THENEWDXERSHANDBOOK

Writtenby:

BRYCEK.ANDERSON,K7UA
January15,2011

Copyright20102011Theauthorgrantspermissiontoindividualstoreproducethisdocumentforpersonalnoncommercialuseunderthe conditionthatcreditisgiventotheauthor.

INDEX:

Page

Forward: Chapter1 ListeningThekeytosuccessfulDXing Chapter2 DXClusterBasics Chapter3 TheHolyGrailofDXingTheDXCenturyClub Chapter4 TheDXersToolkit Chapter5 SplitOperation&HowtoBeHeardinaPileup Chapter6 DXPropagationBasics Chapter7 Phonetics Chapter8 TheArtofQSLing Chapter9 DXIntelligence AuthorsComments: AzimuthChart

3
4 6 8 10 14 17 22 23 28 29 30

OriginallythishandbookwaswrittenforthemembershipoftheUtahDXAssociation.Someofthe detailsarespecifictoourUtahlocation.Ifyouareinanotherregionyouwillhavedifferent,but similarresourcesforDXclusters,QSLbureaucontacts,cardcheckers,etc.Yourspecificdetailscan easilybefoundontheweb. Someofourmembersaskedforanazimuthcharttobeincludedinthehandbook.Theoneonpage 30isagainspecificforUtah.Youcaneasilygenerateoneforyourexactlocationbyusingoneofthe resourceslistedinthepropagationchapter. GoodluckwithyourDXing! 2

Forward:EveryaccomplishedDXerwasabeginneratonetime.This
bookletcontainsmanyofthebasicsofsuccessfulDXing.DXingcanbecomea lifelongpassion.Itisalsoalotoffun!DXingoffersopportunitiesofpersonal growthinawidevarietyofareasfromgeography,toscience,tolanguageskills. Italsooffersacompetitiveoutletforthosewhoaresoinclined. Ihopethatthisshorthandbookwillgivearunningstarttothosenewtoour ranks.

Bestregards, BryceAnderson,K7UA

CHAPTER1
ListeningThekeytosuccessfulDXing: ThehumblestudentapproachedtheZenMaster,bowingandslowlygainingthecouragetoask: Master..WhatisthesecretofworkingDX?TheMastersmiledandsimplyreplied:Listen.Always listen,Grasshopper. Listen?Why?Listenforwhat? InthemostliteralsenseanaccomplishedDXeristrulyahunter.Greathuntersknowwhattheyare hunting,whatitlookslike,whatitsoundslike,andwhereitislikelytobefound.Theydontjusttromp throughthewoodshopingthattheirprizewilljuststandinfrontofthemsayingHey,shootme!They knowwhenandwheretolooktoimprovetheiroddsandtheykeepakeeneyeopentofindthebig gamebeforesomeoneelsedoes. Thatiswhywelisten.Wearescoutingthebandforstationsthatjustcameontheair.Theweakones fromfarawaythatnooneelsehasnoticedyet.IfyouarethefirsttofindagreatDXstation,youwill probablygethim.Youwillhavenocompetition.Also,someopeningstothemostremoteplaceson Earthareonlyafewminuteslong.Youhavetobethereatjusttherighttime.Sometimespropagation canbeveryselectiveinwhocancontactwho.YoumightjustbetheonlyonehearingthatrareDX station. Oh!Idontneedtodothat!IlljustwaitforhimtocomeupontheDXClustersystem. OK.IfyouareTHETREXof20Mthismightworkoutfine.Youhavethepowertodestroyyour competitionandslamthroughanypileup.However,fortherestofus,oncearareDXstationisspotted thecompetitionskyrockets.Andbynotlistening,youwillmissoutonthoseweakonesthatnooneelse everhearsorbotherstospot.UsingDXClustersisaterrifictool,butitisnttheonlymeanstobecoming asuccessfulDXer.WewilldiscussDXClustersinalaterchapter. NowbacktolisteningthekeytosuccessfulDXing.Theconceptoflisteningisverysimple.Starton oneendofthebandandslowlytuneupordownthebandlookingforDX.Youshouldespeciallycheck outtheDXportionofthatband.TheDXportionisusuallythelowerendofeachsubband(phone& CW).Whileyouareslowlytuning,stoponeachstationthatyouhearforafewsecondsandfigureoutif theyareDX,workingDX,orofnointeresttoaDXer.Pickoutcallletters.Theyaretheobviouswayto determineifastationisDXornot.Thesubjectthattheyarediscussingcanalsobeaclue.Aragchew discussingsomethingmundanecanbeskippedover.AstationrippingoffQSOsasfastastheycangois somethingtobecheckedoutfurther.Payspecialattentiontoweaksignals,phoneoperatorsspeaking withaccentsorinaforeignlanguage,andtosignalsthatjustsoundfunny.ByfunnyImeanhavinga flutterysound,anecho,orapoorCWnote.Signalsthattraveloverthepolesareimpactedbythe aurorathatisalwayspresent.ItgivesbothphoneandCWsignalstheflutterysound.Itiscalledarctic flutter.Onceyouhaveheardit,youwillneverforgetit.Echoescomefromsignalsarrivingatyour 4

locationfrommultiplepaths.Thedifferenceinthosepathlengthscreatestheecho.SometimesUS stationssoundthiswayfrombackscatter,butsomeDXstationsfromveryfarawaymaybearrivingvia multiplepathsandalsohaveanecho.PoorCWnotesmaybecausedbyechoesorfromtechnicalissues attheDXstation.Apoorpowersourceorequipmentthatwasnotconstructedtomodernstandards maytipyouofftoaDXstation.Commercialpowerisverypoorinmanypartsoftheworldandgood equipmentmaybeveryhardtoobtain.Ofcoursewhenyoutuneuponahugepileupyouknowthat somethingofinterestison! Thebestwaytolistenisbywearingheadphones.Havinganicespeakertousewithragchews,waiting foryourturnonthenetroster,orothercasualoperatingisfine.ForDXingyouneedheadphones. HeadphonesallowyoutoreducethenoisearoundyouandtousetheminimumofAFgain(volume). Youcanconcentratebetterwithoutdistractions.Youwillhearaweaksignalbetterwithheadphones. Trustmeonthat. Notjustanyheadphoneswilldo.Firsttheyhavetobecomfortablesothatyoucanwearthemfor extendedperiods.Anotherfactortoconsideristhefrequencyresponseoftheheadset.Highfidelity headsetsdesignedformusichaveaverywidefrequencyresponse.Typicallyfrom50to20,000hertz. Communicationsonlyusesarangefromabout300to3,000hertz.Youdontwantthosesuperhighs becauseinacommunicationssituationtheyarejustnoise.Thechestthumpingbassresponseisalso useless.Youarebetteroffwithaheadsetdesignedforcommunications.Variousmanufacturersmake them.MostofususeheadsetsmadebyHeilSoundhttp://www.heilsound.com/.Theyarethe standardforhamradioanddifficulttobeat.Noisecancellingphonescanbeusefulifyouhave somethinglikeanamplifierblowermakingaconstantsoundthatcanbeblockedout.Thefinalchoiceof aheadsetisverypersonal,justlikepickingoutapairofshoes. Asyougainexperienceinlisteningyouwillgetgreaterandgreaterrewards.Thereisnodoubtthatan experiencedDXerwillpickoutmanymoreDXstationsthanalessexperiencedoperator.Youtoocan gainthatskillthroughpractice.AfterawhileyouwillbeabletosniffoutDXthatmanyotherswont evennotice.

CHAPTER2 DXClusterbasics BackinthedaytherewasnoInternetorDXclusters.Buddiescalledeachotheronthephoneoronlocal 2Mfrequenciestogetthewordouttotheirfriendsaboutagoodonebeingon.ThatiswhyUDXAstill hasa2Mfrequencyof147.60coordinatedwiththeVHFSociety.Itsarelicofanearliertime. NowadaysDXClustersareaninfinitelybettersolutiontothatissue.Theyhavebecomesoimportant thateveryseriousDXerneedstohaveInternetaccessandknowhowtoproperlyuseaDXCluster.A fewpuristshatetheconcept,butlikeitornotthetechnologyishere.Hereisabriefsummaryofhowto useacluster. Howitworks:TherearemanyDXclustersthroughouttheworld.Theyareallconnectedviathe Internet.Consequentlydatathatissubmittedtoanyoneofthemgetsinstantlyroutedtoallofthem worldwide.Thedataiscalledaspot.ThespotshowsthecallofaDXstation,thefrequencythatitis operatingon,thetime,andidentifieswhosubmittedthespot.Varioussoftwarefiltersattheclusteror onyourowncomputercanpassthroughspotsthatarerelevanttoyouandscreenoutonesthatarenot. OurlocalclusterisNC7Jandcanbeaccessedatwww.nc7j.comorviatelnetorpacketconnections. Thereareusefulfunctionsatthatsitetofilterspotsthatyouwishtoseeordonotwishtosee.Thereis alsoaveryvaluablefunctiontosearchfordata.IfyouwanttoseeifZS8Mhasbeenactiveandatwhat timesandfrequencies,youcanjustsearchforhiscall.Obviouslythatwillhelpyouknowwhenand wheretolookforhim. Great.InowamconnectedandIseespotsforstationsthatIwanttocontact.Itisworking. Hereisamoreadvancedconcept.Whilealloftheclustersgetsentprettymuchthesamedatathereare reasonstomonitormorethanone.ThemotherofallDXclustersisinFinlandandoperatedbyRadio ArcalaOH8X.Itcanbeaccessedathttp://www.dxsummit.fi/.Itcanbeusefultoseethestationsthat arebeingspottedinotherpartsoftheworldtogetafeelforpropagationconditionsortoseeifthat newDXpeditionactuallywentontheairwhentheysaidthattheywould.Youmightevenseeyourself spottedfromEurope. Someclustermanners:Itisconsideredpoorformandverymuchfrownedupontospotyourself.The ideaistospotDXstations.Whileitispossibletosendmessagesviathissystem,itisnotInstant Messengerandshouldnotbeusedassuch.ItisntTwittereither.Noonewantstohearyourtweets. NoteveryDXstationwarrantsbeingspotted.Dontclutteruptheclusterwithspotsfromreally commonplaces.Noonecaresaboutthem.Ifyouarefortunateenoughtobethefirsttodiscovera greatDXstationconsiderwhethertospothimornot.Ortospothimalittlelater.Ifyouandacoupleof otherguysfoundtheDXatthesametimeandyougotthroughfirst,holdoffspotting.Givetheother discoverersachancetoworkhim.TheyhaveearnedthatrightbyfindingtheDXontheirowntoo. Onceyousendthatspotaninstantdogpileislikely.Theheightofstupidityistoshowtheworldhow cleveryouarebyspottingsomereallyrareDXbeforeyouhaveworkedityourself.Itiscomicaltoseea 6

spotandthenheartheguywhosentittryingtomakeitthroughthechaosthathejustcreated.Also, dontspotastationthatalreadyhasdrawnabigcrowd.Healreadyhasallthathecanhandle.Didyou justworkaguycallingCQandnowheisCQingagain?Givehimaboostwithaspot.SomeDXstations willaskyoutospotthem.Dontduplicatespotsthatarealreadyposted.AlwaysbeVERYcarefulwhat youenter.IfyoumeanttoenterPZ5XXon20MCWandyoumistypeitasP5XXyouwilltickoffthe wholeworld!Tensofthousandsofalarmswillgooff.EverybodyneedsNorthKoreaonCWandyouwill instantlybecomeextremelyunpopular!Ifyouseeaspotforagoodoneandyoucanhearhim,listento besurethatthecallsignofthespotwaspostedcorrectly.Mistakesaremade.Acallmayhaveactually beenHH3AA(Haiti),butsomeguycantcountditsandposteditas5H3AA(Tanzania).Theneveryone afterhimassumesthattheyworkeda5H,whenactuallytheydidnot.Alwaysdoublecheckthefacts. Onefinalthought.Justbecauseyouseeagoodspotdoesnotmeanthatyoucanhearhim.Dontjust pileinandstartcallinghimwithoutfirstlisteningtoseeifyoucanactuallyhearhimwellenoughfora QSO.Ifyoucanthearhim,leavehimtotheguyswhocan.ThatgoesdoubleiftheDXstationisrunning simplex.

