A couple days ago before the bad weather started I was receiving NOAA weather radio from Albany or somewhere up in Eastern New York near the catskills. How could this be If I live in south east PA near Phili? After a while the NY one faded out and I got south eastern PA again. Scanner is radio shack pro-69 with longer antenna
Recieving NOAA out of state?
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mmckenna
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No matter how many times we tell RF energy to behave itself, every now and then Mother Nature gets involved and messes up our plans. Usually this results in exactly what you experienced.
Natural phenomenons in the atmosphere will duct a signal from one location into another. Sometimes its strong enough to overpower closer signals.
Amateur radio operators love this stuff and will actively search it out.
What you experienced was a VHF band opening. Pretty cool when it happens.
Natural phenomenons in the atmosphere will duct a signal from one location into another. Sometimes its strong enough to overpower closer signals.
Amateur radio operators love this stuff and will actively search it out.
What you experienced was a VHF band opening. Pretty cool when it happens.
It might have been clear where you were, but the disturbances in the atmosphere were anywhere between you and the location of the NOAA station. As mckenna described it is is VHF ducting...creating a tunnel between that location and yours. They don't last all that long as a rule...
Remember this is FM...the strongest signal wins!!! The NY NOAA signal was being pushed along and in a very basic sense gaining strength so by the time it arrived at your receiver, it was indeed stronger than the local broadcast....
I don't pretend to be a atmospheric expert, but in many years have experience very strong ducting at times that easily overpowered the local station...
Remember this is FM...the strongest signal wins!!! The NY NOAA signal was being pushed along and in a very basic sense gaining strength so by the time it arrived at your receiver, it was indeed stronger than the local broadcast....
I don't pretend to be a atmospheric expert, but in many years have experience very strong ducting at times that easily overpowered the local station...
Some years ago, I was living near the coast in Westerly, RI. I clearly received UHF transmissions from the NYPD, an estimated distance of 120 miles, mostly over water! I figured that atmospheric ducting was responsible. I was using an outdoor antenna mounted above the eve of the house at the time.
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Add in that atmosphere conditions not only can duct a signal to you that normally would not be heard but can also weaken a station that you would normally hear. On each NOAA weather frequency, I have heard several stations, often within minutes of each other, when ducting occurs.
One of my best cases of VHF distance was one day finding a station on 161.65 with a good signal. It turned out to be the weather station in Halifax, Canada (which was transmitting continuous weather on marine ch. 21B used that frequency at that time); note that I live in northern Virginia.
http://www.dxinfocentre.com/cmb.htm
marksmith
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Some years ago due to atmospheric and skip conditions on low vhf band, for several nights you were able to monitor the California highway patrol on the east coast.
Partly because of atmospheric conditions and the long wave nature of vhf low.
Mark
WS1095/536/436/996P2/HP1e/HP2e/996XT/325P2/396XT/PRO668/PSR800/PRO652
Partly because of atmospheric conditions and the long wave nature of vhf low.
Mark
WS1095/536/436/996P2/HP1e/HP2e/996XT/325P2/396XT/PRO668/PSR800/PRO652
I get weather from Vermont and Im in Western Maine all the time.
KC4RAF
Member
The below URL is a great site
to see how VHF low is propagating:
VHF Propagation Map
edit:
at this moment, New Orleans is hitting southern Kentucky.
to see how VHF low is propagating:
VHF Propagation Map
edit:
at this moment, New Orleans is hitting southern Kentucky.
ecps92
Member
Actually that map is for VHF High based on the Amateur 2 meter band
ecps92
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KC4RAF
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Thanks Bill for pointing that out.
I have no idea why I typed in "low"!? Brain lock. But I use that site to see how the NOAA stations are coming and for my 2 meter op.
I have no idea why I typed in "low"!? Brain lock. But I use that site to see how the NOAA stations are coming and for my 2 meter op.
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That was sunspots affecting the ionosphere driving up the maximum usable frequency not weather. I have heard the same during sunspot peaks here on the east coast and back around the peak in the late 1970's was hearing low band VHF TV audio from UK, France, and Russia in the 40-50 MHz frequencies (most/all of those frequencies are no longer used for such).
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For VHF-Hi band, I have seen weather fronts and temperature inversions as a good time to pay attentions as well as widespread fog.
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For VHF-Hi band, I have seen weather fronts and temperature inversions as a good time to pay attentions as well as widespread fog.
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I have on occasion received 400 MHz Federal stations in NYC down here in Fredericksburg, VA--about 250 miles as the crow flies. That is along the coast (as your's was).
A few months ago while flipping AM channels on the car radio late one evening, I came upon an AM Radio Station in TEXAS, all the way from Colorado. That was pretty crazy.
NOAA weather radio is at the VHF frequency range. With a good band opening you can see 100 miles to 300 miles. Further than that, and that's something real special!!
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