Utility Planet: July 2016

Friday, July 29, 2016

Another experimental VOA Radiogram for July 30-31

Hello friends,

Last weekend's experiment with the transmission of an html-formatted VOA News story resulted in many successful decodes, but also several failures. The failures were mainly due to the base64 compression of the transmitted file, which requires all of the received characters to be received correctly. On shortwave, as we know, perfection is often elusive.

This weekend, we will transmit another html-formatted VOA News story. This time we will use Flwrap, another Fldigi add-on program. See details and instructions here: http://voaradiogram.net/post/148147415237/experimenting-with-web-pages-via-shortwave .

Because Flwrap does not require the html to be compressed, if the checksum fails, you have a Plan B: Copy the text in the Fldigi from <html> through </html>, paste it to a text editor (like Notepad), save it as an .html file, and open it in a browser.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 174, 30-31 July 2016, all in MFSK32 centered on 1500 Hz:

1:31 Program preview
2:41 Great Red Spot may heat Jupiter's atmosphere*
8:31 High-speed travel in near-vacuum tube*
12:44 Strange purple orb in Pacific Ocean**
18:43 Three images
26:08 Closing announcements*

* with image

** formatted for Flwrap

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com .

VOA Radiogram transmission schedule
(all days and times UTC):
Sat 0930-1000 5745 kHz
Sat 1600-1630 17580 kHz
Sun 0230-0300 5745 kHz
Sun 1930-2000 15670 kHz
All via the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station in North Carolina.

The Mighty KBC will broadcast to North America this weekend for one hour: Sunday 0000-0100 UTC (Saturday 8-9 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via shortwave. A minute of MFSK32 will be at about 0032 UTC. Reports for KBC reception to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and possibly other modes (and they have been experimenting with html/svg content) :

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Look for any additions or changes to the DigiDX schedule at http://www.digidx.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/digidx/

IBC (Italian Broadcasting Corporation) has a broadcast to Europe on 6070 kHz, Wednesdays, 2000-2200 UTC, with MFSK32 and Olivia 16-500 at 2030-2100 UTC. And IBC has added MFSK32 transmissions via WRMI in Florida: Friday 0125-0200 UTC on 9955 kHz (Thursday 9:25 pm EDT), part of its 0100-0130 broadcast. And Saturday at 0155-0200 UTC (Friday evening 9:55 pm EDT), on 11580 kHz, part of its 0130-0200 broadcast. See http://ibcradio.webs.com/ for the complete schedule and contact information.

Thanks for the many helpful reception reports from last weekend. I have compiled the gallery for program 172, 16-17 July, and am now responding to reports from that weekend.

I hope you can tune and write in this weekend.

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net
Twitter: @VOARadiogram

Friday, July 22, 2016

Very interesting VOA Radiogram for July 23-24

From Kim Andrew Elliott:

Hello friends,

Italian Broadcasting Corporation, IBC, has new MFSK32 transmissions. See the information below.

I have not been able to do a character-by-character analysis of all the reports on last weekend's Battle of the 55-wpm Modes, but it generally appears to me that MFSKI16 was best, followed by Olivia-8-1000, with BPSK63F most prone to errors. (In defense of BPSK63F, however, it has the narrowest bandwidth, and thus will be the most welcome on the amateur bands.)

Roger in Germany reminded us that BPSK63F, because it involves phase shift keying, may not work as well in AM mode, because, with fading, the two sidebands can be out of phase. The frequency shift keying of MFSK and Olivia suffer less from this phenomenon. I decoded the three modes using SSB on various receivers, but it still seems that BPSK63F had the most errors. Several listeners and I also decoded BPSK63F in AM mode (and a good signal) with 100% success.

Meanwhile, the html VOA Radiogram transmission schedule was received perfectly in many parts of the world, even where the MFSK32 images were fuzzy. (See some examples.)

