17th Edition of the Global Radio Guide (Winter 2021-22) Now Available

 

Press Release:                                                                         

Teak Publishing Company 
P.O. Box 297
Brasstown NC 28902
www.teakpublishing.com
For Immediate Release                                                                       Thursday, December 2, 2021

On any given day, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) fueled by a meteoric rise in the country's economics, politics, the covid pandemic, cyber security and human rights issues, Beijing Winter 2022 Olympics, and a strident expansion of the country’s military forces dominates global news headlines and news cycles. These headlines include China’s recent tensions with Taiwan, which are said to be the worst in forty years, and its other neighbors in the South China Sea region.

As China’s influence continues to expand worldwide, so have the country’s huge radio broadcast services. Local, regional, and international mediumwave and shortwave networks carry news and programming to audiences around the world. Since these services are government-sponsored you are hearing China’s Communist Party’s (CCP) perspective of worldwide events as they unfold. Topping the list of the country’s media outlets is China Radio International (CRI) the largest and most widely heard station in China.

For those who want to follow all the ongoing storylines originating from the PRC, Gayle Van Horn’s 17th Edition of her Amazon bestselling Global Radio Guide (Winter 2021-22) has all the details you need to monitor all the radio services from the Land of the Red Dragon.

Her feature is one of the most comprehensive articles ever written on the Chinese radio broadcast system. Complete schedules for all China radio services, a section of how to ID national stations broadcasting in Chinese, and links to videos with CRI IDs in 45 languages on the author’s YouTube channel that are just some of the materials you will find in this all-important cover story in the GRG. This is an indispensable guide for the radio listener to hear China as tensions in the region continue to heat up.

China’s broadcasters are not the only focus of this completely updated edition of the GRG, though. Worldwide, tensions are continuing to escalate, and – in another case of what is old becoming new – people around the world are once again turning to shortwave radio to place themselves on the front lines.

With the help of the GRG, you can tune in to shortwave broadcast stations from other hotspots such as Cuba, India, Iran, North/South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and many other counties. If you have a shortwave radio receiver, SDR, or Internet connection, pair it with this unique radio resource to know when and where to listen to the world.

This newest edition of the GRG carries on the tradition of those before it with an in-depth, 24-hour station/frequency guide with schedules for selected AM band, longwave, and shortwave radio stations. This unique resource is the only radio publication that lists by-hour schedules that include all language services, frequencies, and world target areas for over 500 stations worldwide. The schedules included in this edition of the GRG are valid from 31 October 2021 until 26 March 2022, the B21 broadcast schedule period.

The GRG includes listings of DX radio programs and Internet website addresses for many of the stations in the book. There are also entries for time and frequency stations as well as some of the more “intriguing” transmissions one can find on the shortwave radio bands.

Gayle has also updated her now-famous SDR Buyer’s Guide, a must-have compendium that helps you navigate through the revolutionary world of software-defined radios (SDRs), the new digital frontier of the radio hobby.

Also new in this 17th edition, James Careless, in an article that originally appeared in Radio World, looks at the current state of shortwave receiver technology. Dr. Adrian Peterson of AWR looks back at the early days of Philippine broadcasting. David Harris has written a review of the bhi NES10-2MK4 Noise Cancelling Speaker. Spectrum Monitor columnist Fred Waterer will take you on a guided tour of shortwave music programs from around the world.

There are updated columns including the latest radio news in Bits & Bytes, current radio QSL information and addresses, the Best of the Best DX shortwave program listings, and a listing of radio station Internet websites.

This edition also has introductory articles for beginners on Traveling the World via Shortwave Radio Broadcasts, Monitoring the Shortwave Action Bands, and Teak’s latest greatly expanded frequency list of HF non-broadcast radio stations worldwide.

Global Radio listeners are routinely entertained with unique perspectives to events, music, culture, history, and news from other countries that you will not see or hear on your local or national broadcast channels. Global Radio broadcasts are not restricted by country borders or oceans and can travel thousands of miles, reaching millions of listeners worldwide, now in over 300 different languages and dialects.

Whether you monitor shortwave radio broadcasts, amateur radio operators, or aeronautical, maritime, government, or military communications in the HF radio spectrum, this book has the frequencies to help you to hear it all. Teak Publishing’s Global Radio Guide "brings the world to you."

