WQ6X Wonders Aloud about Russian Military Beacons - Part 3

While I have posted several Blogs regarding the subject of Russian Military Beacons (and the ones on ~7.039 in particular) every radiosport event with an Asian component to it brings about NEW questions regarding what these beacons are REALLY about and how we 40-meter radiosport operators can take advantage of the propagation information they provide.

Most 40-meter Cw operators have no
idea their band has been invaded for over 50 years with these Russian beacons. 
At first, I was somewhat incensed by the invasion.  After having thought it through,
it occurred to me these beacons are actually doing us a favor in a way; the hijack of one lone frequency is hardly anything to get worked up about.

The following WQ6X Contest Blogs have been written about Military Beacons. 
Included in these posts are:

• [X] - Beacon Tracking saves WQ6X from drowning in 2018 SEA NET
• [X] - WQ6X operations: the Weekend of BEACONS and RTTY
• [X] - Russian Letter Beacons Rescue 40 meters
• [X] - Wassup with Those Mysterious Russian Letter Beacons?
• [X] - Wassup with Those Mysterious Russian Letter Beacons? - Part 2

I wrote the last Blog in May (2021) after having noticed a number on anomalies with the "K" beacon. 
Since then, I have been monitoring the 7.039 beacons during virtually every contest weekend,
whether I run the events from Anza OR from Concord.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recently, I took off on another SDR receiver search for letter beacons, partially motivated by the seemingly lengthy disappearance of the "K" (Kamchatsky) beacon in far-east Asia on ~7.039.

It occurred to me that while the rest of the amateur bands sport no Russian beacons inside their boundaries (I've never heard the alleged beacons on 3.594), some of the other beacons are close enough in proximity to amateur bands that they can serve as reasonable propagation predictors. 
For Example:

•   4.557~ ===> 75m Ssb
•   7.508~ ===> 40m Ssb
• 10.871~ ===> 30m
  
• 13.527~ ===> 20m Cw
• 16.331~ ===> 17m
• 20.047~ ===> 15m
  

Because the Russian beacons transmit every second of every day, we don't need a beacon tracking program per se' (like the WQ6X Beacon Tracker).  All we need is to put a receiver on one-or-more of those frequencies to get an idea of what areas in Europe are open to the area of the receiving station.

During the week prior to 2021 Field Day, I spent some hours going through the WEB SDR list looking for receivers that can help to locate the various letter beacons around Europe.  Also useful is the ENIGMA 2000 Website.  While some beacons have NoT changed over the years, others have continued to "evolve" (if that's the correct descriptor) and are often heard doing "strange" things
from time to time.

 As of January 2022, some interesting developments have occurred in the Russian Beacon world; at least, on the Eastern Asian front.  Listening several evenings from the West coast (WA6TQT's QTH and WQ6X @W7AYT), it would seem that the "F" and "M" beacons have not been active for several weeks.  

The long-AWOL "K" is the only one of the three eastern beacons that is active.  Instead of a "- . -" ("K") every 1 - 2 seconds, currently it sends "- . -  - . -  - . -  - . -" ("K" "K" "K" "K") and then pauses briefly before repeating the sequence.  Why the difference in transmit sequence?  I have no clue.
I simply observe what is.

An interesting way to flush out the TRUTH about Russian beacon activity is by making use of Software Defined Receivers (SDR's) around the world.  I am about to embark on just such an experiment and will report my findings in an upcoming Blog.

Do you make use of the Russian military beacons?

IF so, what have YOU Discovered?

WQ6X runs another NAQP Ssb contest: ad-HOC All the Way

While the NAQP GiGs ARE a lot of fun, more importantly, they serve as a way of live-testing
the latest equipment configuration at the WQ6X portable operation with the Concord location.

For the January 2022 club meeting of the Amateur Radio Club of Alameda, as club president I am often called upon to make presentations of interest to club members.  Wrapping it up JUST in time
for the NAQP GiG, the club presentation was entitled: "WHY YOU SHOULD PARTICIPATE in the NORTH AMERICAN QSO PARTY".  (LooK for an upcoming YouTube video of this presentation.)

