6 MHz Western USA Beacons

[Exo]

A thread looking at some of the 6 MHz beacons in Western USA.
If you find these detailed reports useful or interesting, please feel free to reply with any comments.

Starting with this post on the HexY2k ? dasher as it was seen and heard during mid-day local 1930 UTC 23AUG2018.
Received on the coast of northern California.

6700.51 kHz Beacon ~67 dashes per minute HexY2k ? - weak readable with good audibility

PLAY AUDIO HexY2k beacon listening on 6700kHz USB mode at 2254UTC 2018AUG25

Below: Waterfall image at 1930 UTC 23AUG2018 of the HexY2k ? dasher beacon at 6700.51 kHz.
(Dash rate: approximately 67 dashes per minute)
(note: the horizontal lines are lightning crash static bursts)

[Exo]

Western USA signals around 6626 kHz.

Received on the coast of northern California.
Report 2023UTC 2018AUG25 mid-day local time.

6625.84 kHz - dits at 2.1 dits/second, very weak, readable (possibly Rainy beacon?)
6626.38 kHz - growl at 56Hz modulation, 230Hz bandwidth, readable (possibly Rocky beacon?)

PLAY AUDIO: 6625.84 kHz dits signal listening in USB mode

PLAY AUDIO 6626.38 kHz growl signal listening in AM mode

PLAY AUDIO 6625.5 kHz USB both signals: dits and growl listening in USB mode

Below: Waterfall image of 6625.5 kHz USB at 2023UTC 2018AUG25 showing the dit and growl signals.
(note: the horizontal lines are lightning crash static bursts)



Below: Waterfall image of the 6626.38 kHz signal, with better signal strength, at 2025UTC 2018AUG25.
Note the absence of the ditter signal at 6625.84 kHz which had faded out during the time that this image was captured.
The sidebands of the 56Hz amplitude modulation (AM) show up more clearly in this image.
Approximate 230Hz bandwidth is due to the +/- 112Hz (2nd harmonic of the modulation frequency) .
Other higher order harmonics of the modulation frequency extend upward and downward from the 6626.38 kHz center carrier.

[Exo]

Clearer audio recording of ditter at 6626 kHz

Report 
1806UTC 28AUG2018

6625.97 kHz - dits at 2.1 dits/second, 23 milliseconds duration, good readable ( Rainy beacon? )

PLAY AUDIO 6625.0 kHz Upper Sideband recording of ditter at 6625.97 kHz

[Exo]

Timing intervals of dasher at 6700.5

Report
1839UTC 28AUG2018

6700.50 kHz - dasher, ~66/minute, 436 milliseconds dash duration, 910 milliseconds repetition cycle, good readable ( HexY2k ? )

PLAY AUDIO 6700.5 kHz dasher 1839UTC 28AUG2018

Below: Waterfall image of 6700.5 kHz dasher  ( HexY2k ? ) at 1839UTC 28AUG2018

[Exo]

Report
1955UTC 08SEP2018
6700.51 kHz dasher beacon, "HexY2k" , good readable, fading
6625.94 kHz ditter beacon, "Rainy" , chirpy, good readable, fading
6626.36 kHz buzzer beacon, "Rocky" , very weak, fading

[Exo]

Highlight of this report: the "Rocky" buzzer beacon's audio modulation frequency is drifting, and the audio modulation frequency has changed since previous reports. The bandwidth is about 1 kHz.

Report
1804UTC, 1830UTC, 1937UTC. 2018 NOV 06, local mid-morning in California

6700.51kHz, CW, "HexY2k", dasher beacon, 0.9 sec repetition, good readable
6625.98 kHz, "Rainy" ditter beacon, 0.37 sec repetition, 0.02 sec dit duration, good readable
6626.43 kHz, "Rocky" buzzer beacon, main carrier, with 505 Hz Amplitude Modulation, good readable
6626.94 kHz, "Rocky", +505 Hz drifting to +450 Hz, USB 1st sideband, stronger than main carrier, good readable
6627.44 kHz, "Rocky", + 1010 Hz drifting to +900 Hz, USB 2nd sideband, weak readable
6625.93 kHz, "Rocky, -505 Hz drifting to -450 Hz, LSB 1st sideband, stronger than main carrier, good readable
6625.42 kHz, "Rocky", -1010 Hz drifting to -900 Hz, LSB 2nd sideband, weak readable

