** AUSTRALIA [and non]. 7240, Jan 23 at 1406, RA is interviewing an American pundit about the Republican primary race, who starts off by remarking that Santorum won Nebraska! Ooops, somewhere out there, but not close enough to Iowa. Voice sounds familiar but who is it? E. J. Dionne as outroed at 1414 on `Talking Point`. Such international outreach have our overexposed and careless pundits! (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL [and non]. A bonanza of Brasilians in the nightmiddle Jan 23 from 0626, southern paths enhanced by propagation disturbance, instead of usual deadbands lately. 11765 with wacky wailing gospel huxter David Miranda, soon at 0628 found // on 9565 and 9585. 11765 and 9565 are SRDA (ex R. Tupi), Curitiba; 9585 is R. Globo, São Paulo per Aoki but missing from WRTH 2012! And it was right on 9585.0.
Other Brazilians audible around 0626-0630: 11815 R. Brasil Central, Goiânia, Goiás with music, fair with flutter, and later at 0648 // weaker 4985, which I haven`t heard in a long time: used to be the best Brazilian on 60m. At same time 4885 Pará was stronger but suffered from CODAR unlike 4985.
Others audible with separate programming at 0628: 9665 Voz Missionária, Florianopolis SC, and 9675, R. Canção Nova, Cachoeira Paulista SP; and I think 9820v, R. Nove de Julho (altho it`s 23 de janeiro), São Paulo.
5035, at 0649 poor signal seems Portuguese, likely R. Aparecida rather than R. Educação Rural, Coari with its limited schedule. Audible thanks to Cuba having finished with 5040, but still some splatter from 5025.
10000, Jan 23 at 0630, I am hearing another YL voice under WWVH and WWV, which have equally poor signals now. The voice keeps going thruout the minutes, with pips every dekasecond, and at minutetops adds two more pips before the big one on the minute, mostly during the pregnant pause between WWV`s announcement and TOM tone.
Yes, it`s `Observatório Nacional`, rarely audible here, the 1 kW PPE, Rio de Janeiro, 24h per WRTH and on AM/U = uppersideband plus carrier. I should have tried that mode vs LSB. Bothered by lightning crashes from the big storms SE of here from Texas northeastward.
{additionally, WWV reported:}
``Solar-terrestrial indices for 22 January follow.
Solar flux 141 and estimated planetary A-index 21.
The estimated planetary K-index at 0600 UTC on 23 January was 3.
The estimated planetary K-index at 0300 UTC on 23 January was 4.
Space weather for the past 24 hours has been moderate.
Geomagnetic storms reaching the G1 level occurred.
Solar radiation storms reaching the S1 level occurred.
Radio blackouts reaching the R2 level occurred.
Space weather for the next 24 hours is predicted to be minor.
Geomagnetic storms reaching the G1 level are likely.
Solar radiation storms reaching the S1 level are expected.
Radio blackouts reaching the R1 level are likely.``
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHINA. 7435, Jan 23 at 1358, better luck today in hearing the nonsensical Radio Exterior de España IS played by Kunming site before 1400 CRI Nepali service --- there it is, like on // 7220 where previously caught. Perhaps they owe REE another 2 x 2 minutes of airtime and fulfill it thus (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHINA. 9450, Jan 23 at 1422, Russian is atop, talking about Kitay; the announcer sounds so Slavic it`s hard to believe he could be an ethnic Han; with heavy Chinese mix QRM: because by using 9450 from 100 kW Paochung, Taiwan transmitter, at 14-16, Sound of Hope forces the ChiCom to jam their own CRI Russian service at 1400-1457, 500 kW, 37 degrees, also USward from Shijiazhuang site. Take that! But it also helps to jam SOH further (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA. 6030, Jan 23 at 0703, lite but sufficient residual DentroCuban pulse jamming here, even in R. Martí weekly Monday 6-hour silent period, no CFVP or anything else audible. Yet, earlier this date, Ron Howard was hearing CFVP after the jamming stopped at 0406*. So they turned it back on, just to be mean.
