Hacker Chronicles 1/HACKER1.ISO/radio2/russian.2

Text File | 1992-10-03 | 22KB | 388 lines

A fascinating facet but not widely publicized portion of the SWL hobby is the
monitoring of Soviet radioteletype (RTTY) and continuous wave (CW) i.e. Morse
code, transmissions.  In the new era of "glastnost" this is just one more
window you can look through into the once secret world of the U.S.S.R.  Many
fascinating insights that can be gained from pursuing this relatively
untraveled path of the SWL hobby.  First you may get an insight into the
Soviet Space program by monitoring the messages sent to and from the Soviet
Academy of Science Space Tracking ships.  Sometimes the Soviets  send messages
in what at first appears to be "code".  After some careful study the "code"
soon reveals itself as dealing with a certain unnamed space object.  Other
times you may see the cargo manifest of a Soviet freighter that may be
carrying anything from pipes to weapons.  A lot of the time you may find out
more about the Soviet fishing industry then you ever cared to know!  The most
fascinating aspect of this pursuit is that you can never be sure of what you
will come across, so every message can bring a new discovery.  It has proven
to me an intellectual challenge that is fun.  The following information is
based on my personal exposure to this facet of the SWL world.  I have tried to
provide the names of vendors for specialized books or equipment as necessary.
My opinions on equipment are just that.  In the end whatever works for you is
what's best.  I only hope that you will share the fruits of your experience
with others, right here on Compuserve. Please read the following in the spirit
it is given: a desire to share what knowledge I have picked up since
concentrating on this part of the SWL hobby.  I may indeed be in error in some
of what I say.  If so, please let me know so it can be corrected.

First Soviet CW.  In theory this will be the least expensive of two paths of
the hobby since the receiver requirements are less critical, and therefore
less costly.  To really keep expenses low you need only to be able to copy
Morse code.  Technology opens the door for those with the budget who can not
copy Morse code.  Even if you can copy Morse, you better be able to copy at
least 20 WPM and that is at the slow end of the spectrum for most Soviet CW
transmissions.  Also the Soviets use special Morse characters for some
characters peculiar to the Cyrillic alphabet.  When you are ripping along at
20 WPM a "new" or unfamiliar character can throw you for a loop.  For example
"di di dah dah" is the Morse symbol for the Russian "YA".  Not especially
difficult but it will take you a while to add new characters to those you
already know and still copy at 20 WPM.  A complete table of Morse code
characters for Russian, Japanese, Arabic and other languages can be found on
page 19-3 of the big yellow 1988 ARRL Handbook (appx $20).  This book also has
a lot of other useful technical information and should be in every serious
SWL'rs library.


As already noted, the receiver requirements for CW are less stringent than for
RTTY.  Among relatively low cost alternatives, I find the Sony ICF-2010, an
already excellent ISWBC receiver, generally quite adequate for CW.  I recently
made a side by side comparison of my NRD-525 and the Sony.  I connected them
both to the same 100 foot longwire and tuned to a weak CW signal.  Using this
highly scientific comparison <grin> I found that the weak signal was completly
audible on both receivers.  In a crowded environment the Sony's lower quality
"narrow" filter will not perform in the same league as the NRD-525 equipped
with a 500 Hz filter.  When I first tried to compare the NRD and the Sony on
the same signal (see comments on "COL" in Havana, Cuba which is discussed
later), I wrote the Sony off as a total loss.  I couldn't hear the signal at
all on the Sony while it was loud and clear on the NRD.  Then it dawned on me.
I tuned the Sony 800 Hz BELOW the actual RF (in this case the NRD was on 15024
kHz and the Sony was retuned to 15023.2 kHz) and my initial disgust turned to
satisfaction.  Don't forget to subtract the 800 Hz when tuning based on
"exact" frequencies listed by the Confidential Frequency List (CFL) {also to
be discussed further below} or similar publications.

