Longwave in the US
- Thread starter rickc1970
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I have only been searching through LW for the last year. I have only been able to ID three signals below AM broadcast. WWVB at 60kHz, and beacons from Akron OH at 362 and Maniwaki QC at 366kHz. I am using a RTL-SDR dongle, nooelec Ham It Up upconverter with a Bonito Boni Whip antenna about thirty feet up my tower.
Some time stations way down low, some ham activity 2200M and 630M, lowfers around 185, Europe and Africa LW broadcast, DGPS 285-325, NAVTEX on 518...
Otherwise, nondirectional beacons (NDBs) 190-529 are most of the activity. NDBs are easy to identify as they constantly send their ID in slow Morse. Many of them have been or are being decommissioned but hundreds still exist. Your 100' wire antenna will be fine for a start. What do you plan on using for a receiver?
Otherwise, nondirectional beacons (NDBs) 190-529 are most of the activity. NDBs are easy to identify as they constantly send their ID in slow Morse. Many of them have been or are being decommissioned but hundreds still exist. Your 100' wire antenna will be fine for a start. What do you plan on using for a receiver?
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
While LW is still used in parts of Europe and North Africa, FM is slowly displacing these as LW is dying out. Note that there is no US broadcasting on these bands. If you hear MW stations in this band from the US, they are likely a mixing product due to overloading. Hams have a few allocations here, but perhaps the ones that have the most coverage are the various NAVTEX stations that are quite literally around the world. As it is based on SITOR-B, any app that can copy that mode can copy NAVTEX, and there's a plethoria of them - some free, too. For schedules and apps, see this page
www.sigidwiki.com
By the way, NAVTEX is not just on 518 khz. Broadcasts on this frequency are usually in English, but on 490 and 424 khz, they will be in other languages - even Japanese.
Now as to antennas a 100 foot wire will certainly hear something, but not very efficiently. Loops are preferable to active (sometimes also called E Field) antennas because of their lower noise characteristics. They can also be turned to favor one direction over another - an advantage if you are trying to null out interference. We have quite a wiki on loops here...
wiki.radioreference.com
Now for active antennas - you're going to need to dig a little. Universal Radio has kept their website up, but are no longer in business. Still we have a few of these listed here, along with some reviews of the Bonito antennas here...
wiki.radioreference.com
Mike
SITOR-B - Signal Identification Wiki
SITOR-B is one of two modes of SITOR (Simplex Teletype Over Radio).
By the way, NAVTEX is not just on 518 khz. Broadcasts on this frequency are usually in English, but on 490 and 424 khz, they will be in other languages - even Japanese.
Now as to antennas a 100 foot wire will certainly hear something, but not very efficiently. Loops are preferable to active (sometimes also called E Field) antennas because of their lower noise characteristics. They can also be turned to favor one direction over another - an advantage if you are trying to null out interference. We have quite a wiki on loops here...
Loops - The RadioReference Wiki
Now for active antennas - you're going to need to dig a little. Universal Radio has kept their website up, but are no longer in business. Still we have a few of these listed here, along with some reviews of the Bonito antennas here...
HF Antennas - The RadioReference Wiki
Mike
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
Just to expand a little bit
The 2200 meter band is 135.7-137.8 khz, up to 5 watts
The 630 meter band is 472-479 khz, 1 watt limit
and of course the 160-190 khz experimenter's band, which also has a 1 watt limit.
Modes here are rather specialized - frequently very slow CW and certain digital modes are common
Mike
The 2200 meter band is 135.7-137.8 khz, up to 5 watts
The 630 meter band is 472-479 khz, 1 watt limit
and of course the 160-190 khz experimenter's band, which also has a 1 watt limit.
Modes here are rather specialized - frequently very slow CW and certain digital modes are common
Mike
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Note that all US DGPS has been shut down (but the Canadians can still be heard).
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Easily heard are also 24.0 kHz USN Cutler, ME; USN Jim Creek, WA; 25.2 kHz USN LaMoure, ND; 40.75 kHz USN Aguada, PR; and VLF station in Europe are not that hard to hear also but all these are encrypted MSK. USN TACAMO aircraft do run clear FSK 50 Bd/50 Hz shift Baudot (as well as MSK) at times mostly using 17.8, 22.7, and 27.2 kHz (but sometimes other frequencies). By the way, I grew up in Suffield, Ohio within bike ride distance of the beacon "AK" (which you mentioned as Akron on 362 kHz). The beacon is actually in Mogadore, Ohio (not Akron) but was original for the Akron Municipal airport and used "AKR" back when I lived there but later dropped the "R".
