WVBF

Solar weather @ 17

2012-01-24T19:43:00.001Z

This is only a test

2012-01-12T17:03:00.001Z

FCC fine-tunes EAS rules.
Some things will remain the same. Take for instance the now-familiar tone at the start of an EAS activation. The FCC thinks that’s still a useful tool for alerting the public. But several changes are being made as the agency prepares for the launch of the next generation EAS.

Duck

2011-12-19T19:55:00.004Z

A Russian spacecraft bound for a moon of Mars and stuck in Earth's orbit will come crashing back next month, but its toxic fuel and radioactive material on board will pose no danger of contamination, the Russian space agency said Friday.
Between 20 and 30 fragments of the probe with a total weight of up to 200 kilograms (440 pounds) will survive the fiery plunge and shower the Earth's surface, Roscosmos warned in a statement.
The agency said the unmanned Phobos-Ground spacecraft will plummet to Earth between Jan. 6 and Jan. 19, and the rough area of where the fragments could fall could only be calculated a few days ahead of its plunge.
As of now, it said only that the probe's fragments could rain down anywhere along a broad swath between 51.4 degrees north to 51.4 degrees south, which would include most of land surface.
While the agency had lost contact with the probe following its launch on Nov. 9, this was the first time Russia acknowledged that the $170-million craft has been lost and will come crashing down.
Since its November launch the engineers in Russia and at the European Space Agency have attempted unsuccessfully to propel it away from Earths orbit and toward its target.
Phobos-Ground weighs 13.2 metric tons (14.6 tons), which includes 11 metric tons (12 tons) of highly toxic fuel. Experts had warned that if the fuel has frozen, some could survive entry into Earth and pose a serious threat if it falls over populated areas.
But Roscosmos said it is sure that all fuel will burn on re-entry some 100 kilometers (330,000 feet) above the ground and pose no danger. It said that 10 kilograms (22 pounds) of Cobalt-57, a radioactive metal contained in one of the craft’s instruments, will not pose a threat of radioactive contamination.
The Phobos-Ground was Russia's first interplanetary mission since a botched 1996 robotic mission to Mars, which failed when the probe crashed shortly after the launch due to an engine failure. Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos, and the latest spacecraft aimed to take ground samples on Phobos.
The failed mission was the latest in a series of recent Russian launch failures that have raised concerns about the condition of the country’s space industries. Officials have blamed the failures on obsolete equipment and an aging workforce.

WOW

2011-12-15T19:40:00.001Z

Source: Hubblesite.org

Not New York but New Jersey

2011-12-10T04:20:00.001Z

Priceless..right on the nose if you ever lived in Jersey this is it

Discovery with its new fake ssmes

2011-12-08T15:19:00.001Z

This spring when the Smithsonian has the Discovery shuttle, it will have fake space shuttle main engines, manufactured in the shop at KSC.

Water on Mars

2011-12-08T15:14:00.001Z

PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has found bright veins of a mineral, apparently gypsum, deposited by water. Analysis of the vein will help improve understanding of the history of wet environments on Mars.
"This tells a slam-dunk story that water flowed through underground fractures in the rock," said Steve Squyres of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., principal investigator for Opportunity. "This stuff is a fairly pure chemical deposit that formed in place right where we see it. That can't be said for other gypsum seen on Mars or for other water-related minerals Opportunity has found. It's not uncommon on Earth, but on Mars, it's the kind of thing that makes geologists jump out of their chairs."
The latest findings by Opportunity were presented Wednesday at the American Geophysical Union's conference in San Francisco.
The vein examined most closely by Opportunity is about the width of a human thumb (0.4 to 0.8 inch, or 1 to 2 centimeters), 16 to 20 inches (40 to 50 centimeters) long, and protrudes slightly higher than the bedrock on either side of it. Observations by the durable rover reveal this vein and others like it within an apron surrounding a segment of the rim of Endeavour Crater. None like it were seen in the 20 miles (33 kilometers) of crater-pocked plains that Opportunity explored for 90 months before it reached Endeavour, nor in the higher ground of the rim.
Last month, researchers used the Microscopic Imager and Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer on the rover's arm and multiple filters of the Panoramic Camera on the rover's mast to examine the vein, which is informally named "Homestake." The spectrometer identified plentiful calcium and sulfur, in a ratio pointing to relatively pure calcium sulfate.
Calcium sulfate can exist in many forms, varying by how much water is bound into the minerals' crystalline structure. The multi-filter data from the camera suggest gypsum, a hydrated calcium sulfate. On Earth, gypsum is used for making drywall and plaster of Paris.Observations from orbit had detected gypsum on Mars previously. A dune field of windblown gypsum on far northern Mars resembles the glistening gypsum dunes in White Sands National Monument in New Mexico.
"It is a mystery where the gypsum sand on northern Mars comes from," said Opportunity science-team member Benton Clark of the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo. "At Homestake, we see the mineral right where it formed. It will be important to see if there are deposits like this in other areas of Mars."
The Homestake deposit, whether gypsum or another form of calcium sulfate, likely formed from water dissolving calcium out of volcanic rocks. The calcium combined with sulfur that was either leached from the rocks or introduced as volcanic gas, and it was deposited as calcium sulfate into an underground fracture that later became exposed at the surface.
Throughout Opportunity's long traverse across Mars' Meridiani plain, the rover has driven over bedrock composed of magnesium, iron and calcium sulfate minerals that also indicate a wet environment billions of years ago. The highly concentrated calcium sulfate at Homestake could have been produced in conditions more neutral than the harshly acidic conditions indicated by the other sulfate deposits observed by Opportunity.
"It could have formed in a different type of water environment, one more hospitable for a larger variety of living organisms," Clark said.
Homestake and similar-looking veins appear in a zone where the sulfate-rich sedimentary bedrock of the plains meets older, volcanic bedrock exposed at the rim of Endeavour. That location may offer a clue about their origin.
Opportunity and its rover twin, Spirit, completed their three-month prime missions on Mars in April 2004. Both rovers continued for years of extended missions and made important discoveries about wet environments on ancient Mars that may have been favorable for supporting microbial life. Spirit stopped communicating in 2010. Opportunity continues exploring, currently heading to a sun-facing slope on the northern end of the Endeavour rim fragment called "Cape York" to keep its solar panels at a favorable angle during the mission's fifth Martian winter.
"We want to understand why these veins are in the apron but not out on the plains," said the mission's deputy principal investigator, Ray Arvidson, of Washington University in St. Louis. "The answer may be that rising groundwater coming from the ancient crust moved through material adjacent to Cape York and deposited gypsum, because this material would be relatively insoluble compared with either magnesium or iron sulfates."
NASA launched the next-generation Mars rover, the car-sized Curiosity, on Nov. 26. It is slated for arrival at the planet's Gale Crater in August 2012. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Exploration Rover Project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate in Washington. For more information about the rovers, visit http://www.nasa.gov/rovers and http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov . You can follow the project on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/marsrovers and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/marsrovers

I find this hard to belive

2011-12-08T15:08:00.001Z

"Russian space experts are ">RT (Russia Today), 24 Nov 2011: "Russian space experts are struggling to decode fresh telemetry signals received from the stricken Phobos-Grunt probe. Meanwhile, rumors are circulating that America’s ionosphere research site in Alaska caused the spacecraft’s failure. On Wednesday night, the European Space Agency’s station in Perth, Australia, established communication with Phobos-Grunt, which has been rotating helplessly around the Earth since its engines failed to fire two weeks ago. ... Meanwhile, a retired Russian general believes that the glitch which prevented Phobos-Grunt from carrying out its space mission was caused by American radar sites in Alaska. General-Lieutenant Nikolay Rodionov, who used to command the country’s ballistic missile early warning system, told Interfax that 'the powerful electromagnetic radiation of those sites may have affected the control system of the interplanetary probe.' The general was apparently referring to the High Frequency [shortwave] Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) site located in Gakona, Alaska.

93 percent stick thru your spot cluster

2011-12-07T21:38:00.001Z

A new study of listener tune-out during spot breaks finds radio delivers 93% of its lead-in audience during commercial breaks. The study, conducted by Coleman Insights, MediaMonitors and Arbitron, reflects every spot break that ran on 866 radio stations in the 48 PPM markets from October 2010- September 2011....
So where do the other 7percent go....that's what I want to know

WOW..watch the video

2011-12-07T21:34:00.001Z

TIRED OF XMAS MUSIC ON US STATIONS

2011-12-07T19:44:00.001Z

How about a Swedish normally oldies leaning adult station that just so happens to play all Christmas music but with a Swedish twist..Listen here. Lynsa is swedish for listen they also stream the name of the songs you are hearing...It's different thats for sure.

CBS Radios take on christmas

2011-12-07T19:32:00.001Z

You can find the details of the top seven songs played here.

Your top ten xmas favorites again this year

2011-12-06T22:28:00.001Z

“Sleigh Ride” to the top.

Stations are still flipping to the all-holiday format, but so far ASCAP says “Sleigh Ride” is the most-played song on radio from its catalog. Since October 1 the song by various artists has aired 64,317 times according to Mediaguide. It was the top holiday track last year too.

1. "Sleigh Ride" – played 64,317 times
Written by Leroy Anderson, Mitchell Parish
Most popular artist version performed by Leroy Anderson

2. "Winter Wonderland" – played 54,741 times
Written by Felix Bernard, Richard B. Smith
Most popular artist version performed by Eurythmics

3. "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" – played 50,796 times
Written by Mel Tormé, Robert Wells
Most popular artist version performed by Nat King Cole

4. "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" – played 49,509 times
Written by Sammy Cahn, Jule Styne
Most popular artist version performed by Dean Martin

5. "Jingle Bell Rock" – played 47,100 times
Written by Joseph Carleton Beal, James Ross Boothe
Most popular artist version performed by Bobby Helms

6."It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year" – played 46,492 times
Written by Edward Pola, George Wyle
Most popular artist version performed by Andy Williams

7."Do You Hear What I Hear?" – played 41,633 times
Written by Gloria Shayne Baker, Noël Regney
Most popular artist version performed by Whitney Houston

8. "It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas" – played 39,885 times
Written by Meredith Willson
Most popular artist version performed by Bing Crosby

9. "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" – played 38,395 times
Written by Ralph Blane, Hugh Martin
Most popular artist version performed by The Carpenters

10. "Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer" – played 37,266 times
Written by Johnny Marks
Most popular artist version performed by Gene Autry

The list represents an aggregation of all different artist versions of each cited holiday song played on radio from 10/1/11 through 11/28/11. The holiday song data was tracked by the radio airplay monitoring service Mediaguide from over 2,500 radio stations nationwide.

