The 29th DXpedition to Aihkiniemi in Finnish Lapland had a very

The 29th DXpedition to Aihkiniemi in Finnish Lapland had a very Chinese flavor. Not
only did we hear Chinese radio stations most afternoons, but a crew from the
Chinese news agency Xinhua drove over 1,200 kilometers from Helsinki to
Aihkiniemi to report on DXing! Propagation conditions ranged from fairly good to
rock bottom. Although decent openings in the Western Hemisphere were observed
from October 17th to 27th, rising solar activity wreaked havoc on DXing during the
last week. And, on October 22nd there were more sunspots than at any point during
the ongoing solar cycle.
DXpedition AIH29 was exceptional in the sense that we had four participants, a record in
Aihkiniemi. However, each of us spent only one or two weeks out of the three week period, so
that at any given time there were only two of us:
•
•
•
•
Lauri Niemi: October 12–18, 2013
Markku Jussila: October 12–26, 2013
Mika Mäkeläinen: October 18–November 2, 2013
Jim Solatie: October 26–November 2, 2013
DXpedition AIH29 began after Lauri and Markku drove 930 kilometers from Vaasa to
Aihkiniemi the weekend of October 11th. Propagation conditions during the first week were
fairly poor with only short morning openings to the Western Hemisphere. Aihkiniemi's
extensive antenna options to the East however guaranteed that there was always something
to listen to from Asia.
Our aerials in Aihkiniemi consist of 14
Beverage antennas, each 1 kilometer (3,000
ft.) long, which makes our cabin perhaps the
best-equipped of all AM DXing bases in the
world. The 14th antenna, which was built soon
after my arrival, extends the Aihkiniemi
antenna arsenal to a previously neglected
area. This latest addition is a 1,000-meter wire
at 210 degrees, which is intended to capture
elusive local stations from Spain's
Mediterranean coastline, as well as from
Nigeria, which is one of the few African nations
with an extensive selection of remaining AM
stations.
Aihkiniemi cabin at daybreak — click to enlarge, and then
hit back to return to this expedition report.
Here's an azimuthal map for Aihkiniemi with our antenna directions:
All four of us use Perseus hardware. While three of us favor the software made by the same
manufacturer, I prefer to run my Perseus receiver with Jaguar.
The Aihkiniemi cabin is becoming increasingly
well-equipped with all sorts of technical
accessories. It even includes four laptop
computers, so the amount of tech hardware
that we have to haul there and back is
diminishing every year. I still brought one of
my own laptops because I wanted to have
Jaguar installed on it. My large antenna switch
box was one of the few items that I wasn't
able to take by plane. Otherwise, all of the
necessary stuff needed for a major listening
and recording operation is already portable.
Three pieces of UPS protected us from a few
short power outages (less than a second) and,
surprisingly, we didn't have any major
technical problems nor did we encounter any significant sources of external interference to
our equipment, so we were able to focus on the fabulous world of DXing!
My receiver setup in Aihkiniemi surrounded by a mesh of
antenna and grounding wires. Click to view explanations.
Sample some MP3 goodies for yourself
A unique opportunity for exciting new catches on the AM band is, of course, the rationale for
undertaking a laborious expedition to a remote location like Aihkiniemi. There will always be
goodies, even during less than ideal propagation conditions. Here are a few MP3 recordings
showcasing what we picked up:
• Radio Ethiopia, Mekele, on 1044 kHz, heard here signing off with a closing announcement
and the national anthem. Ethiopian AM stations are actually heard quite often thanks to a
one-of-a-kind 1000-meter wire directed towards the Horn of Africa.
• JOQC NHK2 Morioka, on 1386 kHz, signing off, just to show how well some Japanese
stations can be heard. From Monday to Saturday, NHK2 stations close down at 1540 UTC,
which is one of the few moments when it is possible to identify them.
• KTWG Agana, Guam, on 801 kHz, is an example from the most coveted continent, Australia
& Oceania, in the opposite end of the world from Finland. Again, pretty neat reception quality.
• KJSK Columbus, NE, on 900 kHz, amazing strength considering that the station has never
been heard before in Finland.
• WCSL Cherryville, NC, on 1590 kHz, obviously transmitting with daytime power of 10 kW
through the night, again the first ID caught in Finland.
• KJNP North Pole, AK, on 1170 kHz, a regular catch up here, but very exotic on more
Southern latitudes, heard here launching another broadcast day — just to give you a taste of
the Arctic!
Stay tuned as more clips will become available later.
Chinese Xinhua reporting on DXing
And then there is China. Not just the deluge of
Chinese AM stations that pour into our cabin
almost every afternoon, but two very nice
Chinese visitors!
I first met the correspondent of the Chinese
national news agency Xinhua at YLE in Helsinki
a few weeks before DXpedition AIH29, and I
suggested this wacky idea of reporting how
Finnish DXers pick up Chinese AM stations. Of
course other stories, such as reindeer herding,
could be covered at the same time in Lapland.
