EXTREME DX  – Chasing Broadcasters Across 2 Oceans

By Bryan Clark

The ultimate long-distance DX for New Zealand DXers is hearing radio stations from Europe or North Africa in our local evening, meaning a signal darkness path that crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Americas and the Pacific Ocean to reach us!

My first longpath log dates back to Christmas 1974. We were holidaying at Stanmore Bay on Auckland’s North Shore, and I had lugged my weighty Eddystone 680X (plus a collapsible loop antenna) up from Wellington for a week’s holiday. CSB2 from Lisbon Portugal was logged on 1034 kHz over 6 nights , peaking around 0730 UTC, and I was rewarded with a nice QSL and pennant from Radio Clube Portugues 5 weeks later!  Next, RNE Sevilla Spain 683 was logged from 0540 till 0610 GMT fadeout in July 1976 and Madrid 1223 in November that year, for reception at 0625.

Back then of course, our local stations were on 10kHz spacing.  All things changed in late 1978 when Asia/Pacific changed to the same 9kHz channel spacing, meaning the Europeans now shared frequencies with NZ and Aussie stations.  But we still had occasional successes – Cordoba Spain 1575 was logged at 0401 UTC in May 1982 with SER news; then came record breaking longpath DX catch from NZ – Saudi Arabia 1521 logged in Arabic mixed with 3YR at 0413 on 23 April 1983. That was on an East Cape DXpedition, and we also logged Spain on 684, 792, 855 and 1584 the same day! 

In March 1984 I caught Medi 1 Morocco on 1233 signing on at 0600 in French and Arabic; in March 1985 EAK69 America Spain was logged on 1134 between 0608 and 0635.  March 1986 was a good DX month with Spaniards Murcia 1179 and Cartagena 1395, Albania 1458 (in Greek over 3YW at 0445) and Algeria 1422 all logged.

Now, more than 40 years later, some of our 9kHz channels are vacant, opening up the small opportunity to again hear longpath medium wave DX from Europe and North Africa!  I have found the most likely and regular possibility to be Algeria on 1422 – this has been heard in March and April 2020 between 0500 and 0530 UTC.  Hence the below chart of our vacant 9kHz channels, to give me (and you) some DX targets!  There are no specific targets on the vacant 1170 channel as I would expect to hear North and South American stations there, before anything from farther away.

LONGPATH CLEAR CHANNELS  April 2020

639 638.9982 – Bilbao

639.000 – Almeria

639.0003 – La Corunna

639.0007 – Zaragoza

Spain – RNE multiples
648 648.0002 – 648.0100

648.0010 – 648.0014

Saudi Arabia – Radio Riyadh, Jeddah (2000kw)

Spain – RNE Badajoz

666 665.9976

666.0024

666.05 (from 0600)

Portugal – RTP Antena

Spain – SER Barcelona

Algeria – Radio Tindouf

684 683.9996

684.0000

684.074

Saudi Arabia – Jeddah

Tunisia – ERTT Medenine

Spain – RNE Sevilla

711 710.9999 Spain – COPE Murcia

Morocco – SNRT Radio Laayoune

783 782.9960

782.9984

783.0011

Algeria –El Oued

Saudi Arabia – Ras al-Khair

Spain – COPE Barcelona

828  

828.003

Nigeria – FRCN Enugu

Spain – Hit FM

Azores 1kw

1134 1133.9962 Pamplona

1134.001 Salamanca

Spain – COPE multiples
1206    
1224 1223.996 – Unknown

1223.998 – Lugo

1224.001 – Lleida

1224.0033 – Palma

Spain – COPE multiples
1422 1421.998 Algeria – Radio Quran
1467 1466.9970

1467.0001-0007

France/Monaco – TWR

Saudi Arabia – Radio Riyadh

1476   Benin – TWR Africa
1485 1484-992-1485.001 – Zamora

1484.999 – Vilanova

1485.0012 – Santander

Spain – SER multiples
1512 1511.992

 

Saudi Arabia – Quran prgm, Jeddah (1000kw)
1539 1538.9945 – Catalunya

1538.9971 – Elche

Spain – SER Radio
1566 1565.9998 Benin – TWR sked – Igbo 0430-0500 M-F, EE 0430-0500 Sat; Twi 0500-0530 M-F, Ewe 0515-0530 Sat, EE 0530-0545 M-F.

April sunrise time between 0537 and 0548 UTC

1602 1601.9903 Cartagena

1601.994 – Linares

1601.9947 – Onteniente

1602.005 – Segovia

Spain – SER Radio multiples

Table Sources: WRTH 2020 & MW Offsets List Apr20  

1170 and 1260 also vacant

 

Table Sources: WRTH 2020 & MW Offsets List Apr 20  

     
     
     
     
783 782.9960

782.9984

783.0011

Algeria –El Oued

Saudi Arabia – Ras al-Khair

Spain – COPE Barcelona

     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

 

 

See also Long-path Lunacy