9955, Jan 23 at 0658, loud whining noises, not the usual jamming sound, obliterating WRMI, which at 0630 had been in the clear opening R. Praga in Spanish! No need to jam at 0700 either, just WRN programming in English scheduled (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** DOMINICA. 24975-USB, Jan 22 at 2122, J79XB working many US stations in a row, from Tennessee, Virginia, etc. Uses fonetix Japan, 7, 9, xray, bravo. What`s he got against Juliet, to be consistent? QRZ.com lookup shows he`s Mike, a.k.a. VE2XB who gets out of Quebec in the winter, and the home call is where you have to go to find:
Michael Shaer
4665 BEACONSFIELD STREET
MONTREAL, QC H4A 2H8
Canada
Does the second number in the call mean that there are 9 subdivisions within the `tiny island` of J7? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** EGYPT. 15210, Jan 22 at 2112, big rumbling hum, maybe a trace of modulation, also later in the hour before 2200. I bet it`s Egypt, typical SNAFU`d transmission. Yes: HFCC shows R. Caire in French at 2030-2230, 250 kW, 241 degrees from Abis to West Africa, so another of their total-loss broadcasts, which have improved not a whit since the change of government (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GUAM. 15660, Jan 23 at 1434, fair signal in Burmese, i.e. 100 kW, 285 degrees from KSDA Agat daily at 1430-1500 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDONESIA. 9526-, Jan 23 at 1430, VOI is back! After off a biweek: must have cobbled together some needed part, but altho on the air, it`s still very weak, in Indonesian, characteristic off-off frequency, very poor with flutter, no comparison to gamelan on RRI domestic relay 9680 from same Cimanggis site. Ishida agrees at http://rri.jpn.org/ that 9526 is back for the first time since Jan 9:
``Jan 23 9526 kHz *1357- 1357 EE, 1404 IN, 1456 CC, 1556 AA....`` BTW, he says 9680 was also missing Jan 15-19. And the ONLY other active Indonesian frequencies are 3325, 4870 and 7290 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MAURITANIA. 7245, Jan 23 at 0635, still no signal yet from IGIM (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO [and non]. 6185, Jan 23 at 1354, undermodulated classical music making fast SAH typical of off-frequency XEPPM when clashing with Vatican around 0600 --- so I bet the Mexican is on way past its nominal 1200*. This happens on rare occasions, usually on Mondays --- perhaps because a different operator is on duty Sunday nite/Monday morning who forgets to turn off the SW transmitter? SAH station missing from HFCC, but Aoki shows China Huayi, Chengdu and V. of Korea both on 6185 before and after 1400.
Bothered by *1355 NHK IS from stronger 6190 despite being 290 degrees from Yamata in Korean at 1400 (HFCC also shows Chinese until 1400 on same beam, but was not on before 1400 and Aoki agrees on a 1330-1400 break). Still able to hear 6185 with difficulty, and at 1400 YL Spanish back-announcement mentions a preludio, 1401 ID with 1,060, keeps talking, maybe news headlines. Don`t know how much longer stayed on, but previous extensions ran even unto 1530 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** NEW ZEALAND. 5950, Monday Jan 23 at 1331, RNZI `Mailbox` is starting after a summer hiatus of almost two months. Always opens with a bit of music, for reasons unfathomable: it`s not a `Jukebox`, is it? Then John Durham`s DX report, which is well-done and accurate, but notably lacking any tropical logs --- not much lower than Laos on 6130 with a clip. Besides Europirate on 21 MHz, all the other logs were pretty routine, even treating us to a clip of Brother Scare via IRRS via Romania on 15190, which I can avoid any morning at 13-15. John is back with another DX report in two weeks.