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
If you really want to get into LW and below, this is a club devoted to that topic...
www.lwca.net
and as for NAVTEX, this group is super-active...
groups.io
Mike
Longwave Home Page
and as for NAVTEX, this group is super-active...
navtexdx groups.io Group
This group is for those interested in Navtex Dxing. We monitor long distance transmissions on both the MF and HF Bands. NAVTEX transmissions are navigational and meteorological warnings and forecasts, as well as urgent marine safety information to ships, and made at either regular scheduled...
groups.io
Mike
That's sad, because those DGPS stations really got out. I was able to hear them from all over the Western US. Of course, I couldn't read the data, but the RTTY-like sound made them identifiable. Just on my DX-398 unaided.
Not good news for the guys that like to decode DGPS, however, there is an advantage here if you are a NDB chaser. The DGPS shutdowns have cleared up much of the DGPS band almost wall to wall warble and allow the reception of NDBs there that were formerly covered.
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362 AK Akron is a regular in here day and night. 362 SB Sudbury ON also on same freq is also a day and night regular. Can hear them both due to the different offsets.
366 YMW Maniwaki QC puts a nice signal in here. Its 500 watts is a powerhouse by NDB standards (most are only 25 watts).
Give 340 YY Mont Joli QC and 392 ML Malbaie QC a try. both 500 watts, also 332 YFM LaGrande-4 QC at 2000 watts.
I'm less than 30 miles from the Akron beacon. Can't wait for warm weather to take the loop outside and see what I can get.
A friend of mine in Chicago did some experimenting with "LOWFER" and "MEDFER" beacons a few decades ago; don't know how many of those experimenters are left. "LOWFER" frequencies are 160-190KHz; "MEDFER" 510-1705 KHz, all unlicensed. "The Medium and Low Frequency Scrap Book" was put together by Ken Cornell, W2IMB--I've got an electronic (scanned) copy of his last issue, slightly over 5M file size...
Getting outdoors can often make for a dramatic reduction in the RFI/EMI noise encountered indoors.
One of my "locals" is 332 PH Port Huron MI (actually St. Clair County airport). Just a low power LOM but it puts out a nice signal, you may be able to copy it in OH. 332 is an interesting frequency. In addition to YFM mentioned in post #11, there is also QT Thunder Bay ON running 1000 watts. On the wider offset along with PH is FIS Key West FL with 400 watts. QT often mixes with YFM as they battle it out and FIS can often be hear under PH.
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But it needs to be done in the winter when atmosphere QRN is not a problem--I find that effect even more dramatic. Summer lightening crashes really limit things--I do not even seriously try except on winter nights--whole different world. When I lived in CT, I would go to the Long Island Sound coast in the winter. Though it was cold with the heat off in the car (as it was off to eliminate QRM from it), with an active whip on the car roof, I was able to hear things on VLF and LF that I have never heard elsewhere.
Regarding lowfers, these appear in my many decades old log:
175.388 KRY Chardon, OH (logged when I lived in Ohio in 1970's/1980's)
176.925 HB Hamden, CT
185.86 JPH Riverdale, MD
187.5 DCH Berlin, MD
187.9 MOO Monroeville, NJ
188.7 WI Owings, MD
189.36 TH Colts Neck, NJ
My friend, about 5 miles away--maybe others, I'm not sure--it's been a pretty long time since I've been down to those frequencies.
When I was in the Navy we had a few TTY broadcasts on LF which were very reliable back-ups to our Primary broadcast. I don't know if the Navy still uses them or not as I've been retired now for 11 years but they were still being used when I retired.
Navy LORAN sets received on MW as well as LW.
AFAIK, the MW LORAN is long gone, not sure about the LW. It was a tedious process compared to
today's GPS.
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Well, winter LW season is definitely over but gave it a try just before dawn this morning. The band was blanketed in QRN from T-storms along the Gulf Coast and through central LA.
Anyway, was able to log a couple dozen or so beacons in spite of the QRN during a quick listening session.
Here are some of the more distant from my MI QTH:
198 DIW Dixon NC
248 WG Winnipeg MB
326 FC Fredericton NB
338 ZEM Eastmain QC
340 YY Mont Joli QC
360 PN Port Menier QC (best DX +1000 mi)
366 YMW Maniwaki QC
392 ML Malbaie QC
Anyway, was able to log a couple dozen or so beacons in spite of the QRN during a quick listening session.
Here are some of the more distant from my MI QTH:
198 DIW Dixon NC
248 WG Winnipeg MB
326 FC Fredericton NB
338 ZEM Eastmain QC
340 YY Mont Joli QC
360 PN Port Menier QC (best DX +1000 mi)
366 YMW Maniwaki QC
392 ML Malbaie QC
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