Comments on: Radio Free Europe? https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/ Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:18:10 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48652 podrock Wed, 02 Mar 2022 23:12:56 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48652 So, people are reportedly posting pro Ukrainian information as reviews on restaurant webpages to get around Russian censorship. Independent news outlets in Russia have been taken off air and offline. So, people are reportedly posting pro Ukrainian information as reviews on restaurant webpages to get around Russian censorship. Independent news outlets in Russia have been taken off air and offline.

]]> By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48651 podrock Wed, 02 Mar 2022 20:37:33 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48651 Article also gives the frequencies for shortwave transmissions. Having a decent SW radio around the house is a good idea. https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2022/millions-of-russians-turn-to-bbc-news Seeing rumors that Ukrainians are monitoring and jamming RU coms. Playing music, profane rants, etc. That RU coms are analog and un-encrypted. Forward units don't have repeater transmitters working. Article also gives the frequencies for shortwave transmissions. Having a decent SW radio around the house is a good idea.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2022/millions-of-russians-turn-to-bbc-news

Seeing rumors that Ukrainians are monitoring and jamming RU coms. Playing music, profane rants, etc. That RU coms are analog and un-encrypted. Forward units don’t have repeater transmitters working.

]]> By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48594 podrock Tue, 01 Mar 2022 04:32:50 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48594 Saw a rumor that the infamous number station from Russia got hacked today? Background: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_station" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_station</a> Saw a rumor that the infamous number station from Russia got hacked today?

Background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_station

]]> By: ER https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48593 ER Tue, 01 Mar 2022 04:27:52 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48593 I also have a AM/FM/shortwave with a digital tuner and I discovered a whole band of stations just below the AM band. They appear to be legit, too. Many are local communities that disseminate public service messages, safety information, weather, community activities, etc. Then there are the "number stations". I haven't heard any for a while, but they usually involved a deadpan human voice in English or Spanish repeating long sequences of 5-digit number groups. (Usually on the AM frequencies.) Espionage? Military? Drug cartels? UFO aliens? I also have a AM/FM/shortwave with a digital tuner and I discovered a whole band of stations just below the AM band. They appear to be legit, too. Many are local communities that disseminate public service messages, safety information, weather, community activities, etc.

Then there are the “number stations”. I haven’t heard any for a while, but they usually involved a deadpan human voice in English or Spanish repeating long sequences of 5-digit number groups. (Usually on the AM frequencies.)

Espionage? Military? Drug cartels? UFO aliens?

]]> By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48592 podrock Tue, 01 Mar 2022 04:15:42 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48592 I had this old small TV that had a variable tuner. Interesting stuff between the video feeds. I know there are local, small wattage stations here. I don't know their frequencies. I'll have to pull out the multiband receiver / scanner. I hooked up a digital antenna to one of our TV's. Mounted on the roof where I get a pretty good signal. Actually found a website that shows where all the signals are coming from to optimize orientation. I can pull in more than two dozen stations. And there's a lot out there you don't see on cable. Yeah, many preachers. Also, there are social media sites documenting the radio frequencies used by the Russian forces in Ukraine. I had this old small TV that had a variable tuner. Interesting stuff between the video feeds.

I know there are local, small wattage stations here. I don’t know their frequencies. I’ll have to pull out the multiband receiver / scanner.

I hooked up a digital antenna to one of our TV’s. Mounted on the roof where I get a pretty good signal. Actually found a website that shows where all the signals are coming from to optimize orientation. I can pull in more than two dozen stations. And there’s a lot out there you don’t see on cable. Yeah, many preachers.

Also, there are social media sites documenting the radio frequencies used by the Russian forces in Ukraine.

]]> By: ER https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48591 ER Tue, 01 Mar 2022 03:51:49 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48591 I've got one of those emergency radios you used to get as a premium for donating to Public TV. You know, its got AM, FM, Some automated NOAA weather stations and some TV audio channels. (No tuning info, just "TV channel 1", etc.) But I got the radio a long time ago, before TV went digital, there is no TV audio on that band any more. So I was listening on that band tonight, just to see if anyone was using it for anything, or if the FCC had reassigned those freqs to other users. Sure enough, there are a lot of people broadcasting on that band now, all sorts of radio preachers, some Crayol channels, a few Spanish language stations playing weird-ass Central American Reggaeton, and at least one righteous classic hard rock stoner broadcast. But I haven't heard any call letters or frequency IDs. It appears to be local, probably Miami, from the advertising. Is this pirate radio, or what? Can anyone help me here? There used to be a lot of unauthorized broadcasting here, mostly Haitian, serving that market but not bothering to get FCC licensing. In some parts of town they completely swamped the legit broadcast signal. If you were driving to work, in some neighborhoods the station you were listening to would just get replaced... I can see people broadcasting there, but not too many people can have access to these frequencies, most radios don't tune them in. Who's listening. Could this be bleed-over or harmonics from the AM band? I’ve got one of those emergency radios you used to get as a premium for donating to Public TV. You know, its got AM, FM, Some automated NOAA weather stations and some TV audio channels. (No tuning info, just “TV channel 1″, etc.) But I got the radio a long time ago, before TV went digital, there is no TV audio on that band any more.

So I was listening on that band tonight, just to see if anyone was using it for anything, or if the FCC had reassigned those freqs to other users.

Sure enough, there are a lot of people broadcasting on that band now, all sorts of radio preachers, some Crayol channels, a few Spanish language stations playing weird-ass Central American Reggaeton, and at least one righteous classic hard rock stoner broadcast. But I haven’t heard any call letters or frequency IDs. It appears to be local, probably Miami, from the advertising.

Is this pirate radio, or what? Can anyone help me here? There used to be a lot of unauthorized broadcasting here, mostly Haitian, serving that market but not bothering to get FCC licensing. In some parts of town they completely swamped the legit broadcast signal. If you were driving to work, in some neighborhoods the station you were listening to would just get replaced…

I can see people broadcasting there, but not too many people can have access to these frequencies, most radios don’t tune them in. Who’s listening. Could this be bleed-over or harmonics from the AM band?

]]> By: Pebble https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48590 Pebble Tue, 01 Mar 2022 03:50:36 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48590 Do they even make red tin foil? Do they even make red tin foil?

]]> By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2022/02/28/radio-free-europe/#comment-48588 podrock Tue, 01 Mar 2022 02:06:05 +0000 https://www.habitablezone.com/?p=91870#comment-48588 There are some bridges in Ukraine that could use some clogging up with your trucks. You can bring your tailgating grills and flags and honk your horns all night long if you want. There will be tanks, though. And guns. You do have guns? Freedom, right? No Russian mandates! You probably don't want to wear a red hat though. Easy to spot. And no mask! Unless it is cold. Besides, risk analysis says you'll die from lead poisoning before Covid. I did my research. Thanks in advance for your attention to this matter. There are some bridges in Ukraine that could use some clogging up with your trucks. You can bring your tailgating grills and flags and honk your horns all night long if you want. There will be tanks, though. And guns. You do have guns? Freedom, right? No Russian mandates! You probably don’t want to wear a red hat though. Easy to spot. And no mask! Unless it is cold. Besides, risk analysis says you’ll die from lead poisoning before Covid. I did my research.

Thanks in advance for your attention to this matter.

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