Zhang Xuan making a stand-up, pointing to our 80-degree
The highlight of traditional reindeer husbandry
antenna for South China, and Li Jizhi behind the TV
is the annual corralling of all the reindeer in a
camera.
pen — usually at the end of October — for
livestock census, marking, vet care and, for
many, slaughtering. Yes, we eat Rudolphs, but don't worry; Santa still has plenty of them left
for his annual flight around the world. The reindeer round-up was a truly unforgettable event
and a good example of the traditional Sami culture thriving in Lapland. There's more about
our activities with the Chinese news crew in the daily diary.
I will post links to the Chinese news reports
here when I get them, so check back later.
Hopefully, the Xinhua reports will inspire more
local and provincial Chinese radio stations to
begin responding to reception reports. It
seems like only half of Chinese AM stations
verify reports, even though we write them in
Chinese. It appears to me that they don't
realize the value that DXers place on getting a
confirmation in return. For decades, such
verifications of reception have been an
honored tradition in radio broadcasting around
the world. The practice is eroding, especially in
countries where stations are inundated with
reports, but this is not the case with China, which very few DXers seriously target. So, we're
counting on Xinhua to educate the Chinese media on DXing.
We also got some domestic media attention. On November 1st, the 90th anniversary of radio
broadcasting in Finland was celebrated in Tampere, and Radio Moreeni, a local FM station,
interviewed me for about ten minutes on DXing during its jubilee programming.
Conditions rising and nose-diving
Propagation conditions during the three-week period fluctuated quite dramatically, which can
be expected near the solar maximum. The first week was rather poor, the second fairly good,
and the third truly lousy. For those of you interested in detailed solar weather indices, here's
a chart covering the AIH29 DXpedition (thanks to Jan Alvestad for compiling the information).
The period of best conditions to North America and the Far East is highlighted in light green
and the record sunspot number in red.
Date
Measured
solar
flux
Sunspot
number
Planetary
A index
K indices
Min_max
#
(3-hour intervals)
Solar
of
wind
flares
speed
STAR
NO ST W Daily Planetary Boulder
C M X
range
SDO
AA AR D
ap
(WDC)
(km/s)
ap C range
2K 1K
avg
12.10.2013 127.9 200 137 106
4.0
4
2-9
01011122 02122222 346-439 13
13.10.2013 129.3 237 148 125
1.5
2
0-5
10000010 10001200 288-353
14.10.2013 125.0 230 152 136 17.5 18 0-32 02233444 02333333 274-575
5 1
6
15.10.2013 125.3 218 152 148 16.9 17 3-32 44342113 33433213 462-577 12 2
16.10.2013 128.1 246 176 120
9.0
9 5-22 43212222 42213322 446-593 10
17.10.2013 136.1 238 178 166 11.8 12 6-27 33222111 23433311 376-470 11 1
18.10.2013 139.9 275 207 154
3.0
3
2-6
11100021 10112221 346-413 16
19.10.2013 132.7 185 143 149
1.8
2
0-2
00000000 00022211 298-361 13
20.10.2013 133.4 247 149 117
2.0
2
0-4
00000001 00012211 270-367
9
21.10.2013 135.8 216 139 179
1.5
2
0-2
00000000 00002200 271-308
9
22.10.2013 146.3 314 206 228
3.8
4
0-7
00210112 01222222 280-408 14 3
23.10.2013 152.7 306 168 141
3.4
3
0-9
12210000 12111211 275-467 16 3
24.10.2013 160.6 295 186 148
1.9
2
0-3
11010000 01011211 300-386 16 3
25.10.2013 161.4 266 161 148
2.4
2
0-5
00100101 01001211 279-413
26.10.2013 160.2 228 169 171
1.5
2
0-4
00000001 10001211 270-358 14 6
27.10.2013 166.9 237 144 206
1.9
2
0-3
00101010 00102221 270-313 16 1
28.10.2013 159.9 209 145 155
1.4
1
0-3
00100000 12101211 270-320
29.10.2013 152.6 225 161 171
4.0
4
0-7
00021122 10032222 271-406 16
6 5 2
6 7 1
30.10.2013 141.9 236 157 132 12.4 12 3-22 11333334 01343423 308-381
4
31.10.2013 142.6 259 167 128
6.1
6
3-9
21122212 10112322 335-560
7 1
1.11.2013
145.6 192 133 95
4.4
4
2-7
22111011 22112220 341-425
8 1
2.11.2013
141.6 211 151 123
2.8
3
0-5
11010001 12111201 285-424
8 1
3.11.2013
143.5 272 151 143
5.4
5 0-12 23210021 23311121 348-437
3 1
1
October is traditionally a busy month in AM DXing bases across Lapland. You can follow
parallel DXpeditions in Kongsfjord, Norway (KONG23 until October 18th) in Bjarne Mjelde's
and OJ Sagdahl's blogs. Comprehensive logs from Parkalompolo, Sweden (PAX101), can be
found in an often-updated RTF file, and an overview of the conditions from the perspective of
Lemmenjoki, Finland, is also online, by two crews, LEM331 until October 25th and LEM332
until November 2nd.