CHAPTER3
TheHolyGrailofDXingtheARRLsDXCenturyClub:
RealmendonteatquicheandrealDXersarealwaysworkingonDXCC. Well,maybethatisnttrue,butitoughttobe! Backin1935theARRLlaunchedwhatisthepremierawardinallofamateurradio.Theideawastowork atleast100countriesandtoobtainwrittenproofofthosecontacts.Thetermcountrydoesnot alwaysmeanaliteralcountry.HawaiiandAlaskaarepartoftheUSA,butbecauseoftheirdistancefrom therestofthenationtheycountasseparatecountries.TheawardwasrebornafterWWII.Itwasagain modernizedin2000.Thetermcountryhasbeenupdatedtothemoreaccuratetermofentity. Therearesomerathercomplicatedrulesaboutwhatconstitutesanentity,butitisnolongersomething thatisopentointerpretationasitoncewas.Seehttp://www.arrl.org/dxccforinformationonthe award.Acurrentcountries/entitieslistisavailableathttp://www.arrl.org/countrylistsprefixes.Im goingtousecountryandentityinterchangeablyinthischapter.Ijustcantbreakthehabit.

DXCCisareallyniceaward!
Soshouldyoucareaboutthis?Maybeyoudont,butmostDXersareinterestedinworkingasmany countriesastheycanandattainingandupgradingtheirDXCCaward.Itisalifelongcompetitionwith otherhams,andwithyourself.TheDXCCawardisabadgeofDXingcompetencythatistobe

prized!ThereareactuallyanumberofdifferentawardsinDXCC.Therearemixed(anymode
counts),phone,CW,RTTY,QRP,satellite,singleband(160M,80m,etc.)awards,andthehighlyprized5 bandDXCCawardforconfirming100countriesoneachofthetraditionalbandsof80,40,20,15&10M. ThebasicDXCCawardrequires100confirmedcountries,butthatisnttheend.Thereareendorsement stickerstoplaceonyourawardcertificateforconfirmingmorecountries.Thestickersareissuedat intervalsdefinedintheDXCCrules.Seethelinkabove. ThereisanotherawardcalledtheChallenge.TheChallengeisanextensionofregularDXCC.Thisone requires1,000bandcountriesforthebasicaward.Abandcountrycreditisgivenforaconfirmed countryonanygivenbandfrom1606M.Example:IfyouworkEnglandon80M,20M,and10Myou getthreebandcountries.TheDXCCendorsementsandChallengecanbealifelongquest. Therearecurrently340entitiesontheDXCClist.ADXerwithintenentitiesofthatpossiblenumberis listedontheHonorRoll.ADXerwhohasthemallis#1HonorRoll.Botharegreathonorstoattain andaselectfewofourclubmembersholdthosehighhonors. AbitofadvicetonewDXers.DXingisaddicting.Onceyougethookedyouwillworkveryhardtogeta newcountry,especiallyifitisarareone.Someoftherareentitiesmaynothaveanyoneoperatefrom themforlongperiodsoftimelike20years!TogetontheHonorRoll,youcantaffordtomiss 8

expeditionstothoseplaceswhentheyhappen.AtmyadvancedageIreallycantmissany.Illprobably bedeadofoldagebeforesomeofthemcomeonagain. Dontforgettogettheconfirmationsasyou go.IdidntdothatandwhenIgotinterestedintheChallengemystatisticsweredismal.Ihadworked hundredsofbandcountriesandneverbotheredgettingtheconfirmations.Imstillplayingcatchup. Theconfirmationprocesshasbeenmodernized.ForDXCCpurposesthecontactsmaynowbeeitherin writtenformorconfirmedviatheARRLsLogbookoftheWorld(LoTW)system.Wearefortunateto havetwocertifiedcardcheckersinourclubthatcanverifyyourQSLs.EitherDon,N5LZorDarryl,K7UT cancheckoutyourcards.Incidentally,CQMagazinewww.cqamateurradio.comhasaverysimilar awardthatcanbeverifiedbyCurt,K7CU.WewilltalkaboutLoTWandgeneralQSLinginalater chapter. IMHOeveryDXershouldbeinterestedinDXCC.

CHAPTER4
TheDXersToolKitThischapterisfullofstuffthatIhavelearnedfirsthandasaDXer.Ihopethatitis usefultoyou. MacGyvercanfixanythingwithatoothpickandarollofducttape.Mostofusneedsomethingmore thanthat.InthischapterwewilldiscusssomeofthebasictoolsthatshouldbeinaDXerstoolkit. Whatdoyouneed?ADXersgreatestassetsareoperatorskillandpersistence.Skillcomeswith experience.Thereisnoawayaroundit.AnexperiencedDXerwillworkmoreDXwithamodeststation thananinexperiencedopwillbeabletodowithatopnotchsetup.Alwayslearnasyougo.Youwillget therewithtime.Ontheotherhand,persistencecanstartrightnow.Ihavehadseveraltimeswhenthe pileupsforrareexpeditionsweresolargeandIwasatsuchageographicaldisadvantagethatIbecame discouraged.ThesamehashappenedwhenIhavespentdayafterdaylisteningforthatnewone withouteverbeingabletohearthemwellenoughforaQSO.Ifyoudonttryyourchancesofsuccess arezero.Evenalowprobabilityisbetterthanthat.Ifyoukeeptryingyoumightjustmakeit!Ifyou dontyouautomaticallyfail.Doggedpersistencehaspaidoffforme.Youcantworkthemifyouare notthere! Astation:Obviouslytomakeanycontactsyouneedastation.Yourantennasystemisthemost effectiveplacetoinvestyourtimeandmoneybecauseitimpactsbothyourreceivingandtransmitting capability.Havinglargebeamsonhightowersisthewaytogo,butmanyofuscantdothatforfinancial orlogisticalreasons.Donotbediscouragedifyouareonlyabletoputupasimpleantenna.No,you wontsmasheverypileupthatyouarein,butyoucanstillworkalotofDX.Lowangleradiationisthe keytoworkinggreatdistances.A100fttowerwillgiveyouthatforyourbigbeam,butamuchlower heightcanalsobeeffective.Tostartgettingsignificantlowangleradiationahorizontalantennaneeds tobeatleastonehalfwavelengthhigh.Thatisonly10metershighonthe20Mbandorabout33ft. Noitisntasgoodasthetallertower,butitisntterribleeither.Ihaveworkedallofmy328countries withatowerneverover42ft.Someofour#1HonorRollclubmembershavedoneitwithouthuge towers.Youcanbeverysuccessfulwithasmalltowerorwireantennas,butitdoestakemorework. Thereceiver:Secondonlytotheantennasystemisthereceiver.Allmodernrigsaretransceivers containingbothatransmitterandareceiver.AnyofthemcanbeusedforDXing.Thetransmitter sectiondoesntvarymuchinqualitybetweenunits.A100wattoutputpowerisstandard.Somearea littlemorepowerfulthanthat,butnotbyenoughtomakemuchdifference.Thereceiversectionsin thevarioustransceivers,however,arenotallequal.Afteryourantennasystem,investinthe transceiverwiththebestreceiverthatyoucanafford.Youcantworkthemifyoucanthearthem! Sensitivityisimportant.Someradioswillpickupweakersignalsonthehigherbandslike15Mbetter thanothers.Onthelowbandslike80Mthebandnoisemakesthatissuelargelymoot.Amore 10

importantfactoristhedegreeofselectivitythatisdeterminedbytherigsfilters.Thesefiltersallowyou toblockQRNandQRMfromotherstations.Ingeneral,crystalfiltersarebetterthanDSP(digitalsignal processing)filters.ManyDSPfiltersleaksomeundesiredsignalsthroughthem.Theoldertechnology crystal/mechanicalfiltersactuallyarealotlesspronetothis.However,acombinationofbothcrystal filtersandDSPisagreatwaytogo.Anotherveryimportantfactorinareceiverisdynamicrange(DR). DRisatechnicalqualitythatdefineshowwellareceivercanrejectstrongadjacentsignalswithout distortingtheonethatyouaretryingtolistento.Theseproblemsaremostapparentonacrowded bandlikeduringacontest.Inacontest,arigwithpoorDRwillsoundlikeamishmashofsignalsthat canbecomeindistinguishable.Adiscussionofthesetechnicalqualitiesisbeyondthescopeofthis chapter,butitisamattertobeseriouslyevaluated. Seethislinkformoreinformationaboutdynamicrange: http://www.radioelectronics.com/info/receivers/dynamic_range/dynamic_range.php SomeofthelatesttransceivershavebeendesignedtoexcelatDRwhilemaintaininghighsensitivity. SeetheSherwoodEngineeringsiteforlotsofgoodinformationonspecificreceiverevaluationshere: http://www.sherweng.com/table.html.Someradiosgetalotworsewiththisproblemwhenthe noiseblanker(NB)isturnedon.MyoldKenwoodTS940SATissobadinthisregardthatonetimetheNB gotaccidentallyturnedonandIthoughttherighadcrappedout.Thebandwascrowdedandevery signalbecamesodistortedthatIcouldntcopyanyofthem. HereisalittletrickthatIusetoimprovemyreceiverssensitivity: Sometimeslessismore.WhenlisteningforaveryweaksignalturnyourRFgainDOWN.Sometimesthis improvessensitivitybysuppressingtheAGC(automaticgaincontrol)inyourreceiver.AGCisdesigned toreducethereceiversgaintokeepstrongsignalsfromblastingyourearsout.Itstillreducesthe receiversgainwithmoderatestrengthsignals.TurningdowntheRFgainiscounterintuitive,butit works!LettherigrunatitsmaximumsensitivitybydisablingtheAGC.Alwayslearnasyougo. AndfinallyTheTransmitter:Manynewoperatorsmakethemistakeofgettinganamplifierinsteadof gettingagoodantenna.AbetterantennahelpsyourtransmitterANDyourreceiver.Highpower certainlyhelpsonepunchthroughQRM,butitisofnohelpforyourreceivingcapability.Beingan alligator(bigmouth,littleears)isntdesirable.Highpowerisgreatifyoucanaffordanamplifier.If youhavedoneyourbestwithyourantennaandreceiveritisthenextlogicstep.However,likehavinga modestantenna,a100wattrigwillletyouworkalotofDX.Infact,havinga100wattrigANDamodest antennawillstillallowyoutoworkalotofDX!Youcanimproveyourchancesofgettingthroughapile uponphonebytailoringyouaudiospresence.Havinghighqualityaudiowiththecorrectamountof compressionwilladdtoyoursuccess.Thehumanvoiceisnotequalinitsleveloverallfrequenciesinthe voicesrange.Compressionwillincreaseitsaveragepeakpower.Yourmicrophonesfrequency responseshouldbetailoredforcommunication.Seethechapteronlistening.Thatwhichisgoodina 11

