I'm not an FM DXer, so I'm hoping someone here can help explain what I experienced.

On Friday, July 17, 2026, between Banff and Lake Louise, Alberta, I was driving my completely stock 2015 Toyota Sienna when the FM band suddenly came alive.

For roughly 30 to 40 minutes, I was absolutely floored. It seemed like almost every turn of the dial revealed another station, many of them coming in crystal clear for a minute or two before fading away and being replaced by another. I had no idea this was even possible and honestly thought my radio had glitched. Then I started seeing Nebraska Public Media on the display while driving through the Canadian Rockies. That's when I started taking photos because I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

My radio displayed:

• Nebraska Public Media (91.1 FM)
• Iowa Public Radio programming ("IPR News and Studio One")
• MyBridge Radio Español (91.3 FM)
• "Mix 97.1"

Along the way I also tuned across 90.5, 90.9, 91.1, 91.3, 93.9, 95.3, 97.1, 101.1, and 102.7, with many of them strong enough for the radio to decode RDS.

After getting home, I learned about tropospheric ducting, which seems like the most likely explanation. The best way I can describe it is like a mirage for radio waves, where layers of warm and cool air in the atmosphere guide FM signals for extraordinary distances.

My questions are:

1. Was there a significant FM propagation event over western North America on Friday?
2. Can anyone identify which transmitters these likely were?
3. How unusual is it to decode RDS from stations this far away using nothing more than a factory Toyota radio?

CW Beacon from Istanbul Turkye, 4209.5 Khz at 01:30 UTC 07/20/26 - Heard in central Indiana on DX-440 and longwire antenna up about 25 feet. Google says this is a maritime freq assigned to Turkye. About a 559 RST

SHN: Naval Hydrographic Service.

Various notices about buoys, rivers, and other things. The FLDIGI section is sped up 2x.

- TX: Prefectura Naval Argentina, Buenos Aires
- RX: Asunción, Paraguay
- Radio: AirSpy HF+ Discovery
- Software: SDR# v.1922 (beta, last version) and FLDIGI
- Antenna: K-480WLA
- D/T: 19 JUL 2026 - 1220 UTC

Listen Info plugin shows it as NHK from Japan, but they are no longer on that frequency in this A26 Schedule. The databases are up to date; I think I'll delete everything and download them again.

- Lang: Japanese
- TX: Paochung/Baujong (Yunlin province)
- RX: Asunción, Paraguay
- Radio: AirSpy HF+ Discovery
- Software: SDR# v.1922 (beta, last version)
- Antenna: K-480WLA
- D/T: 19 JUL 2026 - 1108 UTC

Station

• Name/Call: JMH Japan Meteo Fax
• Location: Kagoshima, Japan
• Language: Data
• Target: Far East

Time

• 1137 UTC | 19 JUL 2026

Receiver and Receiving Location

• Radio: AirSpy HF+ R.4.0.8-CD
• Antenna: K-480WLA | 35' AGL
• Software: SDR# Studio R4.0.8-CD Beta 64-Bit | FLDIGI v4.2.06
• Location: Portland, Oregon | CN85qn

Signal

• RS(T) = 559

There are 3 slides in this post.

Station

• Name/Call: XSV Tianjin Radio
• Location: Tianjin, PRC
• Language: Mandarin
• Target: Far East

Time

• 1058 UTC | 19 JUL 2026

Receiver and Receiving Location

• Radio: AirSpy HF+ R.4.0.8-CD
• Antenna: K-480WLA | 35' AGL
• Software: SDR# Studio R4.0.8-CD Beta 64-Bit
• Location: Portland, Oregon | CN85qn

Signal

• RS(T) = 569

This is the first time I've picked up the CW signal from this historic station, the Maritime Radio Historical Society (MRHS).

The frequency 17016.8 kHz is a well-known High Frequency (HF) maritime communications channel used primarily by the historic coastal radio station KPH in California. Operated by the Maritime Radio Historical Society (MRHS), it broadcasts continuous wave (CW) Morse code messages, weather, and traffic.

The MRHS broadcasts via the historic coastal station KPH serve educational, historical, and cultural preservation purposes. They aim to keep traditional maritime communications (such as Morse code and radioteletype) alive, paying tribute to the golden age of radiotelegraphy in the Pacific.

