Messages

46

22 Meter Band HiFER Beacons / 22m E-skip reception of VAN and sweepers - 1700z - 03 June

« on: June 03, 2020, 1809 UTC »

I noted strong CB band E-skip earlier this morning - the big honkers on CB-6 - 27.025 from far northern CA, Spokane, and Tucson were strong.  This is the first morning I have heard the CODAR-like "sweeper(s) blaring in also.  At about 1700UT VAN was quite strong while I was out desert waliing on my SW7600GR and just it's whip.  Faded-away by 1730z.

NO other letter ident beacons noted on 22m, however.

Also noted was Mexican skip on that busy XE channel of CB-5 - 27.015.

My "RR-dash" on 13562.89 going most days from the southern Owens Valley - off for DXing periods and hamming, of course... 73 - MB

47

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 21, 2020, 2042 UTC »

~4096.0 "Coxie" in JTNP still loud and clear still here by early morning past Sunrise and by 1700PT also, and it will go for as long as it can.  Oh, would you know another replacement of the former "Haystack" beacon on 4096.35 is planned and should be audible back/down-east if a site with a good eastward low-angle signal launch point can be located... 73 MB

48

22 Meter Band HiFER Beacons / Re: 22 meter beacon list

« on: May 21, 2020, 2039 UTC »

Not too fond of the LWCA these days, so I will hold-off for now to sending my 22m beacon info. there, but I put on two days ago a pretty decent part-15 level ERP beacon "RR-dash" on 13562.85 or so on a 1/3 wave wire in the attic/loft of my shop building (wooden roof above it and just 5 layers of stout roofing paper and metal sheeting away from the wire), and with a series var. cap. peaking the signal (~50 pF or so) on a nearby FS-meter; and a walk out 1/2 mile from Keeler, CA here indicates it gets out good enough on groundwave to skip something into DX-land whereever!

I hope Chris S. in MD - super Blackcat apps too!  hope he hears it!

What with Es coming, and some today about 1130 PT on CB-5 from XE-land, and a strong 15 MHz WWV at noon PT today, there is good propagation on 22m today and with Es, and some F2 peaks will be great for DX, also.

73 - Steve/MB

49

HF Beacons / Re: Heard in northern utah (NUT)

« on: May 21, 2020, 2013 UTC »

THANK YOU Mr. Mark for the fine and helpful reports.! :-)

RR-dash from Keeler about -art-15 legal or so is on the 22m ISM-band freq. of 13562.9 kHz from Keeler as of two days ago.  24/7.  Minimal QRM to my ham and SW radios save for CB-14 harmonic. I will announce this also properly on the 22m section here at HFU.

73 - Steve

50

HF Beacons / ~4095.9 (~4 sec. dash - shorter than Coxie) 'Viking' becomes 'Phallaxy' photos

« on: May 04, 2020, 2346 UTC »

I am reposting these also in a new topic - info is on the 6626 Rocky posting below this one...



and new place as 'Phallaxy'  --



73MB

51

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2314 UTC »

Yes one other last thing I believe maybe perhaps allegedly -  when ROCKY-had-a-bad-buzz was visited in March, it's solar-panel wires were almost DOA due to nibblers - maybe a few month's time left and it would be gone if too far to get to... so it came back to someplace to be fixed and put on a fence... :-)

Thanks for allof the total fun listening dudes and dudesses. watch out for the big bad spiky bug king...

52

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2306 UTC »

And a final note for today to update it all here is that Coxie (~4096.0) is still as-is and will be left alone.  It's cool and old now (19 yrs.) and day-only with a big start-up chirp but has good ERP but less than The Wind Beacon.

SO the above 5 or so posting should fill in the blanks and corrections for all, I think, allegedly.  I guess or assume.  I suppose and conjecture on all of this ...

53

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2257 UTC »

2 suggestions about the listing of the "Rocky" beacon at 6626.4 kHz. 

• 1. Rocky beacon might better be described as an "AM variable tone beacon" rather than a "buzzer beacon".
• 2. The observed average center frequency of Rocky this year has been 6626.4 kHz, rather than 6626.2 kHz.

It appears that the transmitted tone modulation frequency is possibly related to temperature.
The hotter, the lower pitched the audio tone.
The colder, the higher pitched the audio tone.

When observed on a hot day in August, the frequency was 56 Hz, and it indeed sounded like a buzzer due to the lower pitch of the audio tone.

However, when observed during colder days in November, the audio tone modulation frequency was running between about 700 Hz ~ 1000 Hz, and it didn't sound at all like a buzzer, but more like a triangle wave or square wave oscillator, listen:

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

We wonder whether the suspected temperature tone variability is intentional?

