DK0WCY lighthouse
DK0WCY is not an ordinary beacon. You can find him at 30 a 80m, where it transmits, in addition to identification, data on the conditions of dissemination. In case, that you do not have packet or internet available (e.g.. on holiday, on which you do not cover complete equipment), but you have KV RX and control CW, so you will definitely appreciate the information, which this beacon in northern Germany broadcasts.
I decode the DK0WCY broadcast at home with the CW Get program. S-meter my device with a short wire antenna in average conditions is around S7, only in the case of a very strong fault does the signal drop to the S1-S2 level.
QTH DK0WCY is Scheggerot, southeast of Flensburg, locator JO44VQ. Responsible operator is Ulrich Müller, DK4VW, the concession holder and QSL manager is Emil Johannsen, DK4LI. The lighthouse also has its own Internet booth: http://www.dk0wcy.de.
You may have asked yourself a question: “How it actually works?”. Data from across the Atlantic comes over the network to Marburg. Since the message format is constant, it is enough to select only the necessary information from them, possibly edit them manually. They are then sent to Scheggerot by modem, where, according to them, the program will edit the broadcast text. Data from the magnetometer are evaluated on the spot using an A/D converter and a PC. The biggest difficulty comes from predicting the Aurors. In the early days their DK2ZF (possibly XYL) after the phone message he entered manually. Today it is at the facility, in which DK0WCY is located is a twin of 11-element antennas directed to the north. The IC-245E is tuned to 144,412 MHz, which is the SK4MPI beacon frequency (JP70NJ, QRB 711km). The NF signal from the TCVR is evaluated by the PC, if it successfully finds SK4MPI signals in it, then the software will edit the broadcast text.
DK0WCY beacon parameters:
| DK0WCY 80m: | 3579 kHz, power 30W, ant: dipól |
| QRV at 80m: | 7-8 UTC a 15-18 UTC (v lete: -1) |
| DK0WCY 30m: | 10144 kHz, power 30W, ant: dipól |
| QRV na 30m: | 24 hours |
| Normal text: | DK0WCY BEACON ———— (bearing) |
| Alert on AUROR: | DKOWCY BEACON ………… AURORA (dots) DKOWCY BEACON ………… STRONG AURORA (dots) |
| Information broadcast every 5 min.: | INFO 04 DEC 15 UTC KIEL K 3 3 = << NEXT EXPECTED KIEL K 6 6 >> = FORECASTS 04 DEC SUNACT ACTIVE MAGFIELD MAJOR STORM EXPECTED = 03 DEC R 11 11 FLUX 73 73 BOULDER A 7 7 = 03 DEC KIEL TO 10 10 WITH |
| Date, time: | current date, the end time of the 3-hour measurement period |
| AS k: | logarithmic geomagnetic index measured at QTH DK0WCY |
| R: | the relative number of sunspots (SSN) |
| FLUX: | the intensity of the Sun's radio noise at a wavelength of 10 cm measured in Penticton (AND) |
| BOULDER A: | linear averaged (for 24 hours) geomagnetic index measured in Boulder (USA) |
| KIEL A: | linear averaged (for 24 hours) geomagnetic index measured in Kiel (What is the WRTC) |
| SUNACT: | solar activity verbally indicating the probability of occurrence of solar eruptions (FLARES) |
| SUNACT quiet: | less than 50 % chance for C class (small solar flares) |
| SUNACT eruptive: | more than 50 % chance for C class (small solar flares) |
| SUNACT active: | expected class M (medium solar flares) |
| SUNACT major flares expected: | expected class X (large solar flares) |
| SUNACT proton flares expected: | expected proton eruptions, probability >50% |
| SUNACT warning condition: | expected increase in activity |
| SUNACT nil: | ending the warning |
| MAGFIELD: | characterizes the state of the megentic field of the Earth |
| MAGFIELD quiet: | peaceful |
| MAGFIELD active condx expected: | K>4, A>20, expected activity |
| MAGFIELD minor storm expected: | K>5, A>30, minor storm expected |
| MAGFIELD major storm expected: | K>6, A>50, expected strong magnetic storm |
| MAGFIELD severe magstorm exp.: | K>7, A>100, expected very strong magnetic storm |
| MAGFIELD magstorm in progress: | K>4, A>30, an ongoing magnetic storm |
| MAGFIELD warning condition: | warning of increased magnetic activity |
| MAGFIELD nil: | end of warning |
| NA | Not Aviable – the data is not available |