No matter the speed of the CW, I have found a technique that helps me copy CW
too fast for me to copy "live".  I record the receiver output onto an open
reel tape recorder at 7.5 ips and play it back at 3.75 ips.  If you have a
cassette recorder you could then use it to record the slowed down output, then
rerecord the cassette back onto the open reel at 7.5 ips and then play the
open reel back at 3.75 ips.  Now we have our 20 WPM down to 5 wpm!  Make sure
the pitch of the initial recording is high.  For those that have the money you
could buy an M6000 or M7000 and read the CW on a VDT or computer monitor.  In
fact the M7000 brochure states it will print the characters in Cyrillic on the
monitor!  The AEA PK-232, which I use for RTTY can also read CW - or so the
manual says.  Mine can't in 95% of the cases when I tried so perhaps I have a
defective unit.  I can't bear to give it up long enough to send it in to be
checked!  For the rest of our discussion we'll assume you have found some way
to copy Soviet CW.


What can you expect to find in this traffic.  Soviet CW often sends messages
that appear identical to those you will see if you copy Soviet RTTY.  That
means lota of telegrams to lonely sailors on the Soviet fish factories.  Look
for CELEUM at the end of this type message.  This roughly translates to "love
and kisses".  If you have a "code 3" Morse decoder this will come out as
TSELEUM (more on code 2 and code 3 later).  There is also CW aeradio traffic
between "COL" in Havana, Cuba (15024 kHz) and RFNV in Moscow.  Even on the
West coast I have no trouble picking up these station day or night.  It is
almost 11 PM (Pacific Daylight Time) local and I am listening to "COL" as I
write this.  I assume that this link serves much the same purpose as that
provided by the ICAO HF aeradio USB voice links most UTE listeners are
familiar with.  The "COL" traffic contains the destination, speed, and times
of arrival of Soviet Aeroflot flights.  This channel also sends CW messages to
planes in flight.  It may even be used by Soviet Bear A/C flying reconnaisance
off the East coast of the USA while enroute to Cuba.  It features bizarre "Q"
signals, which can be found in Klingenfuss's RTTY book (available for appx $30
from Universal Shortwave).  The CW speeds used by "COL" are probably closer to
13 WPM, which makes it easier for those who know some Morse.  The Soviets also
use CW to transmit weather and naval area closures.  I found one message
notifying of a closure in the East China Sea.  A search of the Compuserve "GO
NEWSGRID" feature using the keyword MILITARY revealed the Chinese were holding
a simulated nuclear attack war game in this area.  I have only been copying
Soviet CW for a couple of weeks, so have just scratched the surface of what is
there.  From personal experience I can recommend the Gilfer's (201-391-7887)
Confidential Frequency List (7th edition) as a source of exact frequencies to
tune to for either CW or RTTY.  In many cases the CFL will tell you the exact
UTC time at which Naval weather or Naval warnings will be broadcast.  In all
instances where I have attempted to verify these listings, they appeared
correct as the signals appeared right on time.


To pursue RTTY you will need a good short wave receiver, an RTTY "decoder"
device, and a computer or video monitor.  This could cost you quite a few
dollars.

First, the receiver.  The requirement for RTTY is that your receiver is
"stable" and selective.  The stability is required because if your receiver
drifts, then the signal you send to the decoder device will eventually be
unusable.  The Soviets seem to use very stable transmitters so any drift you
deal with is likely to be due to your receiver.  The selectivity requirement
is to keep other nearby signals from interfering with you.  You should have a
"narrow" filter of 500 Hz bandwidth, which works perfectly with "standard" 170
Hz frequency shift on most of the Soviet RTTY signals you will hear.

For RTTY your receiver should be tuneable in frequency increments of 100 Hz or
better.  It also would be nice if the receiver was actually tuned to exactly
the frequency it indicates.  An error whether from drift, mistuning, or poor
calibration of as little as 40 Hz can result in a garbled signal.  Receivers
of adequate technical means to monitor RTTY include the Kenwood R-5000, JRC
NRD-525, and probably the ICOM R-71A.  Top notch receivers will cost somewhere
between $800 to $1300 including taxes and desirable modifications.  It is also
assumed that you have a reasonably good antenna and not overly noisy (RFI)
location.  By reasonably good, a "longwire" at least 25 feet or more in length
is desirable.