While the majority of club members are VHF operators, many are in fact interested in making a transition to HF when they upgrade their license in the near future.  They are already running traffic nets each week on VHF/UHF.  The club presentation was on how you can translate traffic handling skills into radiosport frequency running.

As part of the presentation I shared links with some of the past Blogs I have written on the subject
of the NAQP GiGs:

• [X] - Blast from the Past: NAQP Ssb Contest
  
• [X] - WQ6X's August 2020 NAQP Ssb Contest operation
  
• [X] - WQ6X Dual-OP Jan-21 NAQP Ssb Contest
  
• [X] - WQ6X Works another Weird Dual-OP
  

 From the video archives, this 2014 video showcases a couple of minutes of my 2014 onsite operation  @NX6T (then in Fallbrook). ([CLICK HERE])

A major advantage of the Yaesu FT-2000 transceiver over the previous FT-1000mp is the built-in
DVK (Digital Voice Keyer) facility in the newer radio w/o the need for an external memory/control unit, as is needed with the 1000mp.  Theoretically, N1MM should be able to play each of the recorded messages in the Yaesu.  The F2 message ("This is Ron in California") played perfectly, while the
F1-CQ message was chopped mid-way, altho pressing the F1 key on the radio called CQ perfectly.

During last weekend's NAQP Cw Contest [X] the Stereo Cw concept was confirmed using the FT-2000.  For this weekend one of the operational goals was to test-run the Stereo Ssb concept
(I wrote about last year) with the newer Yaesu radio.  While that test was a success, unfortunately,
a last-minute mic audio cabling problem kept me out of a remote OP position w/NX6T.

When it was all over, N1MM declares that WQ6X ran 7 hours and 37 minutes of actual OP time, which includes the hour I spent lounging Saturday evening "waiting for the bands to truly open up", which they truly DiD NoT - Oh WAIL.

It was of course AFTER the contest (as shown above) that the Space-WX finally settled down. 
If I had been paying attention, I coulda run the BARTG Sprint RTTY contest in addition to the NAQP GiG.  Then again, as I always say: "there is ALWAYS Next Year".

It would seem that NX6T took 3rd place overall in the Multi-2 category and 1st-place for San Diego, California and points West of the Mississippi - well done y'all; which I coulda put some OP-time in your GiG.  Next up for NX6T is the 160 contest; at least I can join THAT one.

DiD YOU play around in the NAQP Ssb contest?

Is WQ6X in YOUR LoG?

WQ6X Opens 2022 Cw Contest Season as a Dual-OP

With the RTTY Roundup contest behind me, it was time to restart the 2022 Cw contest season by running a Dual-OP operation from W7AYT's QTH in Concord.  This year, the FT-1000mp has been moved "upstairs" awaiting the looking-into of running contests by way of some SO2-R (Single-OP 2-Radios) configuration.

Meanwhile, the newly-acquired Yaesu FT-2000 was given it's 1st real CW contest action, along
with running a couple of 2-hour shifts remotely with NX6T from our newest Super Station setup
at WA6TQT's QTH in Anza (So. California).  A couple of antenna towers in Anza were recently compromised by in-climate weather, requiring that we work our magic around the ways things currently are.  Because NAQP GiG's are 100-watt (max.) contest operations, the "strain" on
the antenna system is minimal at worst.

While the FT-1000mp runs Cw contests quite nicely, the FT-2000 color screen and analogue S-meter make for a more aesthetically enjoyable experience.  As I do with any transceiver brought into service at the Concord location, the radio memories were "carved up" into groups, always beginning with the WWV/WWVH/CHU standard frequencies, followed by the NCDXF Beacon frequencies and a number of 40/75 meter traffic net frequencies.  These frequencies allow a quick propagation check across the HF spectrum - useful when contemplating sudden/quick band changes in the middle of a radiosport contest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now that the NAQP GiG is over, it would seem that NX6T scored 8th out of 16 worldwide,
took a 5th place for USA/NA and a 1st-Place for the SDG section.

