martedì 28 aprile 2015

Glenn Hauser logs April 27-28, 2015


** CANADA [and non]. 800, April 28 at 0647 UT, secular talk show in English with KQCV OKC nulled, presumably CKLW Windsor with `Coast to Coast AM` [and beyond border-to-border], and same thing one word later on 790, probably KFYO Lubbock TX, among half a dozen other 790 affiliates. The 800 QRM will get a lot worse if PJB3 succeeds in upping power from Bonaire to 450 kW (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CHINA [non?]. 17790, April 28 at 0607, poor signal in Chinese, the only signal on 16m besides VG RA on 17840. During this hour only, RFA Chinese is scheduled via SAIPAN; in this case, I can`t be sure whether it`s that or a CNR1 jammer. On the IRCA list, Bill Whitacre, a MW DXer and also in IBB Monitoring and frequency management, said:

``On shortwave, Chinese jamming is a lot more sophisticated these days. Gone are the days of loud rackets on shortwave caused by firedrake. For quite a while, the Chinese have been merely `co-channeling` with multiple transmitters and out-of-time [on purpose] transmissions to interfere with western broadcasts. 

We poor western international broadcasters have taken so much `stuff` off the air, though, that the Chinese have surplus facilities and for the past few years have been jamming [co-channeling] English from VOA, BBC and others. Years and years of official complaining have had no effect and even direct negotiations during the early 90`s while working towards a[nother] `most favored nation` trade agreement led to naught, when talks broke off immediately upon Clinton signing the MFN agreement.

When we `test` to see how serious the Chinese are about jamming a particular frequency used for Mandarin or Tibetan by moving, the new frequency is found and jammed within 4 minutes. That`s one helluva monitoring network and rivals what the Russians could do in the depth of the cold war.

Beijing is also known to `go after` some religious broadcasters, and as Gary points out, they are notoriously paranoid about any `movement` that puts anything above the State`` (via Glenn Hauser, DX LISTENING DIGEST)
 
** CUBA. 1020, April 28 at 0619, as I am monitoring the LAH mystery (see U S A), I swivel the DX-398, and catch a ``RR`` in code, so there`s a Radio Reloj outlet. None of the three Cubans on 1020 in WRTH 2015 is Reloj, so maybe a new one, or one of the trio plugs into Reloj overnight. Or:

Terry Krueger`s Cubalist as of Feb 11, 2014 recalls that in 2003-2006y there was a jammer against Martí on 1020 in Jarobo, Las Tunas with Reloj audio. Also linked is Mauricio Molano`s more recent exhaustive listing from official sources as of 2010y, showing 1020 Reloj as 10 kW in Victoria de las Tunas (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** INTERNATIONAL. This is not a log, but worthy of consideration:

Remember IRDR? INTERNATIONAL RADIO FOR DISASTER RELLIF – this was tested last June as explained here:

But we haven`t heard a peep about it in subsequent real disasters, such as Vanuatu, now NEPAL [and Baltimore?]. Here`s something about it from:

HFCC/ASBU/ABU-HFC PLENARY MEETING MINUTES – MUSCAT, OMAN 1st -5th February 2015

2.5. The outreach of the IRDR project was global, and our coordinating community consisted of representatives of countries with different social, political and economic systems. Therefore the scope of the project encompassed emergencies caused by hazards of natural origin, related environmental and technological hazards, and risks, in keeping with the definition in the Hyogo Framework for Action established ten years ago;

2.6. The IRDR project belonged among the activities of organisations dedicated to informing and communicating with disaster affected communities. This included the Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent organisations, and several UN lead institutions. The HFCC has fully supported the idea that this effort should become a vital and standard component of disaster risk reduction and we have now suggested to our partners that this subject should be included on the agenda of the upcoming World Conference in Sendai in March 2015. We are confident that the IRDR project could be important in the post-2015 global agenda;

A-15 HFCC registrations for IRDR, all 100 kW ND from SMG VATICAN, in case something should appear now:
24 hours on 21840, 17500, 15650, 13620
04-09  9430
07-11 12000
07-12  7400
I suspect these are placeholders, as the original idea was for several other major SW sites to be involved, but none of them have gone so far as to register anything (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 660, April 28 as I tune in at 0650, convenient ID, ``tocando éxitos, La Kaliente, 102.9``, i.e. XEEY, 50/10 kW in Aguascalientes2, dominating channel (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO [and non]. 900, April 28 at 0640 UT, white noise loops NE/SW, presumably the usual open FM studio-transmitter link of XEDT, Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua, transmitted on AM after ``sign-off``. In its null, NW/SE I hear some music, probably Cuba, at the moment much stronger than probable // on 890 in WLS null (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGDEST)

