Monthly Archives: April 2019

W9IMS: New season of Indianapolis Motor Speedway-themed special events

2018 W9IMS QSL

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Brian D. Smith (W9IND) who shares the following W9IMS press release:

Amateur radio station W9IMS prepares to unveil a new season of Indianapolis Motor Speedway-themed special events, with three QSL cards and a certificate available to hams and SWLs.

DATE: April 24, 2019

Three colorful QSL cards and a glossy certificate await amateur radio operators and SWLs who manage to contact – or tune in – Indianapolis Motor Speedway special event station W9IMS during all three of its 2019 special events. And even those who fall short of the trifecta can claim one or two of the QSLs.

2018 W9IMS QSL

Your first shot comes in two weeks as W9IMS fires up from May 5-11 to commemorate the IndyCar Grand Prix. Only nine days later, the second W9IMS special event (May 20-26) gets underway, this one in honor of the venerable Indianapolis 500. Then comes a summer break until Sept. 2-8, when W9IMS stages its third and final special event of the year, celebrating the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race.

The certificate and QSLs change every year, so even if you scored the clean sweep in 2018, you’ll find new trophies to pursue this year.

But you’ll have a chance to snare the station on either of two bands (20 and 40 meters) and possibly three (80 meters). Remember, too, that on Race Day – the final day of each operation – W9IMS generally stays on the air late, sometimes until midnight local time (0400 UTC).

Here are a couple of hints for tracking down the station during special event weeks:

  1. Go to the W9IMS web page (www.w9ims.org), find the “2019 Operating Schedule” heading, and click on the link to the IndyCar Grand Prix or any other race. Although some W9IMS operators take to the airwaves at unscheduled times, you’ll have your best luck looking for the station during the hours and bands reserved with a name and a callsign.
  2. Check DX Summit (www.dxsummit.fi) anytime for spots that identify the current frequency (or frequencies) of W9IMS, if any. And if you type “W9IMS” in the search box, you can customize it to show reports for only that station.

For additional details, consult the W9IMS web page. Feel free to submit all of your 2019 QSL and certificate requests in the same envelope. Again, although you’ll need to catch W9IMS during all three races to qualify for the certificate, you can earn a unique QSL card for each individual race.

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Antenna upgrade for RTE Radio 1 “will ensure transmission of longwave radio continues”

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, John Hoad, who shares the following news and notes:

Interesting information about the continuation of broadcasting of RTE Radio 1 on 252 kHz from Summerhill, County Meath Ireland:

(Source: Hildegarde Naughton)

Longwave Radio to continue for the benefit of Diaspora

Thursday, 25th April 2019

Major antenna upgrade will ensure transmission of longwave radio continues – Naughton

Upgrade works will ensure that the transmission of longwave radio continues for the Irish diaspora, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Chair of the Oireachtas Communications Committee, Hildegarde Naughton, welcomed RTE’s decision to undertake significant remedial works on transmission equipment which will guarantee the continuance of the longwave service for a minimum of two years.

Deputy Naughton said: “The maintenance of long wave radio for the Irish diaspora is a significant concern to the Committee.

“The UK regulator, Ofcom, will not grant RTE, as a non-UK broadcaster, the necessary licence to broadcast on digital in the UK at this time.

“After engagement between the Committee and RTE, I received a letter from the Director General of the national broadcaster committing to maintain service into the future.

“The antenna upgrade requires bespoke manufacturing from a specialist supplier based in Canada and delivery of this element is expected by mid-September.

“The relevant mast at Summerhill is 248 metres in height and is a high-risk work environment.

“I am told that the weather, and more particularly wind speeds, will be the main determining factor on the commencement and the duration of the works.

“Unfortunately once this remedial work commences, the long wave service will have to be temporarily suspended.

“I understand that it will be out of commission for approximately ten weeks, but RTE has said it will endeavour to complete the works as quickly as possible.

“I welcome the efforts being made to continue this service, which serves as an invaluable link between the diaspora and home.

“However I intend to work with the committee to explore other longer term alternative solutions to ensure this service continues,” Deputy Naughton concluded.

Click here to read the full press release.

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Armed Forces Day Annual Cross-Band Test – May 11, 2019

(Source: USAmyMARS.org via Harald Kuhl)

(11 May 2019)

The Army Military Auxiliary Radio System will host this year’s Armed Forces Day (AFD) Crossband Test on Saturday May 11, 2019. This annual event is open to all licensed amateur radio operators, and will not impact any public or private communications. For more than 50 years, military and amateur stations have taken part in this event, which is only an exercise scenario, designed to include hobbyist and government radio operators alike.