Arthur C Clarke gets it wrong

2011-12-01T19:14:00.001Z

This is a great piece of video tape.. Watch the 2 minutes...we didn't get to Mars yet.. but he was correct on his late in the year 68 but it was the US with Apollo 8 rather than the Russians with Zond.

Keeping old radio sets running

2011-11-30T20:35:00.001Z

Very interesting story with information on big clunky radios and small spy sets. Lots of bases covered in this article.

Just a test but radio blew it

2011-11-09T21:36:00.001Z

National EAS test proves problematic.
From poor sound quality of the message to not receiving an alert at all, many stations say the first-ever national test of the Emergency Alert System revealed plenty of problems. Several stations say they heard tones and overlaid audio. Others weren’t able to go back to regular programming after the test was over. One owner says he ended up with the LP-1 station simulcasting on his stations.

Not a great test

2011-11-09T19:52:00.001Z

Quick channel surf here in DC showed not everyone hit the 2pm Emergency Alert. Some were late, and/or didn't explain the new test.. Heard the 105.5 hd 2 relay of wamu do this at 2.01 better late than not at all.
But the FEMA audio feed was phone line quality..in short they phoned it in...not impressed

uh oh

2011-11-09T18:18:00.004Z

MOSCOW — A Russian space probe became stuck in orbit Wednesday after an equipment failure, raising fears it could come crashing down and spill tons of highly toxic fuel on Earth unless engineers can steer it back to its flight path.

In this Nov.2, 2011 photo distributed by Russian Roscosmos space agency on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, Russian space engineers work to prapare the unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe on the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP photo/ Russian Roscosmoc space agency, HO)

In this Nov.2, 2011 photo distributed by Russian Roscosmos space agency on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, the unmanned Phobos-Grunt probe is seen on the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed on Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011, right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP photo/ Russian Roscosmoc space agency, HO)

The Zenit-2SB rocket with Phobos-Grunt (Phobos-Soil) craft blasts off from its launch pad at the Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, early Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011. The daring Russian mission to fly an unmanned probe to Phobos, a moon of Mars, and fly samples of its soil back to Earth was derailed right after its launch by equipment failure.(AP Photo/Oleg Urusov, Pool)

One U.S. expert said the spacecraft could become the most dangerous manmade object ever to hit the planet. The mishap was the latest in a series of recent Russian failures that have raised concerns about the condition of the country's space industries.
The unmanned $170 million Phobos-Ground craft was successfully launched by a Zenit-2 booster rocket just after midnight Moscow time Wednesday (2016 GMT Tuesday) from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. It separated from the booster about 11 minutes later and was supposed to fire its engines twice to set out on its path toward Mars, but never did. The craft was aiming to get ground samples from Phobos, one of Mars' two moons.
Federal Space Agency chief Vladimir Popovkin said neither of the two engine burns worked, probably because the craft's orientation system failed. He said engineers have three days to reset and fix the spacecraft's computer program before its batteries die — but the space agency later said the probe's orbit and its power sources could allow it to circle the Earth for about two weeks.
Russia news agencies cited space experts who offered widely varying estimates of how long the craft could stay in orbit before crashing down — from five days to one month.
James Oberg, a NASA veteran who now works as a space consultant, said it's still possible to regain control over the probe.
"This is not an impossible challenge," Oberg said in an email to The Associated Press. "Nothing irreversibly bad has happened, the full propellant load is still available, and short-term 'stay healthy' maneuvers can be performed" like deploying the craft's solar panels to boost its power.
He warned, however, that if controllers failed to bring the Phobos-Ground back to life, the tons of highly toxic fuel it carries would turn it into the most dangerous spacecraft ever to fall from orbit.

AP story

THIS IS ONLY A TEST

2011-11-09T17:13:00.002Z

Over breakfast in the last day or so, did your “significant other” look up from the paper or away from the TV news and ask you whether you knew about this “national EAS test thingie”? Did you receive an informational message on your cable TV screen about EAS this week, or maybe an email from your county emergency authorities? If so you weren’t alone.
Today’s EAS test is showing up in the national consciousness, as broadcasters and regulators have been trying to get the word out so listeners and viewers aren’t alarmed.

Meanwhile engineers around the country made final checks that their gear was set up properly to ensure success. Information flew among EAS participants offering each other advice, asking and answering questions, pointing each other to FCC and FEMA resources.

In Los Angeles, SBE Chapter 47 was focused on EAS at its monthly meeting, with expert Richard Rudman speaking.

In San Diego, Bill Thompson, chief engineer for Clear Channel station KOGO(AM), an LP-1 station, distributed an update that was published by the CGC Communicator newsletter. KOGO (like a couple dozen other U.S. stations) recently joined the ranks of Primary Entry Point stations, so it sent an RWT this past weekend from its “new” PEP Sage Endec. “KOGO will air the National EAN as a Primary Entry Point,” Thompson wrote. “The whole thing should work well. However, just in case the EOM tones fail to ‘make the trip,’ KOGO will immediately after the EAN run an RWT, from the studio, just to be sure that EOM tones go out down the line.”
On the opposite coast, the state of Connecticut also has a new PEP station, WTIC(AM). Until recently, Connecticut relied on monitoring PEPs in New York and Boston, an arrangement that left some stations served poorly or not at all. SECC Chair Wayne Mulligan, who is VP of emergency services for the Connecticut Broadcasters Association, told me yesterday that state officials had reviewed and revised their monitoring arrangements earlier this year. Mulligan was calm about the national test, saying the state’s system is tested with RMTs regularly in “pretty much the same way it’ll be run” for the national test today. He received only one question from a state broadcaster looking for help to prepare; that was about setting up a particular encoder/decoder properly. There are about 100 licensed broadcast stations in the state.
He’ll monitor the test from Hartford. “When the test was three minutes long, I thought I’d have time to do quite a bit of monitoring. It’s more difficult at 30 seconds, but I’ll be in the area checking as much as I can.” CBA sent a form to member stations asking them to report to Mulligan so he can compile a “how we did” list.
Some comments I’ve read about the test have carried something of a desperate air, e.g. “Let’s hope we don’t screw this up.” I suppose I understand this vibe; after all, we don’t want radio itself to look foolish or unreliable. But the point of the test is to see how well the system works and to identify areas where it doesn’t. Broadcasters should stress less about this event. Regulators have made clear that this is not an “enforcement activity.” Understand that this is but one step in an ongoing process. Further, if you are among those who are critical of how EAS runs, here’s your chance to document your concerns.

Roll with it today — but take good notes. Anything that happens, good or bad, helps build a better system.

(FROM RADIOWORLD'S BLOG)

Russia launches sample return mission

2011-11-09T04:46:00.001Z

Russia has launched an unmanned probe on a three-year mission to reach Phobos, a moon of Mars.
The aim is to scoop up rock and dust samples and bring them back to earth for study. The Phobos-Grunt craft blasted off from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The return vehicle is expected to carry up to two-hundred grams of soil back to earth in August 2014.

Missed us by that much

2011-11-09T03:46:00.001Z

Don't stress its only a test

2011-11-09T03:41:00.001Z

Educating the public about tomorrow’s national EAS test is encouraged, but the FCC is reminding stations to leave the test tones for the real thing. Under FCC rules the EAS tones and attention signal cannot be used except during authorized activations. That’s because it could trigger a false alert from EAS equipment that picks up such a rebroadcast further down in the daisy chain. The test is scheduled for 2pm ET tomorrow.

Only a short test

2011-11-03T20:41:00.004Z

National EAS test shortened.
Next week’s first-ever national EAS test will be significantly shorter than first announced. Instead of three minutes, the FCC and FEMA say the test will now last less than a minute from start to finish. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano directed the ninth-inning change over what is said to be concerns about frightening the public with a lengthy EAS test.

Can your Iphone do this?

2011-11-01T22:43:00.001Z

The Expedition 29 crew of the International Space Station wrapped up preparations Tuesday for the arrival of an unpiloted Russian cargo ship, ISS Progress 45, which remains on track to dock with the orbiting complex Wednesday at 7:40 a.m. EDT. Commander Mike Fossum and his two crewmates also devoted time to supporting a variety of experiments across a wide range of disciplines aboard the station.

Commander Mike Fossum performs a check on Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites floating freely in the Kibo laboratory of the International Space Station. Credit: NASA
Fossum, a NASA astronaut, spent much of his day working with free-flying, bowling-ball sized satellites known as Synchronized Position Hold, Engage, Reorient, Experimental Satellites, or SPHERES. During this session, Fossum attached a smartphone with a video camera to one of the satellites to assist the experiment’s sponsors with the design of a teleoperation interface.

HD Radio? hmmmm

2011-11-01T18:58:00.005Z

From the Media Network blog

by Andy Sennitt.

Singapore’s digital radio stations beaming “CD-quality” music over the airwaves will be shut down next month, when MediaCorp pulls the plug on the once highly-touted digital audio broadcasting (DAB) technology.
The broadcaster said the effectiveness and reach of DAB, which once promised to replace FM radio with its higher quality digital audio, had diminished over time. This, it added in a statement issued today, was made even more obvious with the popularity of online streaming and mobile phone apps.
It elaborated: “Since the launch of the service some 12 years ago, the growth in listenership on MediaCorp’s DAB service has remained stagnant. On the other hand, the rapid growth in the number of listeners through online streaming and phone app MeRadio has shown that these platforms are serving the listeners more effectively than the DAB platform.”

Wtiher webcasting

2011-10-31T19:56:00.001Z

Some 15 years after the first internet stations sprang up, no one has turned streaming into a profitable business, causing many to believe the current royalty rate structure needs to change for streaming to survive. Expectations are royalties will become more favorable for webcasters.