This weekend, VOA Radiogram will again transmit an html document. This time, instead of using the Flmsg blank form, we will use the Flmsg file transfer form. When the content is all received, the file transfer window will open. You can save the document and open it when convenient. (The photo in the document will come to your PC via the Internet rather than shortwave.) (See instructions at http://voaradiogram.net/post/147385924137/this-weekend-again-web-pages-via-shortwave )

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 173, 23-24 July 2016, all in MFSK32, all centered on 1500 Hz:

1:32 Program preview
2:52 New map of cerebral cortex*
9:21 X-shaped configuration at center of Milky Way*
14:41 US Navy will visit New Zealand*
19:04 Amateur radio numbers decline in Germany*
22:17 Kepler telescope discovers planets (Flmsg html file transfer)
27:18 Closing announcements

* with image

** information about using Flmsg is at http://bit.ly/29Yen0J

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com

The Mighty KBC will broadcast to North America Sunday at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday evening 8-10 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK32 will be transmitted at about 0130 UTC. It will be another Flmsg blank form, so an html item will pop up as a new window on your browser. (The large photo will come to your PC via the Internet rather than shortwave.) Reports for this KBC reception to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and possibly other modes (and they have been experimenting with html/svg content) :

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Look for any additions or changes to the DigiDX schedule at http://www.digidx.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/digidx/

IBC (Italian Broadcasting Corporation) has a broadcast to Europe on 6070 kHz, Wednesdays, 2000-2200 UTC, with MFSK32 and Olivia 16-500 at 2030-2100 UTC. And IBC has added MFSK32 transmissions via WRMI in Florida: Friday 0125-0200 UTC on 9955 kHz (Thursday 9:25 pm EDT), part of its 0100-0130 broadcast. And Saturday at 0155-0200 UTC (Friday evening 9:55 pm EDT), on 11580 kHz, part of its 0130-0200 broadcast. See http://ibcradio.webs.com/ for the complete schedule and contact information.

Thank you for a large number of reports from last weekend. There was obviously much interest in the experimental nature of the program. I will start to compile a gallery of images today and hope to send them out by the end of the weekend.

I hope you can tune in and write in this weekend.

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net
Twitter: @VOARadiogram

Friday, July 15, 2016

Epic 55WPM showdown on VOA Radiogram for July 16-17

For the first time in a while, VOA Radiogram gets experimental, with three different 55 WPM modes. These are BP63F, MFSK16, and Olivia 8-1000. There will also be a message in Flmsg format, again for the first time in a while. This might be a good show to record and try with different decoders.
--------

From Kim Andrew Elliott:

Hello friends,

Have your white laboratory coats ready, because VOA Radiogram will be very experimental this weekend.

Battle of the 55-wpm modes. VOA Radiogram listener and contributor Mark Hirst in the UK suggests an experiment with the BPSK63F mode. His interest was generated by an article in the August QST magazine about the "flavors of PSK." It noted that BPSK63F, with its forward error correction, has a "remarkable ability to be decoded under poor conditions."

During the early editions of VOA Radiogram, we did transmit BPSK63F a few times. This weekend, we'll do it again, in comparison with two other modes that also have speeds of about 55 words per minute: MFSK16 and Olivia 8-1000. The RSID for each mode will be followed by a 15-second tuning signal, in case you must manually change modes. More details below in the lineup.

The return of Flmsg. This weekend's program will include on item in Flmsg format. Flmsg is an add-on to Fldigi that allows the transmission and reception of message forms and formatted html documents.

If you don’t already have Fldigi, download it from https://sourceforge.net/projects/fldigi/files/fldigi/ . Download Flmsg from https://sourceforge.net/projects/fldigi/files/flmsg/ .

To make Flmsg work with Fldigi, in Fldigi: Configure > Misc > NBEMS > under Reception of flmsg files, select Open with flmsg and Open in browser, and below that indicate where your Flmsg.exe file is located – probably somewhere in Program Files(x86).

If all goes well, when the digital mode transmission concludes, Flmsg will open a new window of your web browser to display a formatted VOA Radiogram transmission schedule. If your default browser is not open, Flmsg will open it for you. (If you are asked to ignore checksum error, select Yes.)

If it doesn’t work the first time, or you don’t have Flmsg installed, you can try this later from your recording.