1345 on to Adrian Sainsbury with propagation report (there was no propagation for the past bimonth, apparently), and mailbag of reception reports to RNZI including some DRM decoded in Europe, finished at 1351. Adrian says RNZI reception in the North has been good during our winter, but I disagree; most of the frequencies have been fair at best, and this only fair signal on 5950 is going to worsen gradually as our sunrise earlies, already at 1339 today. From A-12 March 25, they go back to 6170 from 1300, which won`t be any improvement for us. The earlier, higher, frequencies should do better if we are awake (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SOUTH AFRICA [and non]. Jan 23 at 0626 when I am hearing Brasil on 25 and 31m, I also check 19m, and find it open from Africa and Pacific, but no 15190. 15255 with Channel Africa, 15400 with BBC also from South Africa, and 15580 VOA Botswana; plus Australia audible on 15240, 15160, but no Nigeria on 15120; is it really on at +05-07+? Noel Green and others were hearing unID ``Afropops`` from 1130 on 15120, and still past 1500 mixing with VON --- maybe a test of VON`s new Abuja site conflicting with the old Ikorodu. Alan Penninigton measured the unID on 15119.85 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 4840, WWCR screws up again: UT Monday Jan 23 at 0643 I settle in to enjoy an episode of `Fibber McGee & Molly` on Golden Age of Radio Theatre, but rudely ruined at 0645 as equally loud USA Radio Sports starts, 0646 commercials, 0647 more of same. Someone at 1300 WWCR Ave. forgot to close the USA network feed pot. Is no one paying attention? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. WWV & WWVH: see BRAZIL [and non]
** VIETNAM [and non]. 9550, Jan 23 at 1440, pop music with Vietnamese announcements. Aoki shows the CRI Vietnamese service is here, 500 kW, 193 degrees from Beijing site, at 1100-1557; while V. of Vietnam overlaps the final hour at 1500-1600 also in Vietnamese, then an hour in English and French, all 100 kW at 290 degrees from Hanoi-Sontay site. That`s a slight improvement, as in previous seasons on 9550, China was in Vietnamese and Vietnam was in Chinese at the same time, but it`s still Commies vs Commies (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** BRAZIL [and non]. A bonanza of Brasilians in the nightmiddle Jan 23 from 0626, southern paths enhanced by propagation disturbance, instead of usual deadbands lately. 11765 with wacky wailing gospel huxter David Miranda, soon at 0628 found // on 9565 and 9585. 11765 and 9565 are SRDA (ex R. Tupi), Curitiba; 9585 is R. Globo, São Paulo per Aoki but missing from WRTH 2012! And it was right on 9585.0.
Other Brazilians audible around 0626-0630: 11815 R. Brasil Central, Goiânia, Goiás with music, fair with flutter, and later at 0648 // weaker 4985, which I haven`t heard in a long time: used to be the best Brazilian on 60m. At same time 4885 Pará was stronger but suffered from CODAR unlike 4985.
Others audible with separate programming at 0628: 9665 Voz Missionária, Florianopolis SC, and 9675, R. Canção Nova, Cachoeira Paulista SP; and I think 9820v, R. Nove de Julho (altho it`s 23 de janeiro), São Paulo.
5035, at 0649 poor signal seems Portuguese, likely R. Aparecida rather than R. Educação Rural, Coari with its limited schedule. Audible thanks to Cuba having finished with 5040, but still some splatter from 5025.
10000, Jan 23 at 0630, I am hearing another YL voice under WWVH and WWV, which have equally poor signals now. The voice keeps going thruout the minutes, with pips every dekasecond, and at minutetops adds two more pips before the big one on the minute, mostly during the pregnant pause between WWV`s announcement and TOM tone.
Yes, it`s `Observatório Nacional`, rarely audible here, the 1 kW PPE, Rio de Janeiro, 24h per WRTH and on AM/U = uppersideband plus carrier. I should have tried that mode vs LSB. Bothered by lightning crashes from the big storms SE of here from Texas northeastward.