You can find this edition of the Global Radio Guide, along with all of Teak Publishing e-book titles currently available for purchase, on the Teak Publishing Web site at http://www.teakpublishing.com. This includes all previous editions of the Global Radio Guide available at reduced sale prices.

The 17th edition of the Global Radio Guide e-Book (electronic book only, “no print edition available”) is available worldwide from Amazon and their various international websites at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09MV5XMFZ.

The price for this latest edition is US$8.99 for over 1000 pages of radio hobby content and frequencies. Since this book is being released internationally, Amazon customers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France Spain, Italy, Japan, India, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, and Australia can order this e-Book from Amazon websites directly servicing these countries. Customers in all other countries can use the regular Amazon.com website to purchase this e-Book.

You can read any Kindle e-Book with Amazon’s ‘free’ reading apps on literally any electronic media platform. You do not have to own a Kindle reader from Amazon to read this e-book. There are Kindle apps available for iOS, Android, Mac, and PC platforms. You can find additional details on these apps by checking out this link to the Amazon website at http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771. 

Pacific Aero HF/VHF Coverage

 

Mode is USB for all frequencies below unless otherwise indicated.

North Pacific (NP) MWARA

San Francisco 5628  6655  8951  10048  13339  17946  21925 kHz

The North Pacific is considered to be above 37N and west of 150W, west to the Tokyo FIR at 165E, and includes the Anchorage FIR and Russian Airspace. Some checkpoints along the Aleutian chain are in  HF range of remote relay stations; therefore, Anchorage controllers communicate directly with flights along much of their route. Tokyo Radio is the only other radio station using the North Pacific frequency  groups

NP/Polar Routes: Anchorage ARTCC’s current radio voice capabilities in the Arctic CTA do not extend past N75°. Lack of satellite coverage in the polar region affects CPDLC coverage as well. Because of the lack of ATC communications available in the Polar region, SFO provides communications using the NP1 HF family as primary and the Barrow, Alaska LDOCF as a secondary means for these aircraft.

Central East Pacific (CEP) – 2/3 MWARA
San Francisco 2869  3452  5547  6673  10057  11282  13288  21964 kHz
 
Central East Pacific (CEP) – 1/2/3 MWARA
San Francisco  2869  3413  3452  5547  5574  6673  8843  8915  10057  11282  13288  13354  21964 kHz

CEP (Central East Pacific): The Central East Pacific has composite route structures which primarily cover the areas between the Continental United States and Hawaii. It also covers the route structures between Canada and Hawaii. When assuming radio guard on CEP flights, flights will monitor the  primary and secondary HF assignment and set the aircraft transponder unit on code 2000 (also called  squawk Code)

 

South Pacific (SP) MWARA
San Francisco  3467  5643  8867  13261  17904 kHz

SP (South Pacific): Most flights traveling to and from the South Pacific operate during the mid-shift. Generally, the lower frequencies of the SP family are reliable during these hours. Several ground stations share this group: Brisbane, Auckland, Nadi, Tahiti, and San Francisco. Station interference is not normally a problem. Most flights leave SFO radio guard and enter Nadi’s guard. Nadi radio operators (ROs) occasionally work traffic well into the SFO guard area when atmospheric conditions make reading the flights difficult.

 

Central West Pacific (CWP) -1 MWARA
San Francisco 2998  3455  4666  6532  8903  11384  13300  17904 kHz

Central West Pacific (CWP) -2 MWARA

San Francisco 2998  5652  6532  8870  11384  13300  17904  21985 kHz

CWP (Central West Pacific): The frequencies of the Central West Pacific family cover a vast amount of territory. The boundaries of the Oakland FIR have neighboring control authorities and radio stations.  San Francisco shares this frequency group with Tokyo, Manila, and Port Moresby. The West Pacific frequencies are divided into 2 groups. CWP- 1 generally works flights east of 170E and flights traveling between Honolulu and the Orient, and CWP-2 works flights in the Guam area, west of 170E.

