AN X-FLARE FROM ‘THE DANGER ZONE’: Big sunspot AR3576 erupted today, producing a spectacular X2.5-class solar flare.This sunspot is entering ‘the danger zone’–a location on the sun which is magnetically connected to Earth. Additional X-flares this weekend could trigger a full-fledged radiation storm. Full story @ Spaceweather.com.
Ydun Ritz (2024-02-16)
RUV 189 kHz is back on now.
I suspect this was a test to gauge how many (if any) people still rely on the Tx.
Conor Burns (2024-02-16)
Translated from French:
End of BBCR4 LW 198 postponed a year till end of March 2025 for energy conversions
As I predicted: the end of long waves in Great Britain is delayed by 1 year. (And this time, I can affirm that, unlike RTL and Europe 1, I had nothing to do with it!).
As explained previously: the transmitter broadcasts a teleswitch signal from the Energy Networks Association. This signal causes the prices of old electricity meters to vary. The contract between Elexon and the Energy Networks Association (ENA) aimed at passing on operational costs, amounting to almost 6 million euros, expired on March 31, 2024. The electricians had to replace all the old meters before this date. That’s far from being the case! Earlier this week, “This is Money” reported that the technology still powers 900,000 old meters.
As a result, the emissions will continue for 1 additional year, ending at the end of March 2025.
As always, we promise, the date will not be postponed again.
As always, the BBC can no longer guarantee operational and maintenance service beyond this date.
Michel Fremy, Radio Magazine FB group (2024-02-15)
Translated from Spanish:
According to the information published by the local press in recent hours, the historic station identified as LT9 RADIO BRIGADIER GENERAL ESTANISLAO LÓPEZ “La Líder” (AM 1150 KHz), and its Category “B” Frequency Modulated channel known as LRM749 FM LÁSER (92.5 MHz), both from the city of Santa Fe capital, Province of the same name, have been acquired by the firm “Versión Rosario S.R.L.”, belonging to the powerful Rosario media businessman Orlando Mario Vignatti. LT9 is one of the first private stations that were born in the interior of the country. Its immediate predecessor was “Radio Roca Soler”, which emerged in 1921. Some time later, it was granted the official license to operate on AM, beginning its transmissions on June 24, 1924. Over time, the station changed owners several times. , and in recent years, thanks to Resolution No. 6603-ENACOM/16 dated 09/09/2016, the Enforcement Authority granted the license in favor of the firm “Onda 9 S.A.”, integrated at that time by the Mutual Association “Association of Mutual State Workers (ATEM), and Messrs. Federico Salvador Caputto, Manuel Pedro Vittori and Francisco Santiago Saíz (former owner of “Ondafe”, a company that managed LT9), who served as director of the station until his death, in January 2020. Towards the end of 2023, La Mutual ATE divested itself of its shareholding, while the percentage that corresponded to Saíz was sold by his heirs. The majority of the shareholding package thus passed to hands of the media conglomerate commanded by Orlando Vignatti. This businessman founded the newspaper “El Ciudadano” in 1998, and was the owner of LT8 Radio Rosario “La Ocho” (AM 830) in Rosario, which allowed him to establish links with other large media outlets, such as La Capital and Ámbito Financiero. The new owners intend to maintain the staff of 50 workers at both stations, and stated that the programming content will be “updated to current times.”
LT9, known by its slogan “La Líder”, operates with a Category IV on the frequency of 1150 KHz AM, equivalent to a power of 10 Kw (Daytime) and 1 Kw (Nighttime).
Its central studies and administration are located on 2153 4 de Enero Street, Santa Fe, Province of Santa Fe, Telephone: (342) 410-9999; E-mail: noticiaslt9@hotmail.com, Website: www.lt9.com.ar.
Its Transmission Plant is located on West Ring Road, Rural Recreation Zone (CG: 31°28’39.1″S, 60°44’43.3″W). In Frequency Modulation it operates two stations, one of them as we already said on 92.5 MHz, and also “FM9” on 105.5 MHz, where the AM 1150 signal is retransmitted.
Argentina en AM y FM FB group (2024-02-15)
IRCA Slogans as of February 15, 2024 are now available.
https://misc.kg4lac.com/irca
4,754 stations with slogans.
If a station doesn’t appear this indicates I don’t have the station slogan.
Since silent stations come and go, seemingly, quicker than I can update the list, silent stations remain in the list until they are actually deleted from the FCC list.
Acknowledgements are given on the final page of the Slogans List.
The “Recent MW Station Contacts for Reception Report Verifications” link to the list is also available on the same webpage. The Verifications page was updated on January 31, 2024.
As always, please let me know of additions, corrections, problems, etc.
73, Kraig Krist to irca iog (2024-02-15)
RUV Iceland on 189 kHz is off the air at the moment.
Conor Burns (2024-02-15)
Skeptics Question Disappearance of Alabama Radio Tower.
Some observers doubt WJLX‘s tower was stolen, but the general manager stands by his account.
Did the general manager of WJLX fake the theft of the station’s own 200-foot AM radio tower? Some online skeptics think so. Brett Elmore says it just isn’t so.