{additionally, WWV reported:}
``Solar-terrestrial indices for 22 January follow.
Solar flux 141 and estimated planetary A-index 21.
The estimated planetary K-index at 0600 UTC on 23 January was 3.
The estimated planetary K-index at 0300 UTC on 23 January was 4.
Space weather for the past 24 hours has been moderate.
Geomagnetic storms reaching the G1 level occurred.
Solar radiation storms reaching the S1 level occurred.
Radio blackouts reaching the R2 level occurred.
Space weather for the next 24 hours is predicted to be minor.
Geomagnetic storms reaching the G1 level are likely.
Solar radiation storms reaching the S1 level are expected.
Radio blackouts reaching the R1 level are likely.``
(Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHINA. 7435, Jan 23 at 1358, better luck today in hearing the nonsensical Radio Exterior de España IS played by Kunming site before 1400 CRI Nepali service --- there it is, like on // 7220 where previously caught. Perhaps they owe REE another 2 x 2 minutes of airtime and fulfill it thus (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CHINA. 9450, Jan 23 at 1422, Russian is atop, talking about Kitay; the announcer sounds so Slavic it`s hard to believe he could be an ethnic Han; with heavy Chinese mix QRM: because by using 9450 from 100 kW Paochung, Taiwan transmitter, at 14-16, Sound of Hope forces the ChiCom to jam their own CRI Russian service at 1400-1457, 500 kW, 37 degrees, also USward from Shijiazhuang site. Take that! But it also helps to jam SOH further (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** CUBA. 6030, Jan 23 at 0703, lite but sufficient residual DentroCuban pulse jamming here, even in R. Martí weekly Monday 6-hour silent period, no CFVP or anything else audible. Yet, earlier this date, Ron Howard was hearing CFVP after the jamming stopped at 0406*. So they turned it back on, just to be mean.
9955, Jan 23 at 0658, loud whining noises, not the usual jamming sound, obliterating WRMI, which at 0630 had been in the clear opening R. Praga in Spanish! No need to jam at 0700 either, just WRN programming in English scheduled (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** DOMINICA. 24975-USB, Jan 22 at 2122, J79XB working many US stations in a row, from Tennessee, Virginia, etc. Uses fonetix Japan, 7, 9, xray, bravo. What`s he got against Juliet, to be consistent? QRZ.com lookup shows he`s Mike, a.k.a. VE2XB who gets out of Quebec in the winter, and the home call is where you have to go to find:
Michael Shaer
4665 BEACONSFIELD STREET
MONTREAL, QC H4A 2H8
Canada
Does the second number in the call mean that there are 9 subdivisions within the `tiny island` of J7? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** EGYPT. 15210, Jan 22 at 2112, big rumbling hum, maybe a trace of modulation, also later in the hour before 2200. I bet it`s Egypt, typical SNAFU`d transmission. Yes: HFCC shows R. Caire in French at 2030-2230, 250 kW, 241 degrees from Abis to West Africa, so another of their total-loss broadcasts, which have improved not a whit since the change of government (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** GUAM. 15660, Jan 23 at 1434, fair signal in Burmese, i.e. 100 kW, 285 degrees from KSDA Agat daily at 1430-1500 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** INDONESIA. 9526-, Jan 23 at 1430, VOI is back! After off a biweek: must have cobbled together some needed part, but altho on the air, it`s still very weak, in Indonesian, characteristic off-off frequency, very poor with flutter, no comparison to gamelan on RRI domestic relay 9680 from same Cimanggis site. Ishida agrees at http://rri.jpn.org/ that 9526 is back for the first time since Jan 9:
``Jan 23 9526 kHz *1357- 1357 EE, 1404 IN, 1456 CC, 1556 AA....`` BTW, he says 9680 was also missing Jan 15-19. And the ONLY other active Indonesian frequencies are 3325, 4870 and 7290 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MAURITANIA. 7245, Jan 23 at 0635, still no signal yet from IGIM (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** MEXICO [and non]. 6185, Jan 23 at 1354, undermodulated classical music making fast SAH typical of off-frequency XEPPM when clashing with Vatican around 0600 --- so I bet the Mexican is on way past its nominal 1200*. This happens on rare occasions, usually on Mondays --- perhaps because a different operator is on duty Sunday nite/Monday morning who forgets to turn off the SW transmitter? SAH station missing from HFCC, but Aoki shows China Huayi, Chengdu and V. of Korea both on 6185 before and after 1400.
