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Es back with a RED WHITE AND BLUE BANG! 23 NEW+! 7/1/2021...to literally everywhere

C

crainbebo

After over two weeks of no Es, and a historic heatwave a few days ago (all-time records in every large WA and OR town...Ellensburg hit 114, Yakima hit 113, Seattle hit 108, Portland hit a shocking 116), the temperatures dropped into the 90s and 80s, and E-skip returned for a (nearly) 4th of July red, white and blue BANG! An event that sparked (at least) 23 new, wiped out Yakima semi-locals, and even wiped out a local translator on 88.5 (7 miles away). Notice how wide the path was of the E-skip. Entirely different states mixed with each other, and the borders weren't nearby, either.

2:15PM PT - First signs of Es, up to 96.3
2:17PM - 94.1 KZRR Albuquerque, NM; with RDS '94 Rock', mention of New Mexico ending the rest of the COVID-19 restrictions. Relog, 19.5KW at 1092 miles.
2:19PM - 96.3 KKOB-FM Albuquerque, NM; local Albuquerque ads. Relog, 17.5KW at 1092 miles.
2:21PM - 92.3 KRST Albuquerque, NM; ID '92.3 KRST'. Relog, 22KW at 1092 miles.
2:22PM - 89.3 unid with Religious hymns, probably something in NM/CO
2:28PM - More fadeups as it leaves ABQ - 90.9 Jazz music (KRRT Taos area?), also rock music on 93.7 (likely KXXI Gallup), also had a local commercial for a motorcycle dealer mixed with the Spanish religious translator in Yakima, maybe also KXXI, will need to check logs.
2:34PM - 94.7 KLBU Santa Fe, NM; rhythmic R&B music and ID 'Jam'n 94.7.' NEW #787, 100KW at 1060 miles.
2:35PM - 101.1 KSFR Santa Fe, NM; talk program and RDS 'Public Radio KSFR.' NEW #788, 2.5KW at 1058 miles. In addition, a 95.9 mixed with KZML Quincy. Will never know if this was Taos, Santa Rosa, or the K240EC translator in Santa Fe now // the Spanish station in ABQ on 106.3. It used to be // KOAZ The Oasis, 103.7 (Smooth Jazz in Albuquerque). That would have stuck out like a sore thumb on the channel.
2:38PM - 95.5 KPHT Rocky Ford, CO; big signal as always with RDS 'KPHT' and ID. Relog (many times), 100KW at 1037 miles.
2:40PM - 92.3 KMOZ-FM Grand Junction, CO; The Moose ID and RDS. Relog, 100KW at 807 miles.
2:40PM - 92.7 K224FE (KNZZ-AM) Grand Junction, CO; with conservative talk and RDS 'KNZZ.' I hear this station very often on 1100 AM, so this was a treat! NEW #789, 250W at 809 miles!
2:41PM - 93.1 KMGJ Grand Junction, CO; ID 'Magic 93.1.' Relog, 100KW at 807 miles.
2:45PM - 99.9 KEKB Fruita, CO; with ad for storage place 'on the Western Slope.' NEW #790, 79KW at 807 miles.
2:49PM - 90.5 KCND Bismarck, ND - PATH CHANGE - mention of 'HumanitiesND.org' in passing. Belongs to an educational organization in North Dakota. I'm counting this. NEW #791, 50KW at 931 miles.
2:50PM - 90.9 KTWJ Moffit-Lincoln, ND; traditional Rel music and hymns; RDS 'KTWJ'. They are LifeTalk so // to 88.9 Ellensburg and 89.5 Yakima. Cool. NEW #792, 100KW at 950 miles.
2:51PM - 95.5 KYNU Jamestown, ND; ID '95.5 the Big Dog', mention of Jamestown. And a big WOOF to that! NEW #793, 100KW at 1044 miles.
2:56PM (approx.) - 92.7 KUSO Albion, NE; ad for Big Country Ford of Madison County (NE). Relog, 50KW at 1177 miles.
2:59PM - 94.1 KNEB-FM Scottsbluff, NE; ad for the Goshen County Fair in Torrington, WY. KNEB serves far east WY, including Torrington. Relog, 100KW at 907 miles.
3:00PM - 91.9 KUWR Laramie, WY; this station completely *destroyed* KDNA in nearby Yakima, with All Things Considered and RDS "WPR*KUWR". 80% on the 909X! Formerly heard in the Seattle area, but NEW #794 to Ellensburg logs. 100KW at 842 miles. They stayed in for about 30 or 40 minutes!
3:01PM - 93.1 KFCW Riverton, WY; short skip - Wyoming news stories including one on the Bighorn River water level, and it goes right through Riverton. NEW #795, 100KW at 674 miles. Shortest Es log of the year so far.
3:02PM - 102.5 KZSD Martin, SD; NPR News at the top of the hour. Not much of an ID, but who else is NPR on 102.5? ;-) Anyways, NEW #796, 100KW at 934 miles.