headsetsfrequencyresponseisalsogoodinamicrophonesfrequencyresponse.Hereisagoodarticle onthetheoryofcompression.Itisntwrittenaboutamateurradio,buttheideaisstillthesame: http://www.barryrudolph.com/mix/comp.html BackupOnemorethingbeforeweleavetheequipmentsection.Keepinmindthefactthatyourrigor antennamightfailataparticularlybadtime.AwhileagoIwasanxiouslyawaitingaDXpeditionthatI neededforanalltimenewone.Myrigdiedattheworstpossibletime. WithinacoupleofdaysI wasabletoscrambleandcomeupwithasubstitute.Everythingworkedout,butIrelearnedtheneed forbackuptoanycriticalsystem.OK,maybeyoudontthinkthatnotbeingabletouseyourradiois critical.RememberthatDXaddictionthing?IfanalltimenewoneisabouttocomeonthenIDOfeelit iscritical!Iusedtocompeteincombatshootingmatches.AtonetimeIattendedagreatshooting schoolcalledThunderRanch.Theowner/instructorisClintSmith,arealcharacter.AccordingtoClint: Twoisoneandoneisnone.Whathemeansbythatisthateverythingmadebymancanandwillfail. Ifyouhavetwogunsonemightfail,butyouwillstillhaveone.Ifyouonlyhaveoneanditfailsyouare upthecreek,andinthecontextoftheschool,probablydead. Samethingwithradios!Thinktwice beforegivingawayortradinginfornearnothingyouroldrigwhenyouupgrade.Afteryougetyournew tower,keepthatoldG5RVstrungupinthetree.Backupisagoodthing. BeFlexible:Makeyourstationasflexibleaspossible.Beabletooperateonasmanyfrequenciesand modesasyoucan. Flexiblemodes:SSBmightwellnowbetheDXersprimarymode.Itwasntalwaysso,buttodaythere isasmuchormoreDXactivityonphoneasanyothermode.Everybodyhasphonecapability.Happy huntingonphone! Someoldtimersclaimedthatitwouldbetheendoftheworldwhenmorsecodewasdroppedasa licensingrequirement.Theworldchangedandsomehowsurvived.Withthatconcession,CWisstill themosteffectiveformofcommunications.Whilesomefuturisticdigitalmodeslikethoseusedfor moonbouncecanactuallycopysignalsbelowthenoiselevel,CWbeatsanythingelse.Why?Simple.It isofanarrowerbandwidththananyothermode.Withoutgettingtheoreticalonyou,justacceptthe factthatCWhasabouta10dbeffectivenessadvantageoverphone.10dbistheequivalentof increasingyourpowertentimes.100wattsofCWisaseffectiveas1,000wattsofSSB.Thisreallyhelps ifyouhavealowpoweredstation.Atthistimemanyhamsdonotknowthecode.Thatisok,butthey aremissingoutonavaluableresource.Ifyouareoneofthem,considerlearningCW(atleastwell enoughtodobasicexchanges),or(speakingblasphemy)useyourcomputerforCW.Afterall,itisjust anotherdigitalmode.(Incidentally,fordecadessomeoftheworldstopCWoperatorshaveused keyboardsinsteadofkeys.)WhileitisgreattobeabletorunCWfast,sometimesrunningslowisthe 12

waytogo.AcoupleofyearsagoaguyinTTChad(analltimenewoneforme)wasworkingCWon 20Matabout6wordsperminute.Apparentlyhewasbuildinganewskill.Thepileupwascallinghimat highspeeds.Thatwasjustplaindumb.Youshouldalwayssendatthesamespeedasthestationthat youarecalling!Hecouldntpossiblycopythosespeeddemons.Itriedtoslowdownmykeyer.It wouldntgoanywherenearthatslow.Igotupanddugthroughmyclosetandfoundahandkey.I pluggeditintotheriginplaceofmykeyerandcalledhimat6wpm.Igothim!Mycompetitorsdidnt learnandkeptcallinghimat35wpmwithoutsuccess.Iwonderwhy?AfterthatIkeepastraightkey hookeduptomyriginparalleltomykeyerandjusttuckedoutoftheway.LikeIsaidearlier,learnas yougo. IspentlotsoftimeinthemilitaryrunningRTTY.IgotsickofitandtothisdayIreallydontlikethe mode.Itis,however,aresourcetopickupDXstations.ByobtainingthatcapabilityIhaveworkedsome alltimenewonesthatIwouldhavemissedotherwise.DigitalmodesotherthanRTTYhavereallycaught on.SomeofthemlikePSKandOliviaareveryeffective,evenwithverylowpower.Thesemodesshould notbeoverlooked. Flexiblefrequencies:AlloftheHFbandsaregoodforDXing.Ihavepickedupalltimenewoneson 75/80Mandallofthehigherbands.Havingthecapabilitytotakeadvantageofpropagationonevery bandisabigadvantage.When10Misreallyopen,theworldisatyourfeet.Evenwithaverysmall station.TrytohaveantennasthatwillfunctiononalloftheHFbands.MostDXoperationoccursin thebottomendofthebands.IfyouhavealicenselessthananExtraClassyouareatadefinite disadvantage.TheremainingAdvancedClassoperatorsareinprettygoodshape,especiallyonphone. Generals,however,haveanuphillfight.LotsofDXstationsoperatehigherinthebands,butmanydo not.Letsfaceit.MostDXstationsreallydontcareaboutworkingasmanyWsastheycan.Theyhave alreadyworkedthousandsofthem.SomeDXpeditionsareniceguysandtrytoworkeverybody,giving specialattentiontoAmericanGeneralClassoperators.ThisisespeciallytrueifthereareAmerican operatorsontheexpeditionteam.ManyothersjustdontcareaboutthequirksoftheAmerican licensingsystem.ItisreallyworththeefforttoupgradeifyouareseriousaboutDXing.

13

CHAPTER5
SplitOperation&HowtoBeHeardinaPileup. WhatisworkingsplitandwhywouldIwanttodoit? Workingsplitissimplytransmittingandreceivingontwodifferentfrequencies.ManyDXcontactsare madebycallingtheDXstationonhisownfrequencyandlisteningforhisreply.Transmittingand receivingonthesamefrequencyiscalledworkingsimplex.Thatworksfineunlessalargenumberof stationsstartcallingtheDXstation.ThatwillalmostcertainlyhappenwithatrulyrareDXstation. Everybodywantstoworkhim.Onceabunchofstationsgetcallingitbecomesimpossibletohearhim respondtoanyonebecausethecallersaretransmittingontopofhim.Andtheyprobablyarealot strongerthanheis! Whatisthesolution?Whenthissituationbegins,agoodDXoperatorwillannouncethatheisgoingto worksplitandthathewilllistenonanotherfrequencyandnotonhisown.Thatisusuallydonesimply bysayingsomethinglikelisteningup5oronCWup5orU5.Thatmeansthatyoushouldcallhim notonhisownfrequency,but5khzabovehim. Beforewegofurther,hereisaveryshorthistorylesson.Beforethelate1960s,andforalotlongerfor manyhams,astationconsistedofaseparatetransmitterandreceiver.TheHFtransceiverdidntexist untilthen.Withseparateunitsitwasveryeasytotransmitandreceiveontwodifferentfrequencies.In facttheissuewastogetyourtransmittersettothesamefrequencythatyouwerereceivingon! Workingsplit,especiallyonphonewascommon.Atfirstwhenthetransceivercameintoexistencethe splitcapabilitywaslost.Thetransmitterandreceivertrackedeachother.Veryconvenientfornormal work,butarealstepbackwardsforsomeDXing.Toregaintheloss,itwasnecessarytopurchasean outboardVFOthatwouldgivetherigtwoVFOsthatwouldoperateindependentlyandonceagainallow splitcapability.Sometransceiverssimplycouldntdoit.Luckilyforusallmoderntransceivershavethe capabilitytoworksplitwithinaband.MostrigsusetwodigitalVFOscalledAandB.OneVFOisset totheDXstationsfrequencyandtheotheronetoyourdesiredtransmitfrequency.Simple.Seeyour radiosinstructionmanualforhowtodoit.Themostdesirablesetup,howeveristohavewhatiscalled asubreceiver.Thatgivesyouthecapabilitytotransmitononefrequency,toreceiveonthatsame frequency,andatthesametimetoreceiveonanotherfrequency.Wewilltalkabouthowtousethis inaminute.Onemoreimportantpointbeforewegoon.HavingtheDXstationlisteningonone frequencyandtransmittingonanotherallowsyoutohearhimanswercallswithoutinterferencefrom thecallers.ThesameisnotnecessarilytrueattheDXend.Again,manystationsmaybecallingonthe samefrequencyclobberingeachother.InthatcasetheDXstationshouldspreadthemoutfrequency wisebynowsayinglisteningup5to10.YoupickaspotinthatrangetocallandhopefullytheDX stationcannowseparateoutthecallers.Elementarysofar.Nowthisiswhereskillgetsinvolved.

14

HowdoImakemyselfheardinapileup? Thesimpleansweristotransmitintheclearfromyourcompetitors!DetectingpatternsinhowtheDX operatorrespondstocallersisinvaluable.Moreonthatlater.Ofcourseyouhavetomakeyourcallsign understandabletotheDXstation.Onsimplexitisdifficulttoeverbeintheclearoncemultiplestations startcalling.Ifyoulistencarefully,however,youmaybeabletotimeyourcallsbetweentheother callers.Thatmayletyouthrough.UseclearphoneticsonphoneandaclearfistonCW.Bebrief. Giveyourcallonceandthenlisten.IftheDXstationdoesnotansweranyonetryagain.Theloudest stationmaywellwinoutonsimplex,butnotalways.Theguyintheclearwhenhesendshiscallwillbe heardbest.Unlessthepileupgrows,youwillgetyourturnasthecompetitionthinsout.Onsimplex, gentlemenmaygiveeachotheramomentaryclearshotandthensendtheircallexpectingthesamein return.Thatsnice,butitusuallydoesnthappen. SomeinexperiencedDXoperatorsanswerthelast personwhocalled.Thatstationwasprobablyintheclear,butthissetsabadprecedent.OnceaDX stationstartsdoingthisthecallersgolongerandlongertryingtobethelastonetotransmit.Theresult isusuallysomeonetransmittingovertheDXstation.Sometimestheydontlistenfortwoorthreequick QSOsthatgoonunderneaththem. Afterlisteningforawhile,anddetectingapatternwiththeDX operatorsbehavior,youmayhavenochoiceexcepttotryandbethelastonecalling.Thisreallyispoor procedure,butitmightwork.Dontberidiculousaboutit.Givethepoorguyachancetoanswer.A competentDXoperatorwontletthishappenandwillgosplit.Onemorething.IftheDXstationcomes backwithapartialcall,likeTheWhiskey7,goaheadoronCWW7?Dontcallagainifyouarenota W7! Nowitistimetotalkaboutmoreadvancedskills.LikeIsaidabovelisteningtotheDXstationand detectingpatternsisinvaluable.Onceapileupgoesintosplitmodeskillbecomesmoreimportantthan sheresignalstrength.Again,yougoalistotransmitintheclear.Ifthesplithasgonebeyondasingle frequency,likethe5to10upscenario,transmittingwheretheDXisactuallylisteningbecomeskey. Justblaringawayonasetspotmightwork,butitmightnot.TheideaistofindwheretheDXislistening ortoanticipatewherehewilllistennext.Withmosttransceivers,todothisyoumustswitchyour radiosVFOstousethereceivertotryandfindthestationthatjustconnectedwiththeDX.Witha normalrigthisrequiresjumpingbackandforthbetweenreceivingonVFOAandVFOBtoheartheDX stationandalsosearchfortheguyheisincontactwith.Thiscanbetrickyandifyouarenotcarefulyou mayenduptransmittingontheDXstationstransmitfrequencybymistake.Wehavealldoneit,but youlooklikeareallid.InmanycasestheDXwillhearyoucallonthesamefrequencythatthelast successfulstationused.Giveitatry.Youwontbetheonlyonewhofiguresthisout.Other experiencedoperatorswillbedoingthesamething.Otherswillbetryingtofindthestationincontact withtheDXandthencallingonthesamefrequencyasthesuccessfulonetoo.Ifapileupgetsverylarge thespreadmaygomuchwider,especiallyonphone.Inthatcasefiguringoutwheretotransmit becomesparamount.Callingonthelaststationsfrequencymaynotwork.Keeplistening.Seeif anotherstationonthatfrequencywassuccessfuloriftheDXgavehisVFOaspintoagainspreadthings out.Ifyouhearanothersuccessstoryonthesamefrequency,tryagain.Ifyoudont,searchagainfor 15

thestationthatmadeitthrough.Trytodetectapattern.Youmaywellseethateachsuccessivecontact goesupalittleintheband.Inthatcasesetyourselfupalittleabovethelastguythatwassuccessful andtrythere.Keepworkingonfindingapattern.Someguyswilllistthefrequencythatworkedfor themontheDXcluster.Thatcanbeuseful,buteveryoneintheworldseesitandtriesthatfrequency. Ifyoucannotdetermineapatternorheartheotherstationsthatarecalling(whichsometimeshappens onthehigherbands)thenpickafreqandcall.Ifnoluckyoucaneithermovealittleandtryagainor justkeeponwithyouroriginalfreq.Inthissituationgettingthroughbecomespartlyblindluck. AsImentionedearlier,sometransceivershaveabuiltinadvantageinworkingsplit.Theyhaveasub receiverthatallowsyoutolistentotheDXstationonhisfrequencyandsearchforthecallersatthe sametimeonanotherfrequency.Thiscanbeveryvaluable,butitisnotabsolutelynecessary.Radios liketheYaesuFT1000/FT2000serieshavetruesubreceivers.TheElecraftK3hasanoptiontoaddasub receiver.ThetopofthelineIcomsliketheIC7800alsohaveasub.ManyotherIcomradioshavewhat Icomcallsdualwatch.Itisntexactlyasubreceiver,butitdoesallowyoutolistentotwofrequencies atonce.Atransceiverwithatruesubreceivernormallysendstheaudiofromeachofitsreceiversto yourheadphonesseparatelyinstereo.Dualwatchputsthetwosignalstogetherintobothears.Not quiteasgood,butstilluseful.Youareusingheadphonesbynowarentyou? Thekeytopileupbustingismorethansherepower.Manytimesitrequiresskill.TryouttheideasthatI gaveyouhere.Yoursuccessratewillimprove.