I helped launch this station

2011-10-31T18:39:00.001Z

CLEAR CHANNEL Triple A WRNX/SPRINGFIELD, MA’s 21-year run as a Triple A station has come to a close. The station made the flip to Country TODAY (10/31).
WRNX had been in the Triple A format over 20 years, originally with studios north of SPRINGFIELD in AMHERST, MA. The station now broadcasts out of HOLYOKE, MA.

This is a test a national test

2011-10-26T20:42:00.002Z

You be the board op...at say any small or medium market clear channel station.

18 billon in debt wiped out by

2011-10-26T20:38:00.002Z

Expected layoffs come to Clear Channel.
Clear Channel has begun implementing a nationwide restructuring today that includes a number of layoffs in medium and small markets. The cuts have hit the programming department the hardest with program directors, music directors and air staff comprising most of the reductions. The company says it’s part of a “new strategy” for regional markets.

Does this mean what I think if does?

2011-10-26T17:04:00.001Z

ALL ACCESS is hearing that the rumored CLEAR CHANNEL "reduction in force' is underway. It seems as if this is taking place primarily in the smaller markets, so far. One outgoing programmer told ALL ACCESS, "They simply told me that programming would be delivered in a different manner, eliminating the need for my position."

ROSAT is down

2011-10-24T16:19:00.002Z

The German Aerospace Center and NASA have confirmed the defunct Roentgen Satellite, or ROSAT, has met its doom, most likely somewhere over SE Asia. German officials have said that the reentry occurred some time between 9:45 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. EDT on Saturday night.
ANALYSIS: Satellite Roulette: Defunct ROSAT to Crash Soon
Fortunately, there are no reports of falling debris or damage, which means the surviving satellite bits -- around 30 pieces -- most likely crashed safely into the Bay of Bengal, somewhere between the the east coast of India and Indonesia. The location has yet to be confirmed, however. .
If it did come down in the Bay of Bengal, the satellite would have been approaching heavily populated cities in China before it started to tumble through the Earth's atmosphere, a fall that would have taken up to 15 minutes.

THE BOOK EVERY ONE WILL BE READING

2011-10-21T19:04:00.001Z

'the burg'

2011-10-20T18:38:00.002Z

CENTRAL BROADCASTING COMPANY Talk WPKZ-A-W287BT/FITCHBURG, MA is celebrating the AM station's 70th anniversary.
The station signed on in 1941 as WEIM, and was a Top 40 for several years on the 1960s and 1970s under the ownership of KNIGHT QUALITY STATIONS. KNIGHT sold the station in 1987; the WPKZ calls were added in 2009 and an FM translator was launched in 2010.
The station will air a celebration on MONDAY (10/24) 7-9a (ET), with hosts SCOTT MAY and JASON DUDA joined by longtime station fixture RAY C and several former employees of the station.

How many Emerson grads got their first taste of top 40 radio working part time at this station?

October Fest in the sky

2011-10-19T16:52:00.000Z

BERLIN — A retired satellite is hurtling toward the atmosphere and pieces of it could crash into the Earth as early as Friday, the German Aerospace Center says.

Scientists are no longer able to communicate with the dead German satellite ROSAT, which orbits the earth every 90 minutes, and experts are not sure exactly where pieces of it could land.

Parts of the satellite, which is the size of a minivan, will burn up during re-entry but up to 30 fragments weighing a total of 1.87 tons could crash into the Earth sometime between Friday and Monday, center spokesman Andreas Schuetz told The Associated Press.

“All countries around the globe between 53-degrees north and 53-degrees south could possibly be affected,” Schuetz said Wednesday — a vast swath of territory that includes much of the earth outside the poles.

The scientific satellite was launched on a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral in 1990 and retired in 1999 after being used for research on black holes and neutron stars and performing the first all-sky survey of X-ray sources with an imaging telescope.

The largest single fragment of ROSAT that could hit into the earth is the telescope’s heat-resistant mirror, which weighs 1.76 .tons alone.

The satellite will re-enter the atmosphere at a speed of 17,400 mph.

As it nears the Earth in coming days, scientists will be able to more accurately estimate exactly when it will land to a window of about 10 hours.

A dead NASA satellite fell into the southern Pacific Ocean last month, causing no damage, despite fears it would hit a populated area and cause damage or kill people.

The German space agency puts the odds of somebody somewhere on Earth being hurt by its satellite at 1-in-2,000 — a slightly higher level of risk than was calculated for the NASA satellite. But any one individual’s odds of being struck are 1-in-14 trillion, given there are 7 billion people on the planet.

(source AP)

1st all Xmas station

2011-10-17T20:45:00.001Z

Does a Santa suit count as a Halloween costume? In the hallways of Equity Communications' Atlantic City cluster the answer is certainly “yes.” AC “Easy 93” WEZW (93.1) gets the honor of the first all-holiday format for the 2011 Christmas season. Owner Gary Fisher thinks there’s a demand for ten weeks of holiday tunes.

Bill Brown RIP

2011-10-17T19:39:00.001Z

Bill Brown, who died last week at age 69, was at the station even before it was playing oldies, and he was the last live voice heard on CBS-FM on the infamous "day the music died" in 2005, just before the start of the ill-fated Jack FM. By then, he'd become a staple at 101.1, known especially for his "Brown Bag" lunchtime specials.Brown came to New York by accident, his family says: after working at small stations in his native Georgia and southern California and serving in the Navy (and some on-air work at the Far East Network in Tokyo), he fell into the Bill Drake orbit, working at KGB in San Diego from 1964-1967. As was common in the Drake top-40 days, Brown was tapped for another job at a Drake-consulted station, WUBE in Cincinnati - but before he could get there, Drake called him and told him to keep driving east to a different gig, at WOR-FM (98.7) in New York. Brown worked there from 1967-1969 before joining WCBS-FM. In addition to his 36 years on the air there, Brown also served as program director for a brief stint in the 1970s.Brown died last Sunday (October 9) after a long illness; he's mourned by his family (including his wife of 35 years) and by his former colleagues at WCBS-FM, who put up a memorial page here

This guy just doesn't give up

2011-10-17T13:38:00.001Z

Radio preacher Harold Camping insisted again this weekend that this Friday is the End of the World! All’s not lost. At least humanity lasted long enough to see a remake of Footloose.

Contests, in Canada of course

2011-10-12T15:22:00.004Z

Hot 89.9's "Win a Baby" contest has raised awareness over in vitro fertility in Ontario, Canada, some say.October 12th, 201108:09 AM ETA radio station promotion that awarded five couples in vitro fertility treatments Tuesday as part of a “Win a Baby” contest has drawn the ire of Canadians on both sides of the issue.Hundreds entered the contest held by Ottawa station Hot 89.9 for a chance to win a round of IVF treatments. After several weeks of having hopefuls campaign and write essays on why they should be chosen, the station whittled the competition down to five couples.Hot 89.9 assembled the families in a room Tuesday, as posted on the station's website, and announced the award after a tense setup. “You’re all getting up to three fertility treatments. Congratulations!” radio host Jeff Mauler said as loud sobs from the women can be heard in the background.“There's not a dry eye in the house,” Mauler said. "A lot of hugs and a lot of tears," he said describing the emotional scene in the room. “Once again with 'Win a Baby' all five of our finalists are getting three fertility treatments, up to three fertility treatments, and hopefully having their dreams come true.”The contest has touched a political vein in Ontario, where residents - unlike their neighbors in Quebec - don't get government-funded IVF coverage. In July 2010, Quebec became the first jurisdiction in North America to fund IVF. Last month a Canadian survey showed that 75% of Ontario residents supported health insurance coverage for in-vitro fertilization treatments.Despite the political sentiment, some say the contest crossed a line, playing on the emotions of women who want to have children.“The station is clearly, clearly capitalizing on vulnerable patients that are desperate to have a family,” Beverly Hanck, executive director of the Infertility Awareness Association of Canada, told the Toronto Star newspaper.She said the contest also should not be construed as actually giving the couples a baby, labeling it "false advertising, as IVF treatments can fail," the Star reported.Toronto fertility counselor Jan Silverman called the contest "commodification of babies, turning babies into products," according to the Guardian newspaper.The radio station has defended the contest. “Our goal was to help out those people who don’t have the money that really wanted a child desperately,” Mauler told the Star.From video that the station posted on its website, Tracy Broad, who won the IVF treatment with her husband Nathan, is heard thanking the public and the radio station for the chance to be a parent.“Words cannot describe how happy I am right now and how grateful I am for all the support and the love that we received. And it’s my 30th birthday today," she said to cheers from the other families.

3 YEARS ON MARS

2011-10-12T15:00:00.001Z

Fixed sort of

2011-10-09T20:32:00.002Z

Telesat confirms that, following a technical anomaly that occurred on its Anik F2 satellite on Thursday, customer services on Anik F2 were restored late Thursday evening and overnight.Telesat says “Satellite anomalies like the one that affected Telesat’s Anik F2 are highly unusual. This particular anomaly was the result of a software error encountered during a routine maneuver which triggered the satellite to place itself into a safe mode, shutting itself down and pointing itself at the sun to ensure it remained powered. The software error that led to the anomaly appears to have been caused by a software update that was recently provided by the satellite manufacturer. That particular software update was not re-loaded onto the satellite.”
(Source: Telesat)

Canada Satellite Outage today

2011-10-06T21:10:00.002Z

A Canadian-owned satellite suffered a problem Thursday morning, causing widespread communications disruptions to phone circuits, television signals, Internet connections and data-relay services across North America.

Artist's concept of Anik F2 in orbit. Credit: Boeing

The Anik F2 spacecraft experienced some sort of upset at 6:36 a.m. EDT (1036 GMT) that prompted the satellite enter a "safe mode" in geostationary orbit 22,300 miles above the planet.
The Ottawa-based satellite operator Telesat said engineers are working to return Anik F2 to communications duties, perhaps as early as tonight.
"Telesat is in control of the satellite and all indications are that it is healthy and can be returned to service. Telesat is now undertaking to return the satellite to normal operations and is working with its customers on Anik F2 to restore traffic in an orderly manner and minimize the impact to their networks," the company said in a statement.
Launched aboard an Ariane 5 rocket in 2004, the powerhouse bird carries 45 Ka-band spot beams for broadband users, plus 32 Ku-band and 24 C-band transponders for broadcasting and telecommunications.
"Anik F2 supports a variety of services in Canada and the United States, all of which are affected by the satellite anomaly," Telesat said.
Officials indicated this was the first time there had been an outage with Anik F2.
The spacecraft operates at the 111.1-degree West longitude orbit slot. It is a Boeing 702 design with solar arrays stretching 157 feet long and a planned mission life of 15 years.