So many stations swapping it was impossible to get IDs, and RDS would pop up too quick for an ID...then
3:08PM - 99.7 KOGA-FM Ogallala, NE; RDS 'THE LAKE.' NEW #797, 100KW at 1034 miles.
3:10PM - 93.5 KIPI Eagle Butte, SD; loud signal, even had IBOC hash on 93.7 and 93.3, Katy Perry song (I think) and RDS 'KIPI.' NEW #798, 100KW at 933 miles.
3:15PM - 95.1 KATC Colorado Springs, CO; RDS 'KATC' scrolling. Relog, 58KW at 974 miles.
3:17PM - 96.9 KCCY Pueblo, CO; mention of Clay Walker concert at the Gutterhouse. Wiped out KZTA (on full power)! Relog, 58KW at 974 miles.
3:19PM - 93.7 KAZY Cheyenne, WY; ad for Bullseye Archery and ID 'High Voltage Rock 93.7 KAZY'. Also a station I used to get in western WA here and there growing up, but NEW to Ellensburg logs - NEW #799, 25KW at 882 miles.
3:23PM - 92.1 KJMN Castle Rock, CO; ID 'La Suavecita.' Relog, 42KW at 938 miles.
3:25PM - 93.5 KLMR-FM Lamar, CO; ID 'The Heat.' Relog, 100KW at 1099 miles. Also mixed: a station mentioning the Indian Hills (or something) Golf Course and a fireworks store. Maybe KWYX Casper, maybe KZTL Paxton NE, maybe someone else...I'll check the recorder.
3:26PM - 98.9 KKMG Pueblo, CO; ID '98.9 Magic FM.' Relog, 57KW at 974 miles.
3:28PM - 105.9 KALC Denver, CO; RDS 'Alice.' NEW #800! 96KW at 915 miles.
3:29PM - 105.1 CJVR-FM Melfort, SK; a shocking log. Did NOT hear Kool 105 Denver. Instead, a Canadian weather forecast was loud and clear, mentioning temperatures in Celsius (about 35C, actually, a heat warning is up for Saskatchewan), and mentions of a tractor implement dealer and NortheastNow.com. NEW #801, FIRST NEW SK FM IN YEARS, 100KW at 818 miles! What a cool surprise! I now have the FM sister to CKJH-750, an AM that I hear very often at night in WA state when KXTG's signal isn't on top.
3:30PM - 106.7 KWBL Denver, CO; RDS 'THE BULL.' NEW #802, 100KW at 915 miles.
3:31PM - 107.1 KFCO Bennett, CO; ID 'Hot 107.1'. FIRST E-SKIP ON 107.1 (KFFM splatter is awful even 30 miles and ridge-blocked). NEW #803, 97KW at 961 miles.
3:32PM - 105.5 KJAC Timnath, CO; probably my favorite station in this opening. RDS 'Colorado Sound' with a song by Keb' Mo! I just stayed on this channel until the song ended, with little fading. Keb' Mo is a great singer and nearly impossible to find on radio nowadays. NEW #803, 50KW at 874 miles.
3:36PM - 99.1 KUAD Windsor, CO; ID 'New Country 99.1', truncated here and there by KUJ but the ID should be on the recording. NEW #804, 100KW at 895 miles.
3:37PM - 98.7 KSID-FM Sidney, NE; crainbebo is a BIG BOY now! A big boy signal too, with country and a clear ID for you guessed it, The Big Boy. NEW #805, 100KW at 946 miles.
3:39PM - 97.5 KQSK Chadron, NE; ID 'Double Q Country.' NEW #806, 100KW at 903 miles.
3:44PM - 92.3 KQRQ Rapid City, SD; ad for local furniture store in Rapid City. NEW #807, 86KW at 858 miles.
3:46PM - 95.1 KCGY Laramie, WY; PSA for Wyoming COVID-19 vaccination effort, back into country music. Relog, 100KW at 842 miles. Yes, someradioguy, you probably saw the email. I tried really hard for KLMI Hits 106 on 106.1. All I heard was 'Big', my semi-local in Yakima, very weakly. And a lot of QRM for some reason. If only DJ Paul Walker's voice-tracking made it through my car speakers by the power of E-skip...
3:50PM - 93.9 KSWN McCook, NE; weak ID mixed with two or three others, 'The Zone.' Relog, 50KW at 1089 miles.
3:52PM - 89.7 KXGR Loveland, CO; RDS 'Grace FM.' Relog, 80KW at 874 miles.
3:54PM - 96.1 KSME Greeley, CO; ID 'Kiss FM.' Relog, 100KW at 889 miles.
3:54PM - 92.7 UNID with hard rock, faded before IDs. I'll never know if this was short skip to KHRW Ranchester/Sheridan WY, or if it was the rock station in Rawlins. Had a notable hum in audio when music was soft.
3:57PM - 93.9 KTAK Riverton, WY; ID 'Wyoming's Big Country.' Short skip! NEW #808, 50KW at 674 miles.
 
