** AUSTRALIA. 12010, poor with RA news in English, Feb 25 at 2201. Seldom-heard frequency, at least by me; per Aoki it`s via Darwin at 22-24, 250 kW, 317 degrees (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA [and non]. Dentro-Cuban Jamming Command with a different sound than usual against R. Martí, 7405, Feb 25 at 2234. Carriers putting out warbling, almost musical pulses, from 1 or 2 kHz on the low side, but also bothering Radio Bulgaria in English on 7400 --- why should the Cubans care about those ex-Commies?
The same type of jamming heard on 9955, Feb 26 at 1411, allowing bits of WRMI to be audible, as well as some weak grindjamming too (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GUATEMALA. I meant to point it out in time, but Radio Verdad, Guatemala`s ninth anniversary was February 25. Still no sign of their coming back on the air on 4052.5. I`m sure Dr. Edgar Amilcar Madrid is sad to be passing another anniversary without being able to broadcast on SW, altho I was able to connect to the low-quality stream, mentioning their 9th anniversary at 1509 UT. And a local celebration Saturday the 28th at 4 pm on the campus in Chiquimula. If you have ever heard or QSLed Radio Verdad, you might send him a greeting. Contact info is at http://www.radioverdad.org At 1512 cooking show, Todos a Cocinar, with Scott Joplin theme music (Glenn Hauser, Feb 26, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDONESIA. Since VOI had shifted to 9525.0 on February 24, and was missing Feb. 25, I looked for it again on Feb 26 at 1400. At first I thought it was still missing, but there was a very weak signal on 9525.0, which at 1402 I could recognize as VOI, starting, rather than ending English at this time with usual YL announcer, contact info. 1403 news. So has this English transmission been permanently shifted an hour later as well as 900 Hz lower, and maybe to a less favorable antenna? Only time will tell (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** IRAN [non]. As I was looking for Syria on 9330, Feb 25 at 2129 --- nothing, noticed 9335, in unID language I was trying to figure out, but off abruptly at 2130* without ID. Only thing that fits per Aoki is R. Farda via Sri Lanka at 1900-2130, 250 kW, 344 degrees. I see that Harold Frodge, MI, was listening to this at exactly the same time and came to the same conclusion. Obviously the studio and transmitter make no effort to coördinate openings and closings (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PORTUGAL. RDPI with super-signal on 12040 during stupid ballgame coverage, announcer willingly losing sanity, Feb 25 at 2117, and // 11960 only slightly weaker; the two combined to produce a very weak but definitely audible mixing product on 12120, another 80 kHz higher, but no match could be detected on 11880, 80 kHz lower. Both fundamentals are listed as 300 kW; 12040 at 300 degrees toward us and 11960 at 226 degrees toward S America (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SAIPAN. Rechecking RNW relay in Indonesian on 15280, after yesterday`s log when the audio kept looping back and repeating itself every few seconds --- Feb 25 at 2204 it was much better, doing that only once a minute or so, but still unacceptable. News about Schipol crash of Turkish jet.
More interesting was the long/short path echo I was hearing when the signal faded a little. This goes out on azimuth 225 degrees, which crosses eastern Indonesia near Sorong, Kendari, etc., far from the Java population centers. Then it carries on across the Indian Ocean near Crozet, the South Atlantic, and South America; while the short path, 45 degrees off the back, hits North America on the Oregon coast, and crosses central Kansas, only two degrees away from Enid, 47 degrees from Saipan. LP is approximately 11,200 miles longer than the SP, which divided by the 186,000 miles per second speed of radio, amounts to a delay of 0.06 second (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SAUDI ARABIA. 11915, Feb 25 at 2200, time signal 4 seconds fast, Saudi ID, poor in Arabic, // 11820 somewhat better, by 2203 Qur`aning. 11915 is 295 degrees, 11820 320 degrees from Riyadh, both 500 kW, per Aoki, and are the Holy Qur`an service (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. IBB Greenville again late starting the VOA Creole service: Feb 25 at 2202 just big open carrier on 11895, 2203 cut on modulation. This and the two other Kriyol broadcasts are expected to shift one UT hour earlier March 8 when Washington goes on DST even tho Port-au-Prince does not.
BTW, March 8 is the earliest possible date for DST to start in NAm under current rules, second Sunday, thus producing two sesquiweeks, rather than only two weeks, of confusion until most of the other DST-observing areas bring it on the last Sunday in March, the 29th when the A-09 frequency changes also go into effect (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 5920, WBOH, STILL with open carrier only for the third day, Feb 26 at 0643; at least this allowed RFI to be heard clearly on 5925 without splash. Nothing audible on 9370 from WTJC, probably just not propagating in the nightmiddle. At 1348, 5920 still with OC and het, 9370 strong and modulated (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 5755, WEWN, Feb 26 at 1345 just with background noise for a minute or two. That`s what we get for their putting the ``Daily Mass: Our Lady`` TV show on the radio at 1300-1400. Finally YL with (fake?) British accent prays to Mary, since Jesus is busy (?). 1352 also found same service on 7555, but on this frequency the squealing helps to fill up the dead air, and voice-over translation into Spanish. No translations needed when service went into Latin, which everyone understands, or should I say, no one? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** WESTERN SAHARA [non]. 6300 with considerable open carrier before 0700 UT Feb 26, so I stayed with it and at 0700 LV de la RASD band played (national?) anthem, somewhat undermodulated, generator hum, and usual ute on low side, 0701 sign-on in Hassania Arabic, Qur`an soloist, still at 0706. Before 0700*, Cairo had a much louder signal on 6290 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 13970-14000, presumed over-the-horizon radar pulses, Feb 26 at 1417. Looks like they were careful to keep it out of 20m; I looked for a twin elsewhere in the 13-16 MHz range, but did not find any. Normally they are within 100 kHz of each other (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###
** CUBA [and non]. Dentro-Cuban Jamming Command with a different sound than usual against R. Martí, 7405, Feb 25 at 2234. Carriers putting out warbling, almost musical pulses, from 1 or 2 kHz on the low side, but also bothering Radio Bulgaria in English on 7400 --- why should the Cubans care about those ex-Commies?