The AFD Cross-band Test is a unique opportunity to test two-way communications between military communicators and radio stations in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS), as authorized in 47 CFR 97.111. These tests provide opportunities and challenges for radio operators to demonstrate individual technical skills in a tightly-controlled exercise scenario that does not impact any public or private communications.

Military stations will transmit on selected military frequencies and will announce the specific ARS frequencies monitored. All times are ZULU (Z), and all frequencies are Upper Side Band (USB) unless otherwise noted. The frequencies used for the test will not impact any public or private communications, and will not stray outside the confines of the exercise.

Additional Information is provided on the 20190424-AFDCT-final.pdf file available for download [by clicking here].

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Ham Radio Digital Modes: Joe Taylor talks FT8 and introduces FT4

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Pete Eaton, who shares the following note and video:

Here is a You Tube Video of a presentation given by Joe Taylor last night at the Fair Lawn ARC Club Meeting on FT8 & Beyond an introduction to FT4.

Click here to view on YouTube.

Thank you for the tip, Pete!  FT4 looks like a fascinating iteration of the popular FT8 mode.

Post Readers: Any fans of FT8 out there?

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FTIOM & UBMP, April 29-May 4

From the Isle of Music, April 28-May 4, 2019:
Part 1 of 2 Parts:
We discuss the book “Las Oscuras Leyendas de Chano Pozo” with its author, Ricardo Oropesa, while listening to some important recordings by Chano. Fascinating history plus important music.
The broadcasts take place:
1. For Eastern Europe but audible well beyond the target area in most of the Eastern Hemisphere (including parts of East Asia and Oceania) with 100Kw, Sunday 1500-1600 UTC on SpaceLine, 9400 KHz, from Sofia, Bulgaria (1800-1900 MSK) Station website: www.spaceline.bg
2. For the Americas and parts of Europe, Tuesday 0000-0100 UTC (New UTC) on WBCQ, 7490 KHz from Monticello, ME, USA (Monday 8-9PM EST in the US).
Station website: www.wbcq.com
3 & 4. For Europe and sometimes beyond, Tuesday 1900-2000 UTC and Saturday 1200-1300 UTC on Channel 292, 6070 KHz from Rohrbach, Germany.
Station website: www.channel292.de

Uncle Bill’s Melting Pot, April 28 and 30, 2019:
By popular demand, we are repeating Episode 109, which is dedicated to the music of Haiti.
The transmissions take place:
1.Sundays 2200-2230 UTC (6:00PM -6:30PM Eastern US) on WBCQ The Planet 7490 KHz from the US to the Americas and parts of Europe
2. Tuesdays 2000-2030 UTC on Channel 292, 6070 KHz from Rohrbach, Germany for Europe.

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Digital AM: FCC takes a closer look

Many thanks to an SWLing Post reader who writes:

Thought you and the SWLing bunch would be interested to learn about this. The promoters make it sound so go, but fail to mention all the problems and pitfalls. Hopefully, it will go nowhere, which is the best course possible!

(Source: Inside Radio)

The prospect of a digital-only AM station may still be far on the horizon, but if it one day becomes reality the first step to securing regulatory approval has just occurred. The Federal Communications Commission has put up a proposal submitted by Texas broadcaster Bryan Broadcasting last month for public comment. It’s not a formal rulemaking, but the process could lay the groundwork for a FCC decision allowing digital-only AMs in the future.

In a petition filed last month, Bryan Broadcasting VP and general Ben Downs said giving stations the option of dropping their analog signal would provide struggling AM owns an “innovative tool” with which to compete. Broadcasters will have until May 13 to chime in on what’s been docketed as RM-11836.

Downs says he’s pleasantly surprised to see the FCC moving so quickly on his petition. The proposal drew some attention among engineers at last week’s NAB Show, although agency staffers were less committal. That made it all the more encouraging when Downs returned from the Las Vegas convention to learn the Media Bureau opened it up to comments.

“It was clear from the discussion panels that unless there’s interest shown in this 30-day comment period, we will not have this approved as a licensed option,” Downs said. “I don’t think anyone questions the all-digital MA-3 option from a technical feasibility position anymore, separate from the hybrid mode that is authorized. So I would hope the Commission would recognize that this is the next logical step in the AM Revitalization effort.”[…]

Click here to read the full article at Inside Radio.

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