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4:00PM - 90.5 KUWZ Rock Springs, WY; WPR support mentions, including some business that had locations in 'southern Idaho' (my heart nearly skipped when I heard that! If this was an Idaho station, it would be <475 mi). Oh well, more short skip, and another NEW log, #809, 35KW at 682 miles.
4:02PM - 91.3 KLZV Brush, CO; local K-LOVE ID, calls, and mention of nearby '91.1 Denver.' NEW #810, 6KW at 981 miles.
4:05PM - 92.3 KTAR Phoenix, AZ - PATH CHANGE AGAIN! 'KTAR NEWS' RDS and local news update. Relog, 98KW at 1043 miles.
4:10-13PM- Interesting unids. 92.3 with sports, maybe Wichita (KKGQ, ESPN), but will need to check recording. This was followed by ANOTHER sports or talk station on 92.7 that mentioned Wyoming and oddly enough, Harvard University. Will check recording on this one too. This could be something good that I missed.
4:15PM - 96.5 KBYZ Bismarck, ND - YET ANOTHER PATH CHANGE - RDS 'The Fox.' Relog, 100KW at 931 miles.
4:17PM - 107.9 KMLE Chandler, AZ; top of the band, with mention of the Salt River fireworks show near Phoenix. Relog, 96KW at 1043 miles.
4:17PM - 105.9 KKBO Flasher, ND; ID '105.9 the Big...' (incomplete) but also got a Dakotas mention, so I am counting it. NEW #811, 100KW at 931 miles.
4:18PM - 104.3 UNID with Spanish ads into Regional Mexican music. Suspect this to be XHAZE Nogales, SON, but will check tape.
4:20PM - 98.7 KMVP Phoenix, AZ; with local Arizona sports show. Relog, 97KW at 1043 miles.
4:23PM - 95.5 KYOT Phoenix, AZ; fair with 'Summer of '69' Bryan Adams // stream. Relog (ALSO many times), 96KW at 1043 miles.
Es goes in and out of FM, then returns for a little more
4:44PM - 92.3 KOMP Las Vegas, NV; RDS 'KOMP THEROCKSTATION' and local ad for the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Relog, 25KW at 805 miles.
4:44PM - 93.1 KYMT Las Vegas, NV; RDS and local traffic report mentioning I-215 (I believe). Relog, 23.5KW at 805 miles.
4:45PM - 95.1 KTTI Yuma, AZ; weather forecast for Yuma, high of 105 tomorrow (whatever...we were 114 and an all-time record just a few days back), and RDS 'KTTI.' Relog (many times), 50KW at 1041 miles.
4:46PM - 93.1 KLJZ Yuma, AZ; with Hot AC music (based on skip path, and like nearly always, being all alone w/ KTTI, and fadeups on 99.9 that were likely KYMZ. NO sign of KYRM 91.9 again...and I tried to null KDNA out.) Relog, 100KW at 1038 miles.
Went away again, faded up one more time
5:14PM - 92.3 KRRL Los Angeles, CA; RDS 'REAL 92.3' and afternoon show chatter. Relog, 42KW at 892 miles.
5:16PM - 93.1 KCBS-FM Los Angeles, CA; Jack FM with one of the many phone messages from listeners. Mentioned he was 'on the freeway.' Relog, 27.5KW at 892 miles.

What an opening. RDS pics and audio coming soon as I have time. Lots of great stuff heard today. The BEST thing about summer!
 
If you have a new antenna covering Channel 2, or an old one that has survived digital TV (but all the fancy new "bug out" RVs have that single design), you might still see CHBX-TV 2 Sault Sainte Marie, ON, one of the few analogs still on the last I knew.
 
Correction, I doubled the new log #803 twice. I actually have 812 in the log. For the first time in my life, FM logs are now HIGHER than AM logs. I have some catching up to do come fall...
 