For WQ6X, just showing up with the FT-2000 is all I was looking for. 
That much was certainly accomplished.

DiD YOU participate in the NAQP Cw Contest?

Is WQ6X or NX6T in YOUR LoG?

WQ6X Rides another RTTY Roundup: but DIFFERENTLY

"Similar but Different" is the phrase I would use to describe the first ARRL radiosport
GiG of the 2022 contest year.  Differences include (and are not limited to):

• 
  
  SFI of 103+ throughout the weekend; unfortunately accompanied by several solar storms.
• While 10-meters qualified as DEAD (in all respects), 3 (count-em, 3) Brazilian stations poked right thru the nothingness, resulting in PERFECT decode every time.
• A newly acquired late-model Yaesu FT-2000 slipped seamlessly into the operating position, supplanting the FT-1000mp which has been the mainstay of my Concord
  portable operation (for nearly 6 years), activating the East Bay (EB) section.

Because the FT-2000 tuner seems to use a slower (yet more deliberate) tuning algorithm
(compared to the FT-1000mp), it is more "forgiving", yet more thorough, which is to be expected
for a transceiver 2-levels up from the 1000mp.

Friday evening, I determined the latest and greatest antenna tuner settings for the MFJ 949 (300w) tuner, after which the FT-2000 completed the tuning process, storing those settings in the tuner's memory "scratch pad".  The only time the Yaesu could NoT tune properly was when it was discovered (luckily early enough) the short cable connecting the ANT #1 jack to the tuner was in fact defective.  

Additionally, stray-RFI (only on RTTY) was created by the Electro Voice EV-664 mic, plugged into
the radio's front panel mic connector.  Not needing to use Ssb until after the RTTY RU, the cable
was disconnected, lying forlornly on the operating desk.  To monitor the actual transmitted signal,
a TECSUN PL-600 Sw is always nearby.  Setting the antenna attenuator to the lowest "LOCAL" setting is enough to reduce overload.  While the BFO in the PL-600 can hardly be considered
"stable", use of the receiver takes the MONI feature of the FT-2000 to the next level.

While the older FT-1000mp does an adequate job running 100-watt RTTY, the FT-2000 takes everything to the next level.  Simply moving most of the DSP logic from the AF stage to a late IF stage makes all the difference.  Luckily, the cables running from the RIG-EXPERT PLUS to the FT-1000mp easily transferred over to the FT-2000 seamlessly.  Unlike the 1000mp which had a baud rate fixed
at 4800, the FT-2000 allows selecting virtually any baud rate (by way of an easily accessible menu setting); 19.2k seems to work best with the WINDOZE-7 operating system I utilize.

Useful operating time was difficult to secure throughout the weekend.  I was either sharing OP-time with a Toastmasters Leadership (TLI) training presentation or dealing with the effects of a pair of solar storms throughout the weekend, making the OP-time all but worthless.  While I managed 3 Brazilian contacts on 10-meters, that was it for WQ6X on 10; whereas WN6K (Fallbrook) managed 49 QSOs on 10, but No DX - GO Figure.

On a slightly different focus, looking for RTTY stations on 40-meters, without thinking about it in advance, I tuned thru 7038.7 encountering the Russian military "K" beacon.  I've written about these beacons BE-4, noting that of the 3 far east beacons ("F", "M" and "K") in the last year the "K" beacon seemed to be AWOL. c This weekend, of the 3, ONLY the "K" beacon was ever heard.  A 3rd Blog on the military beacons has been waiting patiently to be finished.  The latest "K" beacon anomaly will make the perfect ending to that Blog post.

As always happens with the RTTY RU, the 30-hour ending at 00:00z seems to happen way
too quickly.  The two solar storms cheated us out of precious OP-time, I so desperately wanted
a DO-over; or should I say, an extension.  Of course, that's not how things work.

When it was all over, WQ6X logged 244 RTTY stations on all 5 HF RTTY bands.

DiD YOU work the 2022 ARRL RTTY Roundup contest?

