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The FCC Monitoring Station
- Thread starter Ai4i
- Start date
WSRF had some restrictions due to the monitoring station. Not sure about the rest.
C
cd637299
Guest
Isn't there an FCC monitoring station in the lower FL Keys? Would I be able to do any, um, monitoring of my own, or at least would I be able to contact them? You know my hobby.... 
cd
cd
Only after you get passed the machine gun posts surrounded by all that electrified razor wire dipped in some special chemicals and then penetrate the fifteen foot thick composite carbon steel walls! Yes, I visited VOA sites in North Carolina and Marathon, but that was when digital meant of, with, or involving the fingers.
Chris,
The (former) Foreign Broadcast Monitoring Service (a/k/a) CIA adjacent to Ft. Zachary State Park may still be in use. Lots of UHF/VHF antenna pointed toward... You can get a good look and photograph it if you walk the shoreline past the yellow barriers, trespassing on Federal property as I've done a couple of times. One used to be able to drive right up to the FBIS block house via the SE Truman Annex entrance, which I did once. I knocked on the door, but they would not answer. I also called them (they were actually listed in the Key West White Pages) and asked if I could take a tour, but they said, "NO!" and hung up on me.
The 1180 kc/s Radio Marti site on Marathon may still monitor Cuban MW. They did when I visited in the early 80's anyway. I had to get background/security clearance (48-hour wait) via Washington DC (no chance of that in today's post-9/11 world). The engineer on duty showed me how he scanned the dials and took signal readings on the stations, and fed it back to DC every evening.
The Saddlebunch Keys site where the USN's NAR station (HF RTTY transmissions) might do some monitoring, though I've never heard any confirmation of that. This site is where American Forces Radio was relayed on three HF channels in USB until only a couple of weeks ago when they ceased. There is or at least were a MW towers (3 or 4) which relayed VOA (Marti) when the Marathon site was remodeled years ago. The Marathon facilities used to be housed in a Cold War-era portable metal trailer until the block house was constructed. The engineer told me that the MW sticks at Saddlebunch were first tested on 640 kc/s in a dummy load. Seemed a silly choice with Radio Rebelde on 640, but may the purpose was to further suppress the signal.
There used to be a small, seemingly UHF/VHF monitoring site on the SE side of USN Boca Chica, but it's been gone for ages (antennae in shambles after a hurricane, the name and year I long forget).
The (former) Foreign Broadcast Monitoring Service (a/k/a) CIA adjacent to Ft. Zachary State Park may still be in use. Lots of UHF/VHF antenna pointed toward... You can get a good look and photograph it if you walk the shoreline past the yellow barriers, trespassing on Federal property as I've done a couple of times. One used to be able to drive right up to the FBIS block house via the SE Truman Annex entrance, which I did once. I knocked on the door, but they would not answer. I also called them (they were actually listed in the Key West White Pages) and asked if I could take a tour, but they said, "NO!" and hung up on me.
The 1180 kc/s Radio Marti site on Marathon may still monitor Cuban MW. They did when I visited in the early 80's anyway. I had to get background/security clearance (48-hour wait) via Washington DC (no chance of that in today's post-9/11 world). The engineer on duty showed me how he scanned the dials and took signal readings on the stations, and fed it back to DC every evening.
The Saddlebunch Keys site where the USN's NAR station (HF RTTY transmissions) might do some monitoring, though I've never heard any confirmation of that. This site is where American Forces Radio was relayed on three HF channels in USB until only a couple of weeks ago when they ceased. There is or at least were a MW towers (3 or 4) which relayed VOA (Marti) when the Marathon site was remodeled years ago. The Marathon facilities used to be housed in a Cold War-era portable metal trailer until the block house was constructed. The engineer told me that the MW sticks at Saddlebunch were first tested on 640 kc/s in a dummy load. Seemed a silly choice with Radio Rebelde on 640, but may the purpose was to further suppress the signal.
There used to be a small, seemingly UHF/VHF monitoring site on the SE side of USN Boca Chica, but it's been gone for ages (antennae in shambles after a hurricane, the name and year I long forget).
TerryKay said:
The FBIS, whose headquarters were hidden deep in the lower basements of the CIA in Langley, has a really interesting history. I just found a 30th anniversary booklet issued for the FBIS staff. Aside from the foreword by Richard Nixon, it gives many short examples on how the FBIS provided the US government with early information on happenings in other countries through its monitoring of local radio across the world.
The booklet is available at http://www.americanradiohistory.com/FBIS_Master_Page.htm by clicking on the "FBIS" book cover with a stylized star on it and which is on the left side of the page.
Anecdotally, when I returned from a tour of Mexico, Central America and Colombia in 1963, during which I visited and photographed many radio stations, I was "asked" to visit Langley and narrate a showing of my slides and experiences. At the conclusion I was aggressively recruited to have my college education subsidized by the CIA were I to commit to join the Company upon graduation. I picked radio instead.
C
cd637299
Guest
Well, as for yours truly, I'll have to continue to do my monitoring at Mile Marker 35.1 on US 1.
I used to use Veterans Park (MM 39.8 ) after noticing that there was an actual wall socket along the side of the restroom shack! Did a lotta monitoring in the year 2010 there! But the socket's gone now, and there seems to be unneccessary "buzz" on the FM---no idea where it comes from.
The best place of all in the Keys to DX----well----can't use it except only the car radio (the pinnacle of the 7 Mile Bridge).
cd
I used to use Veterans Park (MM 39.8 ) after noticing that there was an actual wall socket along the side of the restroom shack! Did a lotta monitoring in the year 2010 there! But the socket's gone now, and there seems to be unneccessary "buzz" on the FM---no idea where it comes from.
The best place of all in the Keys to DX----well----can't use it except only the car radio (the pinnacle of the 7 Mile Bridge).
cd
Ah yes, Bahia Honda is a good site. My favorite remains Long Key State Park though, the first parking lot to the left upon entering. There's some tree shade in the lot, restrooms directly behind, and it's far enough from the primitive camp sites to be quiet. Nobody seems to use this small lot, too.
And that FBIS booklet is interesting, Eduardo.
Oh, and years ago I visited the (long-gone) FCC monitoring site that was then on the edge of the Everglades, on the south side of the old two-lane Alligator Alley. How things have changed since.
And that FBIS booklet is interesting, Eduardo.
Oh, and years ago I visited the (long-gone) FCC monitoring site that was then on the edge of the Everglades, on the south side of the old two-lane Alligator Alley. How things have changed since.
C
cd637299
Guest
TerryKay said:
1 mile south of BH.....I need a place that won't shut me out at sunset....
Where I go is actually a little hill off the road....not the picnic area below (with ground too soft to put up a mast).
BTW I did not know that the AFN SSB stuff is gone now....I actually taped a bit of it a few feet away (next to the sea).
cd
One of the first AM transmitter sites I ever saw was the WAVS 1190 array on 84 and University which is now Jacaranda. It was a well constructed new site with a shiny new Bauer 5KW AM transmitter. The engineer was wary at first. Cows would graze on the site and the hippies would come over to harvest the wild mushrooms. I had a different addiction...radio!
The south side of Peters Road between and University Drive and Pine Island Road.Mike Sheridan said:
My boss told me NOT to read the base currents when the bull was in the field.
During my tenure, all their programming consisted of various national news networks.
A daytimer, their north signal rivaled the strongest Miami stations.
I don't remember the name of the old engineer who was nice enough to show me around but I do remember he had worked at WFTL 1400 and got hit by the 1kw transmitter there. He didn't have much use of one of his arms. I'm sure he's long gone by now. Did you happen to work with him?
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