Bothered by *1355 NHK IS from stronger 6190 despite being 290 degrees from Yamata in Korean at 1400 (HFCC also shows Chinese until 1400 on same beam, but was not on before 1400 and Aoki agrees on a 1330-1400 break). Still able to hear 6185 with difficulty, and at 1400 YL Spanish back-announcement mentions a preludio, 1401 ID with 1,060, keeps talking, maybe news headlines. Don`t know how much longer stayed on, but previous extensions ran even unto 1530 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** NEW ZEALAND. 5950, Monday Jan 23 at 1331, RNZI `Mailbox` is starting after a summer hiatus of almost two months. Always opens with a bit of music, for reasons unfathomable: it`s not a `Jukebox`, is it? Then John Durham`s DX report, which is well-done and accurate, but notably lacking any tropical logs --- not much lower than Laos on 6130 with a clip. Besides Europirate on 21 MHz, all the other logs were pretty routine, even treating us to a clip of Brother Scare via IRRS via Romania on 15190, which I can avoid any morning at 13-15. John is back with another DX report in two weeks.
1345 on to Adrian Sainsbury with propagation report (there was no propagation for the past bimonth, apparently), and mailbag of reception reports to RNZI including some DRM decoded in Europe, finished at 1351. Adrian says RNZI reception in the North has been good during our winter, but I disagree; most of the frequencies have been fair at best, and this only fair signal on 5950 is going to worsen gradually as our sunrise earlies, already at 1339 today. From A-12 March 25, they go back to 6170 from 1300, which won`t be any improvement for us. The earlier, higher, frequencies should do better if we are awake (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** SOUTH AFRICA [and non]. Jan 23 at 0626 when I am hearing Brasil on 25 and 31m, I also check 19m, and find it open from Africa and Pacific, but no 15190. 15255 with Channel Africa, 15400 with BBC also from South Africa, and 15580 VOA Botswana; plus Australia audible on 15240, 15160, but no Nigeria on 15120; is it really on at +05-07+? Noel Green and others were hearing unID ``Afropops`` from 1130 on 15120, and still past 1500 mixing with VON --- maybe a test of VON`s new Abuja site conflicting with the old Ikorodu. Alan Penninigton measured the unID on 15119.85 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. 4840, WWCR screws up again: UT Monday Jan 23 at 0643 I settle in to enjoy an episode of `Fibber McGee & Molly` on Golden Age of Radio Theatre, but rudely ruined at 0645 as equally loud USA Radio Sports starts, 0646 commercials, 0647 more of same. Someone at 1300 WWCR Ave. forgot to close the USA network feed pot. Is no one paying attention? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
** U S A. WWV & WWVH: see BRAZIL [and non]
** VIETNAM [and non]. 9550, Jan 23 at 1440, pop music with Vietnamese announcements. Aoki shows the CRI Vietnamese service is here, 500 kW, 193 degrees from Beijing site, at 1100-1557; while V. of Vietnam overlaps the final hour at 1500-1600 also in Vietnamese, then an hour in English and French, all 100 kW at 290 degrees from Hanoi-Sontay site. That`s a slight improvement, as in previous seasons on 9550, China was in Vietnamese and Vietnam was in Chinese at the same time, but it`s still Commies vs Commies (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