In Windows, an easy way to save the received document is to use the Microsoft Snipping Tool. Please send that image as an attachment to your reception report.

If you are an Android user, TIVAR does not accommodate Flmsg files. But a similar app, AndFlmsg, as its name would indicate, does. Unlike TIVAR, which is receive-only, AndFlmsg encodes as well as decodes and is used by radio amateurs for message traffic. After the Flmsg is received, go to the index screen and press on the name of the file.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 172, 16-17 July 2016. All modes are centered on 1500 Hz.

1:35 MFSK32: Program preview (now)
3:06 MFSK32: Osmosis to generate electricity*
Battle of the 55 wpm modes ...
11:33 BPSK63F: "Snowline" around new star
15:04 MFSK16: Fuel-saving cars may pollute more
18:36 Olivia 8-1000: "Frankenstein" galaxy detected
21:30 MFSK32: Image and intro to Flmsg
23:52 MFSK32: VOA Radiogram schedule in html via Flmsg
27:03 MFSK32: Closing announcements

* with image

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com .

The Mighty KBC will also transmit Flmsg. This will be during its broadcasting to North America, Sunday 0000 to 0200 UTC (Saturday 8-10 pm EDT), on 9925 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK32, in Flmsg format, will be at will broadcast at 0131 UTC. Please send reports for this KBC reception to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and a mixture of other modes:

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Thank you for your reception reports for last weekend's VOA Radiogram. Reception conditions were generally good, although propagation Saturday at 1600-1630 UTC on 17580 varied widely in different parts of the world. I will try to respond to as many reports as possible before the weekend is over.

I hope you can tune in and write in this weekend.

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott

Producer and Presenter

VOA Radiogram

voaradiogram.net

Twitter: @VOARadiogram

Saturday, July 09, 2016

Current frequency list for Night of Nights 2016

This is the most recent update from MRHS on July 8. It's still subject to change, of course.

18 transmitters will be on-air from Pt. Reyes. Almost like old times.

KPH

Pt. Reyes, CA

500/426 Henry MF-5000D Marconi T

4247.0 RCA K Set Double Extended Zepp

6477.5 RCA K Set Double Extended Zepp

8642.0 RCA L Set Double Extended Zepp

12808.5 RCA L Set H over 2

17016.8 RCA L Set H over 2

22477.5 RCA H Set H over 2

KFS

Pt. Reyes, CA

12695.5 Press Wireless PW15 H over 2

17026.0 Henry HF-5000D H over 2

KSM

Pt. Reyes, CA

500/426 Henry MF-5000D Marconi T

6474.0 Henry HF-5000D (frequency now available)

12993.0 Henry HF-5000D H over 2

16914.0 Henry HF-5000D H over 2

22445.8 Henry HF-5000D (frequency now available)

K6KPH (amateur)

Pt. Reyes, CA

3550.0 Henry HF-5000D Double Extended Zepp

7050.0 RCA L Set Double Extended Zepp

14050.0 Henry HF-5000D H over 2

18097.5 Henry HF-5000D (not available due to lack of antenna)

21050.0 Henry HF-5000D H over 2

NMC

Pt. Reyes, CA, former CAMSPAC

472.0 (or 448.0) Nautel ND2500TT/6 173' monopole tower

6383.0 Rockwell-Collins RT-2200 Omni-directional

8574.0 Rockwell-Collins RT-2200 Omni-directional

17220.5 Rockwell-Collins RT-2200 Omni-directional

NMQ

Cambria, CA, remote to Pt. Reyes

448.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Inverted L

472.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Inverted L

500.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Inverted L

NMW

Astoria, OR, remote to Pt. Reyes

448.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Capacitive top hat

472.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Capacitive top hat

500.0 Nautel ND2500TT/6 Capacitive top hat

WLO

South of Mobile, AL (transmit site)

4343.0

8658.0

12992.0

16968.5

W4WLO (amateur)

7055

14055

Calling channels (all commercial stations)

500 International calling channel

6276.0 ITU Channel 3

8368.0 ITU Channel 3

12552.0 ITU Channel 3

16736.0 ITU Channel 3

22280.5 ITU Channel 3

Friday, July 08, 2016

VOA Radiogram for July 9-10

From Kim Andrew Elliott:

Hello friends,

During the past two weekends, many listeners noted that the RSID for the Olivia modes did change the mode. In an attempt to fix that problem, I have amplified the RSID for this weekend’s Olivia 32-1000 by 2.5 dB.