To give you a better idea of each DXing day, here's a detailed diary of our activities starting
from October 18th.
Friday, October 18, 2013
I didn't waste a lot of time traveling because I flew for the first time to Lapland for a long
DXpedition. This arrangement was made possible thanks to Markku, who took some of my
stuff a week earlier by car. I only had to fit the remaining equipment almost within limits of
airline regulations. The security check officers didn't even blink when they opened my carryon luggage, which was filled with external hard drives — stripped of all accessories — and one
laptop. I got a second screening but no questions asked. Anything else can be broken with
rough handling, but hard drives are irreplaceable (especially on the return flight!) so I insisted
on carrying them gently myself.
The weather at Helsinki-Vantaa airport was
awful. It was the coldest day so far this fall
with sleet in the air and moisture on the
ground. However, Finnair's flight to Ivalo was
almost on time and, in roughly an hour and 20
minutes later, I saw Markku waiting for me at
the airport, where the ground was covered by
a thin blanket of fresh snow. Meanwhile, Lauri
was in the departure hall, ready to board the
same Airbus back to Helsinki via Kittilä. Before
arriving in Aihkiniemi well before sunset, we
shopped for groceries in Ivalo and had a
burger in Inari.
Mika's shortcut to Lapland, arriving in Ivalo on Friday
afternoon, October 18th.
Setting up all the gear always takes a lot of
time, so I may have missed some stations
during the afternoon Asia session. However, overall conditions didn't sound spectacular. To
my surprise, though, I got one new NHK station at 1540 UTC when NHK2 closed down: a
100-watt relay of JOTB Matsue (1593 kHz) on 1539 kHz was a novel discovery. Markku,
however, was only focused on the Western Hemisphere, so he had a relaxing afternoon, as
nothing was heard from the U.S. West Coast.
Saturday, October 19, 2013
I haven't really checked overnight recordings, but conditions seemed poor in all directions,
just a couple of already noted Ethiopian AM stations. Practically nothing was heard from Latin
America. North American stations became stronger before daybreak and remained audible
until around 1000 UTC, and a bunch of regular stations a couple more hours.
Signal strength varied wildly, atmospheric
noise was strong, and conditions were limited
to the upper half of the AM band, with stations
coming mostly from the Midwest, especially
around Minnesota and Wisconsin. "La Picosa"
KQSP Shakopee, MN, on 1530 AM was
identified on daytime power, along with a
couple of stations on 1450 kHz, the best of
which was KOKO Warrensburg, MO. Listening
to 1450 AM was sheer joy now compared to
the same time last year, as a long-time pest in
neighboring Kola Peninsula has left the
adjacent frequency of 1449 kHz. Until now,
U.S. stations on the dial, and Markku is having a time of
listening to stations on 1450 kHz was usually
his life!
possible only during a few seconds before the
top of the hour when Russian stations never
worried about dead air. It's pure luxury to be able to monitor the frequency now without any
interference.
Just as the Western Hemisphere faded out, Eastern stations emerged. Initially we got a lot of
Japanese stations, although NHK2 breaks didn't yield new ones. Soon after, Chinese stations
dominated the entire AM band for several hours. I took full advantage of the vacated
frequency of 1449 kHz, which was open to the East even late in the evening. The most
common Chinese station here is Rizhao PBS, which launched its broadcast day at 2130 UTC
with several neat station identifications and a very powerful signal. Some Philippine stations
were also heard, but the only new one was DWRS Vigan on 927 kHz opening its morning
broadcast around 1954 UTC — quite an interesting timing, I wonder why they didn't start at
the top of the hour?
Overall, the Asian opening today was well
above average, and browsing the recordings
should result in more fun surprises.
Aside from listening, I paid a courtesy visit to
our nearest neighbor. The weather was
repulsive with strong winds developing into a
snow storm by the evening. Braving the snow
in the comfort of a car, we drove a few
kilometers away to Jounila for a shower, and
enjoyed Markku's cooking later in the cabin.
Sunday, October 20, 2013
Markku runs a big supermarket, so there's no risk of
starving in Aihkiniemi. This amount of chocolate should be
enough for DXpeditionists through the winter!
Overnight recordings of transatlantic stations
were useless and deleted after inspection. Just
the usual suspects from North and South America. In the morning, signal strength was
reasonable from around 0400 UTC, and 0500 UTC was the best top of the hour. Conditions
favored the Great Lakes area, so even though graveyard frequencies were open, stations like
KTRF on 1230 kHz were usually on top. Occasionally, conditions inched deeper south, and we
got one spectacular surprise, KJSK Columbus, NE, on 900 kHz (MP3), noticed live by Markku.
A few Mexican stations were also logged, such as XET Monterrey on 990 kHz with a very
impressive sound. Signals began to retreat after 0500 UTC, and by 0600 the most powerful
stations came from the Canadian Prairie and the U.S. Rockies.
