Kfab (Omaha, Chadron, Bee: travel, work, home)

[itsMeFred]

Keeping in mind, we're more than 350 miles west of Omaha...

My husband was sitting out in the pickup tonight waiting on a heifer to decide if she was going to calve on her own or require a midwife. While biding his time, he flipped through the radio channels to find a station.


He came home tonight, "You will never guess what I was listening to, tonight. KFAB!"


Is there anything that says "Nebraska" more than finding KFAB on the dial? lol

[Dave1215]

KFAB has a crazy strong signal. I know if I'm up around Rock County and its a clear night I can get it sometimes. I've also heard lots of stories of it being heard states away (generally south) if weather is right.

[metro223]

You can get stations from many states away at night.. especially on AM << it all has to do with this astronomy stuff I just learned, I wish I remembered why this was and I would explain it.

Well, just google it is what I say

[itsMeFred]

Some stations are "super stations" in that they're supposed to have an enormous broadcast range (KOMA, for example out of OKC). But I don't think KFAB is one of those super stations...

[mattpoulsen]

In very simplistic terms, its because the AM radio waves "bounce off" of the ionosphere. This doesn't happen with FM because of the higher frequency...FM basically goes directly out into space. To AM waves the ionsphere kind of acts like a mirror which reflect the waves back to Earth, thus allowing you to hear them at very long distances. A lot of AM stations (at night) have to turned down there power or turn off altogether, to keep from interfering with distant radio broadcasts. The significance of being at night is because ionosphere is depleted at lower altitudes, thus allowing the AM waves to travel further into the sky before being refracted back towards earth. Anyway, this is one way amateur radio operators are able to talk to people 4 or 5 states away.

FYI, the ionosphere is a layer our atmosphere which is being "ionized" by solar radiation. Thus, at night it thins out.

[itsMeFred]

I'd be willing to bet most AM stations have to power down at night. (My husband worked at the AM station in Chadron for several years as the overnight DJ.

Nope, in the four years we've been out here, we've never gotten KFAB to come in. That's why it was so fun.

It must have just been one of those nights when the clouds are right.

[tpabes]

I know what you mean, I remember one night my parents getting a station out of Dallas and my uncle out in Grand Junction can pick up KRVN (farm radio out of Lex) once in awhile.

[Sandhills Guru]

Been years ago now, but I was traveling west at the time. Matter of fact west of Salt Lake City out on the flats on I80 and it was night. And what comes in for about 30 miles, KFAB!

[therrboomer]

In the mid '70's I lived in Edgemont,SD and there were two clear radio stations we could pick up at night. On was in Oklahoma City and other Juarez Mexico that broadcast in english until around 1AM.

[itsMeFred]

I don't know about Jaurez, but the one out of OKC was KOMA. One of the afore-mentioned "Super stations".