** MEXICO. 1030, April 27 at 0530, Spanish announcement mentions Chihuahua; CCI from something else with Spanish music (there are 11 other XEs listed on 1030), and another station in English. Probably XEYC, R. Fórmula, Ciudad Juárez (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MEXICO. 1100, April 28 at 0629, Mexican music with tuba, loops SSW and over WTAM, presumably usual XETGO, Tlaltenango, Zacatecas (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** NIGERIA. 15120-AM, April 28 at 0601, VON undermodulated but not distorted, and sufficient to copy with concentration: YL with news about Nigeria in English. Some bother from self-imposed squealing (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** OKLAHOMA [and non]. 1640, April 28 at 0635-0638+ UT, dead air from local KZLS Enid/Hennessey/OKC, while with carrier nulled, there`s talk about earthquake, which seems unlikely to be on ESPN`s WTNI Biloxi MS, so what else? Usually KZLS is on `Red Eye Radio`. 0703 UT recheck, now it`s remodulating with ``news`` from Blaze Radio Network, back to dead air at 0704 UT after cutaway cue ``truth lives here``, ha ha (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** PUNTLAND [and non]. 13800, April 28 at 1345, JBA signal with music, 1347 announcements, 1348 HOA? Music; 1354 talk in English, only can copy ``252`` and some zeroes by M voice; 1400 HOA music, 1401 announcements again English with phone number, then woman in presumed Somali. Until 1400 at least, there was a het from 13795 on the FRG-7`s normal bandwidth, presumably Iran in Urdu until 1420. 1426 recheck, JBA carrier only on 13800.

This would not be much to go on, except the day before, April 27, news broke on the DXLD yg from S. Hasegawa in Japan that a Radio Puntland One had been logged and recorded by another Japanese DXer:
de H. Komatubara in Akita-prefecture. What I hear now is like his clip with the English ID including country code 252 which is SOMALIA.

Such a good signal into Japan, and announcement first in Italian made one suspicious of its origin, but here`s the post-colonial Italian connexion via Alan Pennington, BDXC-UK yg:

``This comment today (April 27) on Bulgarian DX Blog (by engineer installing transmitter?)

"Puntland Radio now active 20 kW on 6160 and 13800 kHz. Transmitter in Garoowe, Puntland. Regards
Enrico Li Perni
5Z4ES - IV3SBE - 6O0ES
The engineer in charge of supply and installation"

Radio Puntland tests on 13800 also has IDs in Somali and Italian as well as English plus local music``.

I followed up with this: ``If Puntland tries to use 13800 and 6160 thruout the day and night, what will they collide with?

HFCC shows on 13800 already:
0150-0250 Iran in Hindi via Sirjan
0400-0600 R. Tamazuj & R. Dabanga via France, Madagascar, Vatican 
          [and Sudanese tone jamming! especially after 0430]
1000-1100 RFA Tibetan via Kuwait, [and ChiCom jamming, of course]
1530-1630 HCJB Russian & Chechen via Austria [Saturdays only]
1700-2000 Secretbrod, Bulgaria has reserved, 
          e.g. Spaceshuttle Sundays only at 18-19
Aoki adds:
1300-1400 VOA Chinese via Saipan (plus jamming)
I am disregarding presumably wooden registrations for Moscow, Oman

On HFCC paper, 6160 looks like a very good choice, with absolutely nothing registered! However, Aoki reminds us of the two 24h low-power CBC Canadians, which hardly need any more QRM; and also lists two Brazilians, RBV, Porto Alegre, 24 hours; and R. Rio Mar, Manaus, 10-21, but probably both inactive. So during what hourspan is anyone hearing Puntland now on these frequencies?``

NO sign of VOA/ChiCom jamming before 1400 today on 13800, so that must already have moved on. I could not hear anything on 13800 April 27 circa 1540. And on April 28 the signal is so weak that there`s no chance of hearing it on the DX-398 or PL-880 where I could tell if it`s Carrier+USB only; no way to determine that on the FRG-7 with needed longest antenna.