U.S. stations gradually weakened, although
the toughest ones were still audible well past
1200 UTC, so this was quite a long opening.
Graveyard frequencies were mostly open,
although signals were fairly weak. In addition
to KTRF, our typical catches included KCCR
and WJON on 1240 kHz, WMBN on 1340 kHz,
and KIHH on 1400 kHz. Just a trickle of signals
from Hawaii and Alaska in the afternoon.
The first sustained wave from Asia arrived well
before 1100 UTC, and this time it was
spearheaded by stations from the Chinese
Mika checking antennas. This is where our 80- and 160province of Nei Monggol in the north. Many
degree wires begin from.
Japanese stations joined in the mix, and even
Vietnamese stations were present at the same
time, so finding new ones was challenging. Notably, NHK2 closed down today at 1510 UTC.
Japanese DXer Sei-ichi Hasegawa emailed me that 1510 UTC is nowadays the sign-off time
on Sundays, while transmission ends at 1540 UTC on all other days. The Asian opening was
much shorter than yesterday, and by 1600 UTC nearly all Asian stations were toppled by
Europeans, Iranians, and the like.
Outside fierce winds and snowfall continued until early evening, so I had to clear the yard and
driveway. Wouldn't want to get snowbound here. Well, actually, with all of the receivers and
food, maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all...
Monday, October 21, 2013
Overnight, we heard some common stations
from Venezuela and the United States,
followed by a good morning opening around
0500-0600 UTC. North American stations were
heard from Coast to Coast, but most
impressive was the strong showing of stations
from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and
Colombia. Identified catches included Radio
Alegría (Venezuela) on 1020 kHz and Radio
Avivamiento (Panamá) on 1530 kHz. Then
suddenly all stations vanished around 0615
UTC and resurfaced around 0700 UTC, with
some East Coast as well, including WNZS
Veazie, ME, on 1340 kHz. Once again U.S.
stations continued well into the afternoon.
Arctic ice lantern designed by Mika
The Asian opening began after 1100 UTC, once more focused on China and Japan.
Unfortunately, Iranian and European stations spoiled the fun quite early, becoming strong
already around 1330 UTC. Around midday, we let automated recordings take care of the
business while we erected a new temporary antenna, roughly 700 meters pointing at 210
degrees.
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
In the early morning hours, stations from Brazil and Argentina were heard for hours, but
signal levels were only average — nevertheless this was better than during the previous days.
In the morning, daybreak at 0500-0600 UTC was once again the most interesting period and
a time of extremely intensive listening. Venezuelan and Puerto Rican stations dipped in the
morning, but returned close to 0800 UTC, which is remarkably late this early in the season.
North American stations were heard from Coast to Coast. 0600 UTC seemed to be the best
top of the hour, as even the very low end of the AM dial was open.
The morning session was lively and mesmerizing because of constant variation in signal
levels. We got a bunch of new stations, such as KTUV Little Rock, AR, on 1440 kHz. Around
0900 UTC there was a brief opening to Tennessee, with old acquaintances 1340 WCDT and
1390 WTJS identified. Minnesotan stations were still very powerful, and KATE Albert Lea on
1450 kHz was heard for the third day in a row.
It might be too early to judge an antenna
based on just a few hours of listening, but it
seemed that the new 700-meter antenna at
210 degrees had a fairly wide lobe, so we
extended the antenna all the way to 1,000
meters, which is the maximum allowed by the
terrain — ending at a lakeshore. Even when
the wire was short this morning, I still caught
one new RNE1 relay transmitter, namely Cabra
(Andalucia) on 972 kHz.
The first East Asian sounds arrived just before
1000 UTC, but not quite early and strong
What do you mean that this doesn't qualify as gourmet
enough for the NHK1 local station
dining or a Michelin Star?
identifications. Conditions to Japan remained
fair during subsequent NHK breaks, but JOAP
Naha, Okinawa, on 549 kHz is so far the only new catch. As a sign of improving conditions,
Guam stations on 567 and 801 kHz were identified just before 1200 UTC. Around 1030 UTC I
switched my focus and recording activity to the
Eastern front.
Otherwise conditions to Asia were average.
Chinese stations, such as Nei Monggol PBS on
the unlisted frequency of 1305 kHz, dominated
at first, but very soon at 1330 UTC even Indian
stations were heard, and the band had become
a useless mess of everything possible.
While writing this, I missed the 1540 UTC
break for NHK2 local station identifications; I
just heard the closing melody being played on
many frequencies. Oh well, slightly less
recordings to check in the end.
I needed some evidence to remind me that it wasn't
completely cloudy all the time.