The alleged theft of that tower in Jasper, Ala., which we told you about earlier this month, gained attention from national and international media outlets (USA Today, The Guardian, South China Morning Post and many others). But it has also generated a lot of snarky comments from some observers, including several radio engineers, who doubt the plausibility of the story.
General Manager Brett Elmore says thieves stole the tower from its rural transmission site. He reported the incident to police on Feb. 2. He said the theft of the tower and other equipment, including its transmitter, took the station off the air.
Elmore says he was unaware the structure had gone missing until a land clearing company made the discovery and called him. The station had no remote monitoring equipment, Elmore says, so personnel were unaware the AM station was off the air prior to the discovery.
However, questions about how a 200-foot tower could “vanish without a trace,” as Elmore described it, swirled.
[….]
https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/headlines/skeptics-question-disappearance-of-alabama-radio-tower?utm_term=CA316074-A1D7-49B8-AF83-B04729A190FA&utm_medium=email&utm_content=82E25870-71FE-48D5-834B-A3894F7D314F&utm_source=SmartBrief
Ydun Ritz (2024-02-15)
1240 WBAS back on air, now relaying 102.3 WGTX Truro, MA.
After about a day of silence due to storm related power outages, WBAS West Yarmouth, MA has returned to the air on 1240 AM and 106.5 FM.
The recent ownership change is obvious in the attached ID audio clip made on 1240 at midnight EST on February 15.
Programming certainly “rockier” than when it had Bob Bittner’s nostalgia format.
Not “grandma’s WOCB” that’s for sure. Frank Sinatra has left the building.
Mark Connelly, WA1ION | South Yarmouth, MA to irca iog (2024-02-15)
Longwave switch off update
September 2023 Elexon meeting:
Background: The contract between Elexon and the Energy Networks Association (ENA) to pass operational costs for the Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) through the BSC as ‘BSC Costs’ is due to expire on 31 March 2024…. the transition away from the RTS is unlikely to conclude by 31 March 2024.
Conclusions:
The Issue Group recognised that all RTS devices need to be replaced by the end of 2025 as the BBC can no longer guarantee operational and maintenance service beyond this date. Therefore, the Issue 108 group acknowledged that December 2025 is the absolute deadline to replace RTS. Customers with RTS meters should be switched over by Summer 2025 at the latest to ensure the end of 2025 deadline is reached;
Cost to the electricity industry of agreement to pay the operational costs of the transmitter and of maintaining the infrastructure estimated at £5 million annually.
Link posted today on Digital Spy:
Energy Networks Association current status of radio teleswitch:
Radio teleswitches are being replaced as part of the smart meter rollout programme.To enable the programme to continue the life of the radio teleswitching system has been extended through to March 2025.
https://www.energynetworks.org/industry/engineering-and-technical-programmes/radio-teleswitch
bdxc-news via Mike Barraclough to WOR iog (2024-02-14)
CANADIAN RADIO NEWS –Jon Pearkins
jon@pearkins.com
Last week, Bell Canada (BCE) announced layoffs of 9% of its staff, 4800 employees, with less than 500 of those layoffs in its Bell Media subsidiary. At the same time, it announced agreements to sell 45 of its 103 regional radio stations in BC, ON, QC and Atlantic Canada. The AM stations, including repeater transmitters, are listed below.
There is some doubt about when the CRTC will consider Bell’s applications to sell these stations given the CRTC’s current moratorium on radio applications. Which could explain why the Bell announcement of the agreement to sell the stations ended with an assurance that it would be business as usual at each radio
station until the ownership transfer occurs.
590 BC Terrace CFTK Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
NB Sussex CJCW The CRTC has approved the station’s move to FM on 92.9 with 1400 watts utilizing a
directional pattern at 320 feet above average terrain (EHAAT). No change in the Adult Contemporary music format is planned. Traditionally, once the FM transmitter completes its Test Phase, there is a three month simulcast period. This is normally voluntary, but the CRTC made it mandatory in CJCW’s case since some communities served by the AM signal will be unable to receive a listenable signal from CJCW-FM.
610 ON St Catharines CKTB Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Whiteoaks Communications Group, a company founded in 1956 solely to launch CHWO-1250 Oakville ON.
800 BC Penticton CKOR Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
870 BC Invermere CKIR Bell Media has agreed to sell CKGR-FM and its CKIR repeater transmitter to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
890 BC Dawson Creek CJDC Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
910 AB Drumheller CKDQ The CRTC has approved the station’s move to FM on 92.5 with 36,600 watts utilizing a directional pattern at 125 feet above average terrain (EHAAT). No change in the Country music format is planned. The station is the last Alberta AM not serving the Edmonton or Calgary markets and even CKDQ targeted Calgary listeners when they first were granted 50KW. The traditional three month AM-FM simulcast period once the FM transmitter completes its Test Phase was made mandatory by the CRTC.
1150 BC Kelowna CKFR Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
1240 BC Osoyoos CJOR Bell Media has agreed to sell the station to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
1400 BC Princeton CIOR Bell Media has agreed to sell CJOR-1240 and its CIOR repeater transmitter to Vista Radio, subject to CRTC approval.
Canadian Radio News (CRN) posts on https://radiowest.ca by Dan Sys provide much of the information for this column.
IRCA DX Monitor items Feb 17 via WOR iog (2024-02-13)