The next component in the system is the RTTY decoder.  For once, the "best" is
not the most expensive!  The AEA PK-232 costs approximately $350. It can
certainly be purchased from E.E.B. in Vienna, VA, and probably many other
stores which deal with Hams or SWL'rs.

It has competition from its famous cousins: the M6000 at approximately $900
and the M7000 over $1000. I like to be able to store intercepted data in a
computer file for subsequent analysis, not just read it off a monitor or print
it out.  That is easily done with a PK-232 and low cost software.  While you
can purchase software "recommended" for the PK-232 for abou $50, I found that
the BITCOM software which allows you to use your PC as a dumb terminal was far
better equipped to allow me to store data on my computers disks while in the
"smart" mode of the PK-232.  The "smart" mode analyzes a signal and
automatically puts you in the correct mode to copy a given signal.

The Soviets use one of the least complex RTTY transmission schemes.  Most of
the signals you will want to copy use a 170 Hz, 66 wpm (50 baud), frequency
shift to transmit data.

The PK-232 ideally should be connected to a computer with a "serial port".  If
this sounds like a lot of gobbledy gook to you, it is easier to do than talk
about.  The computer needs some "software" to enable it to work with the PK-
232.  As I already mentioned I use software called BITCOM which came "free"
with my $155 2400 baud modem.  It has worked perfectly for me.  When buying
any equipment it is wise to select a helpful dealer.  They can help you over
the "rough spots" when you first start to use the PK-232.  There is nothing
really difficult about making any of this work assuming you are basically
familiar with your receiver and computer.  For optimal analysis of your data,
the computer also will need a word processor software capable of handling an
ASCII file (e.g. PC-WRITE V2.71 available for as little as $12 is excellent).

Recently I have been reading the specifications on the M7000.  It sounds like
it might eliminate some of the electronic noise generated by the PK-232, which
on my computer is VERY noticeable.  It also allows the Cyrillic characters to
appear in Cyrillic on the monitor.  Then with a Romanov's $4.95
Russian/English dictionary and a little patience you could soon be reading
Russian! I plan to try this model someday soon.

               HOW TO MONITOR AND ANALYZE SOVIET DATA

First you have to find a Russian signal to monitor.  I live on the West coast
of the United States so I find it particularly easy to monitor transmissions
from Vladivostok and Petropavlovsk.  Both of these Russian cities are renowned
military and civilian maritime hotbeds.  Another Russian city close to
Vladivostok which also generates maritime traffic of interest is Nakhodka.  It
is very helpful to have some good reference material.  A good place to look
for frequencies to monitor is the CFL or Confidential Frequency List (7th
edition) available from Gilfer for about $17.  For RTTY look in the CFL for
anything that says 170/50 in the modulation type column.  In general look for
a call sign starting with a "U" or and "R".  If you don't have this book get
yourself  started try searching from 12491 to 12527 kHz at almost any time of
the day or night. Be patient!  If it isn't automatic set your decoder for 170
hZ, 50 baud, reverse.  Tune in 0.5 kilohertz intervals between these two
frequencies.  I have discovered three other frequencies that are generally
strong and almost certain to be active nightly on the West coast.  These are
6460 kHz, 6503 kHz, and 13080 kHz.  The best time to listen is between 0900Z
and 1630Z.  Since 0900Z is at 2 AM on the West coast the ability of a receiver
to turn itself on and off automatically at preset times is a blessing.  The
PK-232 can be plugged into the receiver with its "parameters"  already set up
so when the receiver turns itself on, the signal is automatically "decoded"
and stored in a file on your computer for analysis at your leisure.  It is
nice to awake in the morning to find 75,000 bytes of RTTY traffic in your
"trap".   If you live on the East coast you may find Murmansk, Odessa, and
Batumi easy catches.  The East coast is also a good place to pick up the TASS
news service in an RTTY broadcast in English.  For those in the midwest, well
in theory you live in the best of both worlds.  For some real left wing slant
on the news monitor Havana's Prensa Latina on 8140 kHz at 0900Z till about
0950Z.