Also, please make sure that Fldigi is configured to search the passband for the RSID. Such a search is necessary given that the MFSK32 is centered on 1500 Hz, but the Olivia is centered on 2000 Hz. In Fldigi: Configure > IDs > RsID: select Searches passband. In newer versions of Fldigi, you can alternatively left-click on the RxID in the upper right of the main screen, then select Passband.

We are experimenting with Olivia at 2000 Hz because text modes at these higher frequencies might be able to escape interference consisting of voice, music, and even some types of noise. Soon we will return to less nerve-wracking shows where all the modes are at the same audio frequency.

Last week, on the show, I erroneously introduced the Olivia 32-1000 and Olivia 32-2000. Apologies for the confusion.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 171, 9-10 July 2016, all in MFSK32 centered on 1500 Hz except where noted:

1:36 Program preview

2:51 Saturn's moon Titan might support life*

7:47 New Horizons space probe extends its mission*

13:01 Lightning rod may have saved Maryland's State House*

18:42 Olivia 32-1000/2000 Hz: Pasta is good for you

26:29 MFSK32/1500 Hz: Closing announcements*

* with image

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com

VOA Radiogram transmission schedule
(all days and times UTC):
Sat 0930-1000 5745 kHz
Sat 1600-1630 17580 kHz
Sun 0230-0300 5745 kHz
Sun 1930-2000 15670 kHz
All via the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station in North Carolina.

The Mighty KBC will broadcast to North America Sunday at 0000-0200 UTC (Saturday 8-10 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK32 will be transmitted at about 0130 UTC. Reports for KBC reception and decode to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and a mixture of other modes:

Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Thank you for your reports from last weekend. Reception and results were good in most parts of the world. I have sent MFSK galleries from last gallery to everyone who sent reports as of Thursday.

If you want to see images posted by listeners during, or shortly after, the weekend broadcasts, visit https://twitter.com/voaradiogram . I retweet the images submitted by VOA Radiogram listeners. You do not need to be a Twitter registered user to read the tweets. If you do register, you can send your own MFSK32 images, screen captures of text, etc. Please include @VOARadiogram in your tweet, and follow @VOARadiogram.

I hope you can tune in and write in this weekend.

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott

Producer and Presenter

VOA Radiogram

voaradiogram.net

Twitter: @VOARadiogram

Wednesday, July 06, 2016

It's Night of Nights time again!

Doesn't seem like a whole year, but it is. The annual triumph of the human spirit known as the Maritime Radio Historical Society Night of Nights is Tuesday, July 12 (Pacific Time). Believe it or not, this is Night of Nights XVII! That's a lot of dits and dahs in the ether.

Night of Nights

Why is this night different from all other nights?

On all other nights, we transmit Morse code from ham stations or KSM. On this night alone, KPH, the Power House, comes back to life.

The Night of Nights celebrates maritime commercial Morse telegraphy's refusal to die. The last US commercial Morse message was sent at 0000 UTC July 13, 1999, and that was supposed to be the end of that. Most of the great US commercial stations quickly became condos and shopping malls.

KPH, former RCA San Francisco Radio, Pt. Reyes, was different. Through superhuman effort and cooperation from the Point Reyes National Seashore, the former staff and friends re-opened this vast facility and got it back on the air. It is said that the receiver filaments were still lit... the station manager had refused to let KPH die.

Getting a former RCA commercial station back on the air is something like restoring a classic car whose parts haven't been made in generations. In this case, though, major challenges include pole climbing, reviving control lines miles long, and caring for old buildings going back as far as the Marconi era.

They did it. Borrowing the KPH call back from new licensee Globe Wireless (itself gone now), and getting a lot of help from true believers everywhere, the great station spoke again. Now, it does so every year, along with other CW calls heard on this night alone.

