sabato 27 marzo 2010

Glenn Hauser logs March 26-27, 2010

** CHINA. Firedrake March 27: did not search thoroly, but at 1453 encountered on 10400, fair signal, and much better than JBA 8400; none audible in the 9300-9400 area or on the `970s (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CUBA. DentroCuban Jamming Command doing its thing, same pulsing against nothing, March 27 at 0620: on 9955 with WRMI inaudible, 9885 vs absent VOA, and 9810 vs absent Radio República. And more of it on 9565 vs absent Martí, plus spurs around 9545 and 9585.

Strange things are happening with RHC scheduling, making me wonder if they are confused about the DST shift a biweek ago, or have decided to go with the flow rather than keep to UT?

March 27 at 1400 I find 11760 missing, but still on 11730 and 11800. The 11760 transmitter could be the one with open carrier on 11680 about to open relay of Venezuela, q.v., an hour earlier than had been scheduled. At 1415 noticed that frequencies supposed to be on until 1500 were missing: 15360, 15120, 13780, 13680; at 1423 heard only on 13770 above 12 MHz. But at 1448, 11760 was back on while RNV was still on 11680. No RHC frequency announcement heard around 1500 as there used to be (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** CYPRUS [and non]. OTH radar pulsing, presumed from here, March 27 at 1421 on 17847-17872 atop some broadcaster on 17850, i.e. BBC Somali via CYPRUS, oops! Still going at 1503, and now the victim is on 17860, i.e. Channel Africa, SOUTH AFRICA in Swahili.

Same sound of OTH radar on 17465-17490, March 27 at 1504 atop Brother Scare via GERMANY on 17485. And then mixing with the huge wideband whining sound centered on 17450 which just cut on at *1505 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** EQUATORIAL GUINEA. 15190, looking for rumored reactivation of R. Inconfidência, Belo Horizonte, Brasil on 15190, still nothing – but R. Africa, March 26 at 1958 with American preachess wishing ``Happy Thanksgiving`` to listeners and remarking that she is speaking on Black Friday, why call it that?

She apparently has no economic background. (So I can be sure she is American, not Canadian, since there is no such thing as a Black Friday there, unless it`s Black Day-after-Columbus-Day?), and further remarx about orphans in Malawi.

So sermons are delayed about four months in the surface mail to Bata. BTW, does the general African audience have any idea what the American Thanksgiving holiday is about, let alone Black Friday, which could easily be misconstrued as an insult? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** INDIA. 13645, AIR IS at 1513 March 27, fair with flutter, 1515 opening in listed Gujurati via Bengaluru.

Don`t you believe last week`s DX program from Bulgaria which claimed that V. of Southern Azerbaijan had returned to this frequency at 1600. That was lifted from previous DXLD discussion of an unID which turned out to be AIR, and everything about VOSA was historical! Not really heard since 1998 on this frequency nor since 2003 on 9375. March BDXC-UK Communication also misinterpreted that VOSA info was current.

13605, also with AIR IS at 1514 March 27, but not in synch with 13645, as 13605 is about to start Swahili via Bangalore, and not in // when both started talking at 1515.

At 1517 found 15175 with extremely distorted South Asian music, modulation cutting on and off while S9+15 carrier stayed on with flutter, and it`s // 13645 which has identical modulation cuts, also during talk at 1519, then back to music. But 15175 is via Panaji, GOA site (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** KOREA NORTH. 9335, VOK, March 27 at 1344, distorted modulation and flutter, opening ``Songs of Korear, Land of the Morning Calm``, sounds like electric organ (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** LAOS [non]. 11785, tuned in WHRI just in time at 1329 Saturday March 27 to confirm that Hmong World Christian Radio has shifted another hour earlier to 1300; bit of Hmong talk and 1330 into Call to Worship, off after 1400 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MADAGASCAR. 6135, another check for RTM, March 27 at 1409: something`s there with talk rather than music, but too weak vs high noise level. My logs do correlate with David Sharp`s, who was getting this a week earlier at 1350 on 7105.008 // 6134.954, from New South Wales, right along the long-path to me (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MADAGASCAR [non]. One last A-10 check for R. Mada International, clandestine via PRIDNESTROVYE, which has been running Sat & Sun 1530-1600 on 15660: March 27 at 1555 just continuous tone-test on frequency, so lost feed? From March 28 I imagine Mada will show on a different frequency in the area if it still exist (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** MOROCCO. 15345, unlike 15341 the day before, RTM on the `proper` frequency, March 26 at 2001 with hum and whine and Arabic, RAE inaudible (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** NEW ZEALAND. 6170, RNZI, March 27 at 1411 with heavy QRM in Chinese from Voice of Russia, as has been the case all B-season since RNZI has refused to find a clearer channel. At least beginning A-10, RNZI stays on 6170 and even expands it to 0659-1058 and 1259-1550 with 9655 in between. And the 6170 QRM should be gone! Altho 6 MHz after 1300 is no longer of much use this far into the dayside (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** SPAIN [and non]. REE with big S9+15 signals on 21610 // 21570, March 27 at 1507 talking about some award, and Cáceres 2016. Googling indicates that this place aspires to be European Capital of Culture in that year; yet is primarily known for basketball. Meanwhile, Saudi`s remaining 13m signal after 1500, 21460, was JBA (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTNEING DIGEST)