To keep things in perspective, the conditions
have been so unstable that on all these days we haven't had a chance of getting daytimers
during our late evening. Now we're starting to be more hopeful. First audio from North
America was at 2040 UTC on 1390 kHz (presumed WEGP), well before sunset there, and from
South America after 2100 UTC on 1190 kHz (Brazilian, presumed as CBN Natal with "A Voz do
Brasil"). Eventually, no daytimers were detected live, but U.S. East Coast was moderate until
around 2300 UTC, when stations vanished and reappeared early in the morning. Moderate
Brazil and Argentina (such as Radio Rubí on 1670 kHz) overnight.
Whimsical developments in the sun that are
responsible for the sudden deterioration of
propagation have not gone unnoticed by the
community of solar geeks. Here's what
Spaceweather.com reported:
"SOLAR TSUNAMI AND RADIO BURST: Sunspot AR1875
erupted on Oct. 22nd (21:20 UT), producing an impulsive M4class solar flare and a loud burst of shortwave radio static.
Amateur radio astronomer Thomas Ashcraft of New Mexico
was listening at the time of the eruption. "I knew this flare was
a strong one by the force of the radio shock front," he says. "It
nearly lifted me out of my chair!" -- Ashcraft is a regular
listener of the sun and he classifies the Oct. 22nd outburst as
"one of the strongest radio blasts of the solar cycle so far."
Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius) at the northern extreme
of its range.
On Spaceweather you can even listen to
Ashcraft's recording of the burst of radio static
— quite impressive, and not totally unlike what we experienced in Aihkiniemi. The highest
recorded sunspot number of the ongoing solar cycle was reached today (228 according to
NOAA's count).
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
U.S. East Coast stations were heard best around 0300-0400 UTC, and this would be the only
time slot worth saving from the overnight automated recordings. Some Colombian and
Venezuelan stations were strong around 0400 and 0500 UTC, but nothing much from any
direction was heard in between. The morning peak was the weakest in five days — just as
reception should have peaked, the band became quiet. There's only one way from here — up.
Time to catch up on sleep. Outside we got some drizzle in the early morning hours as the
temperature rose above the freezing point.
There was a near total radio blackout during the day. Stations
from the west vanished before 0600 UTC, and only after 1330
UTC the first signals from the east became audible.
Unfortunately, it was only Iran and Saudi Arabia, along with
Europeans, and practically nothing from further east, just the
Indian superpower station on 1071 kHz.
Reviewing recordings from this morning was today's bright
spot. The new 210-degree antenna worked like magic!
Already on the first morning with the full-size antenna I
logged five RNE1 and RNE5 stations that I've never heard
before: Catalunya on 801 and 1152 kHz, as well as
Comunidad Valenciana on 558, 936 and 1125 kHz! This is
simply amazing. Trust me. These are rare stations in Finland.
Another one of those 'why didn't I think of this before'
experiences. Maybe conditions this morning were a bit
special. Otherwise, I'd be running out of hunting targets from
Spain by the end of the expedition.
Wednesday evening felt like a total disaster, as our antennas
captured hardly anything beyond Iran. But hey, there's still
Iran! I thought I had pretty much exhausted what there is
during several weeks of intensive Iran monitoring a year
This is not a black-and-white photo,
but a cloudy October day here devours
earlier, but I still had a short list of targets, and began to
all colors.
inspect the dial accordingly. And what a surprise as I hit the
Zahedan jackpot! Three stations with provincial programming
from Baluchestan, all with fabulous local station identifications on very difficult frequencies
(1053, 1296, and 1377 kHz). A word of warning — if you hear Farsi (or in this case more
precisely Dari) on 1296 kHz, it is almost certainly Radio Azadi from Afghanistan, and hearing
Farsi on 1377 kHz is nearly always Voice of Russia via Armenia. For weeks on end last year, I
didn't hear a trace of Zahedan on these frequencies.
Thursday, October 24, 2013
It turned out that propagation conditions recovered rather rapidly. Overnight conditions
favored the "Orinoco" region: Venezuela and Colombia. In the morning there was a peak
deeper south around 0545 UTC, when for example Radio Sucre (700 kHz) from Ecuador
sounded like a real big gun, and quite a few Cubans were heard at enjoyable signal levels.
After a modest rise earlier around U.S. sunset,
U.S. East Coast was audible again around
0400-0700 UTC, but no rarities were logged
when listening live. A few regulars hung
around intermittently until 0900 UTC, but
nothing worth reporting.
In the afternoon, the AM band was remarkably
undisturbed, and I was already hoping for
some Oceania, but had to settle with the
regular Asian mix. Fortunately, I had some
luck regarding the only two opportunities when
NHK2 station can be identified, and I heard
The days may be short, but the antennas are long.
two personal new ones: JOLC Tottori via JOLZ
Yonago on 1521 kHz and JOMC Miyazaki on
1467 kHz. I also noted Nei Monggol PBS on yet another unlisted frequency, 1224 kHz. The
opening, which began before 1100 UTC, was fairly short-lived, and from 1400 UTC the AM
band sounded like it was being swarmed with Iranian and Saudi stations.
Got some more snow and I shoveled the driveway.