KVIL with the light of freedom singers

2011-09-29T04:08:00.002Z

KVIL did not run this jingle package very often. But here's one cut from it

WNAP Top of the Hour

2011-09-29T04:04:00.002Z

The ID was voiced by the late Chuck Riley. The conversation is between Chuck and Fairbanks National Program Director George Johns.. It is priceless.

11 10 WBT

2011-09-29T04:03:00.000Z

One of the best things Norman Knight did for Tom McMuarry's career was to fire him as group PD for the Knight Quality stations, a small New England group. He ended up at WBT where he created one of the great AC radio stations of all time. Check this out. The jingles are a Pams composite and yes that's Johnny Olsen the great game show announcer doing the IDs. The logo was something PAMs did for WBT and no one else.
Jingle companies tend not to do that these days.

CBS FM Blore jingles

2011-09-29T03:49:00.000Z

Here's the jingles that made CBS FM one of the better sounding AORS in the 70's in NYC. Yes before they were oldies they were soft classic rock.

Podcast Stereo Test

2011-09-29T03:45:00.003Z

The Stereo separation on this old TM stuff is great. See if you agree.

Podcast Test

2011-09-29T03:22:00.004Z

A short piece of audio that I put in the "cloud". See if it sounds good., more to come when I get the right operational software to record and mix with.

Radio has an internet monkey on it's back

2011-09-28T20:57:00.001Z

Digital ad spending rocketed forward in the first half of 2011, growing 23% to a record $14.9 billion according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Display ad spending grew 27% while digital video was up 42% over a year ago. The IAB doesn’t track audio ad spending.

I want one of these

2011-09-28T15:32:00.002Z

Amazon.com on Wednesday unveiled the Kindle Fire tablet for $199 that will go on sale Nov. 15 -- the latest, and possibly biggest, challenger to Apple's dominant iPad.

The Fire, which works off a customized version of Google's Android operating system, has a 7-inch screen and can access Amazon's app store, streaming movies and television shows. Questions, though, remain about the device's technical limitations and number of apps, especially in comparison to the iPad. The device, which works on Wi-Fi, doesn't have a camera, microphone or cellular connection.

Still, Amazon appears to be following the same formula that has helped make its Kindle a success: offer an attractively priced device with easy-to-use features, accompanied by an intense promotion campaign on the company's heavily visited website.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204138204576598670632549928.html?mod=djemalertNEWS

We think we know where UARS went down

2011-09-28T15:26:00.000Z

Final Update: NASA's UARS Re-enters Earth's Atmosphere

NASA’s decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite fell back to Earth at 12 a.m. EDT (0400 GMT), as Friday, Sept. 23, turned to Saturday, Sept. 24 on the United States east coast. The Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California has determined the satellite entered the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean at 14.1 degrees south latitude and 189.8 degrees east longitude (170.2 west longitude). This location is over a broad, remote ocean area in the Southern Hemisphere, far from any major land mass. The debris field is located between 300 miles and 800 miles downrange, or generally northeast of the re-entry point. NASA is not aware of any possible debris sightings from this geographic area.

This is your source for official information on the re-entry of UARS. All information posted here has been verified with a government or law enforcement agency. This is NASA's final status report on the re-entry of UARS.

This map shows the ground track for UARS beginning in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Africa at 0330 GMT and ending at atmospheric interface over the Pacific Ocean at 0400 GMT.
Six years after the end of its productive scientific life, UARS broke into pieces during re-entry, and most of it up burned in the atmosphere. Twenty-six satellite components, weighing a total of about 1,200 pounds, could have survived the fiery re-entry and reach the surface of Earth.

The Operations Center for JFCC-Space, the Joint Functional Component Command at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., which works around the clock detecting, identifying and tracking all man-made objects in Earth orbit, tracked the movements of UARS through the satellite’s final orbits and provided confirmation of re-entry.

"We extend our appreciation to the Joint Space Operations Center for monitoring UARS not only this past week but also throughout its entire 20 years on orbit," said Nick Johnson, NASA’s chief scientist for orbital debris, at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "This was not an easy re-entry to predict because of the natural forces acting on the satellite as its orbit decayed. Space-faring nations around the world also were monitoring the satellite’s descent in the last two hours and all the predictions were well within the range estimated by JSpOC."

UARS was launched Sept. 12, 1991, aboard space shuttle mission STS-48 and deployed on Sept. 15, 1991. It was the first multi-instrumented satellite to observe numerous chemical components of the atmosphere for better understanding of photochemistry. UARS data marked the beginning of many long-term records for key chemicals in the atmosphere. The satellite also provided key data on the amount of light that comes from the sun at ultraviolet and visible wavelengths. UARS ceased its scientific life in 2005.

It's 1 am on the overnight news shift

2011-09-28T15:09:00.003Z

A SOUTH African radio newsreader has committed career suicide by swearing 13 times during a news bulletin while working the graveyard shift. Mark Esterhuysen, who was reading the 1am Eyewitness News bulletin, launched into a bizarre profanity-laden rant in which he used the F-word repeatedly, the South African Press Association reports.
A 41-second clip of the broadcast went viral in South Africa after being posted online.
"Good morning, I'm Mark Esterhuysen," the newsreader says, before launching into an angry diatribe that references South African current events and directs listeners to check out his blog and Twitter feed.
"Mark literally goes rogue, f-bombing anything from 'racism' to 'perpetual economic growth on a finite planet'.
"And there is also a little bit about us all being wild animals," says South African website 2OceansVibe, describing the unusual news bulletin.
"Some 40 seconds after going rogue, his producer managed to drown him out with a Rod Stewart track."
A news editor said that Esterhuysen, who was a junior news editor and desk editor, had been summarily fired, SAPA reports.
On his Twitter feed, he identified himself as an enemy of the state, a defender of anarchy, a proud member of the primate clan, a cunning linguist, and a master debater.
His most recent blog was on the role of sport in modern South Africa, from an anarchist perspective. Other topics dealt with the futility of civilisation.
Esterhuysen later posted on Twitter that he had "no regrets about my bulletin".
Management fired him this morning, hear what he said.

Why don't we know ?

2011-09-26T16:00:00.001Z

NASA’s decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) fell back to Earth between 11:23 p.m. EDT Friday, Sept. 23 and 1:09 a.m. Sept. 24, 20 years and nine days after its launch on a 14-year mission that produced some of the first long-term records of chemicals in the atmosphere.

The precise re-entry time and location of debris impacts have not been determined. During the re-entry period, the satellite passed from the east coast of Africa over the Indian Ocean, then the Pacific Ocean, then across northern Canada, then across the northern Atlantic Ocean, to a point over West Africa. The vast majority of the orbital transit was over water, with some flight over northern Canada and West Africa.

Six years after the end of its productive scientific life, UARS broke into pieces during re-entry, and most of it up burned in the atmosphere. Data indicates the satellite likely broke apart and landed in the Pacific Ocean far off the U.S. coast. Twenty-six satellite components, weighing a total of about 1,200 pounds, could have survived the fiery re-entry and reach the surface of Earth. However, NASA is not aware of any reports of injury or property damage.

The Operations Center for JFCC-Space, the Joint Functional Component Command at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., which works around the clock detecting, identifying and tracking all man-made objects in Earth orbit, tracked the movements of UARS through the satellite’s final orbits and provided confirmation of re-entry.

“We extend our appreciation to the Joint Space Operations Center for monitoring UARS not only this past week but also throughout its entire 20 years on orbit,” said Nick Johnson, NASA’s chief scientist for orbital debris, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. “This was not an easy re-entry to predict because of the natural forces acting on the satellite as its orbit decayed. Space-faring nations around the world also were monitoring the satellite’s descent in the last two hours and all the predictions were well within the range estimated by JSpOC.”

UARS was launched Sept. 12, 1991, aboard space shuttle mission STS-48 and deployed on Sept. 15, 1991. It was the first multi-instrumented satellite to observe numerous chemical components of the atmosphere for better understanding of photochemistry. UARS data marked the beginning of many long-term records for key chemicals in the atmosphere. The satellite also provided key data on the amount of light that comes from the sun at ultraviolet and visible wavelengths. UARS ceased its scientific life in 2005.

Because of the satellite's orbit, any surviving components of UARS should have landed within a zone between 57 degrees north latitude and 57 degrees south latitude. It is impossible to pinpoint just where in that zone the debris landed, but NASA estimates the debris footprint to be about 500 miles long.

Why do we all toss our junk over the border

2011-09-24T05:17:00.001Z

UARS re entry was over Canada starting in B.Columbia and then starting to flare over Alberta, pieces of it landed in Northern QUEBEC AND Labrador. Time was 0423 UTC 1223 am EDT

After hours of worldwide suspense, NASA said it was working on Saturday to confirm the time and the place where its six-ton Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite made its fiery plunge to Earth.

The old research spacecraft was targeted to crash through the atmosphere after midnight, with Canada and Africa potentially in the crosshairs. There were unconfirmed reports that a fireball display was seen in northern Canada, but no official verification of those reports.
Late Friday night, NASA said it expected the satellite to come crashing down between 11:45 p.m. and 12:45 a.m. ET Saturday. During that time frame, it was going to be passing over the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans at that time, as well as Canada and Africa. After the appointed time, NASA said it was "working to confirm the re-entry location and time and will provide an update shortly."
Any surviving wreckage is expected to be sparsely distributed within a 500-mile (800-kilometer) swath. "The risk to public safety is very remote," NASA said in a statement.
The projected time of re-entry was pushed later and later during the satellite's final hours.
"It just doesn't want to come down," said Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
McDowell said the satellite's delayed demise demonstrates how unreliable predictions can be. That said, "the best guess is that it will splash in the Pacific"

Until Friday, increased solar activity was causing the atmosphere to expand and the 35-foot, bus-size satellite to free fall more quickly. But late Friday morning, NASA said the sun was no longer the major factor in the rate of descent and that the satellite's position, shape or both had changed by the time it slipped down to a 100-mile orbit.
"In the last 24 hours, something has happened to the spacecraft," said NASA orbital debris scientist Mark Matney.
The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, or UARS, was the biggest NASA spacecraft to crash back to Earth, uncontrolled, since the post-Apollo 75-ton Skylab space station and the more than 10-ton Pegasus 2 satellite, both in 1979.
Russia's 135-ton Mir space station slammed through the atmosphere in 2001, but that was a controlled dive into the Pacific.