San Francisco LDOC (Asia, Pacific, Polar)  3494  6640   8933  11342  13348  17925  21964 kHz

Pacific (PAC) Air/Air (AM) 123.450 MHz

US Coast Guard HF SITOR Weather Schedule

National Weather Service Marine Products via U.S. Coast Guard HF SITOR

Source: https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts

All times in UTC, frequencies in kHz, and mode is SITOR-B/FEC 100/170

0115 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 16806.5

0130 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 12579 22376

0140 NMF Boston MA: High Seas Forecasts includes ice reports from International Ice Patrol - 6314 8416.5 12579

0230 NRV Guam: HYDROPAC navigation message - 12579 16806.5 22376

0500 NRV Guam: High Seas Forecasts - 12579 16806.5 22376

0730 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 12579

0900 NRV Guam: HYDROPAC navigation message - 12579 16806.5 22376

1330 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 12579

1500 NRV Guam: High Seas Forecasts - 12579 16806.5 22376

1630 NMF Boston MA: High Seas Forecasts includes ice reports from International Ice Patrol - 8416.5 12579 16806.5

1730 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 16806.5

1900 NRV Guam: High Seas Forecasts - 12579 16806.5 22376

2030 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8416.5 12579 22376

2315 NRV Guam: High Seas Forecasts - 12579 16806.5 22376

Assigned frequencies are shown, for carrier frequencies subtract 1.7 kHz. Typically specialized marine communications equipment uses assigned SITOR frequencies while general-purpose equipment uses carrier frequencies. Note that stations share common frequencies.

US Coast Guard HF Voice Weather Schedule

 

National Weather Service Marine Products via U.S. Coast Guard HF VoiceSource: https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts

All times in UTC, frequencies in kHz and mode is USB

0005 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8764 13089

0030 NMN Chesapeake VA: Offshore Forecasts - 4426 6501 8764

         NMG New Orleans LA: Offshore Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

0203 NOJ Kodiak AK: High Seas Forecats - 6501

0330 NRV Guam: High Seas Broadcasts - 13089

0430 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 4426 8764 13089

0515 NMN Chesapeake VA: High Seas Forecasts - 4426 6501 8764

         NMG New Orleans LA: High Seas Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

0600 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 6501 8764

0930 NMN Chesapeake VA: Offshore Forecasts - 4426 6501 8764

         NMG New Orleans LA: Offshore Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

          NRV Guam: High Seas Broadcasts - 6501

1030 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 4426 8764 13089

1115 NMN Chesapeake VA: High Seas Forecasts - 6501 8764 13089

         NMG New Orleans LA: High Seas Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

1200 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 6501 8764

1530 NMN Chesapeake VA: Offshore Forecasts - 6501 8764 13089

         NMG New Orleans LA: Offshore Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

          NRV Guam: High Seas Broadcasts - 6501

1630 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 8764 13089 17314

1645 NOJ Kodiak AK: High Seas Forecats - 6501

1715 NMN Chesapeake VA: High Seas Forecasts - 6501 8764 13089 17314

         NMG New Orleans LA: High Seas Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

1800 NMO Honolulu HI: High Seas Forecasts - 8764 13089

2130 NMN Chesapeake VA: Offshore Forecasts - 6501 8764 13089

         NMG New Orleans LA: Offshore Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

         NRV Guam: High Seas Broadcasts - 13089

2230 NMC Point Reyes CA: High Seas Forecasts - 8764 13089 17314

2315 NMN Chesapeake VA: High Seas Forecasts - 6501 8764 13089

         NMG New Orleans LA: High Seas Forecasts - 4316 8502 12788

HF voice broadcasts may be terminated if longer than the available broadcast period. This will most likely occur during the hurricane season when supplementary advisories are broadcast in addition to the routine forecasts. Carrier frequencies are shown.  HF voice broadcasts use a synthesized voice "Iron Mike" and use USB mode. ITU channel numbers as follows: 4426 kHz (#424), 6501 kHz (#601), 8764 kHz (#816), 13089 kHz (#1205), 17314 kHz (#1625). Note that stations share common frequencies.