Friday, October 25, 2013
During the night, U.S. East Coast, Puerto Rican, and Venezuelan stations showed up as soon
as the sun set in their respective areas, so we recorded TA signals starting already before
2200 UTC. At daybreak, the conditions just melted, but a new path emerged to the U.S.
Rockies and the Canadian Prairie. That's when Markku began his long drive home. Aside from
a few big guns, signal levels were pretty weak until around 1000 UTC, when the Northwestern
corner regained some strength.
As it was Friday, I enjoyed listening to "Friday Night Blues" and other country classics on my
favorite Oregonian, KKXA 1520 AM, heard occasionally with a massive signal. Got this advice
from "KXA" live on the air: "Never stick anything in your ear, except Classic Country!"
Couldn't agree more.
Stations from the Pacific Northwest continued
remarkably late. Signal levels were not that
spectacular, but still at 1400-1500 UTC there
were North American stations on the dial from
California, Washington, British Columbia,
Alaska, and Hawaii. This is not rare, but,
nevertheless, it is the first time during this fall
season that TA signals endure throughout the
day and even make a decent comeback late in
the afternoon. If solar activity remains low,
this kind of extended North American opening
should become a norm for the winter months.
It was a real pleasure to hear KONP and KLAM
fight over domination of 1450 kHz late into the
afternoon, and solemn to pick up KJNP (1170
AM) making its opening announcements (MP3)
at 1336 UTC. The wording has probably
A trip down memory lane: KJNP broadcasts from North
Pole, Alaska, on 1170 kHz.
remained unchanged for decades. Incidentally, just the previous day I was wearing a KJNP tshirt, bought on location during a very memorable assignment around Alaska in 2007,
allowing me to visit North Pole as well.
Conditions to Asia opened late, featured a hodgepodge of everything, and lasted only for a
short while. Luckily I was still able to catch one more NHK2 station, namely JOTC Aomori on
1521 kHz.
Briefly back to Friday morning. The new 210-degree antenna brought no new ones on
Thursday, but on Friday I very faintly heard RNE5 Murcia from Cartagena on 1152 kHz. This
weak ID was not audible on our traditional (250-degree) antenna for Spain, which only
caught Castilla La Mancha. So direction matters. And size. And a dose of perverted
stubbornness in hunting for the elusive country, you know what I'm talking about... Gibraltar,
which has never been heard in Finland on 1458 kHz. Doesn't look like this antenna is going to
make much difference there however.
Saturday, October 26, 2013
And here comes the Western Hemisphere
again. WEGP Presque Isle, ME, on 1390 kHz
was traditionally the first station with audio
around 2115 UTC on Friday evening, but still
at 2200 UTC there were just a few audible
signals. Puerto Rican stations (especially 1280
and 1480 AM) emerged strong soon after 2200
UTC. Sounds very much like the previous day
at the same time, or maybe a tad poorer.
Saturday morning turned out to be simply
fantastic! A narrow opening to the East Coast
of North America, with no stations west of Ohio
Jim preparing for yet another marathon. If you can run
audible — except for 1160 WYLL, which is a
here, you can run anywhere.
pest on the frequency. This narrow eastern
focus without Midwestern stations is a rare
opportunity, and signal levels were very impressive. Definitely one of the best East Coast
openings that I have ever experienced. As an example, WCSL Cherryville, NC, on 1590 kHz
(MP3) was booming almost like a local station.
To balance the day, the afternoon opening to Asia was a non-starter. The first signals
appeared rather late, after 1200 UTC, and soon the focus dropped down to India and Iran. So
far, Indian stations have been very few on the expedition, so it was nevertheless nice to hear
some of them, such as AIR Darbhanga on
1296 kHz signing off at 1740 UTC.
Jim arrived in the afternoon, so we now had a
full crew again on AIH29. In the evening it was
time for a VIP appointment. We went to
Kaamanen to meet the correspondent and
camera(wo)man of the Chinese Xinhua news
agency. Li Jizhi and Zhang Xuan had driven all
the way from Helsinki to meet us and make a
report about DXing for the Chinese media! So
after a tasty meal, we drove back to the cabin
for interviews and some live DXing. Luckily,
there were some Chinese AM stations audible
late in the evening so that we could
demonstrate examples that were meaningful
to the Chinese audience.
Li Jizhi, Xinhua's correspondent in Helsinki, just found a
Chinese AM station.
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Early in the night, nothing was heard from anywhere, but then Brazilian stations emerged.
Signals began to improve around 0130 UTC, and later the opening grew to include all of
South America. At daybreak, signals were very strong from all around the continent, and as
North American stations were conveniently absent (aside from a few from Newfoundland),
this made for an exclusive opening. Major Colombian and Venezuelan stations were heard at
armchair levels, and rarities will certainly be discovered once we get to review the recordings.
Puerto Rico and Venezuela are still strong now at 0730 UTC, which is quite impressive. A
fabulous morning!