About two dozen pieces of the UARS satellite — representing 1,200 pounds of heavy metal — are expected to rain down somewhere. The biggest surviving chunk should be around 300 pounds (150 kilograms).
Earthlings can take comfort in the fact that no one has ever been hurt by falling space junk — to anyone's knowledge — and there has been no serious property damage. NASA put the chances that somebody somewhere on Earth would get hurt at 1-in-3,200. But any one person's odds of being struck were estimated at 1-in-22 trillion, given that there are 7 billion people on the planet.
"Keep in mind that we have bits of debris re-entering the atmosphere every single day," Matney said in brief remarks broadcast on NASA TV.
In any case, finders definitely aren't keepers.
Any surviving wreckage belongs to NASA, and it is against the law to keep or sell even the smallest piece. There are no toxic chemicals on board, but sharp edges could be dangerous, so the space agency is warning the public to keep hands off and call police.
The $740 million UARS was launched in 1991 from space shuttle Discovery to study the atmosphere and the ozone layer. At the time, the rules weren't as firm for safe satellite disposal; now a spacecraft must be built to burn up upon re-entry or have a motor to propel it into a much higher, long-term orbit.
NASA shut UARS down in 2005 after lowering its orbit to hurry its end. A potential satellite-retrieval mission was ruled out following the 2003 shuttle Columbia disaster, and NASA did not want the satellite hanging around orbit posing a debris hazard.
Space junk is a growing problem in low-Earth orbit. More than 20,000 pieces of debris, at least 4 inches in diameter, are being tracked on a daily basis. These objects pose a serious threat to the International Space Station.

Won't be long now NASA update 12

2011-09-24T03:05:00.001Z

As of 10:30 p.m. EDT on Sept. 23, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 85 miles by 90 miles (135 km by 140 km). Re-entry is expected between 11:45 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, and 12:45 a.m., Sept. 24, Eastern Daylight Time (3:45 a.m. to 4:45 a.m. GMT). During that time period, the satellite will be passing over Canada and Africa, as well as vast areas of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. The risk to public safety is very remote.

NASA UARS Update 11

2011-09-24T02:43:00.002Z

As of 7 p.m. EDT on Sept. 23, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 90 miles by 95 miles (145 km by 150 km). Re-entry is expected between 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, and 3 a.m., Sept. 24, Eastern Daylight Time (3 a.m. to 7 a.m. GMT). During that time period, the satellite will be passing over Canada, Africa and Australia, as well as vast areas of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. The risk to public safety is very remote.

2011-09-23T22:14:00.001Z

Current thinking is around 0404 UTC thats midnight Eastern Daylight off the coast in the Pacific.
Plus or minus 3 hours..

Kind of like voodoo isn't it?

my kind of radio promotion

2011-09-23T20:46:00.000Z

Bob & Tom offer free casket.
Proving once again the best bits come from the front page of the newspaper, the syndicated “Bob & Tom Show” are offering to give a free casket to anyone killed by falling debris from NASA’s six-ton UARS satellite as it plummets to Earth. Scientists say there’s a 1-in 21 trillion chance that’ll happen. In the meantime Bob & Tom will be collecting emails and other information about their listeners.

uars live

2011-09-23T20:40:00.001Z

Watch live streaming video from spaceflightnowmobile at livestream.com

Get ride for a fun slide down UARS

2011-09-23T15:53:00.001Z

Predicted Reentry Time: 24 SEP 2011 03:16 UTC ± 5 hours (as at 23 SEP 12:02UT) http://twitpic.com/6pbizt

BBC on UARS Latest ast of 1530 UTC

2011-09-23T15:27:00.003Z

a UK team studying the trajectory says the most likely time for re-entry could be after 2300GMT Friday, and as late as 0300GMT on Saturday.
Most of the decommissioned and now unpowered spacecraft should simply burn up, but modelling work suggests perhaps 500kg could survive to the surface.
UARS is the largest American space agency satellite to return uncontrolled into the atmosphere in about 30 years.
If the late Friday GMT estimate is correct, the orbital path taken by the satellite means it will not fall over North America.
"The spacecraft orbits the Earth in 90 minutes, so even if we're off by a few minutes in the prediction - that's thousands of kilometres down range," said Mark Matney, an orbital debris scientist from Nasa's Johnson Space Center.
"We'll be able to know generally a few hours before, but we'll only get a final report after it re-enters. Even then, we won't know where the pieces fall because they'll be scattered over a 500-mile path," he told BBC News.

“Start Quote

Statistically speaking, the most likely epitaph for the satellite is UARS R.I.P. (Remains In Pacific)”

Dr Stuart Eves Kettering Group

The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) will start to tumble rapidly when it engages the top of the atmosphere, about 80km up.

Mechanical forces will rip off less robust structures such as the solar array and antennas.
The heating that the satellite then experiences as it plunges deeper into the atmosphere will start to deform and melt low-temperature materials and then vaporise them.
Components expected to survive are made from high-temperature metals such as stainless steel, titanium and beryllium.
Some 26 items have been suggested as impactors. The largest is one of UARS' instrument tables and weighs over 150kg.
With more than 70% of the Earth's surface covered by water, the chances are that any debris will fall into the ocean.
But if the re-entry does occur over populated areas of land, it should make for a spectacular streak across the sky, even in daylight.

NASA UARS update 9

2011-09-23T13:55:00.001Z

As of 9:30 p.m. EDT Sept. 22, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 110 mi by 115 mi (175 km by 185 km). Re-entry is possible sometime during the afternoon or early evening of Sept. 23, Eastern Daylight Time. The satellite will not be passing over North America during that time period. It is still too early to predict the time and location of re-entry with any more certainty, but predictions will become more refined in the next 24 hours.

Prediction Dart Board

2011-09-22T23:45:00.001Z

The Aerospace Corporation, a private firm that is tracking UARS, offered a more specific prediction, saying the satellite would likely come down off the coast of Chile at 6:06 p.m. EST. But William Ailor, who heads the company's center for orbital and re-entry debris studies, said the time and location would almost undoubtedly change as Friday afternoon approaches.

8 tons of junk falls Friday night

2011-09-22T21:46:00.001Z

Read this map carefully it has impact points and other information. Western Europe and the UK get ready for fireworks in the sky.

UARS update

2011-09-22T14:34:00.001Z

As of 7 a.m. EDT Sept. 22, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 115 mi by 120 mi (185 km by 195 km). Re-entry is expected sometime during the afternoon of Sept. 23, Eastern Daylight Time. The satellite will not be passing over North America during that time period. It is still too early to predict the time and location of re-entry with any more certainty, but predictions will become more refined in the next 24 to 36 hours.

So where the hell will it land

2011-09-22T01:26:00.003Z

Try somewhere over Europe...read and track here

Latest info on UARS as of Wed night EDT

2011-09-22T00:15:00.000Z

http://www.n2yo.com/?s=21701 This site is working once again.

As of 1:30 p.m. EDT Sept. 21, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 120 mi by 130 mi (190 km by 205 km). Re-entry is expected sometime during the afternoon of Sept. 23, Eastern Daylight Time. The satellite will not be passing over North America during that time period. It is still too early to predict the time and location of re-entry with any more certainty, but predictions will become more refined in the next 24 to 48 hours.

UARS in Space

2011-09-21T21:22:00.000Z

Footage from a telescope in France... Thursday its over head in the DC area...but it misses us on re-entry day...damn

The sky is falling......

2011-09-21T20:41:00.002Z

The UARS re-entry "is nothing to be particularly worried about, and if you're very lucky and in the right place at the right time, you may see quite a nice little fireworks show from it. But it's highly improbable that you'll get even that much out of it," said Ted Molczan, a well-known satellite watcher whose computer analysis and predictions have helped sophisticated hobbyists around the world track down spy satellites and other challenging targets.

"You have to maintain reasonable expectations. And in this case, the right expectation is, 'I'm not going to see this.' On the other hand, if you stop there it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. So you do want to see it, you know you won't, but (if you make the effort) you might!"

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NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite during deployment from the shuttle Discovery in 1991. The satellite is expected to fall back into the atmosphere Friday. (NASA)

The 6.3-ton UARS, launched from the shuttle Discovery in 1991 and decommissioned in 2005, is expected to fall back into the dense lower atmosphere sometime Friday. The bus-size spacecraft will tumble, break apart and mostly burn up on the way down. But a NASA analysis using software designed to evaluate satellite decays indicates 26 chunks of debris, the largest weighing 330 pounds or so, likely will survive atmospheric friction to hit the ground somewhere along a 500-mile track downrange of the entry point.

For comparison, some 42.5 tons of wreckage from the shuttle Columbia hit the ground in a footprint stretching from central Texas to Louisiana when the orbiter broke apart during re-entry in 2003. No injuries on the ground or significant property damage were reported.

USSTRATCOM tracks some 22,000 objects in low-Earth orbit, ranging in size from about four inches across to the 900,000-pound International Space Station, roughly the size of a football field. But USSTRATCOM's radar network will not be able to pinpoint exactly where UARS will begin its destructive plunge -- and thus where its debris might fall and where it might be visible -- until just a few orbits before re-entry.

This site is currently down..could not take the hits today..but worth a try if it's working.

Orbital Debris from NASA

2011-09-21T18:37:00.000Z

What is orbital debris?

Orbital debris is any man-made object in orbit about Earth which no longer serves a useful purpose.

What are examples of orbital debris?

Derelict spacecraft and upper stages of launch vehicles, carriers for multiple payloads, debris intentionally released during spacecraft separation from its launch vehicle or during mission operations, debris created as a result of spacecraft or upper stage explosions or collisions, solid rocket motor effluents, and tiny flecks of paint released by thermal stress or small particle impacts.

How much orbital debris is currently in Earth orbit?