16

CHAPTER6 DXPropagationBasics:Propagationisarealscienceandcannotpossiblybecoveredcompletelyina shortchapter.Idohope,however,togivethenewDXersomebasicsinunderstandinghowitallworks andthatunderstandingwillimproveyouroddsofmakinggreatDXcontacts. Firstalittleverybasictheory:AbovewhatwenormallythinkofastheEarthsatmospherearefour layersofionosphere.Ifyouwillthinkbacktoyourhighschoolchemistryanionisanatomthatis missinganelectronorthefreeelectronitself.ThisoccursintheionospherebytheSunsradiation beatingdownonthoseupperlayersandjoltingindividualatomstogiveupafreeelectron.Theseions makeaveryconductivelayerwhereverthisoccurs. TheionospherehasthreebasiclayersdesignatedbythelettersD,EandF.TheFlayerisbroken downintotwosublayerscalledtheF1andF2layers.TheDlayerisclosesttotheEarthatalower altitudethantheElayerwhichislowerthantheF1andfinallytheF2layer.Radiosignalsmaybeeither reflectedorabsorbedintheionosphere.Thelevelofionizationisdeterminedbymanyfactorsall relatedtotheSun.Radiowavesofdifferentwavelengthsareimpacteddifferentlybytheionosphere. Shorterwavelengths(higherfrequencies)penetratedeeperintotheionospherethanlonger wavelengths(lowerfrequencies.)Thismakesforradicallydifferentpropagationdependingonaradio wavesfrequency.DuringthedaylighthourstheDlayerformsatarelativelylowaltitude.Itmostlyacts asanRFsponge.Thelongerwavelengthsaresoakedupbyitduringtheday.TheDlayerdisappearsat night.ThatiswhystandardAMradiohasverylimitedrangeduringtheday,butmaygogreatdistances atnightbyreflectingoffofoneofthehigherlayers.Conversely,UHFandVHFfrequenciesnormally penetrateallofthelayersandshootoutintospace,nevertoreturntoEarth.Duringdaylightthehigher HFhambandscanpenetratetheDlayerandthenarereflectedbytheFlayer.Atnightthelowerbands arereflectedbytheFlayer,buttheFlayermaynotbeionizeddenselyenoughtoreflectthehigher bands.Onceagainthosesignalsblastoutintospace.WhentheSunisdirectlyoverhead(localnoon) sometimesthereisenoughenergytoionizetheElayer.Thisisespeciallytrueatthesummersolstice whentheSunsraysarecominginatahigheranglethaninthewintermonths.Atthattime,theElayer canbeverydenselyionized.SometimesthisionizationcanbesodensethatitwillreflectVHFsignals like6M. Thebottomlineofallthisisthatthelowerbandsareopenatnightandthehigherbandsduring daylight.The20Mbandisinthemiddleandcanbeopenanytime.Actually,allofthehigherbandscan beopenatnightdependingontheleveloftheSunsactivity.Radiowavespropagatearoundtheworld bybouncingbetweentheionosphereandtheEarth.Multiplehopsoccurinlongdistance communications.Seawaterismuchmorereflectivethandirt.Thereforepathsthattransversethe oceansaremorefavorablethanlandpaths.Eachhopcausessignalstodecrease.

17

Enoughofthetheory.Nowthepracticalstuff!Everyoneknowsthattheshortestdistancebetween twopointsisastraightline.Thatisthepaththatradiosignalsnormallyfollow.Thatrouteiscalledthe shortpath.Ifyougrewuplookingatthemapsinschoolyouprobablylearnedaverydistortedviewof theworld.ThosemapsareusuallyaMercatorProjectionwhichdistortstheextremenorthandsouth polarregions.ItisalsomisleadingthatthosemapsgiveyouthepicturethatEuropeisalmostdueeast oftheUSA,thatIndiaisjustfurthereastandthatSouthAfricaissoutheast.Thatjustisnttrue.Noflat mapcanrepresenttheroundEarthaccuratelyinallrespects.Thatcanonlybedonewitharoundglobe. IfyouputastringbetweenthosedistantpointsonaglobeandtheUSAyougetatruebearingthatis calledagreatcircleroute.Thegreatcircleistherealdirectiontodistantpoints.Yourbeamantenna wontworkwellunlessitispointedintherightdirection!Hereisafreesourcetocomputetheactual beamheadingsforyourindividualQTH.http://www.njdxa.org/dxtools/beamheadings.php.Ihaveput achartattheendofthishandbookformylocationasasample.Ifyoulivewithinafewhundredmiles ofmyQTHitshouldbeaccurateenough.Ifyoudont,thenjustusethelinkabovetogenerateonefor youexactlocation.Also,seebelowanazimuthmapcenteredonUtah.Theprogramtocreatethismap isavailableasfreewareathttp://www.qsl.net/ve6yp/.DownloadAzimuth3.zipfromthissiteand installit.Itisaverynicefreeprogram.Therearemanyotherprogramsavailableonthewebto computeazimuthmaps.TheARRLsellsaveryniceazimuthwallmapthatIown.Seewww.arrl.org. FromthemapbelowyoucanseethatEuropeisnorthnortheastfromus,andnotdueeast.Englandis at38degrees,overthenorthpolarregion.Indiaisactuallynearlyduenorthat348degrees,directly overtheNorthPole.SouthAfricaisalmostdueeastat97degrees,farfromthesoutheastbearingthat theMercatormapsuggests.

18

 AsImentionedearlierthisistheshortpathtodistantlocationsandusuallyradiowavesfollowthat mostdirectpath.NotethatIsaidusually.Itisverycommonforsignalsfromthemostdistantlocations togotheotherwayaroundtheEarth.Thishappensondifferentbandsbecauseofdaylightornight paths.InourearlymorningtheEarthisdarktoourwest.The40Mbandworksbestatnight.Therefore bysendingyoursignalintothedarknessitjustmightpropagatearoundtheentiredarkhalfoftheEarth andcomeoutatthesunsetendofthedarkpathontheothersideoftheworld!Duringthewinteritis commontoworkEuropeviathislongpathon40M.Thelongpathisexactly180degreesfromthe azimuthshownonourmap.Dontcountyourselfoutjustbecauseyoudonthaveabeamantenna.I onlyhaveverticalon40M,butknowingthatsomethinggoodmightcomeinviathelongpathisstill useful.InthemorningslookforpropagationoverthedarksideoftheEarthtoourwest. TheIndianOceanislocatedatthemostdistantpointontheplanetfromus(antipode).Theoutermost circleonanazimuthmapisactuallyasinglepointintheIndianOcean.Noticethatthispointisthesame distancenomatterwhatheadingweuse.WhatImgettingatisthatsignalsfromtheIndianOceanmay arrivefromanydirection!Mostofthetimeasignalwillcomeeitherviatheshortpathorthe180 19

degreeoppositelongpath.Onceinawhilethisisnttrue.Oddpropagationviaacrookedpath sometimesoccurs.BythisImeanthatyoufindthatyourbeampeaksinadirectionthatisneitherthe shortorlongpath.Itdoeshappen.Sometimessignalsgetbentaroundtheaurorazoneatthepoles. OthertimesahighlyionizedspotoccursdirectlyundertheSunthathasnothingtodowitheitherregular path.Inthesecasesitmaybepossibletodoabankshot(justlikeinpool)togettoaremotelocation whennodirectpropagationispossible.Anexcellentexampleofthissometimeshappensoverthe AtlanticOcean.YoucanthearEuropeatnorthnortheast,butyoucanatsoutheast!Thisusually happensonthehigherbandslike15M. Ithasbeensaidthatthereisnosuchthingasafreelunch.OnespecialcaseinHFpropagationcomes close.Thereisabigenhancementinpropagationparticularlyatsunrise,butalsoatsunset.Duringthat timeoftwilightsomethingwonderfulhappensandithasnothingtodowithwerewolves.Alongthatline betweendaylightanddarknessenhancedpropagationoftenoccurs.Watchoutforthis.Asthesocalled greylinepassesoverusgoodthingshappen.Thiscanbeveryusefulinworkingotherlocationsalong thatboundary,butonlyforashorttime.Ihavemadesomeofmyverybestcontactsalongthatlineinto theIndianOceanusingthismode.ByplottingwherethegreylineoccursatotherplacesontheEarth, youcanalsofrequentlypredictsignalpeaksfromDXstations.Thispeakmaystilloccurwhentheirgrey linedoesnotrunoverourlocation.Alwayskeepaneyeopenforgoodthingstohappenoverthegrey line. Mypointtoallofthisistomakeyouawarethatsignalpropagationiskindoffickle.Weirdthingsalso happenthroughductingandotheroddphenomenathataretoocomplicatedforthisshortchapter. Justremembertouseyourazimuthmaptoaimyourbeamanddontforgetthelongpathandthegrey line.TheIndianOceanisawildcardandsoiscrookedpathpropagation! Propagationpredictionisverydifficulttodo.Thereare,however,somebasicindicatorsthathelp. ScientistsarealwaystrackingwhatishappeningwiththeSun.Withoutgettingcomplextherearethree veryusefulparameterstousetopredictbandconditions.TheyaresolarfluxandtheAandK indexes.Thehigherthesolarfluxthebetter.Ithasbeenverylowforyears!ThelowertheAandK indexesthebetter.TheyindicateactivityintheEarthsgeomagneticfield.Whenthegeomagneticfield getsagitatedbytheSun,propagationdegrades.Seethissiteforlotsofinformationonthisscience: http://dx.qsl.net/propagation/andifyouwantevenmoreinformationcheckout http://www.swpc.noaa.gov/forecast.html Beacons: TheInternationalAmateurRadioUnionrepresentsamateurradiosinterestsworldwide.Eachmember countryhasarepresentativeorganizationwithintheIARU.OursistheARRL.TheIARUhasestablished abeaconnetworktoresearchHFpropagation.Thenetworkconsistsofautomatedstationsinseveral locationsaroundtheworldthattransmitonacloselysynchronizedschedule.Thebeaconsoperateon frequenciesof:14.100, 18.110, 21.150 and 24.930 Mhz. By monitoring these frequencies it is easy 20

to detect band openings to the various beacon locations. See: http://www.ncdxf.org/beacon/intro.html for general information on the beacon project. See: http://www.iaru.org/articlesforarticlesonthebeaconsystem.Checkthisout!

