WA Radio Scanner Users' Group

I was just wonderin what the radius is for a UBC 57XLT scanner, im able to pick up channels 468.0250 and 468.9750, which i think are my furthest, iv tried to pick up perth but cant, i can pick up mandurah. the thing is that when i was in gosnells, i cant pick up kwinana. so what is the max distance radius in which i can pick up?

JG-103 wrote:I was just wonderin what the radius is for a UBC 57XLT scanner, im able to pick up channels 468.0250 and 468.9750, which i think are my furthest, iv tried to pick up perth but cant, i can pick up mandurah. the thing is that when i was in gosnells, i cant pick up kwinana. so what is the max distance radius in which i can pick up?

Hi JG-103,

Basically speaking range is determined by three things:

1. The height of the antenna
2. The type of antenna (designed specifically for that frequency, or 'broad band')
and 3. the frequency

Your best thing to do for greater range is to have a look at the general scanning area where we've discussed antennas. You'll probably be looking for an antenna to stick outdoors somewhere high at the end of it

Does the atmosphere have anything at all to do with it?....Reason i ask is some overcast nights when its not real windy i can pick up country Wapol channels and Eastern Corridor railways from way out. Other nights u cant get anything from them even squelched max.

Always RX wrote:Does the atmosphere have anything at all to do with it?....Reason i ask is some overcast nights when its not real windy i can pick up country Wapol channels and Eastern Corridor railways from way out. Other nights u cant get anything from them even squelched max.

Yes it can. The atmoshere can both help and hinder communications and the effect is different depending on the frequency.

One of the reasons FESA are moving off VHF low band (78Mhz) is that during certain atmospheric conditions (google for tropospheric ducting and sporadic-E for some examples) country and Perth FESA which normally can't hear each other, can. This is great for ham radio operators (and even CB), but it's annoying to commercial radio users.

So u mean the waves bounce between ground and cloudbase making them travel further horizontally...sorta..?

Always RX wrote:So u mean the waves bounce between ground and cloudbase making them travel further horizontally...sorta..?

sorta...

The ionisphere also has a role as the medium waves bounce of the ionisphere which is done by the water particles in the clouds and enable them to bounce further