Amazing Trans-Pacific Reception In Laramie, WY

[SomeRadioGuy]

Well, amazing to me anyways.

Back on Friday morning November 15th, I had my best AM DX logging of the season here in Laramie, Wyoming. Just as I was about to shut my radio down for the morning, I decided to check some 9khz splits on a whim. I have checked the 9khz splits before but had nothing... this time I was rewarded with something very nice on 774khz despite being occasionally ravaged by splatter schlop from KKOB.(I Set my Icom IC746Pro to 3khz audio bandwith)

I initially did not know what this was as I don't engage in much transpacific DXing here in Laramie

At 6:49am mountain, I had a woman and man talking. I'm not sure if this was some kind of language lesson but just a program in another language.

Audio:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nzO2LkfuPXEMT_weOitE-0N4KskFCH2a/view?usp=sharing

The signal would get ravaged by splatter schlop from KKOB, disappear and come back. Here's a clip at 6:54am mountain time with a woman and man talking with what sounds like near the end of the program

Audio:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1I7qRy0_G-pMhIaHC8KjYkAKUsRO_5WOZ/view?usp=sharing

Here's another clip from 6:56am where a woman is talking and it gets REALLY clear at about 30 seconds into the recording. Listen closely at about 3 minutes, the woman makes a brief mention of "NHK World Radio Japan" which clenched it for me as to what this was! After the mention of NHK World, you hear the top of hour time tones.

Audio:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uRF5GmF0kthTa0EgkPW7l9aaV2VjQVoc/view?usp=sharing


This is NHK's JOUB 774 Akita, Japan. A blazing 1/2megawatt signal!

I use an Icom IC746Pro and 25 foot long by 10 foot tall magnetic loop antenna

 

[radioman148]

Nice going! I've heard JOUB fairly well when I visited Hawaii 10 years ago and I know others have heard it on the west coast. Very good catch in Wyoming.

 

[cyberdad]

Well, amazing to me anyways.

Me too, Nicely done and congratulations!

As for JOUB, in case you didn't see it, gar just posted the other day that JOUB has pretty much a wintertime regular at his location on the big island of Hawaii.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Me too, Nicely done and congratulations!

As for JOUB, in case you didn't see it, gar just posted the other day that JOUB has pretty much a wintertime regular at his location on the big island of Hawaii.

When I lived in Alaska, my two favorite regulars were the 50kw of AFN Tokyo 810 and 1242 Tokyo which is 100kw.. 1242 in particular was almost like a local most early mornings in alaska

 

[crainbebo]

JOUB was reported recently (last few days) by Tim Tromp in western MI. He first heard them last October during the multiple-day/night sequence of amazing TP DX. Seems like it's making it to WY now. Good going!

 

[radioman148]

When I lived in Alaska, my two favorite regulars were the 50kw of AFN Tokyo 810 and 1242 Tokyo which is 100kw.. 1242 in particular was almost like a local most early mornings in alaska

Where in Alaska were you? I've heard that KGO 810 could be heard in Alaska. Did you ever hear it?

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Where in Alaska were you? I've heard that KGO 810 could be heard in Alaska. Did you ever hear it?

EVery night. I was in rural central Alaska. And then every morning, 810 would be AFN Tokyo. KFBK Was probably the most consistent, strongest lower 48 signal

 

[radioman148]

EVery night. I was in rural central Alaska. And then every morning, 810 would be AFN Tokyo. KFBK Was probably the most consistent, strongest lower 48 signal

Thanks!

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Thanks!

It was still very dark in my part of Alaska when San Francisco had long gotten light out.... and it was complete darkness between Alaska and Japan so I heard that stuff easily.... 1242 Tokyo with 100kw was real strong most days.. 1566 south korea with 500kw was like a local almost daily

 

[radioman148]

It depends on the day/night location. I think the DXers that heard KGO were around Anchorage or Juneau.

 

[boombox4]

Nice catch. That 7000+ feet of elevation probably helps you catch Japan in Laramie.

 

[davideduardo]

Nice catch. That 7000+ feet of elevation probably helps you catch Japan in Laramie.

I always wondered about the effects of altitude, if any. (double )

I DXed from around 10,500 feet altitude at one of my transmitter sites in Ecuador and also on several beachfront homes or retreats in Puerto Rico. Due to the highly different spots on the globe, it is hard to compare, but I would give the beach location the nod as superior.

Of course, it seems that nearly all the spectacular DXpeditions are near the ocean in places where they are far from local stations. In the case of Ecuador, except for my own 3 local AMs, nobody was on the air after midnight. But in Puerto Rico, everyone was 24/7, 16 or 17 local signals in all.

I wonder if anyone else has done any kind of comparison of altitude vs. DX. Let's all go to El Alto, Bolivia (the huge "suburb" of La Paz that is at 13,600 feet) and string some antennas between the mountain peaks!

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

I always wondered about the effects of altitude, if any. (double )

I DXed from around 10,500 feet altitude at one of my transmitter sites in Ecuador and also on several beachfront homes or retreats in Puerto Rico. Due to the highly different spots on the globe, it is hard to compare, but I would give the beach location the nod as superior.

Of course, it seems that nearly all the spectacular DXpeditions are near the ocean in places where they are far from local stations. In the case of Ecuador, except for my own 3 local AMs, nobody was on the air after midnight. But in Puerto Rico, everyone was 24/7, 16 or 17 local signals in all.

I wonder if anyone else has done any kind of comparison of altitude vs. DX. Let's all go to El Alto, Bolivia (the huge "suburb" of La Paz that is at 13,600 feet) and string some antennas between the mountain peaks!

With FM, yes height helps...... when i lvied at the highest residential point for 100+ miles in NW PA I had no issue hearing london and kitchener, ontario stations at some level, from barely there to full quieting stereo with rds daily.

im not sure height helps am as much as if youre in a quiet environment. .and if you go up into hills.. youre going to be in a pretty electrically quiet location.

 

[radioman148]

I always wondered about the effects of altitude, if any. (double )

I DXed from around 10,500 feet altitude at one of my transmitter sites in Ecuador and also on several beachfront homes or retreats in Puerto Rico. Due to the highly different spots on the globe, it is hard to compare, but I would give the beach location the nod as superior.

Of course, it seems that nearly all the spectacular DXpeditions are near the ocean in places where they are far from local stations. In the case of Ecuador, except for my own 3 local AMs, nobody was on the air after midnight. But in Puerto Rico, everyone was 24/7, 16 or 17 local signals in all.

I would agree with that. I always thought altitude was more important for FM, not just transmitting, but receiving.

I wonder if anyone else has done any kind of comparison of altitude vs. DX. Let's all go to El Alto, Bolivia (the huge "suburb" of La Paz that is at 13,600 feet) and string some antennas between the mountain peaks!

Sounds good to me

 

[boombox4]

Trust me, being on a higher location is a benefit compared to a low valley with mountain ranges (or high hills) within a couple miles.

I realise that Laramie is also in a valley, but the mountains aren't as high, comparatively, as the local ones here in WA are. Mountains cut into that low angle of DX skywave reception, and the Rockies are lower than the Cascades (when compared to the general surrounding terrain).

Even at the ocean, a high location can help when DXing MW. Ultra-light DXers who go to Oregon to DX the South Pacific do it from a high cliff, as opposed to the beachside, because they believe that higher location aids by giving a lower angle of DX skywave.

Laramie is in a high valley, 16 miles wide in places, with open, relatively flat regions to the NW (direction of Japan), if memory serves.