On Sunday morning, the Orinoco front hung
around extremely long with last signals
dissipating at around 0930 UTC, and even
then, the westernmost stations were a few
isolated cases from the Eastern Coast of North
America, so this was a truly Latin feast. "La
Cantina" slogan on 1450 kHz remained a
mystery for a while, but eventually it turned
out to be part of La Cariñosa programming
from Colombia.
We don't really have much DX observations
from the afternoon. All afternoon and evening
Xinhua featuring DXing! For a change I wasn't behind the
was spent with the Xinhua news group that
camera myself.
returned to the Aihkiniemi cabin. First we took
them to the surrounding forest to see the
antennas, then continued explaining about the hobby in the cabin. In the evening, we all
went to Siuttajoki reindeer corral, where the annual reindeer round-up was just reaching its
climax. This was to be Xinhua's second news
report from Lapland.
It had been snowing a lot, but fortunately
Xinhua had a good 4WD to take us in the
middle of the wilderness. It was a truly
spectacular scene. Hundreds of reindeer were
roaring and running around in large pens
waiting for their turn, steaming and trumping
snow.
The reindeer were driven in small herds into a
round enclosure labeled as a "churn", where
the reindeer face their destiny: chosen either
to be slaughtered for meat, or eventually let
Trying to hold a reindeer still takes at least two men.
back into the wilderness. Sami children —
some as young as eight — learn to capture
running reindeer by their antlers and trying to hold them down, with some help from others.
The strongest reindeer require 2-3 men to hold them still. There is a veterinarian giving shots
against parasites, and the reindeer are sorted by family who are part of the cooperative.
We returned to the cabin later in the evening to quickly review some of the automated
afternoon recordings. It seemed that conditions favored China, but it didn't last very long
before the Middle East and South Asia became part of the mix. ABC from Australia on 1152
kHz counts as a regular here in Aihkiniemi. From China, Cangzhou PBS, for instance, was
identified on 1206 kHz. Later in the evening, Ethiopia was noticed signing off around 2100
UTC on at least 972 kHz.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Some Brazilian and Argentine stations emerged around midnight UTC and continued until
dawn, but not as well as the previous night. Colombian, Venezuelan, and Peruvian stations
were present from 0300 UTC, but from North America, only stations in Atlantic Canada were
audible. So the conditions were otherwise very similar to Sunday morning, but signals were
much weaker. Nevertheless, a few powerhouses were heard until around 0800 UTC, which is
late for this time of the year.
During the daylight hours, I checked some
antennas and Jim went running. The weather
was miserable, it was either raining or snowing
all the time, and as temperatures hovered
above freezing point, everything was wet and
slippery.
This may not be the safest place to be standing right now,
but at least I got a good shot...
Later in the afternoon, the Asian opening,
which started around 1130 UTC, was focused
further south than before. Initially most
stations were from southern China and
Thailand, but the first Indian stations joined
already before 1300 UTC. The Xinhua crew
visited the cabin one final time before heading
south on Tuesday.
The solar weather has become increasingly unstable, so we were hoping to catch something
from Africa, but only a couple of Ethiopian stations have so far been detected.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Nearly rock bottom conditions — not a single North American nor Far East station detected
during the last 24 hours. In the early morning hours only Brazilian and Argentine stations
were heard, best around 0400 UTC. After that, I was expecting a morning enhancement, but
signals didn't become any stronger, and only diminishing interference from European stations
made reception slightly more comfortable for a while, until all signals withered away after
0700 UTC.
Similar to the prior two days, Venezuelan, Colombian, and Peruvian stations were heard in
the morning, although signal levels were weaker. Probably the best catch, however, was from
closer to home: COPE Catalunya, Figueres, on 1269 kHz — now I have identified all COPE
stations on the frequency despite constant interference by Deutschlandfunk. Daytime hours
were equally bleak outside and on the air — rain throughout the day, and just static on the
dial.
In the afternoon, the first Asian signals
emerged around 1230 UTC. The only usable
antenna direction was 100 degrees, meaning
that Thailand was roughly the Eastern edge of
the opening. Indian stations were stronger
than at any point during the past 10 days, and
we got local identifications of All India Radio on
a few less common frequencies, such as 1296,
1458, 1530 and 1602 kHz.
Reading logs from DXers elsewhere in the
Nordic countries didn't offer much consolation.
It seemed that U.S. daytimers had been heard
In the heat of the action at the reindeer corral.
all around, and especially fellow listeners in
Parkalompolo (Sweden) had made very
impressive catches a couple of days earlier, when we logged just some common East Coast
stations. The prevailing solar conditions seem to take a heavy toll this high up north and/or
even minor differences in location can result in quite different catches.
What was lost in radio reception was made up with improved cuisine. Brazilian tenderloin
steaks and Chilean red wine were a proper closure for the DXing day. Yummy!
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Can the conditions become any worse? Obviously yes. In the early morning, a few common
stations from Ethiopia were heard at 0300 UTC sign-on time (828, 972, 1044, and 1359 kHz).