Typical Soviet traffic can be heard from Soviet station UKA in Vladivostok.
It often consists of the Soviet equivalent of MARSGRAMS.  That is to say
relatively brief messages from the families and loved ones of Russian men and
women working at sea, often on a huge fishing vessel.  If you know  just a few
words of Russian you can tell these messages from the rest.  As I noted in my
comments on Soviet CW, look for the Russian word  TSELEUM.  With the knowledge
of just a few such words you can usually get the drift of most messages.  I
have included some of the most commonly used terms at the end of this article.
The PK-232, and probably other RTTY or CW decoders feature a mode which
outputs text in what is known as "transliterated Cyrillic" or "code 3".  This
means you get Russian words that read most like English.  For example code 2
"Wladiwostok" is the more familiar "Vladivostok" in code 3.  The manual that
comes with the PK-232 deals with the differences between "code 2" and "code 3"
Cyrillic, in greater depth and should be read.  If you are used to manuallyt
copying Soviet CW, then you have been using "code 2".  Another type of message
which abounds is official messages that list the types and amounts of cargo.
One I message I saw kept using the word TONNE preceded by some numbers and
followed by TRESKA.  I found a Russian dictionary that revealed their cargo
was cod fish.  Another category of message that you will be almost certain to
see are the KRIPTOGRAMMA messages.  These are encrypted messages of a secret
or private nature.  An example of the heading of such a message is:

UPTZH UPTZH DE UKA UK

"UPTZH" equates to a call sign in English of "UPTV" which the ITU list reveals
as belonging to the Severo'uralsk.  She is being called by "UKA", a
Vladivostok coastal station that sends traffic to Soviet fishing vessels.
This might be followed by:

I

SR VLADIVOSTOK 7093/1895 245 9/6 1400=

{This header reveals the message as coming from Vladivostok.  It is numbered
"7093/1895" has 245 groups and was transmitted on "9/6" or the 9th of June at
1400 (Moscow Time).

SRO:NAYA KRIPTOGRAMMA
3 PUNKTA
PB SUZDAL'
PB SEVEROURALSK
PB SUKHONA
OT MALAKHITA 108 =

The above is the address list and goes to three Soviet fishing vessels:
Suzdal', Severouralsk, and Sukhona.  I don't know what the "OT MALAKHITA 108=
" means.  Then the message which might start something like this:

DDDDD AAAAA AAAYAYA YAKKKR RREEE EEESHCHSHCH SHCHSHSHSHTS
TSTSDDJ IUTKP LJNKHG FNFASH SHCHSHSHKHY OEKEYU GNNKYA PEVSH4
YUINJK ILIKHY YAKNPT ZHSGMTS BTSRTOIFG4Z

etc., which is encrypted.  Good luck trying to decipher it!


What do you do with the messages you intercept?  I study them, and daily
understand more and more of what they have to say.  You might soon become an
expert in knowing how many fish the Soviet fishing fleet catches.  You can
look in your Polmar's Guide to the Soviet Navy (Naval Institute Press) and
search for ships associated with Soviet Space launch activity.  The names of
such ships are preceeded by "NIS" in the address portion of the message.  If
you own an IBM compatible, among the software tools you get with either the
Microsoft or IBM operating system is a jewel called "FIND".  It will search a
huge text file in a jiffy and reveal to you every line where a given word was
used.  My personal favorite is a text search file program called "TS" for text
search which comes as part of the Norton Utilities software.  One Pacific
fleet ship that I was told is almost certain to become active when the Soviets
engage in a shuttle launch is a ship with called the NEDELIN.  Just tell FIND
or TS utility to look for any occurrence of "NEDELIN" in the data files you
have collected.  Let's assume you found it almost daily in your files of last
summer's intercepts and then it wasn't heard from again after September.  If
TASS says there is going to be a shuttle launch sometime in 1988 and after
months of no mention of its name you get gobs of "MARSGRAMS" to members of her
crew, you may suspect she has just embarked for participation in the planned
launch.  You also might keep a data base of information related to a specific
ship.  Who are the crew members who get messages?  What is the ship Captain's
name (usually prefaced by "KMD")?  Is there a sudden increase in KRIPTOGRAMMA
messages?  As you examine the traffic day after day you will come up with
ideas of your own.  A good analyst is one who keeps files of such trivia.