More than 22,000 objects larger than 4 inches (10 cm) are currently tracked by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network. Only about 1,000 of these represent operational spacecraft; the rest are orbital debris. The estimated population of particles between .4 inches and 4 inches (1 to 10 cm) in diameter is approximately 500,000. The number of particles smaller than .4 inches (1 cm) probably exceeds tens of millions.

Are orbital debris uniformly distributed about the Earth?

Most orbital debris reside within 1,250 miles (2,000 km) of Earth's surface. Within this volume, the amount of debris varies significantly with altitude. The greatest concentrations of debris are found near 500-530 miles (800-850 km).

How fast are orbital debris traveling?

In low Earth orbit (below 1,250 miles, or 2,000 km), orbital debris circle the Earth at speeds of between 4 and 5 miles per second (7 to 8 km/s). However, the average impact speed of orbital debris with another space object will be approximately 6 miles per second (10 km/s). Consequently, collisions with even a small piece of debris will involve considerable energy.

How is the International Space Station protected against orbital debris?

The International Space Station, or ISS, is the most heavily shielded spacecraft ever flown. Critical components such as habitable compartments and external high pressure tanks normally will be able to withstand the impact of debris as large as .4 inches (1 cm) in diameter. ISS also can maneuver to avoid tracked objects. ISS executes a collision avoidance maneuver once a year on average.

How long will orbital debris remain in Earth orbit?

The higher the altitude, the longer the orbital debris will typically remain in Earth orbit. Debris left in orbits below 370 miles (600 km) normally fall back to Earth within several years. At altitudes of 500 miles (800 km), the time for orbital decay is often measured in decades. Above 620 miles (1,000 km), orbital debris normally will continue circling Earth for a century or more.

Is re-entering debris a risk to people and property on Earth?

A significant amount of debris does not survive the severe heating which occurs during re-entry. Components which do survive are most likely to fall into the oceans or other bodies of water or onto sparsely populated regions like the Canadian Tundra, the Australian Outback, or Siberia in the Russian Federation. During the past 50 years an average of one cataloged, or tracked, piece of debris fell back to Earth each day. No serious injury or significant property damage caused by re-entering debris has been confirmed.

What can be done about orbital debris?

The most important action today is to prevent the unnecessary creation of additional orbital debris. This can be done through prudent vehicle design and operations. Cleaning up the environment remains a technical and economic challenge that is currently being investigated by the United States and other countries.

What is the U.S. policy on orbital debris?

Since 1988 the official policy of the United States has been to minimize the creation of new orbital debris. The most recent National Space Policy (June 28, 2010) contains a section entitled "Preserve the Space Environment" that addresses orbital debris mitigation for both the near term and long term. In 2001 the United States adopted a set of measures for government agencies and departments called orbital debris mitigation standard practices. These standard practices became the foundation for the development of international orbital debris mitigation guidelines.

Do other countries have guidelines on orbital debris?

Yes, Russia, China, Japan, France, and the European Space Agency have all issued orbital debris mitigation guidelines. In addition, in 2007 the United Nations, through its Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, created a set of orbital debris mitigation guidelines.

Where can I read more about orbital debris?

Visit the NASA orbital debris website at www.orbitaldebris.jsc.nasa.gov.

Friday is the date more later

2011-09-21T18:08:00.002Z

As of Sept. 21, 2011, the orbit of UARS was 120 mi by 130 mi (195 km by 210 km). Re-entry is expected Sept. 23, United States time. The time reference does not mean that the satellite is expected to re-enter over the United States. It is simply a time reference. Although it is still too early to predict the time and location of re-entry, predictions of the time period are becoming more refined.

YOU better listen ...

2011-09-21T18:01:00.001Z

An Islamist-backed radio station in Somalia has awarded assault rifles and hand grenades to the winners of a children’s Koran recital competition. Radio Andalus, run by the al-Shabab rebel militia, said the first prize was an AK-47 and £450 (€517). The runner-up received an AK-47 and £320, while the child who came third received two F1 hand grenades and £250. The three children also received religious books. Pictures of the senior Islamist leader and spokesman Sheikh Mukhtar Robow presenting the awards in Elasha Biyaha, about 20km from Mogadishu, were posted on a rebel-affiliated website.
Al-Shabab controls much of southern Somalia and is trying to overthrow the transitional government in Mogadishu. The group, designated a terrorist organisation by several western governments, has links to al-Qaeda and practises an extreme version of Islam. In certain areas al-Shabab leaders have banned musical mobile phone ringtones, films, football broadcasts, dancing at weddings and even shop signs written in English or Somali rather than in Arabic. Punishments for infringements include double amputations and stonings. The rebels have also systematically recruited children under 15 to fight for them, according to Amnesty International.
The Koran recital contest has been running for three years and takes place after Ramadan. The two previous award ceremonies have occurred in Kismayo, an al-Shabab stronghold on the far southern coast. In 2009, prizes included hand grenades, anti-tank mines and an AK-47. The winners of that contest were between 17 and 20 years of age.
The precise ages of the winners of this year’s competition are not known. Radio Andalus takes it name from Andalusia in southern Spain, part of successive Islamic caliphates between the eighth and 15th centuries.
(Source: Guardian service via IrishTimes.com)

The latest on the falling sat

2011-09-20T15:32:00.004Z

NASA will be updating this as re-entry gets closer. but click here for the latest. 11 page pdf

WMAL FM

2011-09-19T23:00:00.001Z

The low rated kicked around WMAL format is now on FM.. Ah PPM games let them begin.

An era ends

2011-09-19T20:31:00.002Z

The historic space shuttle gantries that for decades stood at Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center are no more.After more than two years of careful "deconstruction" work, demolition crews told NASA last week that the pad was clean of the fixed and rotating service structures that supported the launch of 53 shuttle missions.
Started in 2009 in support of NASA's now-canceled Constellation program and its Ares rockets, work to clear the towers was focused on converting 39B to a "clean pad," capable of launching different types of manned and unmanned boosters.
The pad may now be leased by NASA to companies providing commercial rockets to fly astronauts to the International Space Station. Or, together with its yet-to-be-cleaned twin pad 39A, Pad 39B could also be used to support NASA's recently revealed heavy-lift Space Launch System vehicle.
Future rockets launching from Pad 39B will arrive with their own mobile gantries, similar to how the pad got its start more than 40 years ago.
First used to launch the Apollo 10 mission on a Saturn V rocket in May 1969, Pad 39B was augmented for the shuttle program with a 267-foot fixed service structure assembled in part from one of the mobile launchers that supported the earlier moon-bound flights.
A 130-foot-high, 102-foot-long rotating service structure was also erected to protect the shuttle orbiters from the elements and provide access to their cargo bays.
Together, Pad 39B's fixed and rotating towers supported two decades of shuttle launches. The gantries' first shuttle launch was the ill-fated Jan. 28, 1986, mission, which ended 73 seconds into flight with the tragic loss of Challenger and its crew.
Fifty-two missions later, Discovery's STS-116 crew became the last to cross the fixed service structure's orbiter access arm and launch on a shuttle from Pad 39B on Dec. 9, 2006.
One more rocket lifted off from Pad 39B before the towers were removed.
NASA's Ares I-X unmanned test flight launched on Oct. 28, 2009, after new lightning protection towers were erected around the pad and two of the fixed service structure's access arms had been detached, lowered and removed.
NASA paid $1.3 million to LVI Environmental Services of New York to remove the historic towers piece-by-piece to avoid damaging the concrete pad foundation.
Per the company's contract with the space agency, the gantries' scrap metal was recycled.

Once upon a time

2011-09-16T21:48:00.000Z

I broadcast live in Florida the launch of one of these..

DRM

2011-09-16T18:13:00.000Z

The digital solution that keeps on giving..what they give I am not quite sure of...
Shortwave is an efficient technology for delivering programming to a wide area from a single transmission site, but FM provides higher quality audio and a ready supply of inexpensive receivers. At IBC2011, Thomson Broadcast is demonstrating a solution that bridges the two technologies, using the DRM30 digital radio standard to distribute programming for retransmission on FM. With the system, a broadcaster originating a DRM30-encoded short-, long- or medium-wave signal could take the same over-the-air signal listeners with a DRM receiver can hear and, using a DRM-FM transponer, demodulate and transpose it to an FM signal that can be picked up by an standard FM receiver, including the sort common in many mobile phones. For example, a medium-wave channel with a bandwidth of 9 kHz could be used to distribute two DRM30 digital audio programs at a bitrate of up to 14.7 kbps; if the channel is extended to 18 kHz, bitrates of up to 26.5 kbps would be possible. The DRM-FM rebroadcasting transmitter takes the over-the-air DRM30 signal, decodes the digital programs and then can retransmit the two services locally on FM. The system could be used by NGOs or international broadcasters to distribute programming to low-power FM stations in remote or wide-spread areas without the need to use satellite connections." -- expecting, but did not see, any news about DRM receivers, or even about DRM "receiver solutions."

Which means this technology is DOA...jut like IBOC

Focus groups

2011-09-16T16:19:00.001Z

To par-phase Buzz Bennett "they ain't talking to you"
I had a chance to monitor a focus group recently. The moderator asked the group what causes them to switch to another station or turn the radio off. After the first two obvious responses (“Commercials” and “A song I don’t like”), one of the panelists said this:
“When the DJ’s on the air talk to each other instead of talking to me.”
There it is. Being self-absorbed. Inside references. Relevance. Living in our own bubble instead of being immersed in the audience’s world. Throwing a party for ourselves rather than hosting a party for our “guests”.
There were no followup questions for the panelist. None was really needed.

Denise the automation gives an interview

2011-09-15T15:15:00.003Z

Want to learn more about the future of radio then read on.

Clips from 9-11-01

2011-09-11T18:34:00.003Z

Kim Eliot recorded most of these for the now defunct Communications World on VOA. Take a listen.

SWLFEST in 2006

2011-09-09T23:09:00.002Z

The annual SWLFEST in Kulpsville PA, gets a big boost in this very strange movie which you can watch on demand. here.

Internet Lint

2011-09-09T21:03:00.000Z

This is all that remains of my original blog on an old Adam Curry website

And then from space

2011-09-09T20:15:00.002Z

Astronaut Frank Culbertson was commanding an Expedition to the International Space Station during 9-11, yahoo news has more.