The same type of jamming heard on 9955, Feb 26 at 1411, allowing bits of WRMI to be audible, as well as some weak grindjamming too (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GUATEMALA. I meant to point it out in time, but Radio Verdad, Guatemala`s ninth anniversary was February 25. Still no sign of their coming back on the air on 4052.5. I`m sure Dr. Edgar Amilcar Madrid is sad to be passing another anniversary without being able to broadcast on SW, altho I was able to connect to the low-quality stream, mentioning their 9th anniversary at 1509 UT. And a local celebration Saturday the 28th at 4 pm on the campus in Chiquimula. If you have ever heard or QSLed Radio Verdad, you might send him a greeting. Contact info is at http://www.radioverdad.org At 1512 cooking show, Todos a Cocinar, with Scott Joplin theme music (Glenn Hauser, Feb 26, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDONESIA. Since VOI had shifted to 9525.0 on February 24, and was missing Feb. 25, I looked for it again on Feb 26 at 1400. At first I thought it was still missing, but there was a very weak signal on 9525.0, which at 1402 I could recognize as VOI, starting, rather than ending English at this time with usual YL announcer, contact info. 1403 news. So has this English transmission been permanently shifted an hour later as well as 900 Hz lower, and maybe to a less favorable antenna? Only time will tell (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** IRAN [non]. As I was looking for Syria on 9330, Feb 25 at 2129 --- nothing, noticed 9335, in unID language I was trying to figure out, but off abruptly at 2130* without ID. Only thing that fits per Aoki is R. Farda via Sri Lanka at 1900-2130, 250 kW, 344 degrees. I see that Harold Frodge, MI, was listening to this at exactly the same time and came to the same conclusion. Obviously the studio and transmitter make no effort to coördinate openings and closings (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** PORTUGAL. RDPI with super-signal on 12040 during stupid ballgame coverage, announcer willingly losing sanity, Feb 25 at 2117, and // 11960 only slightly weaker; the two combined to produce a very weak but definitely audible mixing product on 12120, another 80 kHz higher, but no match could be detected on 11880, 80 kHz lower. Both fundamentals are listed as 300 kW; 12040 at 300 degrees toward us and 11960 at 226 degrees toward S America (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SAIPAN. Rechecking RNW relay in Indonesian on 15280, after yesterday`s log when the audio kept looping back and repeating itself every few seconds --- Feb 25 at 2204 it was much better, doing that only once a minute or so, but still unacceptable. News about Schipol crash of Turkish jet.
More interesting was the long/short path echo I was hearing when the signal faded a little. This goes out on azimuth 225 degrees, which crosses eastern Indonesia near Sorong, Kendari, etc., far from the Java population centers. Then it carries on across the Indian Ocean near Crozet, the South Atlantic, and South America; while the short path, 45 degrees off the back, hits North America on the Oregon coast, and crosses central Kansas, only two degrees away from Enid, 47 degrees from Saipan. LP is approximately 11,200 miles longer than the SP, which divided by the 186,000 miles per second speed of radio, amounts to a delay of 0.06 second (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SAUDI ARABIA. 11915, Feb 25 at 2200, time signal 4 seconds fast, Saudi ID, poor in Arabic, // 11820 somewhat better, by 2203 Qur`aning. 11915 is 295 degrees, 11820 320 degrees from Riyadh, both 500 kW, per Aoki, and are the Holy Qur`an service (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. IBB Greenville again late starting the VOA Creole service: Feb 25 at 2202 just big open carrier on 11895, 2203 cut on modulation. This and the two other Kriyol broadcasts are expected to shift one UT hour earlier March 8 when Washington goes on DST even tho Port-au-Prince does not.
BTW, March 8 is the earliest possible date for DST to start in NAm under current rules, second Sunday, thus producing two sesquiweeks, rather than only two weeks, of confusion until most of the other DST-observing areas bring it on the last Sunday in March, the 29th when the A-09 frequency changes also go into effect (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 5920, WBOH, STILL with open carrier only for the third day, Feb 26 at 0643; at least this allowed RFI to be heard clearly on 5925 without splash. Nothing audible on 9370 from WTJC, probably just not propagating in the nightmiddle. At 1348, 5920 still with OC and het, 9370 strong and modulated (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 5755, WEWN, Feb 26 at 1345 just with background noise for a minute or two. That`s what we get for their putting the ``Daily Mass: Our Lady`` TV show on the radio at 1300-1400. Finally YL with (fake?) British accent prays to Mary, since Jesus is busy (?). 1352 also found same service on 7555, but on this frequency the squealing helps to fill up the dead air, and voice-over translation into Spanish. No translations needed when service went into Latin, which everyone understands, or should I say, no one? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** WESTERN SAHARA [non]. 6300 with considerable open carrier before 0700 UT Feb 26, so I stayed with it and at 0700 LV de la RASD band played (national?) anthem, somewhat undermodulated, generator hum, and usual ute on low side, 0701 sign-on in Hassania Arabic, Qur`an soloist, still at 0706. Before 0700*, Cairo had a much louder signal on 6290 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
UNIDENTIFIED. 13970-14000, presumed over-the-horizon radar pulses, Feb 26 at 1417. Looks like they were careful to keep it out of 20m; I looked for a twin elsewhere in the 13-16 MHz range, but did not find any. Normally they are within 100 kHz of each other (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###
