On September 9, 2020, I experienced a mammoth tropospheric duct opening which brought stations from Nova Scotia and New England to my home in northern Virginia, at distances up to 813 miles away and bringing in 30 new stations logged.
Although a few months have passed since this record-breaking opening, I kept about six hours of RF recording from roughly 95.1-103.5 FM recorded during the overnight hours and finally had some time to really go over it all in-depth. The result of my deep review is the revelation of four more new stations from the opening, bringing the grand total to 34 new stations logged.
My FM DX Log has been updated with the new stations listed below.
95.9 WATD-FM Marshfield MA, 420 miles
96.1 WSRS Worcester, MA, “96-1 SRS” – AC, 378 miles
97.7 WCTY Norwich, CT “97.7 WCTY” – country, 335 miles
102.3 WMOS Stonington, CT, “102.3 The Wolf” – country, 344 miles over local 102.3 WMMJ
Radio signals from Nova Scotia were heard over 800 miles away in Northern Virginia during a massive tropospheric ducting event in the overnight hours of September 9, 2020.
The duct, which began shortly before midnight Sept. 8, also brought in sustained signals from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York with distances over 400 miles away continuously until about 11 AM. Other DXers in New England reported receiving signals from near my home in Virginia at comparable distances, and a reader in Nova Scotia told me that she also received stations from Massachusetts during the event.
See the orange and pink area depicting the tropo duct from Virginia to Nova Scotia as reported by the Hepburn Tropo Index on Sept. 9, 2020. Click to enlarge.
I turned on my radios at 11:44 PM Sept. 8 and immediately found 98.1 WCTK, a never before-received signal from New Bedford, MA at 393 miles away, booming in with decoded HD Radio. Soon after, I found more signals from throughout New England coming in.
The golden prize of the opening didn’t occur until 1:36 AM, when I discovered a weak signal from 103.5 CKHZ-FM Halifax, NS in Canada coming in right over local 103.5 WTOP. CKHZ-FM, at 813 miles away, is now the furthest radio station I have received via tropospheric ducting, unseating my previous record set in 2005 by 99.9 WQRC Barnstable, MA at 420 miles away. It also marked the first time that I received a different country on the radio dial at my home via tropo. WTOP is a very strong local signal at 21 miles away from me, so the fact that CKHZ-FM was able to come in over it is simply amazing. Two other Canadian stations from the Halifax area of Nova Scotia, previously-logged 95.7 CJNI-FM and 100.1 CIOO-FM, were also heard. All in all, I received 30 new radio stations during the opening. A list of these new stations can be found further below in this post.
The opening also gave me my first “three prong” signal–a signal that was heard separately, at different times, via the three major radio signal propagation methods: Sporadic E-Skip, meteor scatter, and tropospheric ducting. That station is Halifax’s 100.1 CIOO-FM. I first heard CIOO-FM via meteor scatter propagation on Sept. 20, 2006 and a few times since then via skip. Given limitations related to propagation and distance, having a three prong signal is very rare and it took me 21 years to get one.
Tropo enhancement with signals coming in over 400 miles away as observed in this tropo duct is common in the southeastern USA and Gulf Coast, but it is unheard of in the Mid-Atlantic region of the country where I live. DXers in New England will, occasionally, receive stations from Virginia and the Carolinas, but the reception is usually one way and I don’t benefit from it as the endpoints of the duct are usually out of range for me. My distant receptions to north and northeast often bottom out at New York City, which is 225 miles away. These stations are usually in for less than an hour before the duct falls apart and they disappear. To have an all-night opening bringing signals 400-820 miles away is something that just doesn’t happen in my area.
Throughout the opening, many of my local Washington, DC and Fredericksburg, VA radio stations were fighting with New England stations for control of the frequency. Some local signals were simply gone off the dial without a trace, with multiple distant signals coming in all at once in place of them. The pile-up of so many signals coming in at once reminded me of the once-in-a-lifetime colossal July 6, 2004 sporadic E opening, where almost every local radio station of mine disappeared to far-away signals coming in from the Midwest.
Below is a list of the stations I received from the tropo opening, including HD Radio and RDS screenshots, which have been added to my RDS/HD Radio Screenshots Gallery page. For brevity, I have only included previously-logged stations beyond 150 miles away that I don’t usually receive at my home during DX events. My FM DX Log has also been updated with the new content. Click on the audio players to hear audio from stations.
= new station logged
88.9 WERS Boston, MA, college, 414 miles
89.7 WGBH Boston, MA, public radio, 406 miles over local W209BY
92.3 WPRO-FM Providence, RI, “92 Pro FM” – CHR, 375 miles
93.3 WSNE-FM Taunton, MA “Coast 93-3” – hot AC, 385 miles over local WFLS
93.1 WPAT-FM Paterson, NJ, “Amor 93.1” – spanish, 223 miles
93.7 WEEI-FM Lawrence, MA “WEEI” – sports, 424 miles
93.9 W230CO Seaford, DE, “La ZMX 93.9” – spanish, 91 miles over local WKYS
93.9 WNYC-FM New York, NY, public radio, 223 miles over WKYS
94.1 WHJY Providence, RI, “94 HJY” – rock, 379 miles
95.1 WXTK West Yarmouth, MA, talk, 424 miles
95.7 CJNI-FM Halifax, NS “News 95-7” – news, 813 miles
96.1 WJVC Center Moriches, NY, “My Country 96.1” – country, 283 miles
96.3 WEII Dennis, MA, “Cape Cod Sports Radio 96-3” – sports, 430 miles over local WHUR
96.7 WARW-FM Port Chester, NY, “Air 1” – religious, 242 miles
96.9 WBQT Boston, MA, “Hot 96-9” – urban, 413 miles
WBQT, 9/9/2020, RDS
97.5 WALK-FM Patchogue, NY, “Walk 97.5” – hot AC, 271 miles
97.7 WKAF Brockton, MA, “The New 97-7” – classic CHR, 406 miles
97.9 WSKQ-FM New York, NY, “La Mega 97.9” – spanish, 226 miles
98.1 WCTK New Bedford, MA, “98.1 Cat Country” – country, 393 miles
98.3 WKJY Hempstead, NY, “K-Joy 98.3” – AC, 240 miles
98.7 WEPN-FM New York, NY, “ESPN Radio” – sports, 227 miles over local WMZQ
99.1 WPLM-FM Plymouth, MA, “Easy 99.1” – AC, 414 miles over local WDCH
99.7 WEAN-FM Wakefield, RI, “WPRO” – talk, 359 miles
99.9 WODE-FM Easton, PA, “99-9 The Hawk” – classic hits, 179 miles
99.9 WEZN Bridgeport, CT, “Star 99-9” – AC, 281 miles
100.1 CIOO-FM Halifax, NS, “C100” – CHR, 812 miles
100.7 WZLX Boston, MA, “100.7 WZLX” – classic rock, 413 miles
100.9 WKNL New London, CT, “K-Hits FM” – classic hits, 331 miles
101.3 WKCI-FM Hamden, CT, “KC 101” – CHR, 297 miles
101.5 WKFY East Harwich, MA, “Koffee FM” – AC, 438 miles over local WBQB
101.7 WBEA Southold, NY, “101-7 The Beach” – CHR, 292 miles
101.7 WBWL-FM Lynn, MA, “101-7 The Bull” – country, 416 miles
The past month or so has been fairly quiet at my home in Northern Virginia in terms of FM DXing. Constant storms and unfavorable weather conditions paved the way for non-existent DX outside of regular, garden-variety enhancement of signals within 100 miles.
I realized that I never posted about a few new FM logs received two months ago. Exceptional tropospheric enhancement brought in signals up over 300 miles away to the south–a rare event nowadays–during the late morning hours on July 16. 103.1 FM at my home during most tropo events is WRNR Grasonville, MD, at 61 miles away. Instead of WRNR’s AAA format, I heard oldies music while tuning by. I then caught a legal ID from 103.1 WLQC Sharpsburg, NC, a new log at 189 miles. .
Click on the link below to hear audio from 103.1 WLQC Sharpsburg, NC, 189 miles away
Shortly afterward, I tuned past 91.3 FM and saw an immediate RDS decode from new log WHQR from Wilmington, NC, 317 miles away.
A few days later, on July 19, I took a day trip to nearby Fredericksburg, VA. While there, I heard two new signals: 91.5 W218CV and 106.3 W292EF, both from Fredericksburg. Both stations aired a religious format and were new since my last visit to the area several years ago. Since Fredericksburg is less than 30 miles away from my home, I am adding these new logs to my FM DX Log.
I was in South Riding, VA on September 7. I found translator 104.5 W283DG Sterling, VA, a recent sign-on and new signal that I had hoped to log at some point, relaying nearby 1500 WFED’s Federal News Radio programming. Since South Riding is only 21 miles NW of my home, I added W283DG to my FM DX Log and its screenshot to my RDS/HD Radio Screenshots gallery.
RDS from 104.5 W283DG Sterling, VA, 7 miles from car radio in Sterling, VA
In the early morning hours of September 8, a very brief, but strong, tropo duct brought in New York, NY’s 92.3 WNYL, 97.9 WSKQ-FM, 101.1 WCBS-FM (under local WWDC), and 102.7 WNEW-FM at around 225 miles away. Trenton, NJ’s 101.5 WKXW also briefly came in over local WBQB with HD Radio at 177 miles away. The furthest signal received during the opening was previously-logged 99.9 WEZN Bridgeport, CT, at 281 miles.
During this opening, RDS from 97.9 WSKQ-FM and 102.7 WNEW-FM decoded for the first time on my radios.
I also added a new HD Radio screenshot from 101.5 WKXW.
One of the few full-power radio stations in the Washington, DC area that did not run RDS now does. I first noticed RDS running on 99.1 WDCH-FM Bowie, MD, a local station of mine, in 2006 when I bought my first RDS-capable radio. I’m not sure how long the station ran RDS before that. However, in 2016 when the signal flipped from news to business news, the RDS disappeared. While scanning the FM dial on December 29, 2019, I found the station was once again broadcasting RDS. I have added the RDS screenshots below to my Woodbridge, VA RDS/HD Radio Screenshots page.
96.7 WCEI-FM Easton, MD, a common visitor on my FM dial at 64 miles away, is now running RDS. I first noticed the signal, which turned on HD Radio earlier this year, running RDS on August 27. The screenshots below have been added to my DX Logs pages.
Minor tropo enhancement during the early morning hours of July 11 brought in the usual summer signals from Norfolk, VA and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. A few signals from coastal New Jersey were in, too. What made this opening different was that I received HD Radio for the first time from two previously-logged signals.
I first logged 92.1 WCDX Richmond, VA (3 KW, 74 miles away) on 5/15/00. Although I have received RDS multiple times from the station over the years, HD Radio was always out of reach, given the two frequencies WCDX has IBOC sidebands on are occupied by local 91.9 WGTS and semi-local 92.3 WERQ. For the first time, WCDX’s 92.3 sideband overpowered WERQ and resulted in a decode:
This one surprised me. At my home, 97.1 is occupied by local WASH Washington, DC, (17.5 KW, 21 miles away). I have received a handful of other signals over WASH over the years, but WASH is usually too strong to be overpowered by another signal. WAVD Ocean Pines, MD (4.6 KW at 115 miles) has overtaken WASH on a few occasions over the years. I first logged the station on 6/24/05, when it was WQJZ “Smooth Jazz 97.1.” On June 11, I received WAVD with RDS strength over WASH. A few moments into tuning the station, WAVD’s HD Radio signal started to decode. I didn’t even know WAVD ran IBOC.
I also added the following screenshots from the following previously-logged stations:
One benefit of owning an HD Radio in the United States is that all HD signals display a digital ID. Most stations broadcast their callsign assigned to them by the FCC, i.e. “WKYS,” while others broadcast their name, such as “STAR-FM.” Regardless of if a station chooses to show their callsign or name, they are limited to four characters and an optional suffix of “-FM” at the end (the latter having no bearing on if the actual station’s callsign legally has “-FM” in it, or not). Now it seems there is a new type of digital callsign appearing on stations that cannot be displayed on older HD radios, such as the Sony XDR-F1HD.
The Sony XDR-F1HD and its sister radios (the XDR-S10HDiP and XDR-S3HD) are among the first generation of HD Radios that debuted in 2008. The radios would always quickly identify all HD Radio callsigns once an IBOC signal was found, regardless of if it was “WKYS” or “STAR-FM.”
Local 96.3 WHUR Washington, DC’s HD Radio signal was on and off-air sporadically in the first few months of 2019. Their analog signal was also off-air at times, too. Because of this, I assumed the station was upgrading their equipment. Before 2019, the station had a digital callsign of “WHUR-FM” on all HD Radios, as seen in the screenshot to the left below. For a brief period in April 2019, the broadcasted callsign was simply “HD,” as seen to the right below. Both callsigns were easily read and displayed by the Sony XDR radios.
Much to my surprise, during a dial scan on the Sony XDR-S10HDiP on May 18, I found the station was not broadcasting any digital callsign at all. The XDR-S3HD and XDR-F1HD radios also didn’t show any callsign on WHUR.
5/18/19, HD Radio (radio cannot display HD callsign)
In my 20 years of DXing (11 of them having HD Radio capabilities), I have never seen a station simply not have a callsign displayed when their digital signal was tuned in. Puzzled, I got out my other HD Radios (the Insignia NS-HD01 and Insignia NS-HDRAD2) and found that they were, indeed, displaying a digital callsign from WHUR, albeit with a new suffix at the end I had never seen before: “WHUR HD.”
5/18/19, HD Radio
The next day, I tuned in WHUR on my parent’s 2016-model car that has HD Radio, and found it could also “see” the updated “WHUR HD” callsign.
5/19/19, HD Radio
Another HD-capable radio I own, the Sangean HDR-14, can only display four characters in its digital callsign area and it doesn’t display the “-FM” suffix on participating stations. This is a limitation of the radio itself, and the “HD1+!” seen on the screen below is not part of the callsign and is instead a function of the radio–it appears on all HD Radio signals, regardless if they have the “-FM” in their displayed callsign or not. Even with the built-in limitations, the radio still displays the first four characters of WHUR’s updated “WHUR HD” callsign, as seen below. It doesn’t show a blank callsign like the Sony XDR radios do.
5/18/19, HD Radio
I think one of two scenarios are likely, given the developments with WHUR’s new callsign:
HD Radio technology now allows a third “HD” suffix at the end of callsigns. A station can pick “WKYS,” “WKYS-FM,” or “WKYS HD.”
Instead of being limited to four characters with an optional suffix at the end, HD Radio stations can now utilize the full seven characters to display any text of their liking. This means a station could theoretically display “Hot1025” or “Country” as their HD callsign. In this scenario, WHUR simply chose “HD” at the end of a fully-customized seven character string.
As for why the Sony XDR-series radios cannot see the new WHUR callsign, I am leaning toward option #2 being what is in play at the moment. Since there are differences in suffixes already between HD Radio signals and all radios simply display whatever the station chose, I would assume that any HD radio would be able to show “HD” as a suffix if that was the case. The technology is already there to account for differences in suffixes. In that instance, the Sony XDR radios should display “WHUR HD” without a problem.
Option #2, which affords changing the HD Radio data standard to allow for seven character callsigns, however, may cause a problem with older first-generation HD radios like the Sony XDRs. My other HD Radios were manufactured 2012-2018, so they likely have newer technology under the hood that would be compatible with future upgrades in the HD Radio standard, such as allowing for longer digital callsigns. Under this theory, since the Sony XDR radios are too old, they don’t “understand” the longer callsign being broadcast and, therefore, can’t display them, resulting in a blank on-screen display.
If my suspicions regarding option #2 are correct, then this would be a blow to the DXing community, since it means that if a station upgrades to the latest HD Radio technology, then there’s a chance that those with older HD Radios won’t be able to see any callsign upon a successful decode. The potential of any digital radio simply not displaying a callsign due to an incompatibility in technology when other equipment could is a disappointment and it may mean a DXer could miss an otherwise slam dunk ID.
Hopefully, this is just an isolated issue with WHUR’s HD Radio signal, and not a sign of things to come nationwide.
During minimal tropo enhancement on April 8, I received first-time RDS decodes from three previously-logged signals. My RDS/HD Radio Screenshots page has been updated with these new screenshots.
The first signal, 89.1 WCNV Heathesville, VA, is 67 miles away from my home and was first received on 5/5/07. Although my radio detected a strong RDS carrier from WCNV, the station did not broadcast any radiotext, PT, or PTY data.
4/8/19, RDS (no text)
89.7 WXMD California, MD, at 40 miles away, was first logged on 6/15/16 and has been received over local 89.7 W209BY multiple times without any trace of RDS. That changed on April 4.
4/8/19, RDS
Being first logged on 5/10/99, 105.5 WRAR-FM Tappahannock, VA was among the first signals I had ever received. They seemed to have turned on RDS sometime in late 2018 or early 2019, because I did not get RDS from them before.
I visited the Norfolk, VA area during the President’s Day weekend and updated my existing logs. While on my way to Norfolk, I stopped for lunch in Richmond, VA and updated my logs from that city. I added a handful of new logs, plus dozens of new HD Radio and RDS screenshots from each city, too. Click on the links below, or view all of my travel DX logs from dozens of U.S. cities.
At my home, 90.5 is home to nearby WPER Fredericksburg, VA, which is 37 miles away 90.5 WKHS Worton, MD is much further away at 76 miles, but it does often come in over WPER during strong tropo events to the north and east. On January 14, an unusual reception from WKHS blasted into my radio for about five minutes, just long enough for RDS to decode. Its reception was surprising, given there was about 6.5 inches of snow on the ground and weather was not conducsive to such long-range reception. My RDS/HD Radio Screenshots page has been updated with this new screenshot.
= new station logged
FM Radio DX 