Mese: Luglio 2018

RI1ANW Novolazarevskaya Station, WAP RUS-Ø9

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Alex RN1ON informs that Sergey V. Timofeyev, R3IW will be active on HF Bands mostly on Digi modes as RI1ANW from Novolazarevskaya Station (WAP RUS-Ø9), Antarctica, until March 2019 together with RI1ANL (operated by RW6ACM).

Alex  says that Sergey, R3IW (ex.call-sign RW3IW) was not very active, so there is no information of his new callsign on QRZ.com. Sergey’s callsign RI1ANW for Novolazarevskaya was just issued  on last  July 23.

Please note that at the beginning of 2018, Sergey R3IW made 30-40 QSOs signing RI1ANF operating from Novolazarevskaya Station, Antarctica (not from Bellingshausen Base WAP RUS-Ø1), so make sure to eventually allocate RI1ANF (2018) to Novolazarevskaya not to Bellingshausen.

 

QSLs for  both callsigns RI1ANL and RI1ANW and few of those QSOs as RI1ANF (2018) must be requested only to RN1ON, ClubLog OQRS.

Direct requests via RN1ON:
Alexei V. Kuz’menko, P.O. Box 599, 163000, Arkhangelsk, Russia

TNX Alex RN1ON

Reginald J. Beck, VE7IG, SK

On: By: Gianni Varetto

WAP has just got the sad news of VE7IG SK.

Reginald J. Beck VE7IG (VE1DXA) passed away on July 24. First licensed as VE7ANI the day of his 18th birthday in June 1956.

Reg was a great DXer and one of the most active Antarctic Hunters; he did share his huge Antarctica QSL collection with us;  his ancient and precious QSL cards are loaded  into the WAP Antarctic QSL Gallery

We keep a fantastic recall of Reg when long ago (1991) he did  join us for the 1st IOTA Meeting held in Loano Italy. Reg was guest in our houses and we spent a wonderful time together.

The pictures show some of that moments. (pic above, L to R: Gianni I1HYW, Yuki, JI6KVR, Max IK1GPG, Betty IK1QFM and among us Reg, VE7IG)

The pic below, shows L to R: EA5KB, CT4NH, IK1GPG, I1BSN,  IK1HSS and the good friend Reg VE7IG.

The Antarctic Community have lost one of his best guys, a professional Ham, a very skilled operator and a real good friend, always ready to help.

Reg is holding WAP WACA & WAP-WADA Top Honor rolls with 334 Antarctic callsigns (WACA) and 139 Bases worked (WADA)

 

Rest in Peace Reg, we’ll never forget you.

On behalf of the Hams and Antarctic Community, our deepest condolences to his family

Antarctic expedition hopes for Ernest Shackleton bonus

On: By: Gianni Varetto

A scientific expedition will next year try to find the Endurance, the ill-fated ship of Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton.

The vessel sank in 1915, crushed by sea-ice in the Weddell Sea and lost in 3,000m of water.

Shackleton and his crew were forced into lifeboats to make an extraordinary and heroic escape across the Southern Ocean.

UK researcher Prof Julian Dowdeswell will lead the international effort.

He expects to have the cruise on station in January/February.

Locating the shipwreck is not the primary goal of the expedition; the major objective is to visit and study the Larsen C Ice Shelf, which last July calvedone of the biggest iceberg ever recorded in Antarctica.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-43703723

Whaling stations of Stromness Bay (WAP GBR-NEW) and Husvik (WAP GBR-27)

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Three, are the  abandoned whaling stations in Stromness Bay, South Georgia. The stations are closed to visitors because of their dangerous state, including contamination by asbestos. The sub-Antarctic Island of South Georgia had five main shore stations at the height of whaling in the early 1900s. The last of them closed in the mid 1960s. This clip is attached to the monthly website newsletter on www.sgisland.gs

Stromness Station (WAP GBR-NEW). No one has been active “On the air” so far, from there

Husvik Station (WAP GBR-27) 54°15′ South, 36° 45’West;  as far as we know, Hams been active from this site are:

VP8MS in the year  1976

VP8GEO in the year 2002

VP8DIF in the year 2008-2009

 

 

There was a recent operation VP8SGI in the year 2016 that sets tents a little away the formal Husvik Station; we called it Husvik Base Camp (57° 10′ South, 36°40′ West); to this site, a new WAP reference GBR-39 has been given

Lame Dog Hut at St. Kliment Ohridski Base  (WAP BGR-Ø1)

On: By: Gianni Varetto

The Lame Dog Hut was erected in April 1988, at 62° 38′ 29″ South, 60° 21′ 53″ West and had been the main building of St. Kliment Ohridski Base until 1998.  It is presently the oldest preserved building on Livingston Island, used as radio shack and post office, and hosting a museum exhibition of associated artefacts from the early Bulgarian science and logistic operations in Antarctica.