Propagationpredictionprograms: TheU.S.governmenthasspentenormousamountsoftimeandmoneyincreatingaveryaccurate modelingprogramforpredictingHFpropagation.Thissoftware(VOACAP)isfreewarefromtheU.S. government,butitiscumbersometousewithoutsomesortofaninterfaceprogram.InthepastIhave usedVOAProp.See:http://www.g4ilo.com/voaprop.html.Thisprogramisveryusefulandalso

free!TheVOAPropwebsitehasalinktoobtainyourfreecopyoftheVOACAPcalculationenginethat
isrequiredtodriveVOAProp.Asanaddedusefulfeature,VOAPropwillalsoshowyouwhichIARU beaconistransmittingatthatinstant!Itiswellworththeefforttoinstallthissoftware. AfterusingVOAPropforseveralyears,Irecentlyupgradedtoamoreadvancedsuiteofprograms writtenbyVE3NEA(thesameguywhoprovidesCWSkimmer).See:http://www.dxatlas.com/.This suiteconsistsoffourseparateprogramsthatworktogether.Thecombinedcostisabout$75.00,but thecapabilitiessurpassVOAPropinhowwellthedataispresentedandtheyalsohaveadditionaluseful features.However,bothVOAPropandDXAtlasuseexactlythesameunderlyingU.S.government softwarecalculationengine.Therefore,thefreeoneisjustasaccurateastheexpensiveone.DXAtlas justpresentsthedatainafancierformat. Someofourclubmemberslikeanotherfreepropagationpredictionprogram,W6ELProp.See: http://www.qsl.net/w6elprop/.Thisprogramhasawealthofoptionstopresentthepredictiondatain theformofmapsorinnumeric/tabularform.Sinceitisalsofree,whynotgetacopyandtryitout?

ThereisalsoabrandnewfreeonlinepropagationpredictionservicethatusesGoogleMapsto specifytheexactlocationsforthetransmitterandreceiversites.ItiscalledVOACapOnline.
See:http://www.voacap.com/prediction.html.Oncethepathendpointsarespecified,theonline displaythenshowsacolorgraphoftimesandfrequencieswithprobabilitiesofsuccessfor communicationsbetweenthetwolocations.Verynice. Anyofthesepropagationpredictionprogramswillgiveyouveryusefuldata.Ihighlyrecommendthat everyDXerobtainaccesstosomeformofaccuratepropagationpredictiondata.Withmultiplefree sources,whynotgetcopiesofallofthemandseewhatworksbestforyou? Onceyouhaveagoodunderstandingofpropagationitwillcertainlyimproveyouroddsofworking moreDX!

21

 CHAPTER7
Phonetics:Usingphoneticsisthebestwaytomakeyourcallsignunderstoodonphone.Everybody knowsthat.TheaviationworldandtheUSmilitaryusethesamestandardizedsetofwords:Alpha, Bravo,Charlie,Delta,.etc.Itisnot,however,theonlyphoneticalphabetthatwasevercreated.The USmilitaryusedtouseadifferentone:Able,Baker,Charlie,Dogetc.Somepoliceforcesuse:Adam, Boy,Charlie,David,etc.Therearealsoonesusinggeographicnames:Amsterdam,Boston, Casablanca,Denmark,etc.Goodgrief.Sowhatshouldyouuse?IngeneraltheUSmilitaryNATO aviationICAOphoneticalphabetisthebest.See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO_phonetic_alphabet.FrompersonalexperienceIdontliketouse Sierra.MyoldcallwasK7SAI.TheEnglishlanguageskillsofDXoperatorsarenowverygood.Back whenIheldthatcallitwasntnecessarilyso.AmericansandSpanishlanguagespeakersunderstood Sierra.Asianoperatorsinparticulartookitlikeitsounds.astheletterC.Whattodo?Itriedseveral optionsandfinallysettledonsugar.Commonlyused,butnotstandardanywhere.LaterasK7UAI usedKilowattSevenUniformAlpha.BackwhentherewerenocallsstartingwithKW(likeKW7A)itwas fine.NowsometimesitgetsmistakenforKWandnotK.Ihavehadcontestlogexceptionitemssentto meshowingamismatchofQSOdatabecauseIwasloggedasKW7UA. Iquitusingit.Somewords justworkbetterforinternationalhamsthanthestandardphoneticalphabet.WhentheUSSR(Unionof SovietSocialistRepublics)existedtheRussiansusedUnionforU.Thatfadedaway.Everybodyknows theUSAistheUnitedStatesofAmerica.UnitedisnowaverycommonphoneticforU.Thesamewith AmericaforA.EventheRussiansthathaveUAcallsfrequentlyuseUnitedAmerica.Boy,theywouldnt havesaidthatduringtheColdWar!RadioismorecommonforRthanRomeo.Itisagreatonefor radioamateurs. So,whatsmypoint.Usephoneticsthatwork.IftheDXstationisstrugglingwithyourcalldontkeep beatingthemwiththesamephonetics.Shifttosomethingelse.ShiftfromKiloSevenUniformAlpha,to KentuckySevenUnitedAmerica.Yougetthepoint.Somecitiesandothergeographicallocationswork well.Yokohama,Honolulu,LondonandNorwaycometomind.Stayflexible. Thereisntanythinglikephoneticsfornumbers.Ingeneralthereisntasmuchconfusionwiththem.A wiseDXerstillhasacoupleoftricksinhisarsenal.IftheDXstationisstrugglingwiththenumberinyour call,countuptoit.Thisis:KiloSeven,one,two,three,four,five,six,sevenUniformAlpha. KnowinghowtopronounceyournumberintheDXstationsnativelanguagecanalsobeuseful.For mostofuswhoarelocatedhereinUScallzone7,thatisSieteinSpanish,SetteinItalian,Sieben inGerman,etc.Forthatmatter,ifyouhavetheskilljustspeakingtoaDXstationintheirnative languageisalwayswelcomed. 22

CHAPTER8
TheArtofQSLing:QSLcardshavebeenapartofhamradiofromtheverybeginning.Ithasbeena traditiontopostthemaboveyourstationtocatchtheeyeofvisitorsandtoremindtheoperatorofhis accomplishments.IfyouareinterestedinDXCCormanyotherawardsyouarerequiredtohaveproof thatthecontactsnecessaryfortheawardtookplace.Inthischapterwearegoingtotalkabouttheold schoolwaystogetthosecardsandbringthesubjectintothe21stcenturywithelectronicQSLing.The ARRLhasalwayshadverystringentrulesonthevalidationofQSLsfortheDXCCaward.Thesehigh standardshavepreservedtheintegrityoftheaward. Oldschool:PaperQSLcards Almostallstations,DXandotherwise,willissuepaperQSLcards.ThetrickistogettheDXstationto answeryourcard.ThereareavarietyofwaystoincreaseyouroddsofgettingapaperQSLcard. ThesurestrouteistosendyourcarddirectlytotheDXstation.Thecostofforeignpostageishigh.The currentprice(2011)tosendaoneouncelettertoforeigndestinationsis98cents.Thereturnpricefrom thosecountriesisoftenhigher.MostDXstationswillreplytoyouifyousupplyaselfaddressed envelopeandpayforthereturnpostage.Intheoryallnationswhoreceivemailaremembersofthe UniversalPostalUnion(UPU).Thereisadocumentcalledaninternationalreplycoupon(IRC)thatcan bepurchasedatthelocalpostofficeandsenttotheDXstationaspaymentforthereturnpostage.The currentUSpriceforanIRCis$2.10.Intheorythiswillpayforareturnairmailletterfromanycountryin theUPU.Despitethesupposedrules,somecountriesdonothonorIRCsandothersinsistontwoor moreIRCstopayreturnpostage.Also,somecountrieshavesillyrulesthattheIRCmustbefromthe countrythattheletterisbeingreturnedtoortheywontcashthemin.ThewholeIRCthingisahassle somanyDXstationsaskforoneortwogreenstamps.AgreenstampisaUSdollar.MostDXstations directaddressesareavailableatwww.qrz.com.Also,frequentlytheDXstationtellsyouhowtheywant toreceiveQSLsatthatsite.Itisincrediblyuseful.

23

SeeIRCsamplebelow:

NowforafewthingsthatIhavelearnedaboutsendingletterstoforeigncountriesandgettingareturn back.First,mailtheftisrampantinmanythirdworldcountries.Thechanceofhavingyourletterlooted isacertaintyinsomeofthem.Toreducethechanceofthathappeningdonotdoanythingthatgives themailthievesacluethatyourletterhasanythingvaluableinit.StartbyNEVERusingstationcall lettersintheaddresses.Dontdoanythingelsetotheenvelopethatmakesitstandout.Mailthieves maywellhandletheletterandseeiftheycanfeelanythinginsideotherthantheusualpapers. SomethingthickinsideorbeingabletoseethroughtheenvelopeanddetectyourIRCordollarbillisa deadgiveaway.Alwaysusesocalledsafetyenvelopesthatdonotletapersonseethroughthe paper.Besurethattheenvelopeiswellsealed.Usetapeifyouhavetoforagoodseal.Whensending letterstoSouthAmericaitisagoodideatoalwaystapetheflapshut.Itmighthelpalittleinkeeping thecrooksout.Sometimesthestationwillexplainexactlyhowtoimprovetheoddsofnonpilfered deliveryontheirQRZpage.Foraguaranteeofdeliverytorealtroublespotsyoumayhavetoresortto registeredmail.Thisprocessrequiresawrittenaudittrailofeverystopthatthemailmakes.Itis expensive,butcrooksprobablydontwanttobecaughtbydisclosingwholostortamperedwiththe letter. IhavestartedusingforeignairmailenvelopesfromBillPlumDXSupplies(plumdx@msn.com).Billsells setsofenvelopesforoutgoingandreturningairmailthatnestneatlyinsideofeachother.Thecurrent priceis$35.00for200sets.ByusingthoseIdontgiveacluetomailthievesthatthereisanything specialinside.Theinnerenvelopeisnotnoticeableanditisalsolightinweight.Someannoying countrieschargemuchmoreforalittleextraweight.Also,someofthemchargemoreforlarger envelopesthantheirnormalairmailstandard.Iusedtousestandard#10USbusinessenvelopesforthe returns.Ikeptgettingthembackcutdowninsizeandtapedtogetherorfoldedovertodecreasetheir dimensions.Iwisedupandquitusingthem.Billalsosellsforeignpostagestampsthatmaymakethe 24

returnprocesseasierfortheDXstation.SofarIhavenotusedthatservice,butIreallydolikeBills nestedairmailenvelopes. SomeDXstationsuseaQSLmanager.Thisissimplyanotherhamwhohasvolunteeredtotakeoverthe DXstationsQSLingchores.QSLmanagersareveryreliableandyouwillalmostcertainlygetananswer fromthemifyouareintheDXstationslog.ThebestthingthatcanhappentoyouisthattheDXstation hasaQSLmanagerintheUSA.Thatwayyourpostageeachwayisjustastandard44centstampand deliveryiscertain. TheDailyDXoffersalinktofindingvariousQSLroutesat:http://www.dailydx.com/routes.html. Therearelotsofgoodresourcelinksonthissite.ThevariousDXbulletinsalsofrequentlylistQSLroutes intheirpublications.WewillbetalkingaboutDXbulletinsinalaterchapter. Allofthisiskindofdiscouragingbecauseoftheexpenseinvolved.Luckilytherearesomealternatives thatarealotlessexpensive. ThefirsttoconsideristheQSLbureausystem.Manycountriesofferaslowspeed,butcheapQSL deliverysystemcalledtheQSLBureau.Itisusuallyreferredtoastheburo.IntheUSAtheARRListhe sponsorofthissystem.InourareatheARRLaffiliatedclubTheWillametteValleyDXClub http://www.wvdxc.org/dotnetnuke/handlesincomingQSLchores.Theyhandleallofthecardsfor theUSseventhcallarea.Ifyouhavea7inyourcalltheyareyourcontact.Otherareashaveother sponsoringclubs.Theseguysarepracticallysaintsprovidingthisvaluableservicefreeofcharge.Ifyou gototheirwebsiteandclickontheQSLbureautabtheytellyoueverythingthatyouneedtoknowto signup. Inanutshell,thisishowtheQSLbureausystemworks.ThenationalorganizationsexchangeQSLcards inbulkshipmentsthatcutswaydownonpostage.Itisslow,butcheap.IntheW7callarea,youopen anaccountatWVDXCandbuypostagecreditsandenvelopestoshipyourcardsin.Freeofchargethey receive,sort,andthenforwardthecardsdirectlytoyou.Ifyouareactiveyouwillgetlotsofcardsfrom allovertheworld.SinceUtahisoneoftherarerstates,manyforeignhamswantyourcardfortheir WorkedAllStates(WAS)award.ARRLmembershipisnotrequiredforthisincomingserviceandthe WVDXChasdonethelaborsincethe1960s.ThisserviceofWVDXCisonlyforINCOMINGcards.Tosend yourrepliesviathebureautheARRLoffersanOUTGOINGQSLservice.See http://www.arrl.org/outgoingqslservice.TheARRLacceptsyourcardsinbulkandforwardsthemon toalloftheothercountriesQSLbureaus.SomecountriesdonothaveaQSLbureausothisservice wontworkforthosecards.ARRLmembershipisrequiredforthisservice,buttheratesarecheap comparedtomailingthecardsyourself.IMHOthisservicealoneisworththepriceofARRLmembership foraDXer. IhavefrequentlyusedanotheroptiontosendmyoutgoingQSLsforcontactsthatIwantanswered quickerthanviathebureau,butthatIdontwantbadlyenoughtopaytheexpenseofgoingthedirect route.Les,WF5Ehttp://www.qsl.net/wf5e/offersauniqueoutgoingQSLservice.Lesreceivesyour outgoingcardsinbulkfromyouandthendeterminesthebestwaytogetyouananswer.Hecharges$1 fortwocards.Hetakesadvantageofpostagesavingsbysendingmultiplecardsatthesametime directlytotheDXstationortotheirQSLmanager.LessendstheDXstationwhatevertheyrequireto 25

getyourQSL.Thiscanbeeitherapostageprepaidinternationalbusinessreplyenvelopeorareturn envelopeandIRCs.TheDXstationsimplyreturnsabatchofcardsinthepreaddressedenvelopewith thepostagepaidbyLes.Thisonlyworkswithstationsthatwillanswerthecardsinabatch.Somehard caseswillnotdoit.WhenthecardscomebacktoLesheforwardsthemtoyourincomingbureauand youreceivethemwithyourothernormalbureaucards.Heputsasmallrubberstampimprintonthem sothatyouknowthecardcameviahisservice.Someclubmembershavehadreturnratesashighas 85%usingLesservice.Thisprocessisslow,butnotasslowasusingthenormaloutgoingbureau process.CardssentviatheregularQSLbureaucantakeoneormoreyearstoarrive.Youhavetobe patient. NewSchool:ElectronicQSLs Twomoderncomputerizedsystemshavecomeintoexistencetocutoutalloftheexpenseanddelaysof sendingpaperQSLs.TheARRLinvestedalotoftimeandmoneytodeveloptheirLogbookoftheWorld (LoTW)electronicQSLsystem.Seehttp://www.arrl.org/logbookoftheworld.Thissystemmaintains theARRLshighintegrityforDXCCverifications.ItmayalsobeusedforotherARRLawardslikeWASand theTriplePlayaward.TheLeaguessitetellsyouallaboutthisservice,buthereisthebasicidea.A hammustregisterwiththemthrougharigorousprocesstoprovethattheyaretherealholderofthe callsign.Onceyouhaveprovenwhoyouare,anelectronicdigitalcertificateisissuedtoyou.Youcan thenusethatcertificatetosecurelysignanduploadyourlogdatatotheLoTWsystem.Thiscanbedone withmanualentries,butitismuchmoreconvenienttouseacomputerloggingprogram.IuseLogic8. OncethecertificatewasinstalledonmycomputeritonlytakesacoupleofmouseclicksinLogicto uploadthefile.TheLoTWsystemthenmatchesyourlogentriesagainsttheuploadeddatafromother stationsandifitfindsareasonablematch(band,mode,andtimewithinonehalfhour)yougetcredit foraconfirmedQSL.ThisisallshowninyourLoTWrecords.IalsouseLogictodownloadthosenew confirmationsintomyloggingprogram,butthatisntnecessarytousethesystem.Therealrecordsare maintainedontheLoTWsystem.Whenyougetaroundtoclaimingcreditforanawardyoupayafeefor eachcredit.ItisveryreasonablecomparedtotheexpenseofpostageforpaperQSLs. ThereisanotherelectronicQSLsystemcalledeQSL.Seewww.eqsl.cc.Thissystemworksdifferently thantheLoTWsystem.AuserregisterswitheQSLandthenyouareallowedtosendelectronicQSLs thatlooklikeanactualpaperQSLtothestationsthatyouwork.(AgainIusemyloggingprogramtovery easilyuploadanddownloadtheeQSLdata.)Callsignscanberegisteredwithoutanyproofofwho actuallyholdsthelicense,butthesearenottakenveryseriously.Onecanobtainauthenticity guaranteed(AG)statusbysubmittingacopyofyourlicensetoeQSLforverification.eQSLclaimsthat AGconfirmationsaremoresafethanpaperQSLsbecausethereissolittlechanceofforgery.Theyare probablyright.TheeQSLsystemdiffersfromLoTWinthatitdoesnotmakeanyattempttomatchQSO datawiththeotherstation.AdealwasintheworkswithARRLtoaccepteQSLsforDXCCcredit,butthe negotiationsbrokedown.TheLeaguewantedsecurityusedthatwasunreasonabletothepeoplewho runeQSL.ItisnowveryunlikelythattheARRLwilleveraccepteQSLs.CQMagazine,however,DOES accepteQSLsfortheirawards.TheeQSLserviceisfree,buttheyacceptdonationsandwillupgradeyour statusforaveryminimalcharge.ToutilizeCQsawardsystemonemustbeabronzemember.That onlycosts$15peryear.BesidesCQothergroupsincludingeQSLitselfofferawardsqualifiedbyeQSL confirmations.OnlyAGusersconfirmationscountfortheawards.Silvermembershipcostsanother 26

$15peryearandallowsfancierQSLdesigns.IMHOeveryonethatuseseQSLshouldhelpthemoutby becomingatleastabronzemember.

27

CHAPTER9
DXIntelligence:ImnottalkingaboutyourIQ,butinthecontextofgatheringinformation. ThemorethatyouknowaboutwhatisgoingonintheDXworld,themoresuccessfulyouwillbe. Backinthe1970sIrantothemailboxeveryweektogetmyfewbadlycopiedpagesofTheWestCoast DXBulletin.Thearthasadvancedsincethen.NowthereareanumberofDXbulletinsandservices thatyoucansubscribeto.ForknowingwhatisgoingonintheDXworldeverydaysubscribetoThe DailyDX,anInternetpublicationbyBernieMcClennyW3URsee:http://www.dailydx.com/.Bernie alsopublishesanothersimilarpublicationTheWeeklyDX.ForafeeTheDailyDXsubscriptioncomes everydayviaemail.AnotherpaidsubscriptionbulletinisbyCarlSmithN4AAcalledQRZDX.Itis sentweeklyeitherviaemailorpostalmail.See:http://www.dxpub.com/N4AAalsopublishesa bimonthlyDXMagazinethatisverynice.Itarrivesviapostalmail.Therearealsotworeallygood weeklyDXbulletinsandtheyarefreeofcharge!SeeThe425DXBulletinat http://www.425dxn.org/.TheItalian425groupalsoputsoutamonthlymagazineaccessibleat http://www.425dxn.org/monthly/index.htmlthatshowswhathappenedthepastmonth.Ithaslotsof interestingpictures,QSLcards,etc.Itisreallyfuntolookover.ThesecondfreebulletinistheOPDX Bulletin(Ohio&Pennsylvania)http://www.papays.com/opdx.html.Also,theDailyDXhasacalendar ofexpeditionsthatisavailabletoanyoneforfreeat:http://www.dailydx.com/Calendar.htm BeingagluttonforanyshredofDXnewsIsubscribetoallofthem.Thereisalotofduplication,but eachhasitsownsourcesanduniquestyle. Andifthatwasnotenough:IfyouwanttolearnawholelotaboutDXing,nomatterhowexperienced youare,getacopyofTheCompleteDXerwrittenbyBobLocher,W9KNI.ItisavailablefromIdiom Pressathttp://www.idiompress.com/bookscompletedxer.html.Ihighlyrecommendthisbook!It wasoutofprintforatime,butisnowagainavailableinthe3rdEdition.Itissimplyawesome.

28

AuthorsComments
IservedasPresidentoftheUtahDXAssociationin2008andthencontinuedonasamemberof theclubsboardofdirectorsforthenexttwoyears.DuringthattimeIsawarealneedtocoach ournewmembersonhowtobecomesuccessfulDXers.Iwrotethisbooklettogivethem somethingthatiseasytounderstandyetwillquicklyteachthemtheskillsthattookmeyearsto discoveronmyown.Nowinhindsightitallseemssosimple. TomysurprisethisprimerhasgainedamuchwiderInternetreadershipthanjustourlocalclub. Thatisgreat.Whereveryouare,Ireallyhopethatyouhaveenjoyeditandthatithashelped yougainsomenewskills.NothingwouldpleasememorethantolearnthatIhavehelpeda newgenerationofyoungDXersgetstarted.

73, BryceAnderson,K7UA k7ua@comcast.net

29

AZIMUTHCHART
The North Jersey DX Association Presents Your Personalized DXCC Countries List & Beam Headings Beam headings prepared for, K7UA , Headings centered on American Fork, UT - Your Latitude 40.41 Your Longitude 111.81 Prefix 1A 1S 3A 3B7 3B8 3B9 3C 3C0 3D2 SMOM Spratly Is. Monaco Agalega/St. Brandon Mauritius Rodriguez Is. Equatorial Guinea Annobon Fiji Country Short Path 38 310 40 23 28 13 67 71 244 243 249 78 43 316 77 130 172
30

Long Path 218 130 220

Miles 5,761 8,037 5,489

Lati- Longi- Conttude tude inent 41.9 -12.4 EU

CQ Zone 15 26 14 39 39 39 36 36 32 32 32 38 33 26 35 38 12

8.8 -111.9 AS 44.0 -10.0 -20.3 -19.7 1.8 1.3 -7.5 EU -56.0 AF -57.5 AF -63.4 AF -10.0 AF -5.4 AF

203 10,199 208 10,903 193 10,970 247 251 64 63 69 7,759 7,558 5,987 6,367 5,796

-17.0 -178.0 OC -22.0 -175.0 OC -12.0 -177.0 OC -27.0 36.8 -31.5 AF -10.2 AF

3D2/C Conway Reef 3D2/R Rotuma Island 3DA 3V Swaziland Tunisia

258 10,147 223 136 257 310 352 5,956 8,121 6,223 9,366 7,566

3W/XV Vietnam 3X 3Y 3Y/P Guinea Bouvet Island Peter 1st Island

10.8 -106.7 AS 10.0 -54.0 -68.0 13.0 AF -3.4 AF 90.5 AN

4J 4L 4O 4S 4U/I 4U/U 4W 4X 5A 5B 5H 5N 5R 5T 5U 5V 5W 5X 5Z 6W 6Y 7O 7P

Azerbaijan Georgia Montenegro Sri Lanka ITU Geneva U.N. Headquarters Timor Leste Israel Libya Cyprus Tanzania Nigeria Madagascar Mauritania Niger Togo Western Samoa Uganda Kenya Senegal Jamaica Yemen Lesotho

14 17 34 344 39 77 286 28 44 28 45 68 46 73 64 70 240 47 44 76 115 27 84

31

194 197 214 164 219 257 106 208 224 208 225 248

6,726 6,589 5,950 9,070 5,335 1,967 8,296 6,998 6,268 6,761 9,521 7,189

40.5 41.5 42.3 7.0 46.2 40.8

-50.0 AS -45.0 AS -19.2 EU -79.9 AS -6.2 EU 74.0 NA

21 21 15 22 14 5 28 20 34 20 37 35 39 35 35 35 32 37 37 35 8 21 38

-8.6 -125.6 AS 32.0 32.5 35.0 -7.0 6.5 -18.5 18.0 13.5 6.0 -13.0 1.0 -1.5 15.0 18.0 13.0 -29.5 -35.0 AS -12.5 AF -33.0 AS -39.5 AF -3.0 AF -47.0 AF 16.0 AF -2.0 AF -1.5 AF 172.0 OC -32.5 AF -37.5 AF 18.0 AF 76.0 NA -45.0 AS -28.0 AF

226 10,461 253 244 250 60 227 224 256 295 207 5,710 6,800 7,140 5,324 8,794 9,126 5,742 2,626 8,452

264 10,055

7Q 7X 8P 8Q 8R 9A 9G 9H 9J 9K 9L 9M2 9M6 9N 9Q 9U 9V 9X 9Y A2 A3 A4

Malawi Algeria Barbados Maldive Is. Guyana Croatia Ghana Malta Zambia Kuwait Sierra Leone West Malaysia East Malaysia Nepal Congo, Democratic Republic of the Burundi Singapore Rwanda Trinidad and Tobago Botswana Tonga Oman

58 47 107 353 110 34 71 41 66 19 78 316 304 344 67 54 313 52 110 76 237 9

32

238 227 287 173 290 214 251 221 246 199 258 136 124 164 247 234 133 232 290 256 57 189

9,774 5,693 3,740 9,316 4,026 5,661 7,079 6,146 9,449 7,464 6,281 8,749 8,223 7,616 8,316 8,876 8,780 8,835 3,614 9,614 5,864 7,976

-15.0 36.7 11.5 4.4 6.8 45.8 5.5 36.0 -15.0 29.0 8.5

-35.0 AF -3.0 AF 59.5 NA -73.4 AS 58.2 SA -16.0 EU 0.2 AF -14.4 EU -28.0 AF -48.0 AS 13.2 AF

37 33 8 22 9 15 35 15 36 21 35 28 28 22 36 36 28 36 9 38 32 21

3.0 -102.0 AS 3.0 -115.0 AS 27.5 -4.3 -3.0 -85.0 AS -15.3 AF -29.0 AF

1.3 -103.8 AS -1.5 11.0 -22.0 -21.0 23.5 -30.0 AF 62.5 SA -25.0 AF 175.0 OC -59.0 AS

A5 A6 A7 A9 AP BS7 BV

Bhutan United Arab Emirates Qatar Bahrain Pakistan Scarborough Reef Taiwan

340 12 16 17 1 310 312 314 322 264 44 77 108 63 146 150 177 152 182 56 116 135 52
33

160 192 196 197 181 130 132 134 142 84 224 257 288

7,502 7,818 7,766 7,704 7,911 7,482 6,743 7,212 6,387 5,779 5,353 5,883 2,240

28.0 25.3 25.3 26.0 25.0

-90.0 AS -55.5 AS -51.5 AS -50.5 AS -67.0 AS

22 21 21 21 21 27 24 24 23 31 14 35 8 37 12 12 12 12 Many 33 8 10 14

15.1 -117.0 AS 25.0 -122.0 AS 20.4 -116.4 AS 35.0 -116.4 AS -0.5 -166.9 OC 42.5 13.0 25.0 -20.0 -33.0 -26.0 -28.0 -33.0 -80.0 33.0 23.1 -16.0 38.7 -1.5 EU 17.0 AF 77.5 NA -36.0 AF 70.8 SA 80.0 SA 109.0 SA 78.8 SA 120.0 AN 8.0 AF 82.4 NA 68.4 SA 9.2 EU

BV9/P Pratas Island BY C2 C3 C5 C6 C9 CE China Nauru Andorra Gambia Bahamas Mozambique Chile

243 10,067 326 330 357 332 2 236 296 315 232 5,703 5,019 4,727 5,488 8,319 5,415 2,084 4,787 5,109

CE0/X San Felix CE0/Y Easter Island CE0/Z Juan Fernandez CE9 CN CO CP CT Antarctica Morocco Cuba Bolivia Portugal

CT3 CU CX CY0 CY9 D2 D4 D6 DL DU E3 E4

Madeira Island Azores Uruguay Sable Is. St. Paul Island Angola Cape Verde Comoros Germany Philippines Eritrea Palestine

61 61 137 67 62 73 79 44 35 307 32 29 233 225 34 48 45 64 52 39 18 78

34

241 241 317 247 242 253 259 224 215 127 212 209 53 45 214 228 225 244 232 219 198 258

5,011 4,445 6,237 2,621 2,571 8,428 5,391 9,954 5,090 7,344 8,156 7,016 4,709 5,230 5,836 5,256 5,555 5,318 5,357 4,594 6,647 6,462

33.0 38.0 -34.0 43.8 47.2 -8.8 16.0 -11.8 51.0

17.0 AF 25.0 EU 56.2 SA 60.0 NA 60.1 NA -13.2 AF 24.0 AF -43.7 AF -6.0 EU

33 14 13 5 5 36 35 39 14 27 37 20 32 32 15 14 14 33 33 14 21 35

14.6 -121.0 OC 15.2 31.5 -10.5 -21.0 43.9 40.4 39.5 28.0 36.7 53.3 40.5 7.0 -39.0 AF -34.5 AS 161.0 OC 159.5 OC -18.4 EU 3.7 EU -3.0 EU 15.0 AF 5.4 AF 6.3 EU -44.5 AS 11.0 AF

E5/Nor North Cook Islands th E5/Sout South Cook Islands h E7 EA EA6 EA8 EA9 EI EK EL Bosnia and Herzogovenia Spain Balearic Is. Canary Islands Ceuta & Melilla Ireland Armenia Liberia

EP ER ES ET EU EX EY EZ F FG FH FJ FK

Iran Moldova Estonia Ethiopia Belarus Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan Turkmenistan France Guadeloupe Mayotte Saint Barthelemy New Caledonia

14 26 21 35 23 355 1 8 39 104 43 103 248 255 105 219 218 214 176 61 33 38 60
35

194 206 201 215 203 175 181 188 219 284

7,064 5,930 5,133 8,542 5,477 6,722 6,910 6,976 5,079 3,366

35.8 47.0 59.0 9.0 54.0 42.0 39.5 38.0 48.8 17.0 -13.0 18.0

-51.8 AS -29.0 EU -25.0 EU -39.0 AF -27.5 EU -75.0 AS -67.0 AS -58.0 AS -2.3 EU 62.0 NA -45.3 AF 63.0 NA

21 16 15 37 16 17 17 17 14 8 39 8 32 32 8 32 32 31 7 5 39 39 39

223 10,082 283 68 75 285 39 38 34 356 241 3,271 6,748 7,088 3,505 4,719 5,027 3,852 2,034 2,740

-22.0 -167.0 OC -19.9 -158.3 OC 15.0 -18.0 -22.4 -8.9 11.0 47.0 -21.0 -10.6 -21.5 61.0 NA 150.0 OC 151.4 OC 140.1 OC 110.0 NA 56.5 NA -55.5 AF -47.3 AF -40.0 AF

FK8/C Chesterfield Is. FM FO FO0A Martinique French Polynesia Austral Islands

FO0M Marquesas Islands FO0X FP FR FR/G FR/J Clipperton Island Saint. Pierre and Miquelon Reunion Glorioso Juan de Nova

213 10,894 218 10,006 240 10,325

FR/T FS

Tromelin Island Saint Martin

29 103 123 187 292 242 107 38 38 38 41 36 41 38 262 255 31 38 37 134 152
36

209 10,521 283 3,271

-15.5 18.0 -46.5 -50.0 -37.0 -14.0 5.0 51.5 54.0 54.6 49.3 55.8 49.5 52.5

-54.5 AF 63.0 NA -52.0 AF -70.0 AF -77.6 AF 176.0 OC 52.0 SA 0.1 EU 4.5 EU 5.9 EU 2.2 EU 4.3 EU 2.7 EU 3.5 EU

39 8 39 39 39 32 9 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 28 28 15 14 14 10 10

FT5W Crozet FT5X FT5Z FW FY G GD, GT Kerguelen Islands Amsterdam Wallis and Futuna French Guiana United Kingdom Isle of Man

303 11,516 7 11,760 112 11,869 62 287 218 218 218 221 216 221 218 82 75 211 218 217 314 332 5,558 4,421 4,875 4,624 4,554 4,905 4,554 4,879 4,720 6,539 6,318 5,654 5,321 5,400 3,516 3,183

GI, GN Northern Ireland GJ, GH Jersey GM, GS Scotland

GU, GP Guernsey GW, GC H4 H40 HA HB HB0 HC HC8 Wales Solomon Islands Temotu Islands Hungary Switzerland Liechtenstein Ecuador Galapagos Islands

-9.4 -160.0 OC -12.5 -167.0 OC 47.5 47.0 47.0 -0.2 -2.0 -19.1 EU -7.0 EU -9.5 EU 78.0 SA 92.0 SA

HH HI HK

Haiti Dominican Republic Colombia

110 109 126 128 135 317 129 134 324 38 22 38 41 30 108 76 106 105 107 308 292 302
37

290 289 306 308 315 137 309 314 144 218 202 218 221 210 288 256 286 285 287 128 112 122

2,774 2,895 3,385 2,653 3,156 5,872 2,936 2,359 8,151 5,764 7,607 5,775 5,746 8,466 3,602 6,030 3,550 3,472 3,567 5,485 5,322 5,818

19.0 18.5 5.0 12.5 4.0

72.0 NA 70.0 NA 74.0 SA 81.7 NA 81.1 NA

8 8 9 7 10 25 7 7 26 15 21 15 15 37 8 35 8 8 8 25 27 27

HK0/A San Andreas HK0/M Malpelo Is. HL HO, HP HR Korea, South Panama Honduras

37.5 -127.5 AS 9.0 14.0 79.5 NA 87.0 NA

HS, E2 Thailand HV HZ I IS J2 J3 J5 J6 J7 J8 JA JD1 Vatican City Saudi Arabia Italy Sardinia Djibouti Grenada Guinea Bissau Saint Lucia Dominica Saint. Vincent and the Grenadines Japan Minami Torishima

13.8 -100.5 AS 41.9 26.0 42.0 40.0 12.0 12.0 12.0 14.0 15.4 13.3 -12.5 EU -45.0 AS -13.0 EU -9.0 EU -43.0 AF 61.8 NA 15.0 AF 61.0 NA 61.3 NA 61.3 NA

35.7 -139.8 AS 25.0 -154.0 AS 27.5 -141.0 AS

JD1/O Ogasawara

JT, JV Mongolia JW JX JY Svalbard Jan Mayen Jordan

335 11 22 27 181 112 290 253 289 263 279 246 248 255 280 239 241 279 330 114 105 106
38

155 191 202 207 1 292 110 73 109 83 99 66 68 75 100 59 61 99 150 294 285 286

5,878 3,971 3,892 7,022 477 2,581 6,118 4,853 6,260 3,798 3,761 3,898 3,853 2,949 3,794 5,330 5,214 4,920 2,232 2,674 3,194 3,086

48.0 -107.0 AS 78.0 71.0 32.0 33.5 20.0 -16.0 EU 8.0 EU -36.0 AS 112.0 NA 75.0 NA

23 40 40 20 3,4,5 8 27 31 27 31 31 31 31 31 31 32 31 31 1 8 8 8

K,W,A, United States N KG4 KH0 KH1 KH2 KH3 KH4 KH5 Guantanamo Bay Mariana Is. Baker Island Guam Johnston Atoll Midway Is. Palmyra Atoll

