DX Central’s From the Static Podcast

Hour 1 - The Graveyard Challenge continues and we check in on the progress everyone is making - A "Let's Learn Together" session on the LZ1AQ loop - Another update for the Challenge App, we walk through the new features! Hour 2 - A revisit of WavViewDX, specifically for Graveyard DX and how to get the most out of the graveyard using this amazing program. Live DX - We continue to prowl the Graveyar...

Hour 1 - We say goodbye this week to our 1080-1120 kHz challenge and enter everyone's favorite challenge of the year: The 6th Annual Graveyard Challenge! All of our attention turns to the Graveyard for one of the most difficult challenges we face all year. Three weeks slogging it out on the MW Graveyard Frequencies, 150 or so stations on every one of the 6 channels, absolute chaos for DXer ears. A...

Hour 1 - Loyd takes a look at the results that came as a result of putting his trusty W6LVP loop antennas back into the rotation of antennas at Northshore Studios. Sometimes, the simple solutions are the best. Hour 2 - Sporadic Es in October? There were definitely some that were able to get in on the action! We take a look at where the clouds set up! New Sprint Challenge Duration: 1 week Frequency...

Hour 1 - The majority of the hour is devoted to taking a look at the newest version of WavViewDX. We finally have had a chance to check it out and to say we are blown away is an understatement! This new version adds Live DX and the engine is exceptionally powerful, especially for those with a dual channel RSPduo SDR receiver. Hour 2 - We take a look at Bill Hepburn's Tropo forecast because it look...

Hour 1 We look at some brand new functionality added to our DX Challenge app! Some of it will make our new challenge that starts tonight infinitely easier! - Also in hour 1, I will get on my soapbox. This time, we are discussing accusations of stations "cheating" after dark. Hour 2 Vibe code yourself some DX tools! In hour 2, Loyd talks a bit about his experiences building apps and tools to make h...

HOUR 1 - We wrap up our current active "sprint" challenge: 910 kHz and will be focusing on a new frequency range: 740-780 kHz. - We will be reviewing the current progress on the Season-long marathon sprints - We take a look at the Bill Hepburn Tropo Forecast maps because Tropo season is here for a good number of DXers! HOUR 2 - This is a great time of the year for Transoceanic propagation/DX! From...

Tune in our season premiere of Season 7 of DX Central Live! Hour 1 - We introduce the new, completely overhauled and rebranded DX Challenge and DX Challenge custom-built app! Hour 2 - A brief, high-level overview of the summer Sporadic Es season followed by your shoutouts - and there were a bunch to get to! Live DX Session 1 - 1590 kHz - WPSL in Port St. Lucie, FL Session 2 - 910 kHz - HRVS - La V...

NOTE:  This podcast was recorded on August 1, 2026.  Any activity after that date will not be reflected in our data/recap. We continue our series of Data Analysis episodes with a look back at the month of July 2026 for the North American Sporadic Es FM DX season as part of our Sporadic Es Data Analysis Project (SEDAP) at fmdxdata.com .   Somehow, even the word "historic" seems insignificant in the...

NOTE:  This podcast was recorded on July 8, 2026.  Any activity after that date will not be reflected in our data/recap. The 2026 Sporadic Es season is off to a roaring start, and June was the day that lit an absolute fire on the band(s).  High MUFs, massive openings, thousands of logs.  But what is in the data that can help us make sense of it all? For Episode 32 of the From the Static podcast, w...

NOTE:  This podcast was recorded on June 5, 2026, before the ionosphere absolutely exploded with activity between June 8 and June 10.  For more information on that recent activity, be sure to pick up the July 2026 edition of The Spectrum Monitor magazine at The Spectrum Monitor . The 2026 Sporadic Es season is off to a roaring start, but things took a while to get going in May, despite some consid...

- Introduction to SEDAP (Sporadic Es Data Analysis Project) and walking through the new dashboard and data visualizations including our groundbreaking Sporadic Es Cloud Tracker - Introduction of the 2026 Summer of DX challenge with an all new visual and interface, new bands, new challenges, bounties and more!  - Season ending shoutouts

Using other bands to spot openings on FM from Tropo and Sporadic Es. Some folks use 6 Meters for Es and 2 Meters for Tropo as early warning signs of FM openings. How reliable are they? We talk through it. Sporadic Es season is so close, here are your last minute preparations you need to wrap up to be ready, come what May (get it?) The tropo forecast for next week looks promising. A bit too early t...