PLAY AUDIO 6700.51kHz CW HexY2K dasher beacon 2018NOV06 1804UTC

Waterfall image below: 6700.51kHz CW HexY2K dasher beacon 2018NOV06 1804UTC:


PLAY AUDIO 6625.98 kHz CW Rainy ditter beacon 2018NOV06 1830UTC

Waterfall image below: 6626 kHz Rainy and Rocky beacons 2018NOV06 1830UTC. Note the 505 Hz audio modulation sidebands on Rocky beacon:





PLAY AUDIO 6625 kHz USB Rocky and Rainy beacons 2018NOV06 1937UTC with emphasis on Rocky stronger at this time, with sun at about high noon local time in the region

Waterfall image below: 6626 kHz Rainy and Rocky beacons 2018NOV06 1937UTC. Note the drifting 450 Hz audio modulation sidebands on Rocky beacon:

[Exo]

Report
2254UTC 2018 NOV 09, local high noon in California

6700.47kHz, CW, "HexY2k", dasher beacon, 0.88 sec repetition, 0.44 sec duration, 50% duty cycle, strong signal, readable

Waterfall image below shows 6700.47 kHz CW "HexY2k" dasher beacon 2254UTC 2018 NOV 09:



Local Pt. Arguello ionogram below, at 2100 UTC 2018 NOV 09, shows foF2 at 6.788 MHz.

[Exo]

Highlight of this report: 6626 kHz UNID beacon or possibly a different mode of "Rainy" beacon

Report
2123UTC 2018 NOV 09

6626.26 kHz, CW, UNID, beacon, 1.53 sec repetition, variable 0.1 sec to 0.38 sec duration, weak readable

• Note: this is not the normal repetition or duration recently logged for "Rainy" beacon, however it has been reported on approximately this frequency in the past.
• Note: usually, "Rainy" beacon is logged whenever "Rocky" beacon is logged, but the normal mode of "Rainy" is absent and not copied today in this logging.

6626.47 kHz, AM, "Rocky", beacon, 640 Hz modulation, good readable

PLAY AUDIO 6626.26 kHz CW UNID beacon 2123UTC 2018NOV09

Waterfall image below shows 6626 kHz beacons UNID and "Rocky" 2123UTC 2018 NOV 09:

[Exo]

Report
2018NOV21 2324UTC

6626.42 kHz, AM, "Rocky", variable tone, ~700 Hz to 1000 Hz, -105 dBm, good readable

"Rainy" beacon is conspicuously absent.

PLAY AUDIO 6626kHz Rocky AM tone beacon recorded in AM mode 2018NOV 2324UTC

Waterfall image below, 6626kHz Rocky AM beacon 2018NOV 2324UTC showing variable tone frequency

[ChrisSmolinski]

Nice catches and screenshots, Exo. I have been trying for the 6 MHz beacons for years. I will have to live vicariously through your loggings 

I do remember quite a few years ago hearing some of the west coast beacons like OR and S (which I think are gone now). Looking back at the old logs here, I was hearing the 4096 beacons back in 2009, and I think a few years after that, but no more.

[Token]

6626.26 kHz, CW, UNID, beacon, 1.53 sec repetition, variable 0.1 sec to 0.38 sec duration, weak readable

Looking back through the log I have seen several different beacons, or one beacon with large variations, around this freq.  Going back to March of 2015 I have what I called a ditter (arbitrary name I assign to short duration pulsed beacons) in the log book on 6626.35 kHz.  It was seen while both Rocky and Rainy were observed.  At that time it had a 0.08 sec pulse every 0.67 sec.  It looks like I have logged various pulse widths (up to 0.2 sec), rates (up to 1.5 sec), and freqs for what might be this same signal, I assume all the values are drifting over time and or temp.