Chinese Manned Space Station/Shezhou S-Band downlinks

From the Twitter feed of Scott Chapman (@Scott23182):

Chinese Space Station module #1 'Tianhe' has several great S-Band downlinks. Newly docked manned capsule 'Shenzhou-12': "Hold my beer"! (Thanks @df2mz for Shenzhou freqs) 

Global Radio Guide Summer 2021 Promotional Video

 

Promotional Video produced by Teak Publishing Marketing Director Loyd Van Horn W4LVH

Website: https://www.dxcentralonline.com/

Twitter: @DXCentral https://twitter.com/DXCentral

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVKn6FsYIsNjDorND2MJ2MA

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dxcentral

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dxcentralonline

16th Edition of the Global Radio Guide (Summer 2021) Now Available

Get you copy of the new Global Radio Guide Summer 2021 at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0938DDK5L

Sometimes in life, what is old becomes new again.  Familiar names and voices we long have placed into the recesses of our minds, suddenly spring back to the forefront.

It can be that way with radio as well.  What we sometimes consider to be antique transmissions of a bygone era can re-emerge in a digital world, as if time had merely paused.  They ensnare the attention of both those who were around for the glory days, as well as those hearing these signals for the first time.

Such is the case with the recently resurfaced “Russian Woodpecker.”  The Cold War-era stalwart that once placed its distinct signal across large swaths of the HF band is once again being heard amongst the crackles of static on shortwave radios and SDRs around the world.

For those who want to be part of the action, Gayle Van Horn’s 16^th Edition of her Amazon bestselling Global Radio Guide (Summer 2021) has all the details you need to catch up with our vintage friend.

“My first thought was, ‘I have heard this signal before,’” writes Teak Publishing co-founder and editor of the Global Radio Guide (GRG), Larry Van Horn, in his in-depth look into the return of Russia’s famous Over-The-Horizon-Radar (OTHR) transmissions.  “It did not take long for me to connect what I was hearing to the past and realize I was hearing a form of the old Russian Woodpecker again.”

Included in Van Horn’s article is everything you need to become a grizzled “woodpecker” expert:  a historical review of Russia’s OTHR system, information on where in the world – and on the HF band – the newest version of the Woodpecker is being heard, links to audio samples so you know what to listen for, maps of transmitting locations, and more.

Russia radars are not the only focus of this completely updated edition of the GRG, though.  Worldwide, tensions are continuing to escalate and – in another case of what is old becoming new – people around the world are once again turning to shortwave radio to place themselves on the front lines.

With the help of the GRG, you can tune in to shortwave broadcast stations from hotspots such as China, Cuba, India, Iran, North/South Korea, Taiwan, and many other counties. If you have a shortwave radio receiver, SDR, or Internet connection, pair it with this unique radio resource to know when and where to listen to the world.

This newest edition of the GRG carries on the tradition of those before it with an in-depth, 24-hour station/frequency guide with schedules for selected AM band, longwave, and shortwave radio stations. This unique resource is the only radio publication that lists by-hour schedules that include all language services, frequencies, and world target areas for over 500 stations worldwide.

The GRG includes listings of DX radio programs and Internet website addresses for many of the stations in the book. There are also entries for time and frequency stations as well as some of the more “intriguing” transmissions one can find on the shortwave radio bands.

Larry Van Horn has also updated his now-famous SDR Buyer’s Guide, a must-have compendium that helps you navigate through the revolutionary world of software-defined radios (SDRs), the digital frontier of the radio hobby.

Continuing with the theme of this 16^th edition of the GRG:  Gayle takes a stroll into the seemingly not too distant past, into the role that radio played during the Falkland Island War, even as new government leaders within Argentina jockey for position to reclaim sovereignty over the islands.

Spectrum Monitor magazine editor, Ken Reitz, dives into the rise and fall of Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) on shortwave radio.  Reitz gives a rundown on where you can still find DRM signals on the shortwave bands, even if you do not have a DRM-capable radio in your home.

Fred Waterer, also of Spectrum Monitor, checks in with a feature on one of the great pastimes of shortwave radio – traveling the world without leaving home.  This is an especially poignant topic of discussion given the current travel restrictions found in most of the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Waterer gives us a detailed RF-itinerary for circumnavigating the globe via broadcasters on shortwave radio.  While many of the station names may be different than they once were, Waterer proves that there is still plenty of diversity and culture to be found on the bands.

