, unwanted static is almost completely eliminated.   

Another similar procedure suggested by Dr. Rogers was to place a long wire horizontally in a shallow trench and then place a metal screen over the antenna wire, though the metal screen does not touch the antenna wire.  This experimental procedure, which was also granted a patent, also eliminates most of the static, he declared. 

Two other radio men, Mr. J. A Proctor of Lexington MA, and the well-known Frank Conrad of KDKA fame experimented with the use of two out-of-phase receiving antennas of different heights.  Both antennas were connected to the same receiver through a complicated system of transformers, and in this way, they claimed, static was reduced.

Another advocate for the reduction of static also patented his procedure, and that was to insert a resistor between the antenna and the receiver, though as he discovered, the signal strength of the received signals was also reduced.  

Then there were two men in England, G. A. Morris and B. C. Stevenson who had a different idea, which they also patented.  They suggested that the receiving set should have two earthing connections; one, the normal earth connection, and the other an antenna, not erected above the ground, but rather buried in the ground. 

We should also add, that amateur radio operator Clem Small KR6A experimented with buried antenna systems many years later, during the year 2001.  According to his information, as published in the now inactive American radio magazine Monitoring Times (December 2001, page 78), the same variety of receiving antennas that are in use above the ground, can also be designed and buried beneath ground level.  Although reception levels are reduced, he states that underground antenna systems are easier to install than the above-ground level variety.

Interestingly back in the early radio era, many radio operators advocated that their antennas should be polished, preferably every week or two.  In this way, it was suggested, that dust and grime are removed from the aerial wire, thus granting better radio reception, they said.  That quote was from another now inactive American radio magazine, Popular Communications, September 2006, page 23. 

(NWS 705/AWR Wavescan)