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HF Mystery Signals / Mystery Simulcast Beeps on 3550 3900 6700 7050 7450 7950 23 MAY 2025 0325utc

« on: May 23, 2025, 0337 UTC »

The half-second beeps spaced 2 seconds apart are being simulcast now on at least six different frequencies.  In CW receive mode I hear them on 3550 3900 6700 7050 7450 7950 here in central California.  Listening on several Kiwi SDRs around the US they are roughly the same signal strength.  I have heard them several times over the past year-- the transmissions last about 40 minutes.

I first noticed them on the 40 and 80 meter ham bands on 3900, 3550 and 7050.  There was a recent post on HF Underground/Facebook, which i no longer can find, by Jose Luis in South America who noticed them outside the ham bands. I scribbled down his frequencies--I could not hear all of them, but did hear the simulcast beeps on 6700, 7450 and 7950.

Any ideas?

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Shortwave Broadcast / Voice Of America Being Shut Down By Trump Administration

« on: March 16, 2025, 1656 UTC »

From the BBC:

Donald Trump has signed an order to strip back the federally funded news organisation Voice of America, accusing it of being "anti-Trump" and "radical".

A White House statement said the order would "ensure taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda", and included quotes from politicians and right-wing media railing against the "leftist", "partisan" VOA.

VOA, still primarily a radio service, was set up during World War Two to counter Nazi propaganda. It is used by hundreds of millions of people around the world.

Mike Abramowitz, the VOA's director, said he and virtually his entire staff of 1,300 people had been put on paid leave.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvge4l109r3o

3

10/11 meters / Weak CW 27500 00:20 utc 25 September 2024

« on: September 25, 2024, 0032 UTC »

On the KFS Omni A SDR I heard a very weak CW signal at about 22wpm sending CQ CQ CQ DX DE 4RKJ--  not sure of callsign.  My CW copy is not that good above 20wpm.  Very ham-like--ended with "PSE"-- please.

4

HF Beacons / "F" Beacon On 7056

« on: March 13, 2024, 0109 UTC »

Last night at 10000 UTC while using a Kiwi SDR about 40 miles from me in central California I heard a "F" CW beacon on 7056.  It was being sent at about one second intervals at about 13wpm, somewhat faster than the longtime Russian "K" beacon around 7039.4.

I Googled single-letter beacons but could not find any listing for a "F" beacon on 7056.  Russian or other spook?  Pirate or bored ham?

5

HF Beacons / 4108 "...dit dit dah..." Signal

« on: July 02, 2023, 0805 UTC »

Here in Central California I'm listening to 4108 in the CW mode around 0800z.  I am hearing a transmitter that sends about nine dits followed by a tenth dah.  Speed is around 18wpm.  A pirate beacon or a utility signal?

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HF Mystery Signals / Mystery "Pips" On 3549.6, 3899.6 and 7049.6 at 0820z

« on: March 27, 2023, 0854 UTC »

Tonight from 0820z to 0830z I am hearing a "pip" signal on 3549.6, 3899.6 and 7049.6. When listening in the CW mode it sounds like a CW carrier with a bit of modulation. Tonight it is about a half-second beep with about a three second interval.

There was no ID when it stopped.

Signal was about S7 here in central California and about the same strength on the KFS omni SDR up north.

Several hams on the QRZ forum have heard it also in the central US, also around the same time.

Any cluess?

7

HF Beacons / Rapid Ditter On 4097.3 & FT8 (?) On 4095

« on: December 12, 2022, 2301 UTC »

This afternoon around 2245z I was using the KB6C Kiwi SDR in Ventura county, which has far better "ears" than my long wire antenna in Santa Barbara. 

The Desert Whooper was coming in fairly well.  On 4097.3 I heard a weak rapid "ditter", which I could also just barely hear on my home station.  Listening also while in the CW mode I heard what sounded like amateur FT8 on 4095, which I could not hear at all on my own station. It was sending a short burst about every 30 seconds. I am set up for FT8 and know that sometimes nearly inaudible FT8 will sometimes decode, so I turned on WSJTX and tried both USB and LSB near that frequency, but could hear or decode nothing.

