cobalt pet shortwave / mediumwave weblog

07 November 2005

shortwave summary: 07 nov 2005

Here are some of my older reception reports. I wanted to collect more before posting, but I have been busy moving. Also, it's rainy season in Northern California and I don't get good indoor reception. I have a DE31 active loop antenna but embarrassingly, I don't have it working yet. (I would love any advice my readers may have! I can post more in the comments section if you're curious.) (Edit: I just discovered that the wire between the radio and the antenna was backwards. Now it works!)

* 24 Oct 2005: Radio Havana Cuba was silent on 6000 / 6060 / 9550 khz at 0500 UTC, possibly because Hurricane Wilma was in the area. I heard RHC the next night but they didn't mention being off the air the day before.

* 18 Oct 2005: Some tribunal is meeting to determine if President George W. Bush's administration is responsible for crimes against humanity. (Radio Havana Cuba, 0515 UTC, 6000 khz, SIO 544)

* 17 Oct 2005: I briefly listened to the BBC (0339 UTC, 7120 khz, SIO 434) but there was a morse code message broadcasting on the same frequency, which was annoying. The BBC story was about popular dance music in Tanzania that is created with homemade instruments. Learning about music from a shortwave broadcast is always a pleasure.

* 17 Oct 2005: Based on what the Radio Taiwan International announcers were saying, the tapwater in Taipei isn't drinkable. Also: "Taiwan is not just an urban wasteland", and they mentioned that Taiwan is one of the most densely-populated parts of the world. I've never been to Asia, but now I have this image of concrete and steel cities, jammed with houses and apartment buildings. I've seen images of Tokyo in the movie, Lost in Translation. Anyway, their point was to talk about some of the beautiful natural scenery available in Taiwan. (0257 UTC, 5950 khz, SIO 555)

* 16 Oct 2005: Radio Havana Cuba announced that the United States was forming the National Clandestine Service which would focus on spying and covert operations. I don't get it. So what will the CIA be doing? (0510 UTC, 6060 khz, SIO 433)

No comments: