DX Clusters, Reverse Beacon Network, PSKReporter, and YOU!

Technology can be a great thing. Yknow, until it's not. But usually it's a great thing. Like when 50 years ago tomorrow, man first step-foot on the moon. I mean: WE LANDED ON THE MOON!

One of the things I've really been investigating recently is DX clusters, the Reverse Beacon Network, PSKReporter, and various other alerting tools. So, thought I'd give a run-down of what I've discovered.

First up: DX Clusters

DX Clusters are places where hams post a "spot" of a "DX" station that they can hear or just had a QSO with. Usually they provide the following info:

• DX Station Call: the station being spotted
• DE Station Call: the station who did the spotting/reporting
• Frequency
• Mode
• Comment

Using DX clusters can really make it easy and FUN to find the DX you're looking for. A few good DX cluster websites that I've been using recently are (in no particular order): 

• DX Summit
• DX Heat
• DX Watch

Each DX cluster site has it's own features, such as:

• Inclusion/exclusion of band/mode/region criteria
• Looking for a specific callsign
• LotW/EQSL status
• QRZ direct links

Definitely something to check out, if you're looking for that rare DX!

---

Next up: Reverse Beacon Network

The Reverse Beacon Network is a fantastic tool for CW guys, because it allows for you to:

1. Search for a callsign, and see where they're operating at (and their speed)
2. Search for your callsign, and see a list of who can hear you

This is great to see what your propagation is like, and to ensure that your CW is at-least being heard.

---

Then, lets talk about: PSKReporter

This site is great for those that do digital modes (specifically FT8/FT4). When enabled inside of WSJT-X, the following happens:

1. Any stations that you see come across on the left-side of the screen are reported to PSKReporter
2. Anyone that sees your callsign on the left-side of the screen (and has PSKReporter reporting enabled) will report your callsign/signal strength. 

So, for example: say that we wanted to see spots for all main digital modes for the 1A0C DXPedition to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. We could put their callsign into the website, and see something along the lines of the image below (click to enlarge):

This shows quite a few things on one screen. They are:

1. The gray-line between night and day
2. All stations that are reporting to PSKReporter but have not heard the callsign you're searching for (denoted by the  icon)
3. All stations that are reporting to PSKReporter and have heard the callsign you're searching for (denoted by the icon). The icon also shows the last time the station was heard by that reporter. Mousing-over this icon will show detailed information, as shown below:

This is also awesome to see what your propagation looks like for digital modes, and is great for seeing how well your antennas at 1500ft are working!

---

And last, but most certainly not least: HamAlert

So, I'll admit: I'm late to the game when it comes to HamAlert, but it's damned awesome! It's a great FREE website for receiving alerts about stations you're looking for (if, yknow, you're trying to finish the WAS Triple Play, or somehting.)

On the website, you specify criteria (such as callsign, DXCC entity, WAS state, mode, band, etc), and when a station meeting that criteria is spotted on DX Watch, Reverse Beacon Network, SOTAWatch, or PSKReporter, it will alert you! You can have it send alerts via email (including email-to-sms gateways), direct sms, or their own HamAlert Android/IOS app (amongst other methods). Serious awesomeness!