Both signals are still there on the KB6C SDR at 2300z.

8

HF Beacons / Letter "F" Beacon on 4100.4 @ 0715z

« on: December 03, 2022, 0724 UTC »

Here in central California I am hearing the letter "F" at about 12wpm CW at 0715z.  Also some Asian langauge QRM on 4100 USB.

Anybody else hearing it?  Evidently it has been on before--last heard about ten months ago.

FWIW, the Desert Whooper is currently weak and I can't here the Coastal Slider at all.

9

Spy Numbers / 6989.2 CW Letter & Number Groups-- 0755 UTC-- 16 SEP 2022

« on: September 16, 2022, 0815 UTC »

Here in central coastal California at 0755 UTC I heard several minutes of a CW transmission that I believe is spy-related.  It was around 20wpm, a little faster than I can reliably copy.  Appeared to be number and letter groups--letters did not seem to be words or usual ham abbreviations, but my fast CW copy is marginal.  Off at 0800 UTC.

10

HF Beacons / Coastal Slider Back On 4109.5

« on: April 26, 2022, 0658 UTC »

The Coastal Slider on 4109.5 is back, about S3 here in central California at 0650z.  Wonder what repairs were needed to get it back on the air again?

11

HF Beacons / Long Dasher On 4069.4

« on: March 30, 2022, 0752 UTC »

At 0745z here in Santa Barbara I am hearing a long dasher on 4069.4.  It does not quite have a pure CW note--a pirate beacon or just another utility signal?  It is stronger on the Token SDR and very weak on the KFS omni.

And what happened to the Desert Whooper and Coastal Slider?  No copy either on the usual SDRs.  Perhaps "Uncle Charlie" got tired of the unlicensed fun?

12

HF Beacons / "5 Dits And A Dah"--4108.0 0730z --New Beacon?

« on: March 10, 2022, 0738 UTC »

Tonight here in Santa Barbara I am hearing in CW mode on 4108.0 five dits and a dah repeatedly being sent.  No other characters sent so far.  Fairly strong--about S4 with some fades.

A new beacon?

The Coastal Slider on 4109.7 is very weak but copyable.

13

Spy Numbers / High Speed CW On 4081.4--Mostly Numbers--Spy?

« on: January 30, 2022, 1035 UTC »

Listening at 0600z on the Token SDR on 4081.4 I heard some high-speed CW, about 30wpm.  I can't copy much at that speed, but could tell it was mostly numbers with a few single letters. 

Another spy numbers station, or? 

14

ID and Translation Requests / UNID CW--0100z on 4075.3--40 Minutes Of Random Dits & Dashes

« on: January 28, 2022, 0321 UTC »

While listening today in the CW mode on 4075.3 at 0100z I heard a 40 minute transmission of random hand-sent dits and dashes, sometimes with a short CW letter, A, N, K.  It sounded like a straight telegraph key was being used by someone who was just learning how to send Morse.

I was hoping it was someone tuning up a transmitter for a new pirate broadcast or beacon, but it stopped after 40 minutes.

My location is coastal Central California.  Any guesses?

Thanks for reading.

15

Spy Numbers / UVB-76 On 4625 Being Spammed/Jammed By Pirates?!

« on: January 23, 2022, 0307 UTC »

There's an article on Vice.Com that Russian spy station UVB-76 on 4625 is being interfered with by pirates, possibly from the Ukraine.  Crazy 4chan-type "meme" images and music are being viewed or heard on SDRs.

However, the article's writer does not know much about radio, as he states that SDRs are being used by pirates to transmit the interfering signals.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/y3vbjj/pirates-spammed-an-infamous-soviet-short-wave-radio-station-with-memes-uvb-76

Link to one of the copied images:
https://ibb.co/FgJRyN4