There are numerous books available that you might find valuable if you are
seriously considering monitoring the Soviets or any other military
communications system.  Among them are: "The American Black Chamber" by
Herbert Yardley, and "The Codebreakers" by Herman Kahn.  If you are going to
seriously monitor Soviet maritime and Naval activity, then either purchase
Jane's Warsaw Pact Merchant Ships (paperback $17) or go to a good local public
library and see if they have a copy of the larger hardbound edition.  Another
extremely useful tool is the I.T.U. list of coastal stations and call signs.
That can be gotten from the ITU in Switzerland for about $100.  Jason Berri
(21240 South Western Avenue, #18, Torrance, CA 90501) has managed to come up
with a subset of the most commonly observed Soviet ship callsigns.  These are
available, with instructions on how to read Soviet traffic (I just sent for my
copy yesterday) for about $6.  Perhaps the best buy of all is the Janes
paperback (about $17) titled Warsaw Pact Merchant Ships.  There you will find
a lot of details about the ships whose names you will find in the traffic.

If you really are serious send off to Aegean Press (PO Box 2837, Laguna Hills,
CA 92654) for their publications on military cryptology.  They even sell
software for an IBM PC to let you try your hand at a messages generated by the
Enigma; the famous Nazi World War II cypher system.  If your mathematical
ability and temperament are at this level, who knows maybe you could put a
dent in the Soviet KRIPTOGRAMMA messages mentioned earlier.


As promised here are some commonly found Russian words (code 3):


DAJ OTVET = GIVE ME AN ANSWER

KVARTAL = QUARTER (AS IN 2ND QTR FISCAL YEAR)

LI4NO = PERSONALLY

MOL4ISH' = SILENT

OTPRAVILA = SENT

PEREVOD = TRIP

PIS'MO = LETTER

PISHI = WRITE

POLU4IL = RECEIVED

POKA = IN THE MEANTIME

PONYALA = UNDERSTAND

POZDRAVYLAEM = CONGRATULATIONS

ROZHDENIYA = BIRTHDAY

RYB = "RYB" AS A PREFIX - REFERS TO FISH OR FISHING

SAMOGO = YOUR OWN

SEVERNAYA = NORT

SOOBSHCHU = ADVISE

SRO4NO = URGENT

TSELEUEM = KISSES

VOSTOCHNAYA = EAST

VSEGO = ALWAYS

ZHELAEM = WISH

Here are some "code 3" to "code 2" conversions:
CODE 3  CODE 2
======  ======
TS        C
ZH        V
KH        H
SHCH      Q
V         W
'         X
[         YA
]         YU

Thus code 2 "UISHCHZH" is actually "UIQV" in the ITU call sign list.

You will also see many cases where the Soviets send numbers as characters
which work out as follows:

QWERTYUIOP
1234567890

also "X" is equivalent to a slash / and often I see a V for an
"=".  See the 1988 ARRL Handbook for the Morse code Soviet characters.

I hope to be writing more on this segment of the hobby in the future.  I look
forward to hearing from fellow hobbyists.  Don't hesitate to ask for help.  I
have only been pursuing this hobby for about 4 months, and have received
numerous helpful hints from other Compuserve members.  I recommend you also
read the file submitted by Sam Ricks (76367,2640) which also deals with
reading Soviet messages.

In summary you will find out a lot more about the Soviets than you might ever
have believed possible by monitoring the shortwave bands.

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