Radio remembers 9-11

2011-09-09T20:00:00.004Z

SUNDAY is the 10th Anniversary of the SEPTEMBER 11th, 2001 attacks on THE U.S., and radio stations across the country are honoring the memory of those who lost their lives on that tragic day in various ways. Here's a roundup:
CITADEL Talk WABC-A/NEW YORK's 9/11 anniversary coverage will include special editions of the station's weekend shows. DOUG MCINTYRE's "RED EYE RADIO" will air live from GROUND ZERO, with JOHN BATCHELOR and weekenders ERICH "MANCOW" MULLER, RABBI JOE POTASNIK and DEACON KEVIN MCCORMACK, JASON MATTERA, and RIC EDELMAN also at GROUND ZERO. BOB GRANT and AARON KLEIN's shows will also be devoted to 9/11 issues, with KLEIN broadcasting from the Israeli/Egyptian border. "9/11 is about rebirth, rebuilding, and the enduring American spirit," said PD LAURIE CANTILLO.
CITADEL Talk KABC-A/LOS ANGELES evening host JOHN PHILLIPS will host a special broadcast live from GROUND ZERO in NEW YORK at 5p (PT) on SUNDAY (9/11), the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. PHILLIPS will broadcast from NEW YORK for four hours, interviewing survivors and analyzing conspiracy theories that have cropped up in the aftermath of the attacks.
GREATER MEDIA radio stations across the entire company will remember the victims of 9/11 and will salute first responders-including law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical personal and other brave Americans who made a difference when it mattered and continue to make a difference on a daily basis.
ENTERCOM Talk WRKO-A/BOSTON hosts HOWIE CARR and TODD FEINBURG will broadcast live from GROUND ZERO as part of the station's programming for the 9/11 10th anniversary.
CLEAR CHANNEL Talk WXKS-A (TALK 1200)/BOSTON morning host JEFF KATZ will also be broadcasting from GROUND ZERO on SUNDAY morning 8a-noon (ET).
CLEAR CHANNEL Top 40 KDWB/MINNEAPOLIS OM/PD ROB MORRIS told ALLACCESS, "101.3 KDWB aired our tribute this morning right at 7:46a CST, at the time when the first plane hit the first WORLD TRADE CENTER. It is a look back, as well as how our listeners of the TWIN CITIES felt on that fateful day. It ran nearly 24 minutes, without commercial interruption. Special thank you to our Creative Imaging Dir., DAVID 'DIEGO' TOMERLIN, our Digital PD DEREK SPARTZ and our Exec. Producer of the DAVE RYAN in the Morning show, STEVE 'O' LATART for putting this very moving piece of audio and video together." Check it out at www.kdwb.com/pages/911memorial.
CLEAR CHANNEL Country KNIX/PHOENIX will honor the 10th anniversary of the SEPTEMBER 11th tragedy by holding a “Patriot Day Celebration” on SEPTEMBER 10th. SHOW DOG-UNIVERSAL MUSIC artist JOE NICHOLS will perform at the events.
CLEAR CHANNEL Top 40 WRVW (107.5 THE RIVER)/NASHVILLE is inviting listeners to "Join 1075 THE RIVER and SOLES4SOLES at BRIDGESTONE ARENA this SUNDAY at 2p for a special tribute honoring the victims of 9/11. Please bring gently used shoes that will be used in a memorial and then donated to those in need." For more info, check out 911day.org.
NPR's planned coverage of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks will include a week of reports starting SEPTEMBER 5th looking at the events leading to 9/11 and how the attacks continue to impact AMERICA. The network will offer nine hours of special live coverage on 9/11 8a-5p (ET), anchored by AUDIE CORNISH and NEAL CONAN and covering the events at GROUND ZERO, SHANKSVILLE, the PENTAGON and elsewhere.
As the 10th anniversary of SEPTEMBER 11th approaches, ENTERCOM Active Rocker WAAF/BOSTON will pay tribute to the loss and sacrifice that has been endured by our country’s military, first responders and their families since the catastrophic attacks of SEPTEMBER 11th, 2001. In an ongoing effort to share the stories of the servicemen and women overseas, WAAF is sending afternoon drive personality, MISTRESS CARRIE, on a mission to AFGHANISTAN. She will not only lift the spirits of the soldiers, but also share with WAAF listeners what life is like on the front lines .
CRAWFORD BROADCASTING's BIRMINGHAM cluster will air a special in commemmoration of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. "9/11: Never Forget" will be hosted by Talk WYDE-A-F (101.1 FM THE SOURCE) morning host MICHAEL HART.
CPR PROMOTIONAL CONSULTING honcho PAIGE NIENABER shares with ALL ACCESS what some of his client stations have planned:
JB and CAT at KLUC have created an audio tribute that you can link to here.
Several Top 40s are going to acknowledge the day with some imaging. KDWB/MINNEAPOLIS is dropping the music and spots and, starting at 7:46, they’re playing a well produced montage of "Where were you?" featuring moments from listeners and celebrities. There will be a video of it that goes up after the on-air audio runs.
KOB-F/ALBUQUERQUE has video going up tomorrow. Said JUSTIN RILEY, "We teamed up with a local elementary school, party supply store, and the ALBUQUERQUE Fire Department. We used around 200 students to create a human flag. Each student held a red, white or blue balloon, depending on what part of the flag they were representing. They sang "America" and "The Star Spangled Banner" before releasing.
"Where Were You?" Taken To The Next Level -- Starting at 7:46a on FRIDAY and for 102 minutes, KSTP/MINNEAPOLIS is pulling music and spots and running pre-recorded audio from listeners, local celebrities and artists, about their experiences ten years ago. (102 minutes has nothing to do with dial position; it’s how long the towers stood).
A Very PPM-Friendly Strategy -- A very large station somewhere is dropping jocks and contesting for the weekend because with the world focused on this solemn occasion, it would be pretty inappropriate to be doing wacky contesting while a DJ yammers about a club gig.
A Muther Of A Visual -- A Top 40 somewhere is having a designer create two towers built from QR codes that will be on display in a mall. Each code, scanned, will have a name and photo of a victim.
Soldier Salutes -- You can NOT go wrong with honoring soldiers. Which is why WILD/TAMPA set up this link for their listeners to virtually high five friends and loved ones who are serving our country .
Name Scroll -- ALLY REID from CAT COUNTRY/ALBANY figured out the code to make the names scroll. NICK at LINCOLN FINANCIAL/SAN DIEGO got it so that the names will stop when you leave the page but pick up where you left off when you come back. This is the set up for her station in ALBANY and here is WPGC’s version.
Googlizing -- There will be stations this coming weekend where the date "9/11" does not appear on their site or social media. These people will forever be known as fools. I’ve seen artwork for a couple of stations that is absolutely amazing. Ten steps beyond a red, white and blue motif.
Stair Climb -- JOHN & TAMMY at KSON/SAN DIEGO participated in a Fire Fighters Memorial event this past weekend where first responders and the public could tackle climbing 110 flights of stairs at the HILTON hotel. Video will be up shortly.
Military Mami's -- At JAMZ 96.3/ALBANY they’re honoring the hardworking wives and girlfriends of deployed troops, who are holding down the home front.
Heroes Weekend -- I’ve got a great promo from WFLY (FLY 92)/ALBANY where they’ll be airing testimonials from listeners about heroes in their community.
Community Remembrance -- WOW COUNTRY and KIDO/BOISE are doing an event at a park on SUNDAY that will have a giant card that will be sent to the GROUND ZERO MUSEUM. There will be a moment of silence and the rest of the day will be focused on remembering the victims.
Candles -- JAMZ and KISS/BIRMINGHAM are participating in a civic event downtown with the mayor and other luminaries. There will be a rider-less horse, 21 gun salute and a playing of Taps. The stations are providing the nearly 3,000 candles.
Balloons -- KHTT/TULSA is working with the local FOX station for a release of 911 balloons, each with a glow stick, at 9:11p. They’ll have "Where were you?" calls all weekend and songs that they’ve turned into tributes with audio from 10 years ago.
And Even More Balloons -- 97.3 THE EAGLE/NORFOLK is doing a Freedom Fest event on SATURDAY. They (with the help of the Governor and artist PHIL VASSAR) will be releasing 3,213 balloons, each with a note inside.
The Human Balloon Flag -- On THURSDAY KOB-F/ALBUQUERQUE will be at an elementary school where the kids will line up and hold red, white or blue balloons over their heads, and on cue (after a photo from a firetruck extension ladder, these will be released.
The Heroes We Forget -- RADIO ONE/RICHMOND on the air, on-the-web and on-site in the community will be honoring the people we kind of take for granted, like cops and firefighters and EMTs. They’ll be going out to police and fire stations all weekend.
The Field Of Flags, Or, The Healing Field in SALT LAKE CITY. -- KZHT will be out at a civic memorial where 3,000 flags are laid out in a field and you can wander through and get a sense of the enormity of the loss. THE WOLF/PORTLAND is at its local version of this and Y-98 and FRESH/ST. LOUIS are participating in "A Night To Remember" at FOREST PARK -- 3,000 flags on three-foot poles and at the base of each, a photo and bio. There will be speakers, a police band and then a candlelight vigil.
And finally, Radio's Best Friend, ART VUOLO, has created a tribute that you can download here
Courtesy of all access.com

This was the time that Howard Stern was still live on the broadcast air from New York City. We have a copy of some of what happened here.

Win a wife only in Canada

2011-09-09T17:54:00.002Z

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/video/video-edmonton-radio-station-takes-heat-for-win-a-wife-contest/article2156331/?utm_medium=Feeds:%20RSS/Atom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2156331

You know it would come to this

2011-08-31T17:57:00.000Z

The first VJ not video but virtual disk jockey.