Whether you monitor shortwave radio broadcasts, amateur radio operators, or aeronautical, maritime, government, or military communications in the HF radio spectrum, this book has the frequencies to help you to hear it all. Teak Publishing’s Global Radio Guide "brings the world to you."

You can find this edition of the Global Radio Guide, along with all of our titles currently available for purchase, on the Teak Publishing Web site at www.teakpublishing.com.  For a limited time, all previous editions of the Global Radio Guide will also be available at a reduced price.  Details will be available at www.teakpublishing.com.

The 16^th edition of the Global Radio Guide e-Book (electronic book only, no print edition available) is available worldwide from Amazon and their various international websites at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0938DDK5L 

The price for this latest edition is US$8.99. Since this book is being released internationally, Amazon customers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France Spain, Italy, Japan, India, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, and Australia can order this e-Book from Amazon websites directly servicing these countries. Customers in all other countries can use the regular Amazon.com website to purchase this e-Book.

 

You can read any Kindle e-Book with Amazon’s ‘free’ reading apps on literally any electronic media platform. You do not have to own a Kindle reader from Amazon to read this e-book. There are Kindle apps available for iOS, Android, Mac, and PC platforms. You can find additional details on these apps by checking out this link to the Amazon website at www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771.

 

A Classic Article During the height of the Cold War Numbers Era

 I have some interesting memories of this article and how it came about. Nothing I will discuss publicly but shortly after it was published, US-based 5-digit English numbers broadcast left the airwaves.

You can read what I wrote by downloading a free copy in pdf  at https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-Monitoring-TImes/1990s/Monitoring-Times-1994-10.pdf

Monitoring Times Oct 1994

Teak Publishing Releases The Milcom Files: The Spectrum Monitor Volume 3 (2020)

  Recent world events continue to draw many radio listeners into their radio shacks to tune in on the action using their shortwave radios. software-defined radios, and programmable VHF/UHF scanners. In many cases monitoring the HF/VHF/UHF radio spectrum offers the radio hobbyist an opportunity to hear what is really going on behind the scenes without the filters imposed by news media outlets.

 Most radio listeners quickly learn that when the world has a crisis, disaster or tensions rise between countries, the military will usually be the first organization called upon to intervene. It pays to monitor military frequencies when international events heat up. Monitoring the military can offer some of the most productive and rewarding listening you will ever experience using your radio. The good news is you do not have to live close to a military installation to hear these communications. But you do need to learn where and when to tune in military communications.

 Mention the words "Monitor the Military" and most radio hobbyists will immediately think of military air shows, military aircraft flybys or a whole host of other activities that can be heard via radio frequencies. There is a big radio frequency spectrum out there to monitor if you know where to listen, you can eavesdrop on some of the most fascinating radio communications you will hear on a scanner or shortwave radio.

 Larry Van Horn N5FPW, has been a radio hobbyist for more than 56 years listening to world events and monitoring military radio communications. He has spent over 39 years documenting activity in the military radio spectrum in his monthly Satellite, Utility World, and Milcom (Military Communications) columns in the pages of Monitoring Times, Satellite Times, and now The Spectrum Monitor magazines. During this time, he has published a treasure trove of military communication monitoring information.

 In 2017 Larry joined the Spectrum Monitor writing staff as he continues to chronicle military monitoring in his new monthly TSM Milcom column. Now for the first time, he is publishing all his monthly TSM Milcom columns (2017-2020) at Amazon in the Kindle eBook format.

 Teak Publishing is pleased to announce the release of their latest Kindle e-book -- The Milcom Files – The Spectrum Monitor Volume 3 (2020) by this Amazon bestselling author.

 This e-book incorporates the fourth year of his TSM Milcom columns written from January 2020 to December 2020. This fourth book in the series has more than 39.100 plus words, and 206 pages of frequencies, call signs, military base profiles, foreign military HF/VHF/UHF frequencies, airshow, and flight demonstration teams’ frequencies, detailed aeronautical frequency scans, beginner tips, and monitoring hints and tricks plus a lot more.