If indeed the temperature vs tone frequency is an intentional feature of this beacon, then this beacon might be described as an
Amplitude Modulated tone temperature telemetry beacon

Isn't that fascinating?

AMAZINGLY IT WAS A CRAPPY OLD 70s (oops caps lok) radio-shack kit-cannabilized cap. 10 uF in the RC keying ckt. that failed!! Just a malfunctioning cap!  It led to this phenomenon! Now the Rocky beacon has a new 22 uF Sprauge 2020 version - ...  alledgedly... MB

54

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2253 UTC »

What happened to the 'Inyo Whooper' (a daytimer) was that its solar-panel partially-failed and was putting out only 4 volts intermittently.  The antenna was trashed by winds and nibblers after 10 years - kinda flimsy wire anyway - never thought it would last so long..., so it kinda was NG and so the thing had to go home, alledgedly... me thinks... it can be put on from its home... someplace ... still 4097.2 but i believe its keying cap was changed a tad...

55

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2249 UTC »

Could this be the Inyo Whooper?  An imposter maybe?   Listening to the Northern Utah SDR this morning 1445Z I see and hear a dasher on 4097.2 KHz.  Seems to be a bit faster than one dash/sec.  Some fading but overall a pretty good signal into that receiver.

Alledgedly is is the "Inyo Whooper" back safe in it's shop where it was built back in 2007 just put on as a test... me thinks... MB

56

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2245 UTC »

Chris/Jim/others:  I am hearing - since about a week now but it is not one I know anything about **honest** save for it is a weak daytimer and so closer than Coxie and is similar strength as Coxie.  Sends "R" in a slow ident with a short space.  It's on ~4096.2 approx.  I've been monitoring it as well as the Phallaxy Beacon (etc.). NOT anything Iknow but THANKS to the op!

Ident not similar to the 5.1 sec. cycle 521.48 "R" beacon in the desert with reportedly 60w input... but 2-3 w ERP...  hmmm... 

Coxie often begins with a chirp. Phallaxy has none... both remain daytime only.  Coxie is easily 10-15 dB stronger than Phallaxy here...

57

HF Beacons / Re: Re: Currently Active Beacons

« on: May 04, 2020, 2237 UTC »

Former Viking re-installed as "Phallaxy" (due to the shape of the cool granite rocks nearby...).  I think you guys have the other updates fine.. MB

58

HF Beacons / Re: ~6626.2 "Rocky" beacon photo (Inyo desert, CA) - early April 2020

« on: May 04, 2020, 2230 UTC »

it appears the pics auto-reload from my website soon as I FTPd the smaller/shrunk images of Viking/Phallaxy and the one of Rocky above.  100DPI and Width of 10 inches works to keep them in the text box window... 73 spm

59

HF Beacons / Re: Teotwaki's Morning Beacon Log

« on: May 04, 2020, 2221 UTC »

6626.22-ish  I'm hearing both Rainy and a ditter fading rapidly in and out. Sometimes separately and sometimes mixed

Looks like you're hearing the repaired and relocated "ROcky" dasher unless my friend's (I thought) long gone ditter way up in the Inyo mtns and place 8 years ago is still alive...  if the dasher is synched with rainy sometimes it is Rocky. thanks man  - MB/SpM

60

HF Beacons / Re: ~6626.2 "Rocky" beacon photo (Inyo desert, CA) - early April 2020

« on: May 04, 2020, 2216 UTC »

THANKS sfyr and AA7EE! - I'll get an updated pic as soon as I can d/l them from the camera soon.  The top wire is now the same as the second from the topmost wire and is thusly the xmit. wire.  Otherwise the same.  Maybe 200 mW output.  No short-skip within the region so the coastal SDRs at KFs and KPH are supurb for monitoring these.  Sometimes Rainy and Rocky synch up nicely when Rainy (the ticker) is at the same keying rate...

Just have some updated 4096 "Viking" pics now at a new site and weaker but going - a challenge to hear outside its groundwave area, like MarinDit on its fund.  4096 is not what it was once!

Cool whomever is doing the "R" beacon about 4096.2 -ish!  R is weak daytimes here like the new "Phallaxy Beacon" (former viking - 4095.9 or so.) but is more like the Haystack was for ERP I think. 

New (Phallaxy/former Viking Beacon - 4095.9 kHz or so)  beacon pics below...



and...



I think this should work... cc'd to my site also...

the second site is very hidden unlike the former Viking Mine site.  Just that it was HARD to DF. I had to do so to locate it and it was hard going... MB/Steve

oops I need to shrink these pics!