Radio covers the Hurricane

2011-08-28T03:30:00.000Z

	FCC: No station off the air from Irene. So far Hurricane Irene has huffed and puffed, but she hasn’t blown a single radio or TV station off the air. The FCC says it’s also received no requests from broadcasters seeing an STA because of the storm. For the first time ever the FCC has worked with FEMA to deploy special field teams into a hurricane that use high-tech equipment to monitor what’s on and off the air. FCC Public Safety Bureau chief Admiral Jamie Barnett says a small number of cell sites are out of service, three-quarters in North Carolina.
	FCC closely monitoring storm. In a rare Saturday press conference, FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said his agency is continuing to monitor Hurricane Irene “very closely” as she makes landfall. The FCC has activated the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) for areas hit by the storm. The FCC’s 24-hour ops center remains open for broadcasters who need permission to make emergency facility changes.
	Florida station airs NYC Irene coverage. With south Florida and New York sharing plenty of residents, Hurricane Irene is big news in the Sunshine State even though the storm only skirted it. So James Crystal Enterprises news-talk WFTL, West Palm Beach (850) is simulcasting the Irene coverage of Merlin Media’s recently-launched “FM News 101.9” WRXP, New York. Wftl says it will continue throughout the weekend along with local cut-ins. 850 WFTL is consulted by George Johns.

Hurricane Irene

2011-08-26T18:59:00.000Z

From Computerworld: The nation's largest wireless carriers today are preparing for Hurricane Irene as it moves up the East Coast. The storm had not affected wireless networks by mid-day Friday, they said.
AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint have all already made elaborate preparations, including readying thousands of vehicles that operate as portable cell towers that can quickly replace permanent ones damaged by floods or high winds.
Meanwhile, this week's earthquake in Virginia showed that cellular networks don't need to be damaged to incur call disruptions. Following the quake, a flood of voice calls overwhelmed even some robust networks for a time.
Thus, the carriers are urging wireless customers to either text or resort to email or social networks to communicate during Irene and other disasters. "During an emergency situation, text messages may go through more quickly than voice calls because they require fewer network resources," AT&T said in a statement.
AT&T is urging that non-emergency calls be kept to a minimum during the storm, and advised users to keep wireless phone batteries charged at all times and that emergency numbers and email addresses be programmed into the devices.
The top carriers have prepared lists of tips for users on their Web sites. The tips can be found here: AT&T ; Sprint; and Verizon.
The carriers are urging small businesses to set up call-forwarding services to a predetermined backup location. AT&T suggests that businesses add a backup cellular service as well. AT&T's service is called Remote Mobility Zone, which allows a business set up a small cell site at a business location for use in emergencies.
As Irene bore down on the Carolinas late Friday, AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel said there had been "no impact" on its networks from Irene along the Florida coast. He added: "We are not going to predict what might or might not happen as the storm progresses."
All the carriers operate national or regional operations centers to monitor where damages from emergencies occur so crews can respond quickly as needed.
Sprint also reported this afternoon that the storm had not disrupted its network. "We're still awaiting its landfall in the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic area," a spokeswoman said.
She noted that Sprint started preparing for Irene since it first appeared as a significant tropical storm in the Atlantic last week. The company is prepared to deal with "substantial power outages and flooding," she added.
Sprint moved portable satellite and cellular towers in vehicles from Houston and Orlando to Washington which would put them within a few hours of both New York City and North Carolina coastal areas if needed.
Verizon said it was moving trucks and other portable equipment away from low-lying areas. Like the other carriers, Verizon said it was arranging emergency fuel deliveries to regional switching offices to keep generators functioning in the event a prolonged power outage.
The carrier noted that the rollout of the Verizon 4G LTE network has helped prepare the carrier for a storm with added and more efficient network capacity.
Verizon also noted that it has both backup battery and generators at its switching locations and a vast majority of its cell tower sites. "Throughout many previous severe weather conditions, like this one expected this weekend, our network has performed very well," Verizon spokesman Tom Pica said in an email to Computerworld. "We have been through this before."

No news is good news...

2011-08-24T20:30:00.002Z

DC-based Voice Of America headquarters was evacuated after Tuesday's quake, with reports of some major cracks in the old building. A small staff re-entered to continue programming, but all were told to evacuate and go to "house music" until at least 5 AM, early Wednesday. No newscasts even, we're told. Update: Another source tells us that the Cohen Building that houses the VOA headquarters was declared safe and was reopened for business at 5:15 Tuesday afternoon. House music, a non-stop feed of instrumental music with no VOA identification or branding, was not used to replace programming. The automated VOA Music Mix network, that includes IDs/imaging/branding, was used on all program sources in lieu of regular programming regardless of language.

DC Earthquake

2011-08-23T20:39:00.000Z

The biggest earthquake ever felt in the DC area occurred at 2pm today measuring 5.8 on the richter scale. That means things dropped from store shelves and the earth shook hard for about 29 seconds. It was proceeded by the sound of a truck backing up..Then the shaking....Very powerful in the words of Doc McCoy wits as in scared out of...

ccchanges

2011-08-11T23:13:00.000Z

Mamma Mia, where’d the Abba go? That’s what some AC listeners may be asking themselves as stations adjust to a shift in listener taste. According to a new Burns & Associates survey AC listeners prefer more contemporary music – with artists from the post-2000 era scoring higher than ever.

“Contemporary pop sounds by artists like Adele, Pink, and Train have overtaken 80s gold as the highest-appeal music to the AC cume” consultant Alan Burns says. “Both 80s and 70s hits slipped a rank, with 70s now also trailing top 40 pop, which includes songs from artists like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga.”

The change occurred most notably in the 35-44 demo which is often the crossover between AC and hot AC. “Eighties are still the number one style with mainstream AC P1s as they were last year, but the shift among 35-44s indicates AC will continue to contemporize in general,” Burns says. “Contemporary pop now works with even the oldest of 25-54 women.”

The data also shows that rhythmic crossovers from CHR stations are more appealing to hot AC fans than are ‘80s music. “Hot AC has much more in common musically with top 40 than with mainstream AC,” Burns says.

Burns based his results on a survey of 2,020 women (15-54) who listen to AC and CHR radio. The AC results are based on 1,547 women who say they listen to the format. Read more on the Burns study HERE.

Wither Short wave radio or what is international broadcasting these days

2011-06-20T02:14:00.000Z

First, the DRM digital idea is never going to fly, that boat has sailed and it's leaking. It's like IBOC HD radio in the US too little too late.
How about FM or AM rebroadcast of shortwave programming. The CBC does it in the middle of the night, and how many people are listening very few. Moscow and China both are paying for air time on AMs in DC and other places but these were down on their luck AM stations that no one was listening to anyways. They don't even show up in the ratings.
What needs to happen: the big thing is the sunspot cycle isn't coming back like it used to so the off beam broadcasts we used to be able to listen to are history like some of the stations that transmitted them.
So, where does international broadcasting go from here. The big stations are cutting back and focusing on the internet and new media as a delivery platform. This works if you can get by the firewalls put up by the evil regimes, and money is being spent to do just that.
What works in new media, aps for mobile phones, and twitter, sometimes facebook but doesn't Zuck have enough power. Radio Sweden has moved over to 95 % internet with some local FM, but they have a very active twitter presence and you get the news with the unique perspective of the nordic countries.
The are also active podcasting and they do have a stream of the English output. It's a very high quality stream and sounds great over broadband.

So if you are faced with an audience who is aging faster than your transmitters, a government that doesn't want to spend the money, can you re invent yourself...yes.....
BBC is now an AP on my smart TV...so I can get all the BBC News sent direct to my TV set where it can scroll on the screen with AP and Accuweather... My TV is an internet device so, it can function as such, I can get streaming media thru I tuner and Korean TV from SbS...more stations might want to look at this idea as all it costs you is a simple ap that downloads into the TV set. You also have twitter available as well on your tv...plus with FIOS I can stream from my PC to my TV sets...because they have an IP for each set you see..

For international broadcasting to thrive it has to offer programming you can't get anywhere else, a strong clean way to deliver it to the home, and you have to think that the old way of short wave is over. Spend the money creating a new platform that can deliver your information and spend the money building aps and proxies for breaking the evil firewalls.

Radio is it social enough for you

2011-06-08T18:23:00.000Z

New study tells you an awful lot about the US radio listener in the age of social media.
Enlarge the study to see the details...great stuff.
Local sales guys will be trying to keep groupon away from their clients.
Having a good stream helps your station
Females are the most active users of social media.
Want someone to hate at your station..it's the Zuck...he's getting your audience in droves...

VOA on SW not long before it's all over

2011-06-07T18:31:00.000Z

The US international broadcasting service VOA may soon join the ranks of internet only broadcaster, this is a trend that's occur faster than you would think with only 30 percent of the world wired with broadband.

Check this out

2011-04-27T14:57:00.000Z

You know this place..and you have to remember the photo on the CD or LP..
but it's also got audio as well..

More places to watch the royal wedding on line

2011-04-27T14:33:00.000Z

This looks interesting.

Live TV by Ustream

This is the MSNBC UK video feed.

This one has a countdown clock..like the Space Shuttle..

And yes even Seacrest is in on this..

The Royal Wedding

2011-04-26T21:41:00.000Z

Some one on the fourth hour to the today show said it best..you don't know any of these people, you aren't going to be invited to the reception and anyway it's not Gordon Ramsey cooking the food so..why do we care so much about this?

The Royal Wedding

2011-04-25T20:12:00.000Z

Is this every going to eat up bandwidth at work on Friday.
You can watch Entertainment tonight, the UK Press Association, CBS News, AP TV News and probably a couple of others right from here.

Radio has this gem from the talented Chris Evans at BBC Radio 2 This starts at 3 AM Eastern Daylight.
And runs through 2pm Eastern Daylight. Presenters include Ken Bruce, Tony Blackburn and Simon Mayo. Live coverage of the wedding starts at 630 AM with Ken Bruce.

BBC America has live cable coverage starting at 3 AM Eastern. BBC World which is the TV operation for the BBC has live coverage from this page.

The other radio station that will be live starting at 3 AM Eastern daylight is this one from London.

BBC Radio streams in Flash.

New director for VOA

2011-04-18T00:28:00.002Z

Politico is reporting that David Ensor will be named the new director of the DC-based Voice Of America on Monday. Ensor has been director for communications and public diplomacy for the US embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan since January 2010 and will join VOA in June. He was CNN's national security correspondent and prior to that, an ABC News correspondent, with assignments in Washington, Moscow, Rome, and Warsaw. Ensor will replace Dan Austin, who has served as VOA director since October 2006.

Space the final frontier

2011-03-16T18:45:00.000Z

5.6k Saturn Cassini Photographic Animation from stephen v2 on Vimeo.

The Heart Attack Grill

2011-03-10T17:30:00.001Z