Tag: PJ4VHF

ARRL mentioned: Cape Verde 2 Meter Beacon Heard in Bonaire

As reported in “The K7RA Solar Update” and the W1AW Propagation Bulletin (ARLP020/2015) for Friday, May 15, Dave Pedersen, PJ4VHF/N7BHC, on Bonaire copied a 2 meter CW signal from the D4C/B beacon on 144.436 MHz at Cape Verde via tropospheric ducting on May 6 (0100-0230 UTC). Bonaire is in the Caribbean just north of Venezuela, while Cape Verde is off the coast of Africa, west of Senegal — a distance of nearly 3000 miles.

The D4C beacon runs 20 W and is about 750 meters above sea level. Pederson was able to confirm the transmission with the beacon operator, HB9DUR. He was using a Kenwood TS-2000 and two 13 element Yagis.

“I had parked my VHF array pointing west for minimum wind resistance,” Pederson told ARRL Propagation Contributing Editor Tad Cook, K7RA. “Tuesday evening [May 5] I was doing some paperwork in the shack and rotated the beams back east at 0100 UTC to prepare for listening all night. To my amazement, I started copying CW while the beam was still 30° off the D4C bearing.”

Visit the D4C Amateur Sports Team Facebook page for more information and reception reports.

http://www.arrl.org/news/view/cape-verde-2-meter-beacon-heard-in-bonaire#sthash.dUunuWBU.dpuf

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Announcement of activity in the Atlantic area on VHF

On May 6, 2015 history was made on contact across the Atlantic on VHF bands on the W-E path: The new D4C 2m beacon was received on Tropo for several hours in the Caribbean by PJ4VHF Dave on Bonaire on almost 4700km path. The band was open for 90 minutes from 0100-0230 UTC May 6, 2015. Report 519 on a TS-2000 with 2 x 13 element yagis.

Beacons were set up from the Monteverde Contest Team D4C and in particular by HB9DUR and IZ4DPV. We thanks HB9OK Tera radio club for providing the old unused equipment laboratory tested from HB9BCD Carlo. We are glad that our efforts help the VHF community. Let’s work for more with the aim of a two-way communication.

We are encouraging any Caribbean and south American station with 2m capability to keep listening to D4C/B on 144.436 MHz and to spread out the news as well as stations in the U.K. on the other direction.

Thanks to PJ4VHF Dave for this fantastic reception and happy DX’ing on VHF.

References:
Recorded reception: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZmBANS5ong&feature=youtu.be

Check the updated Tropo maps by world areas here: http://www.dxinfocentre.com/tropo_nat.html#hour6

73, Andrea Bianchi HB9DUR
http://www.hb9dur.ch
http://www.d4c.cc
https://www facebook.com/D4C.STATION

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