** SUDAN [non]. 15670, Miraya FM via IRRS via SLOVAKIA presumed, March 27 at 1418 M&W in Arabic dialect discussion, one of them on lower quality phone line. This broadcast has been at 14-17 on 15670, but for A-10 is supposed to resume 15-18 on 15650, or is it 15710? Listen for clashes on 15650 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** TAIWAN. 11875, March 27 at 1457 just tuned in to big signal but undermodulated with kids` choir when it went off at 1457:23*. Per Aoki this can only be RTI`s Indonesian service at 14-15, 205 degrees from Tainan, so off the back would be 25 degrees, close enough to USward (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** TURKEY. VOT English from 1330, March 27 tuned at 1404 on 12035, just barely audible but modulation seems OK, playing annoying multi-lingual ID filler. Much better signal on // 15300 but clashing for the last day with stronger France producing fast SAH. The DX Corner has been missing for the past two Saturdays, so surely back today, and may have just missed it. Will have to demand the audio later, but as of 1815, still availablizing only yesterday`s broadcasts.

From March 28, this broadcast shifts to 1230-1322v, and back to last summer`s frequencies 15450 and 15520 at 310 and 252 degrees azimuth respectively, so the former aims USward and both should be QRM-free (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. WORLD OF RADIO attempted monitoring March 26: before 2000 I noticed there was no signal at all from WWCR-1 on 15825; usually there is at least a poor backscatter one. This bodes ill; 13845 audible. 2055 routine recheck for WOR`s Friday 2030 airing, 7465 also absent, so WWCR-1 is MIA, and still off after 2100 when Frencuencia al Día would have aired. Did not check in the evening for 3215, but at 1419 March 27, 15825 was back in business with preacher. And at 1459 ending the 30-minute special expanded Ask-WWCR-like show about the A-10 season. I`ve yet to catch this from the start; it would be helpful to know when to expect it.

Saturday 1330 airing of WOR on WRMI 9955: at 1353 check, WOR 1505 weak but clear, no jamming audible. Saturday 1630 on WWCR-3 12160: confirmed. But Mick Delmage reports: ``Once again this week, at 1650 UT, World of Radio on WWCR 12160 has gone into "skip mode" during the Radio Sweden report.`` Grrr.

Next chances are Sat at 1900 on IRRS 6170, and WRMI 9955; Sunday 0230 on WWCR 4840, 0630 on 3215 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. WTWW continues to be missing from 24-hour operation, perhaps taking a rest before official inauguration April 1. At 1412 March 27, absent from 9480 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 15550-USB, WJHR still active, March 27 at 1417 with screaming preacher; racking up fines for every day of illegal operation? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 13845, big mushy spur from WEWN 13835, March 27 at 1423 over WWCR, the rightful occupant of 13845. At times like these I figure WEWN has not reduced its spurs at all, certainly not eliminated them as hoped (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** U S A. 11715, KJES, March 27 at 1511, S9+22 perhaps with sporadic-E assist, but just barely audible modulation in Spanish. What a travesty! Don`t they realize you need both a carrier and modulation?? Barely audible something underneath, presumably usual R. Veritas relay via Vatican back to ME. From tomorrow, that clash at 15-16 will be gone, as the latter moves to 15350 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** VENEZUELA [non]. Surprised to find an RNV transmission on the air an hour earlier than previously: after I noticed Habana missing from 11760, March 27 at 1400, I tuned down to 11680, and there was big S9+25 open carrier; 1401 joined RNV in progress, program summary by the broken-English YL. Hmm, seems all the segments are about El Hugazo one way or another: the state, it`s he. First: evaluating the electrical plant; later, visiting a bolivarian school where he is greatly honored. At 1438 she was reading an attempted translation of a long polemic, MEGO. 1445 mentioning ``las niñas de Chávez``, implying I hope only that he is a father-figure, and Windows boot-up logo. Off at 1458*.

So has the 15-16 UT broadcast partly in English been moved to 14-15, or was this just another SNAFU? If it has been deliberately moved earlier, how about all the other RNV transmissions? (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

** VIETNAM [non]. 15195, March 27 at 1413 M&M dialog in Vietnamese, good signal I had not noticed before: it`s RFA via TINIAN at 14-15. Goodbye: tomorrow it moves to 11680, where it will collide with Venezuela q.v. via Cuba if it stays at that hour; not to mention variable-frequency KCBS (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST)

UNIDENTIFIED. Intruder on 15390, big multiplex ute signal at 1415 March 27, still there at 1501 and 1517. This is where we usually hear Greenville tuning up for 1630 Creole broadcast, but this signal is not as strong as GB; we have wondered whether IBB transmitters are ever still used for digital DOS traffic. In any event, this has no business within the SWBC band. I briefly heard a similar sound around 15750 (Glenn Hauser, OK, DX LISTENING DIGEST) ###