These include WLO, and some US Coast Guard facilities in California. The Guard dropped Morse about the same number of years ago, and the stations have since been remoted to the new Commcom. With all the equipment changes going on, every year may well be the last for USCG.

Details

All the poop, with the many frequencies to be used, is in the latest MRHS newsletter. (He says Friday, but it's a Tuesday.) Link follows.

From Richard Dillman:

Join us on he air or in person at the RCA receive site in Point Reyes, CA as we originate stations KPH, KFS and KSM from our transmit site in Bolinas.  WLO in Mobile, AL and USCG stations NMC, NMW and NMQ will be on the air as well.

All the details are in Newsletter No. 55, just published.  Also read details about the magnificent R3 diversity receiver and the enigmatic H over 2 antenna.  Get it all at:

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs149/1109843077277/archive/1125181891561.html

Friday, July 01, 2016

VOA Radiogram for July 2-3

From Kim Andrew Elliott:

Hello friends,

Last weekend VOA Radiogram heard from many interesting places (e.g., Morocco, Poland, Russia, Japan, Australia, Colombia), saw four YouTube videos (from Colorado, Germany, Maryland, and Japan), and heard and decoded the modes fighting off over-the-horizon (OTH) radar. See examples at http://voaradiogram.net. Just scroll down. See examples also at https://twitter.com/voaradiogram

Last week's MFSK32 performed well, and the Olivia 16-1000 even better. There were a few instances where the Olivia 16-1000 not not decode successfully. This week will will try the slower (24 wpm) but more robust Olivia 32-1000.

At one point in the show I mistakenly refer to Olivia 32-2000 ...

VOA Radiogram now changes to Olivia 32-2000 centered on 2000 Hz

But Olivia 32-1000 is the only mode on the program other than MFSK32. I apologize for the confusion.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 170, 2-3 July 2016, all in MFSK32 except where noted:

1:20 Program preview
2:37 Bamboo as a building material*
8:09 Juno spacecraft nears orbit around Jupiter*
15:12 Olivia 32-1000 at 2000 Hz: Neptune vortex* **
21:20 MFSK32: Image and closing announcements*

* with image

** and, yes, it is Olivia 32-1000, regardless of how Kim introduces it.

Please send reception reports to radiogram@voanews.com

The Mighty KBC will transmit to North America Sunday at 0000-0100 UTC (8-9 pm EDT) on 9925 kHz, via Germany. A minute of MFSK32 will be at about 0030 UTC. Reports for KBC reception and decode to Eric: themightykbc (at) gmail.com .

DigiDX will provide DX and media news in MFSK32 and a mixture of other modes:
Sunday 2130-2200 UTC, 15770 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Sunday 2330-2400 UTC, 11580 kHz, via WRMI Florida
Monday 2000-2130 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany
Daily 1830-1900 and 0530-0600 UTC, 6070 kHz, via Channel 292 Germany

Look for any additions or changes to the DigiDX schedule at http://www.digidx.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/digidx/

IBC (Italian Broadcasting Corporation) has a broadcast to Europe on 6070 kHz, Wednesdays, 2000-2200 UTC, with MFSK32 and Olivia 16-500 at 2030-2100 UTC. See http://ibcradio.webs.com/ for the complete schedule and contact information.

Thank you for the excellent reports from last weekend. I will try to respond to reports today and during the long (here in the USA) weekend.

I hope you can tune in and write in.

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net
Twitter: @VOARadiogram (especially active before, during, and after shows)

German weatherfax on 15988 kHz

Deutscher Wetterdienst, the German Weather Office in Hamburg, has at least temporarily resumed a FAX schedule from its Pinneberg transmitter on the assigned frequency of 15988.0 kHz (dial 15986.1 USB). This frequency is not listed in the Utility Planet column that came out yesterday, because they have only been using it for a couple of days.

As of July 1, however, it's still there, so maybe now it's worth mentioning. It has an S7 signal on the Netherlands WebSDR, and just started a new chart at 1834 UTC.