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Atmospheric conditions interfere with KGOU broadcast signal

Oklahoma farm land
KGOU - Dick Pryor
Oklahoma farm land

This is the Manager’s Minute.

Every spring, summer, and early fall, generally in the mornings, KGOU listeners may experience interference with the station’s reception. We’ve been noticing this disruption over the last several days and maybe you’ve heard it, too. There’s a reason for this fuzzy, noisy or intermittent signal. The problem is not our transmitters or your radio – it’s caused by the atmosphere and is called tropospheric ducting or temperature inversion.

When the air gets warmer in higher altitudes and cooler in lower altitudes, interference with local stations by distant stations on the same frequency can occur. It generally clears up by noon.

Also, under certain atmospheric conditions, signals from other FM stations may reflect beyond their normal coverage area – and that can also cause reception interruptions where you’re listening.

There’s more information about signal interference at KGOU.org.

With the Manager’s Minute, I’m Dick Pryor.

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Dick Pryor has more than 30 years of experience in public service media, having previously served as deputy director, managing editor, news manager, news anchor and host for OETA, Oklahoma’s statewide public TV network. He was named general manager of KGOU Radio in November 2016.
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