domenica 11 ottobre 2009

Glenn Hauser logs October 11, 2009

** CANADA. KTOK 1000 IBOC remains off, we hope permanently, allowing CBW 990 Winnipeg to reach as far as Oklahoma City unimpeded when propagation is favorable. Oct 11 at 0505 starting CBC Overnight with The Strand, Weekend from BBCWS; after news, at 0605 opening R. Netherlands, but then to Network Europe. XET Monterrey was no problem as it`s direxional south at night. However, it can still be a problem when propagation from the north is degraded. The two are in almost opposite direxions from here, so difficult to null one or the other without a unidirexional antenna (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA. RHC 49mb channels were nominal for a change, checked at 0633 Oct 11: English 6140, 6060, 6010; Spanish 6120, 6000; however, 6060 had some squealing. At least, no phone-ringing involved now!

But the RHC 11760 transmitter, which I monitored with at least 23 spurs at 51.2 kHz intervals, around 1325 Oct 10, was STILL doing this when next checked at 0614 Oct 11! And nightmiddle propagation was cooperating, while 25m is often dead from Cuba by then. I measured the closest one on 11707.8, so the offset had changed slightly to 52.2 kHz. Still accompanied by the same pitch tone on each of them, making them easy to spot even tho some are quite weak, audible on all these frequencies, which however were not measured individually but computed later:

11707.8
11655.6
11603.2
11551.0
11498.8
11446.6
11394.4
11342.2
And on the hi side:
11812.2
11864.4
11916.6
11968.8
12021.0
12073.2

And these were STILL polluting the spectrum almost 24 hours after first noticed, Oct 11 at 1314. Lacking a sharp carrier, it`s hard to measure precise frequencies, but rocking back and forth for minimum noise, I put the closest one on 11708.6, i.e. 51.4 kHz offset; this time I also measured a lower one on 11452.9, which would mean 51.18 kHz separation, so that`s the margin of error, but very close to the 51.2 kHz peaks I had first observed yesterday. So using that figure, the lowest I could hear was around 11196.8, the highest 12323.2.

This poor old transmitter is now running 22 hours a day, 0000-2200 per RHC website schedule, and obviously needs some serious maintenance. But then they all do, for one reason or another (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** INDIA. Looking for the AIR Aligarh blob from the malfunxioning 9470 transmitter, Oct 11 at 1325: nothing on 9470, but not much on 9425 Bengaluru either, so propagation unfavorable. Then I do find a filthy FMy blob centered about 9348, bothering KTWR 9340 from its *1327 with IS and opening Santali per Aoki. I could not match the 9348 blob `modulation` to other likely culprits, WTJC 9370 or WWRB 9385, and Aligarh has previously appeared even lower than this, so likely it by elimination. By 1332, 9425 was just barely audible with flutter, but not enough to make a match, and still nothing on 9470 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** KOREA SOUTH [non]. Tuned in KBSWR via CANADA, 6045 amid Spanish broadcast at 0631 UT Sunday Oct 11, to hear the conclusion of what was billed as the first contribution by Yimber (Gaviría, Cali, Colombia) to the Antena de la Amistad show. Unlike the clip of Radio del Sur which immediately followed, his audio was defective, breaking up, but that did not seem to bother KBS (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** LAOS [non]. Hmong Lao Radio missing from usual 13-14 UT Sunday slot Oct 11 via WHRI 11785. Transmitter not on air, allowing thru instead ChiCom CNR1 jammer and VOA Chinese via Thailand, just like on weekdays. Come to think of it, I did not notice HLR Saturday Oct 10 either, or the previous weekend?

The World Harvest Radio website
http://www.whr.org is inaccessible to investigate whether it`s still on their schedule. The HLR`s own website http://www.h-lr.com/ audio archive stops after October 1, maybe a clue it is finished, but then still says:

``Xov tooj cua Hmoob Lostsuas hais lus tawm rau huab cua nyob rau sab teb chaws America nyob rau ntawm 11785 kHz raws cov sij hawm nram qab no. Nco ntsoov txhua txhua hnub van xaum thiab van thiv (Sunday and Saturday) yog hais tib lub sij hawm lawm xwb.``

Strangely enough, there`s no Hmong in Google`s language translation facility! It`s interesting to see the states specified next, evidently where hmost of the Hmong reside, not just Hminnesota:

``North America Saturday [and Sunday] Broadcasting Schedule
9:00-10:00 AM Eastern Time (MI, FL, NC, SC, GA, RI, PA, MA)
8:00- 9:00 AM Central Time (Arkansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin)
7:00- 8:00 AM Mountain Time (Colorado, Utah, Montana)
6:00- 7:00 AM Pacific time (California, Oregon, Nevada, Washington)``

BTW, part of FL is on Central Time, and part of OR is on Mountain Time, but let`s not go there and maybe the Hmong don`t either. Also of interest:
http://www.h-lr.com/hlr/aboutus/aboutus.htm but nothing about the current absence (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 11520, WEWN in English at 0624 Oct 11, axually propagating and strong enough to bring along with it the dirty spurs 10 kHz above and below, bothering WYFR on 11530 and same sound on 11510 with BFO on. 11520 is currently scheduled 0000-0900 to Africa (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** VENEZUELA [non]. Aló, Presidente check, Sunday Oct 11 at 1550, by when it`s usually underway if at all via CUBA. Nothing on 13750 or the other four frequencies. Still it might pop up later if Hugo get going (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 910 kHz, what`s the source of the constant het here a couple hundred Hz above or below, as I was hearing on the caradio between 04 and 05 UT Oct 11? Would not be a trans-Atlantic on 909.0. Nothing listed in the appropriate range at
http://www.myradiobase.de/mediumwave/mwoffset.txt
where all the offsets are too close to 910.0
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###