Difference between revisions of "HF Maritime Communications"

Revision as of 19:03, 8 November 2020

HF Maritime communications have undergone a radical change over the last several years. Many stations that used to have voice communications have either gone dark or using digital modes, some of which are not readable except to the intended target. Let's take a look at what is out there.

Voice

Although most voice communications are gone, there are some stations still on the air. Ships and stations are allocated in fixed frequency ranges, and you can find those ranges listed here.
The Canadians have the Radio Aids to Navigation
USCG Voice Marine weather broadcasts can be found here. Click the USCG HF Voice link

Digital (below the AM broadcast band)

NOTE: Unless notes otherwise, the links for the various modes comes from the Signal Identification Wiki
DGPS
SITOR-B/NAVTEX
- USCG Marine Weather Broadcasts Note: Select USCG HF SITOR

Drift Net Buoys and Navigational Aids

Digital (2-30 Mhz)

CODAR
GMDSS/DSC
Baudot RTTY
PACTOR
SITOR-A
- Guangzhou, Shanghai, Istanbul Radio (Turkey) Olympia Radio (SVO) Greece
SITOR-B/NAVTEX
Weather FAX (WEFAX)

Websites

When a hurricane (cyclone in the Pacific) is spotted, the Tropical Cyclone Plan of the Day will give you an idea of when the flights to track these storms will take place
UDXF Links page See the Maritime / NAVTEX section
UDXF Files page See the Aero / Maritime section

How to Find Activity?

The spectrum for HF maritime communications is very wide. Unlike VHF/UHF scanning, it's challenging to automatically scan a segment of the band because HF noise will always be present. While some maritime stations are on a fixed schedule, others (such as fishing fleets) are much more difficult to detect due to their transient nature; thus, listening for maritime comms can be a game of patience. The more time passes, the harder it is to hear again. Mailing lists are one of the best ways to keep ahead of what is being heard, as traffic can be passed relatively quickly. See the Utility Related Clubs, Mailing lists and Publications of the Utility_Monitoring article for some suggested resources

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-==HF Maritime Communications==
+HF Maritime communications have undergone a radical change over the last several years. Many stations that used to have voice communications have either gone dark or using digital modes, some of which are not readable except to the intended target.  Let's take a look at what is out there.
-[[HF]] maritime communications can be found below 30 MHz.  Here's a sample of what you can hear:
-* [https://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/publications/mcts-sctm/ramn-arnm/part1-eng.html Canadian Coast Guard-Radio Aids to Navigation]
+==Voice==
-* [https://www.hfunderground.com/wiki/Maritime_Weather_Transmissions HF Underground Maritime Weather Transmissions]
+* Although most voice communications are gone, there are some stations still on the air. Ships and stations are allocated in fixed frequency ranges, and you can find those ranges listed [https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtHighFrequency here].
-* [https://www.hfunderground.com/wiki/index.php/Maritime_Fax_Transmissions HF Underground Maritime FAX Transmissions]
+* The Canadians have the [https://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/publications/mcts-sctm/ramn-arnm/part1-eng.html Radio Aids to Navigation]
-* [[United States Coast Guard]] Operations
+* USCG Voice Marine weather broadcasts can be found [https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts here]. Click the ''USCG HF Voice'' link
-** [https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtHighFrequency United States Coast Guard MF & HF Channel Information] page has several frequency lists.
-* Weather broadcasts, using voice, data or weather charts (FAX). The [http://www.hffax.de/ HFFAX.de] website run by Marius Rensen with extensive HF and satellite FAX information
-** For USCG Voice HF Weather Forecast frequencies and schedules, see [https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts here]
-** [https://www.weather.gov/marine/ NOAA Maritime Products] The place to begin to find schedules for SITOR and FAX stations from the US and elsewhere
-* Fishing Fleets (some using illegally modified ham HF gear)
-* [http://www.docksideradio.com/ Dockside Radio] Interesting place to find HF frequencies, both ham and marine for various support nets
-== Hurricane Related ==
-* [http://www.ominous-valve.com/hurricne.txt Hugh Stegman's Hurricane Frequency List]
+==Digital (below the AM broadcast band)==
-* When a hurricane (cyclone in the Pacific) is spotted, the [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ftp/pub/forecasts/recon/MIAREPRPD Tropical Cyclone Plan of the Day] will give you an idea of when the flights to track these storms will take place
+* '''NOTE:''' Unless notes otherwise, the links for the various modes comes from the Signal Identification Wiki
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/Differential_Global_Positioning_System_(DGPS) DGPS]
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/SITOR-B SITOR-B/NAVTEX]
+** [https://www.weather.gov/marine/uscg_broadcasts  USCG Marine Weather Broadcasts] '''Note:''' Select ''USCG HF SITOR''
+==Drift Net Buoys and Navigational Aids==
+* [https://www.hfunderground.com/board/index.php/board,40.0.html Drift Net Buoys Loggings (HF Underground)]
+* [https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/Driftnet_Buoy_Radio_Beacon Drift Net Buoy Beacons]
+==Digital (2-30 Mhz)==
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/CODAR CODAR]
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/GMDSS_Digital_Selective_Calling GMDSS/DSC]
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/Radio_Teletype_(RTTY) Baudot RTTY]
+*PACTOR
+** [https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/PACTOR_I PACTOR I]
+** [https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/PACTOR_II PACTOR II]
+** [https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/PACTOR_III PACTOR III]
+** [https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/PACTOR_IV PACTOR IV]
+** [https://sailmail.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/smprimer.htm Sailmail Frequency List]
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/SITOR-A SITOR-A]
+** Guangzhou, Shanghai, Istanbul Radio (Turkey) Olympia Radio (SVO) Greece
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/SITOR-B SITOR-B/NAVTEX]
+*[https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/WEFAX Weather FAX (WEFAX)]
-==What Equipment Will I Need to Hear these Stations?==
+==Websites==
-* See our [[The HF Utility Receiver and Accessories]] article for a discussion of this topic.
+* When a hurricane (cyclone in the Pacific) is spotted, the [http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ftp/pub/forecasts/recon/MIAREPRPD Tropical Cyclone Plan of the Day] will give you an idea of when the flights to track these storms will take place
+* [http://www.udxf.nl/links.html UDXF Links page]   See the ''Maritime / NAVTEX'' section
+* [http://www.udxf.nl/ute-info.html UDXF Files page]  See the ''Aero / Maritime'' section