Month: December 2020

Canada

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Regarding CJMS 1040 AM in Saint-Constant, Quebec, I just received confirmation from Normand Martel who spoke with someone at the station. They are now “officially” shut down based on a decision from the CRTC to revoke their license. They had been continuing to broadcast awaiting the results of an appeal on the decision. According to a spokesperson from the station, they are now gone for good. The station was noted off the air late this week.
Sheldon Harvey, Canadian Int. DX Club, CKUT’s International Radio Report to WOR groups.io (2020-12-26)

United States

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WNJC 1360 AM DX Tests
At 5kw for the final Christmas DX test! Thanks for the reports and hope everyone enjoyed the music / dx test. Look forward to continuing these tests into the new year.
Duke Hamann to WNJC 1360 AM DX Tests fb group (2020-12-26

Space

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A new sunspot is growing near the sun’s southeastern limb. The new ‘spot, numbered AR2795, has increased 10-fold in size since yesterday. It is currently crackling with minor B-class solar flares. Stronger flares are possible if the expansion continues apace.
Mike Terry to WRTH fb group (2020-12-24)

United States

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WCPH 1220 Etowah, TN Holiday DX Test Dec 26 and Jan 2.
George Hudson, owner of WCPH and The Courtesy Program Committee (CPC) of the NRC and IRCA are pleased to announce two special upcoming DX Tests on both December 26 and January 2nd, 2021. Both tests will be late night Friday/Early Saturday morning from 2 AM Eastern Time until 4 AM Eastern (0700-0900 UTC).
So on Christmas night, after all the gifts are unwrapped and the grandkids have signed off from Zoom—put on some hot chocolate and join us in celebrating the 65th Anniversary of this great local station. Then do it again on New Year’s night after the bowl games have finished for the day.
WCPH 1220 AM will be doing maintenance testing at their full daytime power of 1,000 watts using their daytime pattern. The station will transmit station identifications in voice, singing jingles, and Morse Code. In addition, they will transmit sweep tones, 1 kHz long tones, and other sound effects.
WCPH is currently celebrating their 65th anniversary of serving Southeastern Tennessee. The station’s branding is “Homegrown 1220” and “Southeast Tennessee’s Oldies Station.” Their nighttime power is normally limited to 109 watts on a very crowded channel—so this test represents a unique chance to log this one.
Joe Miller, KJ8O has designed a special 65th Anniversary QSL card, which will be available to those who successfully log this holiday test. At the request of the station, the Courtesy Program Committee will be handling QSL duties. Our requirements are as follows:
E-mail is preferred for reporting. Send an e-mail to:
les@highnoonfilm.com
It must include an .MP3 file recording of the best part of your reception. Please edit this to no more than two minutes in length. If you cannot record audio, then a detailed written report will be accepted. Please try to include the exact time that you received each element and the order they were received in. This can be matched against the source material.
We will also accept reception reports via US Mail. Mail reception reports along with a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) to:
Les Rayburn, N1LF
121 Mayfair Park
Maylene, AL 35114
If your reception is confirmed, you’ll receive a colorful QSL card in .PDF file format, suitable for printing.
For now, plan your holiday activities around these two great opportunities to log Homegrown 1220 in Etowah, TN! See you late night on Christmas Day!
WCPH AM Coverage Map
73, Les Rayburn, N1LF
121 Mayfair Parka
Maylene, AL 35114
EM63nf
NRC & IRCA Courtesy Program Committee Chairman to WOR groups.io (2020-12-23)