Hour 1 - Logging stations using FMlist.org and why this is important - FM Antenna shootout - last week we looked at SDRs for FM season, this week we tackle Antennas Hour 2 - Logging stations using WTFDA's WLogger and why this is important - Early warning of openings - how to be ready just in case TOH DX: FM DX with hopes of some at least mild tropo

HOUR 1 FM DX Webservers: Using them as a DXer, hosting one for yourself and other DXers Updating SDR Console with the latest RDS information HOUR 2 RDS Autologging through Rabbitears: How to use this information as a DXer, how to host your own autologger SDR Options for high bandwidth (~10 MHz) IQ recordings for FM TOH DX We navigate the local FM band, keeping an eye on MW If time permits, we will...

HOUR 1 Welcome to April! Time to change our focus to all things FM. Before we do, though, a quick hit on MW: We wrap up The Frequency Challenge this week and what a challenge it has been! Just under 3,000 logs in one challenge? Unbelieveable! Also, Loyd heard Uruguay this week! To get us started on FM DX Preparedness Month, we do a quick recap on Tropo: how it works, how to know when it is happeni...

- Tropo getting going on the Gulf Coast - We look at the Tropo forecast to see how long the fun will last - AM DX heating up to the South - not just Latin America - but even further South along the grayline! - Portable FM DX with a custom built Arrow Antennas Yagi antenna - Sporadic Es already underway - at least in Europe - We check in on the progress with The Frequency Challenge - only one week...

HOUR 1 Bruce Conti's Right Triangle Terminated Loop TEF AM Webserver? Yup, we did that Nearly 2000 logs in one week? Ya'll are incredible HOUR 2 FM Tropo engine is ramping up on the coasts Notorious BoG to the rescue! Our new RDS Autologger is up and running and......wow TOH DX All Hours - Working down our 3 logs per frequency quota backlog

Hour 1 With me on the road this week for the dayjob, there was no time for DX. Except for a little FM DX I was able to enjoy on the airplane. Flying 35,000 feet above central Louisiana, my little NXP Nano TEF radio pulled in some interesting stuff! I did notice a lot of chatter in the Slack Channel while I was out about antennas, specifically terminated loops such as KAZ, Flags and SuperLoops. So,...

HOUR 1 We sadly say good bye to the US State Challenge. That has been a fun one, hasn't it? I didn't get OR or ID here, wasn't for a lack of trying, but still managed to get some new ones and revisit some old friends i hadn't heard in a while. A new TEF has arrived here at the house - the NXP Nano. It may be a tiny little thing, but it performs just as well as it's larger brothers. New challenge!...

Hour 1 - Wait, what? Late February Es? Yup, more than once this week, the FM band once again surprises us! We take a look at who got in on the action and discuss what - if anything - it means for our upcoming season. - The US State Challenge, first week, has been a rousing success. Our DXers have already logged the entire "lower 48", submitted nearly 600 logs and we still have a whole other week t...

We are back, baby! Hour 1 - We have a new, THIRD, FM DX Webserver. And tonight, we walk through what you need to do to have your own TEF-powered Webserver! - New Challenge Launches! - The challenge site is active again with a new challenge - the US State Challenge. Try to log as many states as you can, with up to 2 logs in each getting you points....just like the Country Challenge we did earlier t...

HOUR 1 Solar Storm (Take 1 - The Demo Version) - Well, that wasn't much to sneeze at, was it? The Bz stayed more positive than a motivational speaker on their 2nd pot of coffee. As such, we didn't get a visual or radio event from this one. There was a definite radio blackout - even down here we noticed. Some folks saw little pockets of enhancement this week, but not what we were hoping for. Some f...

NEW CHALLENGE We continue with a new frequency range, another littered with large stations with smaller gems hiding in their shadows: 1500-1540 kHz. This will be a 1 week challenge. HOUR 1 See ya next season, FM: We seem to have officially entered that 'dead band' period for FM where it is too cold and stable for most tropo, meteor scatter slows to a crawl and Es - while they can happen at any tim...

New Challenge! Week 14 of the MW Frequency Challenge is here where we focus on 1180-1220. Lots of big guns in this range but can you pick out the ones in their shadows? Some good international DX in here too! Hour 1 Sporadic Es Bonanza - almost every day this week saw someone somewhere in the US getting that elusive Winter Es opening. We look at the maps and check the current conditions. And maybe...

HOUR 1 it's the end of the year, and that means it is time to look back at 2025 and reflect on a year of DX. AM, FM, NDB, NOAA WX DX.....it's been quite a year! We finally got our Airspy HF+D paired with a splitter from our big Southern-facing KAZ. Let's just say, the CCC and that antenna are a match made in DX heaven. And it is already producing for us! I spent the week working on my brand new on...