Francesco Clemente, Italy, has more on this:
``Hola Glenn, aquí una caliente para tu boletín: Puntland Radio testing daily on 13800 and/or 6160 kHz at 0600-1600 UT. E-mail confirm via puntlandradio1@gmail.com According ing. Ahmed Aden and ing. Enrico Li Perni, technical people of Goldrock (Kenya). (via Francesco Luigi Clemente, MCDXT member, http://www.mcdxt.it Italy)``

Latest Aoki has now added R. Puntland on 13800, H3E mode, with different timespan, 0700-1800. But no entry yet on 6160.

Ivo Ivanov, Bulgaria notes that 13800 went off around 1500 April 28.

On the BDXC-UK yg, Alan Pennington April 28: ``Mauno Ritola (on WRTH Facebook group page today) reports Radio Puntland tests closed today (28 April with the new 20 kW tx) on 13800 kHz at 1500 UT. Then weak carrier heard on 6160 kHz, with Koran recital after 1600 (maybe Radio Puntland), then off at 1726``

Wolfgang Büschel reminds us that this station first appeared two years ago, as detailed in DXLDs 13-16 and 13-17 under PUNTLAND, not Somalia:
But after that, nothing. It has taken another two years to get back on the air, this time to stay? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 690, April 28 at 0650 UT, open carrier loops almost east/west, sufficient quieting to tell it`s there, i.e. KGGF Coffeyville KS, still leaving carrier on all-night after ``sign-off`` circa 0500 UT following rotating patriotic songs and Taps (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 980, April 28 at 0614 UT, Spanish announcer is uttering a long list of AM and FM frequencies, towns in Texas mostly with Anglo names (like Livingston, but never any call letters), and then with ``cabina`` phone numbers, including for 980 and a different one for newly added 1590 in Houston market --- but he adds, don`t call now, as nobody is there (no hay nadie) at 1590 or even on 980 itself, which is evidently really duplicating some FM station. Then reference to radioaleluya.org --- hope that`s spelt right. Anyhow, 980 is KQUE, Rosenberg-Richmond TX (address in Pasadena), 5/4 kW U4, // KFTG 88.1 per NRC AM Log (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 1020-, further check of the low audible heterodyne here, still with the absence of KOKP Perry OK (see previous reports under OKLAHOMA): April 28 at 0619 UT, the LAH is just about opposite to KDKA Pittsburgh, i.e. can`t null one and get the other, so still pointing to KCKN Roswell NM; the two are within a few degrees of 180 apart from here. Copying anything depends on fades-up & down of each. 

LAH, still pulsing, is on the low side: 1020- compared to KDKA which is surely close to 1020.00: it`s in `Overnight America` show as host refers to Baltimore where it`s on WBAL (1090). Now I am getting some Spanish? music from the LAH station. At 0641 UT recheck, the LAH station is atop, now with Spanish YL talk, maybe religious, or self-help, mentions ``abusos``, with phone 855-525-3302, repeated, or a toll number in AC 310. Reverse-lookups go nowhere. Is there any good site for that which will just display the info without charging for it? 0643 UT, it goes back to music, as KDKA is resurging. Recheck at 0659 UT, only getting a quick KDKA ID + FM HD channel.

AC 310 is Los Ángeles, so this implies Univisión América, KTNQ, really 50 kW on 1020. The LAH is so close to 1020 that I can`t be sure if the Spanish audio was from the LAH frequency or really another on-frequency. Prime suspect low-powered KCKN Roswell is with Radiovisión Cristiana, like 1330 in NYC, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, etc. But no station in Los Ángeles (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** VATICAN [non]. 15470, April 28 at 1428, 1 kHz tone on poor signal, 1430 cut to flute music and announcement, very poor. But it must be VR via IBB Tinang, PHILIPPINES opening Hindi. Aoki shows VR is the only station using 15470, at many different dayparts and sites, the other ones being Tinian, Tashkent and Palauig (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 570, April 28 at 0654 UT, open carrier/dead air, loops SSW, likely XEBJB Monterrey NL, rather than Las Cruces further west (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. 1130, April 28 at 0657 UT, Mexican music peaks counter-clockwise from KWKH Shreveport, which rules out central Mexico, so Central America? No Cubans listed. Or, from the other side, maybe Sinaloa or Sonora. Need to keep on this one. No likely USA SS unless daytimers in TN or GA happen to be nighttimers (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) 

This report despatched at 1842 UT April 28