I miss the good old days of radio, when you could convince the air personality to break in frequently and give an ID when there was a Sporadic E opening. I remember a studio air personality breaking in to a Texas Rangers PBP and saying "KSEL Lubbock" frequently. KSEL was then the station on 93.7. It came in in Michigan for well over an hour until it faded into the then statewide ubiquitously receivable WJFM Grand Rapids, still 470000 watts at that point, in the early 1970s.
 
all-time records in every large WA and OR town...Ellensburg hit 114, Yakima hit 113, Seattle hit 108, Portland hit a shocking 116
Click to expand...

The heat was doing murder to VHF on Saturday. I was at an island beach in southwest Clark County (never got above 103 that day, where I was) monitoring shipping traffic on marine band and improving my tan. All the audio was really distorted and sidebandy on my FT-60R, even though its receive IF is aligned spot-on!
 
Your area had Es yesterday to the same locations (ND, SD, WY), and VA6SW Nigel near Medicine Hat AB reported very short skip to Portland and even 92.7 KMSW The Dalles (only about 600 mi or so). Alberta would have been nice on Es, albeit everything is quite short, and I didn't get into eastern MT. I got Melfort SK 105.1 and the Bismarck stations, and that was as close as I got to Montana, albeit there were plenty of UNIDs all over the band and I'm sure Montana was somewhere in the mess.
 
If there is an ionospheric reflecting "cloud", it will generally obey the Laws of Reflection in Physics. The cloud will act like a portion of a spherical two way mirror with a very large radius. So the ion cloud is likely about 50 miles or so above the ground around halfway between the transmitting and receiving location. Like a mirror, it will also reflect different distances from the ion cloud, and return further and closer TL and RL locations, closer until the point where the angle of departure is high and goes right though the ion cloud. Obviously that depends on the density of the ion cloud and the frequency. The higher the frequency, the more likely the waves are to penetrate the ion cloud. All of this explains why there is an upper frequency limit to the E reflection, and an upper and lower limit to the wave path distance, around 500 miles minimum on FM frequencies. In Michigan, this generally means that New York City stations are not generally heard on Sporadic E, but WLNG 92.1 and other Hamptons area Class As are frequently heard, as well as no interference from stations beyond the islands off the coast of New England.

en.wikipedia.org

Reflection (physics) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
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Also keep in mind that the sky in this region is pretty conductive right now, with the smoke (carbon particulates) coming up from eastern Oregon, the DPRC and British Columbia. This would make VHF communications, like FM broadcast transmissions, easily conveyed over great distances. I was heading to former-neighbour's new place after work tonight, a couple hours ago, and the sky over the foothills/Silver Star mountains was getting pretty brown. But definitely NOTHING like it was last September.

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xbVQrGwq...VOa2aC5p_C51gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1478/Clipboard01.png - Here is a page on wasmoke that explains the current situation.

One evening, several early-Octobers ago (I know I've told this story before) I started calling CQ on 462.5625 and worked a dude in John Day from behind my old junior high school, about 150 miles distance, at 1 watt into a rubber-ducky scanner antenna, with a UV5R. The upper atmosphere was quite full of smoke from the fires that were going in eastern WA at the time and reflected our signals for a good 30 seconds or so. IIRC that was, like, 2014 or 2015. (And "they say" UHF doesn't skip. Uh huh. :rolleyes: )

Everybody making good use of the bandscan forms?
 
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RDS pics, finally. We had a holiday and I've been very busy with non-DX stuff. Here they come...

KZRR - P1090064
KSFR (kind of hard to read - blazing sun in the way) - P1090065
KMOZ-FM - P1090066
K224FE (KNZZ translator - very glad they have an RDS ID) - P1090067
KTWJ (I put the sunshade up. See the difference? ;)) - P1090068
KUWR (First of a few RDS readings on the 909X) - P1090069
KOGA-FM - P1090070
KIPI - P1090071
KATC - P1090072
KALC - P1090073
KWBL - P1090074
KJAC (was also reading song/artist) - P1090075
KSID-FM (Was supposed to read 'The Big Boy' but the signal was too unstable. So it's a cluster of words, but the audio ID was playing at the same time...) - P1090076
KXGR - P1090077
KBYZ - P1090078
KOMP (ROCKSTATION - part of their RDS) - P1090079
KRRL - P1090080

Audio to come, and probably some UNIDs too!
 
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Reviewing audio leads me to another new station!

2:59PM - 90.3 KCSP Casper, WY; weak and often buried by KNWY and an unknown CCM station, but heard with mention of 'the following translators in Wyoming' and K210EL, their 89.9 translator at Diamondville. NEW #812, 100KW at 755 miles.