United States

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WCPH 1220 Etowah, TN Holiday DX Test Dec 26 and Jan 2.
George Hudson, owner of WCPH and The Courtesy Program Committee (CPC) of the NRC and IRCA are pleased to announce two special upcoming DX Tests on both December 26 and January 2nd, 2021. Both tests will be late night Friday/Early Saturday morning from 2 AM Eastern Time until 4 AM Eastern (0700-0900 UTC).
So on Christmas night, after all the gifts are unwrapped and the grandkids have signed off from Zoom—put on some hot chocolate and join us in celebrating the 65th Anniversary of this great local station. Then do it again on New Year’s night after the bowl games have finished for the day.
WCPH 1220 AM will be doing maintenance testing at their full daytime power of 1,000 watts using their daytime pattern. The station will transmit station identifications in voice, singing jingles, and Morse Code. In addition, they will transmit sweep tones, 1 kHz long tones, and other sound effects.
WCPH is currently celebrating their 65th anniversary of serving Southeastern Tennessee. The station’s branding is “Homegrown 1220” and “Southeast Tennessee’s Oldies Station.” Their nighttime power is normally limited to 109 watts on a very crowded channel—so this test represents a unique chance to log this one.
Joe Miller, KJ8O has designed a special 65th Anniversary QSL card, which will be available to those who successfully log this holiday test. Exact details on how QSL reports will be handled are still being worked out with the station, and will be announced shortly.
For now, plan your holiday activities around these two great opportunities to log Homegrown 1220 in Etowah, TN! See you late night on Christmas Day!
73, Les Rayburn to WOR groups.io (2020-12-23)

Iceland

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Winter solstice bandscan 2020
I went outside with the radio around 2110Z and was back in by 2120Z. A
small breeze and slight frost made it rather chilly so only one quick
turn on either band.
On the LW band, the clearest thing (after Eiðar, of course) was a
rather high noise level on 162 kHz that masked the Luxembourg effect
imposed on Allouis by Droitwich.
On the MW band, my first impression was that a vague hunch I got on LW
might be right – I was hearing more East European sounds than I’m used
to. I was still getting a few Spanish stations. though.
The Talk Sport relay on 1071 kHz was clear enough that I noticed it
for the first time. 1215 kHz sounded awful, in the suppressed-carrier
way, that is.
I didn’t think of checking it on the webwave band, but there was
something on R. Scotland (810 kHz) after the nine-o’clock news that
sounded like audio art mixing Christmas tunes with jammer transmitter
warbles. Sounded as weird as the description reads.
Reynir Heidberg Stefansson (2020-12-21)

Russia

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828 kHz, Russia. Several days ago Radio-gazeta Slovo (radio newspaper “Word”) stopped broadcasting at nights. Now they work only 06:00-14:00 UTC:
06:00-10:00 UTC – new programme,
10:00-14:00 UTC – repeat of the programme of the previous day. 
Pravoslavnoe Radio Sankt-Peterburga (Orthodoxal Radio of Saint Petersburg) which broadcasts on the same frequency continues broadcasting at day time and at night (02:00-06:00 and 14:00-18:00 UTC). 
Sergey Kolomiytsev (2020-12-21)

United Kingdom

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Radio Caroline will be broadcasting the Queen’s Christmas Message on Christmas Day this year – 56 years after being turned down for being an unauthorised broadcaster.
On 1 December 1964, David Block, publicity officer for the then pirate radio station, contacted the BBC to request a copy of the Queen’s Christmas message. He was told that, despite Caroline having more than 12 million listeners, his request could not be entertained because Caroline was a pirate radio station, and to come back ‘if and when’ he could provide ‘evidence of credentials as representative of an authorised broadcaster’.
Radio Caroline has been an authorised broadcaster since 22nd December 2017, when the station took over and returned to use the abandoned BBC World Service transmission facilities at Orfordness on the Suffolk coast. Radio Caroline again applied for permission to broadcast the Queen’s Christmas message this year and this time approval was granted.
Welcoming the news, Radio Caroline station manager Peter Moore said: “Fifty-six years is a long wait, but we are very pleased to now be able to transmit the Queen’s Christmas Message. This will be heard on 648 AM in the South East, on DAB in various towns and cities and globally via the Internet, where we have time shifted the message for East and West Coast US.”
Radio Caroline broadcasts from land-based studios on 648 AM, on DAB and around the world online. You can find a link here. One weekend each month presenters broadcast from Caroline’s former pirate radio ship Ross Revenge, moored on the River Blackwater in Essex.
Maldon Nub News
Mike Terry via WOR groups.io (2020-12-21)