T!

[Exo]

Looking back through the log I have seen several different beacons, or one beacon with large variations, around this freq.  Going back to March of 2015 I have what I called a ditter (arbitrary name I assign to short duration pulsed beacons) in the log book on 6626.35 kHz.  It was seen while both Rocky and Rainy were observed.  At that time it had a 0.08 sec pulse every 0.67 sec.  It looks like I have logged various pulse widths (up to 0.2 sec), rates (up to 1.5 sec), and freqs for what might be this same signal, I assume all the values are drifting over time and or temp.

T!

That is quite interesting, T!

The old Rainy fast ditter 0.2 sec repetition rate characteristic signature has been totally missing from any of the recent observations here.
At first glance, the UNID sure seemed like it could be Rainy, but the timing interval was quite different.
If Rainy's dit repetition rate was slowed down just a bit, it might fit the pattern.
Just a few weeks ago, Rainy was logged with a very regular 18.5:1 ratio (repetition:duration).
The UNID has a much lower ratio, more of a dasher, than a ditter, with somewhat variable ratio, and less than 10:1.
Hopefully, we can catch a glimpse again of both the UNID and Rainy at the same time.

We are stumbling across a lot more of these weak signal mini-dashers out there in the 4 MHz ~ 14 MHz range.
They certainly are not all wild beacons.
Exactly what they are, remains a mystery.

[Exo]

Report highlight: Rocky AM beacon has 3.19 kHz audio tone, highest logged so far.

Report
2018DEC01 2245 UTC

6626.58 kHz AM, beacon, "Rocky", audio modulation tone 3.19 kHz, -110 dBm, readable
6628.0 kHz SSB, USB voice, ATC Aeronautical, MWARA NAT, with selcal, -105 dBm, good readable
6629 kHz, UNID signal, variable slow negative frequency change, slider, repetition 2 minutes, -115 dBm.
Note: checked this UNID, it is not a local RFI signal, verified by copying it at the same time on a remote SDR in a different geographic area.

Note: "Rainy" ditter beacon seems to be missing again today.

Waterfall image of 6626.58 kHz AM beacon Rocky showing audio modulation tone 3.19 kHz sidebands and -110 dBm signal strength

[Exo]

Highlight of this report: 6626 kHz Rocky AM beacon with 20 kHz tone modulation

Report
2018DEC07 2150UTC

6626.00 kHz CW,"Rainy"?, ditter beacon, 95 millisecond dit duration, 775 millisecond repetition, weak readable, -120 dBm
6626.62 kHz AM, "Rocky", beacon, 20.04 kHz tone modulation (USB 6646.66, LSB 6606.58), weak readable, -120 dBm
Note: The Rocky beacon audio tone modulation frequency appears to be increasing significantly as indicated by log reports. It has risen from 3.19 kHz to 20.04 kHz over the past week.

PLAY AUDIO 6626 kHz CW ditter beacon Rainy? 2018DEC07 2150UTC

Waterfall image below shows 6626 kHz Rainy? CW ditter beacon and Rocky AM beacon with 20.04 kHz tone modulation 2018DEC07 2150UTC:





Image below shows ionogram of the nearby Pt. Arguello ionosonde for this log report time interval 2018DEC07 2150UTC:

[Exo]

Highlight of this report: Rainy ditter beacon logged on 6626 kHz with good readability during mid-day.

Report
2018DEC08 1922 UTC

6626.40 kHz CW, "Rainy", ditter beacon, 320 millisecond repetition, 16 millisecond duration, good readable, -120 dBm
6626.64 kHz AM, "Rocky", beacon, audio tone 20 kHz? modulation, very weak, -135 dBm
6700.46 kHz CW, "HexY2k", dasher beacon, 892 millisecond repetition, 447 millisecond duration, good readable, -110 dBm

Waterfall image below shows Rainy ditter and HexY2k dasher with good readability.