Also heard, relogs:
93.5 KZTL Paxton NE, the UNID mentioning an Indian something Golf Course...it was Indian Meadows Golf Course on Walker Rd in North Platte.
93.1 CHPO Portage La Prairie, MB; with ID 'We love our country. Country 93.' Into 'Toes' by Zac Brown Band. This came outta nowhere as I did not have any stations from MB earlier in the opening.

Audio clips below...there are fifty files!
KRST - KRST 92.3 Albuquerque NM 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KWYR (just discovered this one too) - KWYR-FM 93.7 Winner SD 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KSWN - KSWN 93.9 McCook NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - Zone 93-9
CHPO - CHPO 93.1 Portage La Prairie MB 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KMXB - KMXB 94.1 Henderson NV 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - Mix FM
KTAK - KTAK 93.9 Riverton WY 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - weak ID 'Wyoming's Big'
KCBS-FM - KCBS-FM 93.1 Los Angeles CA 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - ID sweeper with listener voicemail
KCGY - KCGY 95.1 Laramie WY 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - COVID19 Wyoming vaccination PSA
KTTI - KTTI 95.1 Yuma AZ 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KMOZ-FM - KMOZ-FM 92.3 Grand Junction CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KATC - KATC 95.1 Colorado Springs CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KKOB-FM - KKOB-FM 96.3 Albuquerque NM 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KPHT - KPHT 95.5 Rocky Ford CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KKMG - KKMG 98.9 Pueblo CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KQSK - KQSK 97.5 Chadron NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KQRQ - KQRQ 92.3 Rapid City SD 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KJMN - KJMN 92.1 Castle Rock CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KNEB-FM - KNEB-FM 94.1 Scottsbluff NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KCSP-FM - KCSP-FM 90.3 Casper WY 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - mention of K210EL translator
KSME - KSME 96.1 Greeley CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KMLE - KMLE 107.9 Chandler AZ 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KUAD - KUAD 99.1 Windsor CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - weak ID truncated by KUJ
KLMR-FM - KLMR-FM 93.5 Lamar CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KFCO - KFCO 107.1 Bennett CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - first ever Es on 107.1
KKBO - KKBO 105.9 Flasher ND 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KTAR - KTAR 92.3 Phoenix AZ 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KMGJ - KMGJ 93.1 Grand Junction CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KSID-FM - KSID-FM 98.7 Sidney NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - The Big Boy
KCCY - KCCY 96.9 Pueblo CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA - over KZTA
KCND - KCND 90.5 Bismarck ND 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KLZV - KLZV 91.3 Brush CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA local K-LOVE ID
KUWZ - KUWZ 90.5 Rock Springs WY 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KZTL - KZTL 93.5 Paxton NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KLBU - KLBU 94.7 Santa Fe NM 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KMVP-FM - KMVP 98.7 Glendale AZ 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KWBL - KWBL 106.7 Denver CO 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
UNID 104.3 (Spanish) - UNID 104.3 from Ellensburg WA 7 1 21 likely XHAZE SON
UNID 93.7 - UNID 93.7 from Ellensburg WA 7 1 21 Motorcycle dealer commercial
KUSO - KUSO 92.7 Albion NE 7 1 21 from Ellensburg WA
KAZY - https://www.mediafire.com/file/mlmf...heyenne+WY+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
KZRR - https://www.mediafire.com/file/3ahu...querque+NM+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
KOMP - https://www.mediafire.com/file/c54e...s+Vegas+NV+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
UNID 92.7 - https://www.mediafire.com/file/eqvb...ons+Pop+Warner,+Harvard,+sports+talk.wma/file
KEKB - https://www.mediafire.com/file/51uw...+Fruita+CO+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
KPHT clip 2 (Tornado Warning) - https://www.mediafire.com/file/1bgu...nsburg+WA+CLIP+2+Tornado+Warning+NWS.wma/file
KYNU - https://www.mediafire.com/file/6kg8...mestown+ND+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
CJVR-FM - https://www.mediafire.com/file/oe8d...Melfort+SK+7+1+21+from+Ellensburg+WA.wma/file
UNID 92.3 (likely just KTAR again, but who knows) - https://www.mediafire.com/file/yndf...rom+Ellensburg+WA+7+1+21+Sports+talk.wma/file
UNID 96.3 (likely just KKOB again) - https://www.mediafire.com/file/gs2f...KOB-FM,+discussing+COVID19+reopening.wma/file
KFCW - https://www.mediafire.com/file/4zet...m+Ellensburg+WA+-+local+news+stories.wma/file
 
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