 Some of the many topics covered in this edition include: What is an EAM? UK RAF Base frequencies; Australian/New Zealand/Papua New Guinea Military HF frequencies; HF aeronautical off route band plans, various U.S. military base profiles, a profile on the U.S. Navy P8 aircraft and frequencies; 380-400 MHz LMR subband frequencies; US Navy FACSFAC, monitor military in the longwave frequencies; and airshow frequencies.

 If you are interested in monitoring military comms. own a scanner, shortwave radio, or have an Internet connection for web software-defined radio (SDR) monitoring, then the Milcom Files (TSM 2020) is a must reference for the radio reference library.

 You can find this edition of The Milcom Archives, along with all our titles currently available for purchase, on the Teak Publishing Web site at www.teakpublishing.com.

 The Milcom Files: The Spectrum Monitor Volume 3 (2020) e-Book (electronic book only, no print edition available) is available worldwide from Amazon and their various international websites at https://www.amazon.com/Milcom-Files-Spectrum-Monitor-ebook/dp/B08VF5PMTD/

 The price for this latest edition is US$4.99. Since this book is being released internationally, Amazon customers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France Spain, Italy, Japan, India, Canada, Brazil, Mexico and Australia can order this e-Book from Amazon websites directly servicing these countries. Customers in all other countries can use the regular Amazon.com website to purchase this e-Book.

 You can read any Kindle e-Book with Amazon’s ‘free’ reading apps on literally any electronic media platform. You do not have to own a Kindle reader from Amazon to read this e-book. There are Kindle apps available for iOS, Android, Mac, and PC platforms. You can find additional details on these apps by checking out this link to the Amazon website at https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/fd/kcp.

  

 

Update on the Status of RadFxSat-2 / Fox-1E

AMSAT News Service Bulletin 024.01

From AMSAT HQ WASHINGTON, DC
DATE January 24, 2021

RadFxSat-2 was launched Sunday, January 17, on Virgin Orbit LauncherOne launch vehicle.  Reports from the launch provider stated that telemetry confirmed that the deploy commands had been sent and that all of the doors opened successfully, resulting in payload orbits that were all within the ICD limits.

Nominally, we expected to see “First (digital) Veronica” from the RadFxSat-2 telemetry beacon commencing 54 minutes after our deployment from the launch vehicle.  That did not occur as expected.

For each of our launches, we follow a number of steps documented in the “In Orbit Checklist” (IOC) spreadsheet.  Confirmation of launch and deployment are the first steps and then, confirmation of beacon reception.  All other steps follow that but there are steps in case of anomaly, beginning with the detection of the beacon.

As always, from the moment we are deployed we look for signs of the beacon through the ears of amateur radio operators and other means, SatNOGS and webSDR to name a few.  The antenna deployment and full start of the IHU to bring up the beacon can occur anywhere around the globe.  AMSAT greatly appreciates the ongoing and reliable help we receive from you and it is by far the best satellite ground network even beyond that of many commercial players, for LEO orbits.

Command coverage is limited to the United States for various reasons including regulatory requirements, so the opportunity to exercise the steps of the IOC occurs a few times per day as the orbit passes over us.

With no sign of the beacon after a few orbits offering good footprints for reception, we proceeded with the contingency steps to verify the presence of or activate the beacon.  This past week our Engineering and Operations Team members have been at work literally 20 hours per day exercising all of the contingencies outlined in the IOC steps.  These steps have grown and matured with each launch of a Fox-1 program CubeSat and are tailored to the specific satellite.  RadFxSat-2, while she may seem to be much the same as the others with the exception of the transponder vs. FM radio, does present a number of variations to be included in the IOC.  As the results of those steps were exhausted with no beacon detected, we added meetings and increased emails including all of our engineers to discuss possible causes by any of the systems and to develop further steps.

From those we drew new steps of command sequences that might overcome whatever anomaly existed and make the beacon heard.  As the week drew on, we continued brainstorming and steps to activate other functions that would provide proof of life.  We continue to do so today and for whatever time until we exhaust all possibilities that we are able to draw from the expertise and satellite experience of our Engineering Team and Operations Team drawing from the design of RadFxSat-2 and lessons learned in the Fox-1 program as well as any from missions prior to AMSAT’s first CubeSats.

AMSAT still needs your help as always, to help detect any sign of activity from RadFxSat-2.  This includes ability to listen for local oscillators or transponder driver output in the case of a failed PA.

I personally ask that those of you who are and have been interested in the entire process of bringing a new amateur radio satellite to orbit and through end of life to continue to contribute your curiosity and enthusiasm in exploring from your own station, to pursue the possibilities of a successful RadFxSat-2 mission along with us.  I have received reports and queries from some of you, and I greatly appreciate your contributions.  You are in fact volunteers in the AMSAT Engineering Team through your contribution.

If you are interested, I ask that you do due diligence in your procedure if you think you have identified a signal by re-creating (if possible) and verifying to yourself that what you have is credible, as we do, before contacting us.  That “standard” procedure is what adds value by making the information actionable rather than placing the onus of determining if it is even real upon us, because we are of course quite busy with that already.  Please email your findings to foxtelem@amsat.us and allow us a day or two to acknowledge and/or reply.

While we tend to talk about our involvement with RadFxSat-2 above all, a real effect reaches outside our mutual desire for amateur radio satellite fun.  RadFxSat-2 is sponsored by Vanderbilt University as part of our long partnership going back to Fox-1A.  RadFxSat-2’s mission belongs to Vanderbilt University as part of their RadFX series of missions seeking to verify and explore radiation effects on COTS components.  Their mission coincides well with AMSAT’s desire to fly lower cost satellite missions using COTS components, in the unfriendly radiation environment of Earth orbit and beyond.  Vanderbilt also sponsored the CSLI for RadFxSat (one) in our Fox-1B spacecraft back in 2012.  Their proposal was selected by NASA, flown on the ELaNa XIV mission in November of 2017.

RadFxSat’s mission was very successful in the information provided through the combined telemetry-gathering of all of those who pursue our missions through FoxTelem.  Vanderbilt University published their results giving praise to AMSAT and our Fox-1 CubeSats. The experiments we host are built by students and Vanderbilt shares the experiences with the educational community in their area.  That is a success for AMSAT as well in our goal to provide STEM and other educational contributions.

While the RadFxSat-2 mission is problematic at this time, we will pursue every possibility to make her work for the amateur community and for our partner.  I certainly hope to continue our partnership with Vanderbilt, the mutual benefit is a wonderful and fun undertaking that adds to the value of our satellites.

[ANS thanks Jerry Buxton, N0JY, AMSAT Vice President – Engineering, for the above information]

10 Dec 2020 was a MW LA Night in Btown

 Have been reviewing an SDR IQ run I made on 10 Dec 2020 on the medium wave band and it appears thank to a weak geo storm, managed to log some nice Latins around 0000 UTC.

Here are just some of the stations heard:

539.8 18:55 19:06 YNOW Radio Corporación Managua, NCG (new Btown country)

600.0 18:55 19:06 CMBA Radio Rebelde San German, Urano Noris HO CUB

610.0 18:55 19:06 CMBA Radio Rebelde Guane, Guane PR CUB

620.0 18:55 19:06 CMBA Radio Rebelde Colon MA CUB

640.0 18:55 19:06 CMBC Radio Progreso Guanabacoa CH CUB

670.0 18:55 19:06 CMBA Radio Rebelde Arroyo Arenas CH CUB

690.0 18:55 19:06 CMBC Radio Progreso Progreso, Santa Clara VC CUB

710.0 18:55 19:06 CMBA Radio Rebelde Marti MA CUB

720.0 18:55 19:00 WRZN The Shepherd         Hernando FL

760.0 18:55 19:06 CMBC Radio Progreso Guane, Guane PR CUB

1180.0 18:57 18:58 WJNT Newstalk 1180 Pearl MS

580.0 18:59 19:00 WGAC                              Augusta GA

780.3 18:59 19:01 HJZG La Vox de Dios Cali, CLM

680.0 19:03 19:06 CFTR Global Radio Radio Toronto/Grimsby ON CAN

There is more in their IQ recording and I will add additional logs to this post. Should note there were more Cubans but these were the ones I added to the log others such as CMBQ Radio Enciclopedia Guanabaccao CH CUB and CMBA Radio Rebelde Guantanamo GU CUB both on 530 kHz were quite audible.