16.0 -146.0 OC 0.5 176.0 OC

14.0 -145.0 OC 17.0 28.0 6.0 7.5 20.0 28.5 -14.0 -11.1 170.0 OC 177.5 OC 162.0 OC 162.6 OC 156.0 OC 178.5 OC 171.0 OC 171.7 OC

KH5/K Kingman Reef KH6-7 Hawaii KH7K Kure Is. KH8 KH8S KH9 KL7 KP1 KP2 KP3, KP4 American Samoa Swains Island Wake Island Alaska Navassa Virgin Islands Puerto Rico

19.0 -167.0 OC 64.0 18.0 18.0 18.5 150.0 NA 75.0 NA 64.5 NA 66.2 NA

KP5 LA LN LO LW LX LY LZ OA OC OD OE

Desecheo Is. Norway Argentina Luxembourg Lithuania Bulgaria Peru Lebanon Austria

107 27 138 37 24 31 141 27 32 21 23 23 32 31 36 36 31 29 273 115

39

287 207 318 217 204 211 321 207 212 201 203 203 212 211 216 216 211 209 93 295

3,029 4,771 6,159 5,205 5,406 6,043 4,248 6,891 5,538 5,064 4,966 4,940 5,382 5,426 5,046 2,851 4,229 5,037 7,167 3,178

18.3 60.0 -34.0 49.0 54.5 42.7 -12.0 33.9 48.2 60.2 60.2 60.3 50.1 50.1 50.9 63.0 62.0 55.7

67.5 NA -10.7 EU 58.4 SA -6.5 EU -25.5 EU -23.3 EU 77.0 SA -35.5 AS -16.3 EU -25.0 EU -20.0 EU -19.0 EU -14.4 EU -16.0 EU -4.4 EU 52.0 NA 7.0 EU -12.6 EU

8 14 13 14 15 20 10 20 15 15 15 15 15 15 14 40 14 14 28 9

OF - OI Finland OH0 OJ0 OK OL OM ON OT OX OY OZ P2 P4 Aland Is. Market Reef Czech Republic Slovakia Belgium Greenland Faroe Islands Denmark Papua New Guinea Aruba

-7.0 -146.0 OC 12.5 70.0 SA

P5

Korea, North

318 35 115 103 121 99 94 112 117 4 14 48 338 34 20 71 24 29 38 32 34 32

40

138 215 295 283 301 279 274 292 297 184 194 228 158 214 200 251 204 209 218 212 214 212

5,794 4,989 3,250 3,271 6,205 5,815 5,717 6,636 4,813 4,084 4,613 6,729 7,755 5,603 9,802 7,636 4,975 5,537 7,940 7,026 6,328 6,217

39.0 -127.5 AS 52.4 12.0 18.0 -23.0 -3.0 1.5 -21.0 -6.0 80.0 69.0 25.0 24.0 46.1 -4.0 0.3 59.3 50.0 15.5 30.0 38.0 40.2 -4.9 EU 69.0 SA 63.0 NA 43.2 SA 32.0 SA 30.0 SA 32.0 SA 55.0 SA -50.0 EU -29.0 EU -14.0 AF -90.5 AS -14.6 EU -56.0 AF -6.0 AF -18.1 EU -20.0 EU -32.5 AF -31.4 AF -23.7 EU -24.3 EU

25 14 9 8 11 11 11 11 9 40 15 33 22 15 39 36 14 15 34 34 20 20

PA - PI Netherlands PJ2, 4, Bonaire, Curacao 5 PJ5 - 8 St. Maarten, St. Eustatius PP - PY Brazil PY0/F Fern. de Norohna PY0/S Saint Peter and Paul PY0/T Trindade PZ R1/FJ Surinam Franz Josef Land

R1/MV Malyj Vysotskij S0 S2 S5 S7 S9 SA SM Western Sahara Bangladesh Slovenia Seychelles Sao Tome and Principe Sweden

SN - SR Poland ST SU Sudan Egypt

SV - SZ Greece SV/A Mt. Athos

SV5 SV9 T2 T30 T31 T32 T33 T5 T7 T8 TA TC TF

Dodecanese Crete Tuvalu Kiribati Kiribati East Kiribati Banaba Island Somalia San Marino Palau Turkey Iceland

32 34 250 256 245 224 248 23 37 290 26 33 138 133 141 64 40 58 67 68 55 74

41

212 214 70 76 65 44 68 203 217 110 206 213 318 313 321 244 220 238 247 248 235 254

6,525 6,525 5,560 5,520 4,875 4,248 5,068 8,020 5,668 6,808 6,455 3,746 2,196 2,701 2,889 7,745 5,642 7,995 8,287 7,774 7,467 6,888

36.5 35.4

-27.5 EU -25.2 EU

20 20 31 31 31 31 31 37 15 27 20 40 7 7 7 38 15 36 36 36 36 35

-8.7 -178.6 OC -4.0 -175.0 OC -5.0 -10.0 -5.0 20.0 44.0 171.0 OC 150.0 OC 175.0 OC -46.0 AF -13.0 EU

9.5 -138.2 OC 39.9 64.1 14.6 10.0 5.0 4.0 42.0 4.5 -4.0 0.5 12.0 5.5 -32.9 EU 22.0 EU 90.5 NA 84.0 NA 87.0 NA -12.0 AF -9.0 EU -18.0 AF -15.0 AF -9.0 AF -15.0 AF 4.0 AF

TG, TD Guatemala TI TI9 TJ TK TL TN TR TT TU Costa Rica Cocos Island Cameroon Corsica Central Africa Republic Congo, Republic of Gabon Chad Cote d'Ivoire

TY TZ UA UA2

Benin Mali Russia Kaliningrad

69 71 16 26 352 3 355

249 251 196 206 172 183 175

7,165 6,338 5,570 5,267 5,782 6,870 5,961

6.3 13.0 56.0 55.0 55.0 40.0 53.0

-2.3 AF 8.0 AF -40.0 EU -20.5 EU -83.0 AS -64.0 AS -76.0 AS

35 35 16 15 17,18,1 9 17 17

UA9,U Asiatic Russia A0 UJ UM UN UQ URUR, EMV2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 VE, VO, VY VK Uzbekistan Kazakhstan

Ukraine Antigua and Barbuda Belize Saint Kitts and Nevis Namibia Micronesia Marshall Islands Brunei Canada Australia

23 102 132 104 83 276 271 305 37 261 194 223

42

203 282 312 284 263 96 91 125 217 81

5,760 3,478 2,112 3,322 9,230 5,866 5,341 8,116 875 8,938

50.5 17.0 17.5 17.3 -22.6

-31.0 EU 59.8 NA 88.3 NA 62.6 NA -17.1 AF

16 8 7 8 38 27 31 28 2,3,4,5 29 39 30

8.0 -158.0 OC 9.2 -167.0 OC 5.0 -115.0 OC 50.0 100.0 NA

-30.0 -130.0 OC -53.0 -73.4 AF

VK0/H Heard Island VK0/M Macquarie Is.

14 11,524 43 8,397

-54.7 -158.8 OC

VK9/C Cocos Keeling Islands VK9/L Lord Howe Is. VK9/M Mellish Reef VK9/N Norfolk Is. VK9/W Willis Is. VK9/X Christmas Island VP2/E Anguilla VP2/M Montserrat VP2/V Brit. Virgin Islands VP5 VP6 Turks and Caicos Islands Pitcairn Is.

310 244 258 242 263 301 103 104 104 107 198 193 150 142 156 150 141 87 352 317 348 329 358
43

130 64 78 62 83 121 283 284 284 287 18 13 330 322 336 330 321 267

9,819 7,541 7,116 7,013 7,374 9,348 3,258 3,364 3,172 2,642 4,673 4,572 7,095 7,873 7,665 7,865 8,280 2,647

-12.2

-96.8 OC

29 30 30 32 30 30 8 8 8 8 32 32 13 13 13 13 13 5 39 24 22 26 22

-31.6 -159.1 OC -17.6 -155.8 OC -29.0 -168.0 OC -16.0 -149.5 OC -10.5 -105.7 OC 18.3 16.8 18.4 22.0 -25.1 -24.7 -52.0 -54.0 -62.0 -60.0 -57.0 32.3 -7.3 63.0 NA 62.2 NA 64.6 NA 72.0 NA 130.1 OC 124.8 OC 60.0 SA 37.0 SA 58.5 SA 46.0 SA 28.0 SA 64.7 NA -72.4 AF

VP6/D Ducie Island VP8/F Falkland Islands VP8/G South Georgia Islands VP8/H South Shetland Islands VP8/O South Orkney Islands VP8/S South Sandwich Islands VP9 VQ9 VR2 VU VU4 VU7 Bermuda Chagos Hong Kong India Andaman Is. Laccadive Is.

172 10,127 137 168 149 178 7,182 7,984 8,577 8,945

22.5 -114.0 AS 23.0 10.0 10.0 -80.0 AS -94.0 AS -70.0 AS

XA - XI Mexico XA4 XI4 XT XU XW XX9 XY XZ YA YB YH YI YJ YK YL YN YO YR YS Revilla Gigedo Burkina Faso Cambodia Laos Macao Myanmar Afghanistan Indonesia Iraq Vanuatu Syria Latvia Nicaragua Romania El Salvador

141 180 68 318 324 317 330 3 304 20 250 26 23 134 29 136 32 114 113 66
44

321 0 248 138 144 137 150 183 124 200 70 206 203 314 209 316 212 294 293 246

1,387 1,547 6,681 8,141 7,832 7,210 8,093 7,424 9,054 7,139 6,518 6,908 5,229 2,511 6,017 2,284 5,839 3,419 3,322 9,735

24.0 18.0 12.3

98.0 NA 112.0 NA 1.7 AF

6 6 35 26 26 24 26 21 28 21 32 20 15 7 20 7 15 9 8 38

11.5 -105.0 AS 18.0 -102.5 AS 22.0 -114.0 AS 16.8 32.0 -96.0 AS -65.0 AS

-6.0 -107.0 OC 33.0 -44.5 AS

-18.0 -168.0 OC 34.0 57.0 12.0 44.4 14.0 44.9 10.5 12.0 -18.0 -36.5 AS -24.0 EU 86.0 NA -26.1 EU 89.0 NA -20.5 EU 67.0 SA 67.5 NA -31.0 AF

YT-YU, Serbia YZ YV YV0 Z2 Venezuela Aves Is. Zimbabwe

Z3 ZA ZB2 ZC4 ZD7 ZD8 ZD9 ZF ZK2 ZK3 ZL ZM ZL7 ZL8 ZL9 ZP ZR ZU ZS8

Macedonia Albania Gibraltar UK Bases/Cyprus Saint Helena Ascension Is. Tristan da Cunha Cayman Islands Niue Tokelau New Zealand Chatham Is. Kermadec Island Auckland & Campbell Is. Paraguay South Africa Marion Is.

32 34 53 28 92 91 115 120 235 244 229 221 233 212 132 97 116

212 214 233 208 272 271 295 300 55 64 49 41 53 32 312 277

5,839 6,004 5,385 6,761 7,748 6,981 8,242 2,311 5,544 5,125 7,258 7,058 6,443 7,267 5,696 9,688

44.9 41.5 36.0 35.0 -16.0 -8.0 -37.0 19.5 -19.0 -8.4

-20.5 EU -19.5 EU 5.5 EU -33.0 AS 6.0 AF 14.0 AF 12.3 AF 81.2 NA 170.0 OC 172.7 OC

15 15 14 20 36 36 38 8 32 31 32 32 32 32 11 38 38

-41.0 -174.8 OC -44.0 -30.0 -52.5 -25.0 -33.9 -46.8 176.0 OC 178.0 OC 169.0 OC 57.7 SA -18.4 AF -37.8 AF

296 10,857

45