From Latin America, a few Brazilian and Argentine stations with poor signal levels were noted
until they too disappeared soon after daybreak, before 0700 UTC. Thanks to our new
invention, the 210-degree wire, I got one new Spanish station, RNE1 Catalunya from LéridaLleida on 612 kHz, so the morning session wasn't a complete waste. Daytime was totally
silent on the AM band — a good opportunity to catch up on sleep.
Lemmenjoki (left) meets Aihkiniemi (right) halfway in
Inari. A pretty good meal and excellent company.
In the afternoon, Iranian stations began to
emerge from the static after 1300 UTC, and
aside from a couple of Indian stations, nothing
was heard from further East. It was an easy
decision to leave the AM band for a few hours
and head to Inari for grocery shopping and to
meet our friends and fellow DXers, Håkan
Sundman and Hannu Tikkanen, who were
spending the week in Lemmenjoki on the
LEM332 DXpedition. Our three-course dinner
at Kultahovi Hotel's Restaurant Aanaar of the
included, for instance, lichen (yes, the same
stuff that the reindeer eat!) as a
complimentary starter.
In the evening, it sounded as if a blanket was thrown over the entire AM band, and signal
levels overall were considerably lower than on previous days. Again, some Ethiopian stations
were heard, and I even resorted to trying to identify the ubiquitous Koran-chanting stations
that seem to have overtaken the AM dial. It paid off, and I came across one newsworthy
station: Radio Oman, Buraimi, on 639 kHz is probably a station, which has not been reported
in Europe before. It is a new transmitter site, part of the AM overhaul mentioned also in the
WRTH. No transatlantic signals were heard even after 2300 UTC.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
The end of October was rather depressing on the AM dial. Overnight some Brazilian and
Argentine stations were heard, and there was a bit of a morning enhancement after 0500
UTC, so we did save files to check from this modest peak. However, all transatlantic signals
vanished already around 0630 UTC. Spanish stations on the 210-degree antenna were
weaker on this morning than on any previous one, so not much to listen to from that direction
either.
We went back to sleep and woke around midday. Of course
there was nothing on the AM band, so we spent a few hours
outside checking and improving the antenna installations. It
was actually quite nice because the temperature was slightly
below freezing (not getting soaked) and we even witnessed
some sunshine, which has been a rarity during this
expedition. When we returned to the cabin at 1350 UTC,
mostly Iranian stations were heard on the eastern front. It is
becoming difficult to find anything new from there, but finally
we managed to coax an ID from Radio Bushehr, Dayyer, on
738 kHz. The same provincial station, from a different
location, is much more common on 1305 kHz where it can be
heard daily.
In the evening, we focused on hunting for sub-Saharan
African stations. 1377 kHz sounded like Tanzania, and I'm
hoping for the much weaker signal on 1323 kHz to originate
from there as well. A station on 846 kHz seems to come from
the south, but is playing only non-stop music.
The proton flux finally started showing signs of returning to
lower levels, so we still had a chance to get something before
the inevitable end of the DXpedition on Saturday morning. Or
so we thought.
A new monster support pole lifted the
30-degree antenna much higher than
before.
Friday, November 1, 2013
Conditions remained the same — if not worse — despite the proton flux returning to normal.
A few regular African stations were heard in the evening and morning, below average
conditions to Brazil and Argentina through the night and in the morning, until everything
vanished at daybreak. Then the daytime was empty, until Iran and the rest of the Middle East
rose in the afternoon, but nothing beyond India. And nothing from North America and the Far
East for several days.
Saturday, November 2, 2013
We already started packing Friday evening since we had to leave around 9:00 a.m. in order
to catch a midday flight from Ivalo. We didn't do much active listening on Saturday morning,
but it was evident that not much of significance was available. ZYJ265 Rádio Cidade, Pato
Branco PR on 1360 kHz was a very welcome catch and the only new station that I logged.
Brazilian and Argentinian stations peaked in the morning around 0530 UTC, and we pulled the
last plugs after 0600 UTC.
The return to civilization was swift and
comfortable. And the hard drives survived
intact. There would be a certain charm in
driving through the country (which I've done
numerous times), it would be a kind of a rite of
passage — a transition from normalcy to a
passionate expedition and back — but it takes
a full day, so I think I just might get addicted
to flying.
This is the safest way to cross the nearby stream during
antenna inspection outings.
All in all conditions could have been better, but
AIH29 was still a lot of fun! And in any case, I
have close to 10TB of recordings. Listening to
all of them will take years, so don't expect a
comprehensive log anytime soon.
For more information about Aihkiniemi, check out this article. The cabin is already booked for
much of this season. However, if you're interested in a DXpedition of a lifetime, there are still
a few vacant weeks, especially from February 2014 onwards.
If you enjoyed reading this article, please consider supporting the DXing.info website to keep
it online. Even a modest contribution by PayPal is helpful and much appreciated. Proceed by
clicking the button below.
Published on November 7, 2013