This is Radio Bulgaria’s weekly DX Program for radio amateurs and short wave fans and DXers which is included in our one-hour broadcasts starting as follows: Friday at 21.00 UTC on 5900 and 7400 kHz beamed to West Europe, at 23.00 UTC and Saturday at 02.00 UTC on 9700 and 11700 kHz to North America, as well as in the half-hour broadcast at 06.30 UTC on 9600 and 11600 kHz to West Europe.
In this issue by DX Editor Dimiter Petrov, LZ1AF, with Broadcast Tips by Rumen Pankov:
Amateur Radio Station ZS10WCS
Amateur Radio special event station ZS10WCS is on the air until July 12. The first operation began in September 2009. Activity is to celebrate the 2010 Soccer World Cup being held in South Africa between June 11th and July 11th. The callsign is being operated by members of various South African Radio League (SARL) affiliated clubs.
Operations through May 31st were on the air over weekends. However, operations between June 1st and July 12th are on the air 7 days a week. Frequency band selections and times are dependent on propagation conditions.
Preferred frequencies are:
CW - 3510, 7010, 14010, 21010 and 28010 kHz.
SSB – 3780, 7080, 14180, 21280 and 28480 kHz.
Electronic QSL cards must be sent to: wcs@sarl.org.za . All stations logged will get a special QSL card via the QSL Bureau.
Direct QSL can be sent to:
PO Box 1721, Strubensvallei, 1735, South Africa. Please include a self-addressed envelope (DL-size) and 1 IRC or 1 USD.
Missing Sunspots May Signal Solar Storm
New Scientist says, “But for the past two years, the sunspots have mostly been missing. Their absence, the most prolonged for nearly a hundred years, has taken even seasoned sun watchers by surprise. “This is solar behavior we haven’t seen in living memory,” says David Hathaway, a physicist at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.”
“What’s special about this latest dip is that the sun is having trouble starting the next solar cycle. The sun began to calm down in late 2007, so no one expected many sunspots in 2008. But computer models predicted that when the spots did return, they would do so in force. Hathaway was reported as thinking the next solar cycle would be “doozy”: more sunspots, more solar storms and more energy blasted into space. Others predicted that it would be the most active solar cycle on record. The trouble was, no one told the sun.”
Science Daily says, “At an American Astronomical Society press conference in Boulder, Colorado, researches announced that a jet stream deep inside the sun is migrating slower than usual through the star’s interior, giving rise to the current lack of sunspots.”
“Rachel Howe and Frank Hill of the National Solar Observatory (NSO) in Tucson, Arizona, used a technique called helioseismology to detect and track the jet stream down to depths of 7,000 km below the surface of the sun.” “It is exciting to see”, says Hill, “that just as this sluggish stream reaches the usual active latitude of 22 degrees, a year late, we finally begin to see new groups of sunspots emerging.”
The unusual solar behavior still has scientists concerned. Humans haven’t observed the sun for a long enough time to categorize a behavioral anomaly. It’s possible that this is just a hiccup in the 11-year cycle. It’s also possible that we’re seeing a change in the sun’s behavior.
B R O A D C A S T T I P S
Korea, D.P.R. of. Radio Voice of the People was heard in Sofia with an emotional speech by a lady announcer from 18.30 to 18.45 hours on 3912, 6518 and 6600 kHz. Home Service from Pyongyang was noted at 02.50 hours on 11680 kHz with chorus from their, so called revolutionary operas.
Philippines. Radio Pilipinas broadcasting in Filipino and English from 17.25 to 19.30 hours was received in Sofia on 9395, 11720 and 15190 kHz although they did not indicate the frequency of 9395 kHz announcing 11890 kHz instead.
Socker World Cup. The Greek Radio was heard in Sofia on June 22 broadcasting directly from South Africa the match Greece vs Argentina at 19.30 hours on 9420, 666, 792, 981, 1008, and 1512 kHz. On a record number of frequencies was heard the match The Netherlands vs Cameroon at 18.20 hours as follows: from Radio Netherlands in Dutch on 5950 and 11670 kHz, also announcing 15310 and 17535 kHz from transmitters on the Antilles; via Radio France International in French on 9790, 11705, 13695 and 15300 kHz; via Radio “Africa Number One” from Gabon 9580 kHz also in French; finally via BBC World Service African Streams in English on 3255, 6005, 6190, 7405, 9410, 11810, 12095, 15400 and 17795 kHz.
Argentina. Radio Argentina al Exterior has resumed emissions on short wave broadcasting in English to Europe Monday through Friday from 18 to 19 hours on 9690 and 15345 kHz; to North America in English Tuesday through Saturday from 02 to 03 hours on 11710 kHz.
Oman. Radio Oman on 15140 kHz has been noted during the past several days with a broadcast in Arabic instead of the traditional for the 14 to 15 hours time slot broadcast in English.
Vatican. Again simultaneously two different programs of Radio Vatican are received on a third frequency -7140 kHz in the amateur 40 meter band.
Eritrea, Ethiopia & Greece. On the announced frequency of 4700 kHz used by Eritrea and Ethiopia is received only a Greek music station or more precisely, on 4701 kHz between 17 and 18 hours.
Tajikistan. Radio “Voice Tajik” broadcasts in English between 13 and 14 hours on 7245 kHz and was heard in Sofia on June 23 with news, commentaries and folk songs with station identification at 14 hours in several languages, including English and Russian.
Romania. A local program called Radio Romania Actualitata is aired between 04 and 04.56 hours on 6140, 7350, 558 kHz and other frequencies. This is not Radio Romania International.
Thank you for being with us. Your opinions and suggestions will be appreciated and all reception reports confirmed with the QSL card of Radio Bulgaria. Please address your letters to English Section, Radio Bulgaria, Sofia, Bulgaria or by e-mail to english@bnr.bg . An online reception report form is available at www.bnr.bg – click on English and navigate.
So, 73 and DX!
