Friday, September 11, 2015

Break out the cheapoid receivers for VOA Radiogram September 12-13

From Kim Andrew Elliott:

 Hello friends,

This weekend's VOA Radiogram will include nearly nine minutes of Olivia 32-2000. The Olivia 32-2000 mode is about 50 words per minute and is useful when reception is difficult. If reception is good this weekend, you can perhaps create difficult reception by using an inexpensive radio.

[If our recurring magnetic storms continue, creating poor reception should not be a problem. -Hugh]

The Fldigi RxID should be on (green) and will probably detect the Olivia 32-2000 mode from the RSID. If it does not: Op Mode > Olivia > Custom > Bandwidth=2000, Tones=32.

The non-Latin alphabet of the week is Chinese. If you use Fldigi, make sure that Configure > Colors & Fonts > Rx/TX Character set is set to UTF-8. The Chinese should also display correctly with the AndFlmsg Android app version 1.2, which now has UTF-8 support.

Any photos of decoding using an inexpensive radio next to an Android phone or tablet (or next to a Windows/iOS laptop) would be helpful.

If it is convenient, I would also appreciate mp3 recordings of the Olivia 32-2000 in difficult reception conditions.

After the closing announcements will be two images, one immediately following the other. Fldigi automatically saves decoded MFSK images as png files in the folder \fldigi.files\images\.  (Other operating systems may have different folder names.) You can attach those png files to your reception report. In Android, the MFSK images are stored in the folder NBEMS.files/NBEMS-Images.

Here is the lineup for VOA Radiogram, program 128, 12-13 September 2015, all in MFSK32 except where noted:

 1:36  Program preview
 2:50  Most distant galaxy seen from earth (orbit)*
 7:41  Boeing opens spaceship plant in Florida*
14:55  Olivia 32-2000: China to far side of moon
18:27  Olivia 32-2000: Chinese text from VOA Chinese
23:41  MFSK32: Closing announcements*
28:21  Olivia 64-2000: Transmission schedule

* 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 17870 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 transmit a minute of MFSK64 Sunday at 0230 UTC (Saturday 10:30 pm EDT) on 7375 kHz, via Germany. This is part of the KBC transmission to North America Sundays at  0000-0300 UTC on 7375 kHz. Reports for this KBC transmission to Eric: themightykbc@gmail.com

Thank you for your reception reports and recordings from last weekend's VOA Radiogram. I'm now putting together a gallery of the MFSK 16, 32, 63, and SSTV images from program 122, so I still have some catching up to do.

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

Kim

Kim Andrew Elliott
Producer and Presenter
VOA Radiogram
voaradiogram.net