Wx Alert when out of town?

[MCKFD34]

Was on a road trip w/ BCD436. I was 300 miles away when I got a NOAA WX alert tone for the local krea i was passing through. I don't understand why, because I only have my home county FIPS code programmed in. How did the scanner know where I was? I mean, I think I know, but not sure if it's a location thing. Thoughts?

 

[RBMTS]

Did the alert come over one of the actual NOAA weather channels? Some public safety systems will retransmit a NOAA weather alert to one of their frequencies or trunking talk groups. They patch the audio from a radio that can either decode the long NOAA tone or the same code - then they patch it to their infrastructure. That would be my guess.

 

[n1chu]

Generally speaking, a transmitted signal will only propagate so far, and a distance is determined. A radius of 75 miles has been used for example. So, once outside the area, the frequency used can now be assigned again. The CTCSS tones used can also be assigned as a further guard against interfering with others on the fringe of the radius, on the same frequency. Additionally, the FCC regulates power output and can make exceptions to rules such as the 75 mile radius when the use of directional antenna patterns are utilized and/or geography acts as a natural barrier. So, there are always additional considerations that can and have entered into how the finite number of available frequencies are assigned.

 

[bob550]

Did you have the zip code for your current location set in the 436? Did you, perchance, have a GPS puck connected to the scanner?

 

[MCKFD34]

Did the alert come over one of the actual NOAA weather channels? Some public safety systems will retransmit a NOAA weather alert to one of their frequencies or trunking talk groups. They patch the audio from a radio that can either decode the long NOAA tone or the same code - then they patch it to their infrastructure. That would be my guess.

I am not sure. We had bad weather in the area and I didn't see what it said on the screen. The alert was for the area I was in at the time, Southern New Jersey. Maybe it was patched like you said. either way, it was a welcome surprise given the weather in NYC/NJ area last Sunday.