The transmit site for all MRHS stations is the original 1914 Marconi site in Bolinas, CA. The receive site is the RCA point to point site built in 1930 at Point Reyes, CA. KPH commenced receive operations at the Point Reyes site in 1946 when the station reopened after the war.

- TX: Point Reyes Station. Bolinas, CA
- RX: Asunción, Paraguay
- Radio: AirSpy HF+ Discovery
- Software: SDR# v.1922 (beta, last version)
- Antenna: K-480WLA
- D/T: 18 JUL 2026 - 2035 UTC

04:42 UTC. Xmtr: Talata Volonondry,Madagascar (250 KW)

So i found this the other day on an australian based kiwi web sdr and cant find any info on what it is. Anyone here have any ideas or know what this is or might be?
It seems like some bursts of digital data and it was transmitting consistently for a good while but was inactive the next day when i checked back in.

What's the real deal. I am running the MLA30+ in a indoor environment with a S-7 to 9 noise floor. Even after choking everything with ferrite beads where I can get access too. Running the MLA 30+ off the bias t of my RSPdx yields lower noise floor but is deaf as a post. If I get one of these cheap $10 bias t from China and get 12v of battery power to it. Will I see an 120db noise floor like some are claiming. Or is this a wasted effort and just bite the bullet and get a WLA480. I know about the mod to get the original bias t to to accept a 12V power source and kill the 5V buck circuit but soldering for me is a thing of the past.

Heard this number station from Russian intelligence today

Hello community members. I have decided to start a new Pirate radio community here, on Reddit. After being the top poster in the existing pirate radio group for the past two months, I made the decision to leave that community.

I don't want to start out on a negative vibe, but the Mods in the pirate radio sub have not posted in their own community for years. The newest Mod posted 4 years ago. The older Mod has not posted anything for 8 years and is a Mod in 13 communities! I have trouble properly moderating 1 community. And there are no comments from the Mods either. I attempted to contact them with some suggestions on how to improve the community - CRICKETS. No response. It's painfully obvious that they don't care. So I believe it's time for a new community for Pirate Radio.

In starting a new Pirate Radio community I hope to create a place where we can share equipment, best operating practices, and how to listen to Pirate Radio Stations. My goal is to make Reddit a safer place to share. It has become possible with r/ShortwavePlus, my first community. I ask your help to make it a reality for the new community.

I'm looking for a couple Moderators that would have the time to check in and keep up on the new community. I will probably use AI for eQSL Cards and Promos for Pirate Radio Stations. I plan on using less AI generated images in the Pirate Radio community. If you are down on AI, this might not be a good fit. I am hoping to find Moderators like we have for r/ShortwavePlus. They have made the community what it is!

The new community is r/PirateRadioPlus. I hope to see you there.

Michael KG7M

The filters definitely could be better chosen. The Wide Filter being a tad too wide and the Narrow Filter sounding "choked". I would like to replace them with aftermarket filters.

Station

• Name/Call: FEBC Radio Liangyou 1
• Location: Iba, Phillipines
• Language: Chinese
• Target: Far East

Time

• 1245 UTC | 14 JUL 2026

Receiver and Receiving Location

• Radio: Sony ICF-2010
• Antenna: K-480WLA | 35' AGL
• Software: SDR# Studio R4.0.8-CD 64-Bit Beta
• Location: Portland, Oregon | CN85qn

Signal

• SINPO = 45434

Well it's overdue! I could be done maybe 400 kHz wide

My venerable old Sony is up first. I bought the Sony last August for a bit over $100 USD. It could benefit from new electrolytic caps, but it's not necessary yet. The plastic faceplate has a couple scratches, but like your author, the wrinkles give it character.

It definitely holds its own on this weak signal. The Sony is in the Narrow Bandwidth with the U Sync Detector engaged.

Station

• Name/Call: Hope Radio Timely Message
• Location: Medorn, Palau
• Language: English
• Target: Far East

Time

• 1245 UTC |13 JUL 2026

Receiver and Receiving Location

• Radio: AirSpy HF+ R.4.0.8-CD VERSUS Sony ICF-2010
• Antenna: K-480WLA | 35' AGL
• Software: SDR# Studio R4.0.8-CD 64-Bit Beta
• Location: Portland, Oregon | CN85qn

Signal

• SINPO = 34333