What time do AM stations reduce power?

As you might know, the FCC requires us to lower the power of our AM antenna every evening at sunset. This requirement is in place to prevent our signal from interfering with other AM stations that use the same frequency in other parts of North America.

How can I improve my AM reception?

Q: How do I get better AM reception? You can get better AM reception by using an external antenna such as a loop antenna, placing your radio near the window with its rear facing outside, or switching off/moving away any electrical appliances that have been proven to interfere with your radio’s reception.

Do TV stations reduce power at night?

Stations do not reduced power at night or any other time except during the rare time before a partial equiptment failure is fixed.

Why can’t I get AM on my radio?

Verify the antenna lead is connected to the antenna jack on the rear of the car stereo receiver and that the connection is secure. Try resetting the car stereo. There could also be a poor ground connection. We would recommend that you contact your local installer to have the ground connection checked.

Why do AM radio stations go off the air at night?

As a result, at night, AM stations in the United States typically reduce their power, go off the air completely until sunrise the next day, and/or possibly are required to use directional antennas, so their specific signal doesn’t interfere with other stations on the same frequency.

Why do AM radio waves travel better at night?

Because of the way in which the relatively long wavelengths (see Footnote 1) of AM radio signals interact with the ionized layers of the ionosphere miles above the earth’s surface, the propagation of AM radio waves changes drastically from daytime to nighttime.

Why does my radio sound like it’s fuzzy?

In other cases, it only happens during certain times of the year and it’s actually due to solar flares or other changes in the earth’s atmosphere. Adding an antenna to a radio that has a noise or static problem may actually make the problem worse because most antennas are amplifiers so it is best to locate the source of the noise first.

How does the ionosphere affect FM radio stations?

On the other hand, FM stations don’t have to do any of this as the ionosphere doesn’t greatly affect their signals, which has the side benefit (or disadvantage, depending on your point of view) of severely limiting the range of the FM signals, which rely on groundwave propagation.