[HQRP] Mysteries of 30-meters

[Ed Manuel (N5EM)]

Not QRP, or Houston QRP, but something I think you folks would enjoy.

Ed, N5EM


>The primary commercial use of 30M is for meteorological broadcasts.  The
>official allocations are listed in the "Klingenfuss Guide to Utility
>Stations" and similar sources, based on IRU allocations/licensing and
>shortwave monitors.  No embassy traffic is listed**.  The teletype
>stations at 10.128-10.130, for example, are part of an eastern hemisphere
>METEO network, broadcasting weather for Africa to India to eastern asia,
>with transmitters in India.  About 11pm MDT, the 10.128 station goes to
>WEFAX for awhile, for which I have copied.  And indeed, they are weather
>and maritime charts of the Indian Ocean, eastern Africa, etc.
>
>** Numerous embassy frequencies are listed in the Klingenfuss book;
>however, I doubt all such frequencies are listed or known.  Most embassies
>pretty much march to their own drum beats.
>
> > What you are
> > probably hearing is an embassy station.  Somewhere in the transmission, 
> which
> > BTW makes great code practice, you will find the station identifying 
> itself.
> > Listen for that and you can imply an origin!
>
>Nothing personal, Bruce, but I don't think you have ever heard these
>"number stations" most are referring to.  Generally the code is fairly
>slow with NO identification of ANY kind.  They come on very abruptly,
>drone on for minutes to tens of minutes and suddenly stop.  There is no
>way to infer identification or origin.  These number stations have been
>monitored by shortwave and utility monitors for years and remain a
>mystery, since very few have been identified.  Direction finding schemes
>have identified some as originating from several USAF bases, the NSA,
>Cuba, and in the far east (Israel, etc.) -- and assumed to be associated
>with the Massad and such groups as others have mentioned.  In addition to
>CW, these numbers stations (found all over the spectrum) also use SSB or
>AM in english or spanish to read their list of numbers.  Activity from
>these numbers stations has known to increase substantially during times
>of international incidents, etc.  Some of the USAF stations were found
>by shortwave listeners, down to the building, during the Gulf War due to
>the increased level of activity.  This was reported, with photos of the
>buildings and antennas, in an issue of "Monitoring Times" about a year
>after the Gulf War.
>
>Just as our hobby is ham radio and QRP, there are others out there whose
>hobby is amateur crptography.  They have their own websites, newsletters,
>etc.  They have monitored these number stations for years in an attempt to
>get some "real live encrypted data" to decode, which has been successfully
>decoded in some cases.  But rare.  So if anybody can decode one of these
>transmissions or even come close to showing ID or location of origin, you
>would be a full blown hero in certain esoteric circles.  You might even
>land a good paying job with the NSA :-)
>
>Sorry for the OT - but it *is* a form of communications, and
>communications is what most of us have interest in.  This description is
>for those just not quite sure what this "number station" stuff is all
>about.  They remain an enigma since their appearance in the 1950's.
>
>09273 88253 12045
>66284 19372 77027
>
>Which translates to: 72, Paul NA5N

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