Is WQ6X in YOUR Log?

K6QLF Runs a Memorable 1st-time ever CQP Event

Every CQP operation I've ever been a part of has had an overall theme (or flavor) about it; from the
4-GiGs at Mammoth Lakes (W6ML), to the 3 GiGs w/N6GEO in MODOC county, to the Multi-OP
and Single-OP records from Tuolumne county (TUOL) and the records set in Contra Costa (CCOS),
and of course, remoting in to assist NX6T in Fallbrook while running CQP from East Bay counties.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For 2021, a new set of opportunities made possible a unique Multi-Operator operation introducing members of the Amateur Radio Club in Alameda (ARCA) to the world of Radiosport (in general)
and the California QSO Party (in particular).  LooKing for a SAFE location to run the 30-hour
event, it was suggested that we coordinate with the California Historical Radio Society (CHRS),
whose museum JUST happens to be 2-blocks from my office in Alameda.

After presenting the idea to members of the ARCA club, ARCA Secretary Zach and I as ARCA President made a visit  to the CHRS museum after our Saturday morning board meeting and met with Steve Kushman, President of CHRS that afternoon.  Steve saw the PR-benefits of holding an ARCA event at their location and gave the go-ahead for a process which involved rallying various people at ARCA in conjunction with assistance from the tireless volunteer workers at CHRS.

The overall goal(s) for CQP included putting Alameda county on the radio, introducing newer-licensed club members to the world of radiosport contesting, running a Field Day (FD) style operation and testing out new computer/radio (CAT) configurations (N1MM+ was recently installed on the newer Toshiba WIN-10 laptop.

While other club members provided setup assistance on Friday and logging assistance on Saturday,
it was Roger W6QLF and Ron WQ6X who actually made contacts on the radio.  Being a heavy CW operator, Ron put most of those 3-pointer contacts in the log and was backup operator for the Ssb mode.  Roger had his first experience of what it's like to run an Ssb pileup and absolutely loved it. 
For 2022 Field Day, he is going to be an accomplished pileup runner.

Because CQP is a Ssb/Cw contest, operators get to sit down and run their favorite mode; mine is of course Cw, however, I had a LoT of Fun on Ssb
as well.  

Unfortunately, band conditions were typical for contest weekends - horrible and noisy, creating a signal copy-challenge for newer operators.

We utilized an OCFD dipole atop the CHRS building with the caveat that physically, it is close to numerous sources of electronic noise from all the electronic equipment in the building.  When the CHRS volunteers shut everything down and left the building the noise-level dropped from S9+ to about S5 to S7.  We also had ran with a classic Butternut HF2-V vertical (for 80 & 40 meters). 
While verticals tend to be more noisy antennas, being 30+ feet from the building, the HF2-V was in many cases quieter than the OCFD, technically 6 feet from the electronic devices in the building.

Running CQP from the outdoor location at CHRS felt just like past Field Days.  Eventually, Roger (W6QLF) turned the station over to me.  I ran 40 & 80 meters, Cw and Ssb alternately until about 12:30am when I covered the station over and left the premises.  When I came back at 9am, the CHRS people were just getting back to their work of preparing classic military radio equipment
for an upcoming auction-style event; we got back to the work of putting QSOs in the K6QLF log.

Our goal of besting the current county record for Multi-Single Alameda county, was easily accomplished; actually, a no-Brainer.  While we are to be commended for that, we were easily
out-operated by the team of W6TCP up on the west-side of the mountain overlooking Alameda county.  Having a plethora of operators, antennas and elevation going for them, they nearly 5X'd
our score.  At least we can be proud of taking a 2nd place for Alameda county.

Now that we have some experience running K6QLF in a CQP operation, we can apply this knowledge and ability to an even better operation for 2022 - things are already being planned in that direction.

DiD YOU operate the California QSO Party back in October?

Is K6QLF in YOUR LoG?

NEWSFLASH (Feb-10-2022):
The CQP results have just been published. 
The 2nd-place win for K6QLF has been confirmed.