Picture aside shows the Bulgarian base in 2003, with Lame Dog Hut on the right, Russian Hut on the left, and the new main building in the background.

The Bulgarian Antarctic Base “St. Kliment Ohridski” (BAB)  in the eastern part of  Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands,  is located on the Bulgarian beach, Emona Harbour, East – Northeast of Hesperides Point (Latitude:  62°37’59” South, Longitude: 60°20’59” West) at the Eastern Coast of the South Bay, Livingston Island, South Shetlands.
A Post Office operates at St. Kliment Ohridski Base  since 1995.

The site elevation being between 12 to 15 m above sea level. The site is particularly appropriate for an Antarctic settlement and the existence of the BAB  has a minimum negative impact on local wildlife, for Bulgarian beach has fairly modest population of penguins and seals. At the same time, the base location offers most convenient access to Mount Friesland, Burdick Ridge, Mount Bowles, southern Hurd Peninsula and Varna Peninsula areas .

 

There is now a proposal for a new Historic Site or Monument (not previously designated as an HSM by the ATCM) for Lame Dog Hut.

Being part of the Bulgarian St. Kliment Ohridski Base (as shown on the pic above), Lame Dog Hut is included in the WAP BGR-Ø1 and a new WAP refence to it  will not be given.

 

 

LU4ZS Base Marambio (WAP ARG-21) “On air” by LU4CMF

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Hereby  a couple of pics of Cristian Mauro Fabregat, LU4CMF, operator at Marambio Base as  LU4ZS in a site with -50ºC and 100 km/h of Antarctic wind.

LU4ZS is actually the solo station active from Marambio Base, while on the several Argentinean Stations in Antarcticano one is QRV. 

We must plaude Cristian and we have to thank him  to still believe in the power of the Ham Radio and in the heart of Radio Amateurs.
We really hope that Argentine Authorities can encourage the use of Amateur Radio bands in Antarctica to not dissipate the cultural heritage that Ham radio has been able to create in the international community since the last century.

Thanks Cristian you’re doing great!

QSL via LU4AA, Radio Club Argentino
P.O. BOX 97
Ciudad de Buenos Aires, C1000WAA, Argentina

 

 

TNX LU4AA, LU4CMF/LU4ZS and LU4CJM

From the Antarctic ice, the discovery of the first extragalactic source of neutrinos

On: By: Gianni Varetto

IceCube can tell the direction of some neutrinos to better than a quarter of a degree. It consists of a billion tons of diamond-clear Antarctic ice about two kilometers deep, monitored by more than 5,000 light detectors. In 2013 it detected the first high-energy neutrinos coming from beyond our atmosphere. But that breakthrough was not entirely satisfying because those neutrinos had rained in uniformly across the sky: There was no indication of the specific objects that may have emitted them—no “point source.”

This past September IceCube detected a neutrino carrying about 20 times the energy of any particle that could possibly be created by the most powerful man-made accelerators. This meant it had probably come from outer space.

The instrument broadcast an automated alert.

IceCube’s alerts generate a lot of interest among astronomers, because the neutrino represents the third arrow in the quiver of the newborn field of multimessenger astronomy.  Astrophysicists have long dreamed of employing messengers besides light to reveal the inner workings of the many unfathomable wonders in the cosmos. And the dream had come true only one month earlier, when three gravitational wave observatories had detected the merger of two neutron stars and optical telescopes had tied that merger to a gamma-ray burst: a brief flash of the most energetic form of light. No neutrinos were seen, however.

Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/neutrinos-on-ice-astronomers-long-hunt-for-source-of-extragalactic-ghost-particles-pays-off/

Chilean facility in Antarctica destroyed in fire

On: By: Gianni Varetto

The headquarters of the Chilean Maritime Authority in Antarctica, located in one of the buildings of Base Arturo Prat (WAP CHL-Ø1) was destroyed by fire today, Thursday, July 12, 2018. The Maritime Government is the agency of the Navy that aims to support maritime traffic, collaborate in search and rescue actions, control pollution, support evacuation actions, among other tasks.

The Chilean Antarctic Institute (INACH) deeply regrets the fire that during the early hours of Thursday, burned out all the whole installation  of the Chilean Antarctic Maritime Administration, administered by the Chilean Navy, on King George Island.
According to Foreign Minister Roberto Ampuero, thanks to the emergency work, the 10 people employed  there,  were unharmed. For the moment, they are in good health and has already offered accommodation in the Scientific Base “Professor Julio Escudero” (WAP CHL-Ø7); for now, they are being supported by staff of the Eduardo Frei Montalva Base, (WAP CHL-Ø5) of the Chilean Air Force.
The INACH will send personnel to the area as soon as possible to evaluate the conditions of the Escudero Scientific Base, adjacent to the Maritime Governance. The collaboration between both bases allowed to give viability and safety conditions to the maritime activities of the Antarctic Scientific Expedition. The Bases of the INACH and the Maritime Governance shared since 2011 the use of a sewage treatment plant in order to meet the environmental commitments derived from the Madrid Protocol. The viability of its use should be defined with urgency, since Base Prof. Julio Escudero  represents the main Chilean scientific base, with more than 250 scientists passing through it every summer season.

The Navy has been present in the Antarctic territory since 1957, initially with the base Arturo Prat and then with the Chilean Antarctic Maritime Governance and the Harbor Captaincy of Bahía Fildes, with a permanent presence and also in Bahía Paraíso with a Port Captaincy covered in summer period in facilities of the Chilean Air Force. The damaged building was built in 1990.

Source: http://www.t13.cl/noticia/nacional/incendio-afecto-base-chilena-antartica  and

https://prensaantartica.com/2018/07/12/incendio-destruye-instalaciones-de-la-gobernacion-maritima-en-el-territorio-antartico-chileno/   and http://www.24horas.cl/nacional/incendio-consume-en-su-totalidad-la-gobernacion-maritima-de-la-antartica-chilena-2763288

R1ANR-RI1ANR, Novo Runway- Antarctica WAP MNB-Ø6

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Making an HF contact into Antarctica is always a great DX!  One of the very active spot on the Icy Continent is the Blue one Runway (or Novo Runway aka DROMLAN), an Airbase managed by ALCI (Antarctic Logistics Centre International) that works during the austral summer from late October to beginning of March, as a logistics service provider in the Dronning Maud Land Air Network (DROMLAN) since its inception in 2002. It offers a full range of services for the flights from Cape Town to Antarctica.

These include chartering suitable aircraft and helicopters when necessary, additional equipment for aircraft with required safety and rescue equipment, providing all necessary permits, licenses and insurance for this type of flight, handling of crew, passengers and cargo at Cape Town airport, supply of aviation fuel in Cape Town and Antarctica. ALCI make sure that both aircraft and crew comply with all International standards on safety and operations and that aviation activity in Antarctica will not be detrimental to the environment.

In this very important site,  Ham radio activity has never been left out. Three unforgettable operators; OlegSakharov ZS1ANF,  Slava Savkin RD3MX and  Alex Shmarin  UA1PAW  have been active from Novo Runway  (70° 49’ 31” South, 11° 37’ 41” East) since 2007 giving thousands of Hams a real new one or a great DX, tying up  their callsigns to the history of Radio communication from the Antarctic.

 

Thanks to Nick Shapkin RK1PWA, we have just received the last printed QSL of RI1ANR that confirms the QSOs of 2015-2016

Annual Event from Antarctica at Base Marambio (WAP ARG-21)

On: By: Gianni Varetto

LU4ZS, Marambio Antarctic Base Station (WAP ARG-21), operated by Cristian LU4CMF, will be on air from July 7 to July 15 in SSB and FT8 modes. Cristian will also join the participation in the annual event “The Argentine Republic in two days” this  weekend,and it  will be managed by LU4AA, foreseeing an operation in 7 MHz band,  SSB mode.
The contacts of this operation will be confirmed via LU4AA.

Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp social  will provide the followers with  news and information

Here below, a more than shareable comment by Juan Manuel Pereda LU4CJM, aka operator at LU1ZI Carlini Station and to few of the very rare Argentine Refuges in Antarctica

Amateurs, media and institutions related to the radio around the world,  contact me asking when LU1ZI Argentine Antarctic Base “Carlini” (WAP ARG-20),  one of the “Most wanted contacts” at international level will be airing again.

How to explain to all these people that the “change of authorities”, the “lack of investments in equipments” and the ”lack of interest in the Ham radio activity” made the Argentine Scientific Bases in Antarctica disappearing from the Ham radio field?

Luckily there are people who carry on huge efforts to continue the activations from the white continent. Congratulations to the Marambio Base and to the Argentine Radio Club LU4AA for persisting to spread Argentine Antarctic Ham radio activity around the world.

Felicitaciones a la Base Marambio y al Radio Club Argentino por seguir difundiendo la actividad Antártica Argentina alrededor del mundo.

TNX LU4ZS, LU4CMF, LU4AA & LU4CJM

I have been to Antarctica

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Today news, is dedicated to the over 7,000 members of  “I have been to Antarctica”, a Facebook group devoted to all those who have been to the Icy Continent, who did travel or want to travel to the icy edge of the Earth and made it back to share their stories.

The site is hosted on the page of Facebook:  (https://www.facebook.com/groups/2212798205/?ref=bookmarks) ; Tim Baker (Administrator) says: -This is a place to post about things that happen/happened on/around the ice, or a place for people to ask questions about it-.

Not only penguins or marine life; Antarctica is a land of study and research with several Scientific Bases all spread on the coast, on the islands and inside the main land … a land of peace and fraternity, that’s why it’s a great Continent!  WAP is happy to share the Antarctic passion with those, like us, who enjoy Antarctica as much as we do since 1979 …and next year, will be our 40th Anniversary!!!

Elephant Island- Emilio Goeldi Refuge WAP BRA-Ø5

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Refuge Emílio Goeldi  (WAP BRA-Ø5) is a Brazilian Antarctic summer facility on Elephant Island . It was named after the Swiss-Brazilian naturalist and zoologist Emil Goeldi. The structure, built in 1988, can accommodate up to 6 scientists for up to 40 days  and depends both logistically and administratively on Comandante Ferraz Station station  (WAP BRA-Ø2).

Elephant Island is an ice-covered, mountainous island off the coast of Antarctica in the outer reaches of the South Shetland. Its name was given by early explorers sighting elephant seals on its shores. It lies 779 miles west-southwest of South Georgia, 581 miles south of the Falkland Islands, and 550 miles southeast of Cape Horn. It is within the Antarctic claims of Argentina, Chile and the UK.

Elephant Island contains the Endurance Memorial Site, an Antarctic Historic Site (HSM 53), with a bronze bust of Capt Luis Pardo (see pic aside), who rescued the 22 remaining survivors from Earnest Shackleton’s and several plaques.

Hampson Cove on the south-west coast of the island, including the foreshore and intertidal area, contains the wreckage of a large wooden sailing vessel; it has been designated a Hitorical Site or Monument (HSM 74), following a proposal by the United Kingdom to theAntarctic Treaty Consultattive Meeting.

 

 

As far as we know, Emilio Goeldi Refuge (WAP BRA-Ø5) was only activated once, in 2004 by ZXØECF and ZXØGTI as documented  by the pic on the side.

WAP reference BRA-Ø5  was given to the Refuge,  after receiving the documentation from the kind operators:  Roberto Stuckert (PT2GTI/ZXØGTI) and Jorge Luiz Lunkes (PT2HF/ZXØECF)

Martel Inlet Lighthouse, WAP BRA-LH ØØ1

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Located at 62° 5’ South, 58° 22’ West, Martel is an inlet forming the northeast head of Admiralty Bay on King George island, in the South Shetlands Islands, off Antarctica. It was charted in December 1909 by the Fourth French Antarctic Expedition under Jean Baptiste Charcot and named “Fiord Martel” after J.L. Martel, a French politician.

 

The square pyramidal skeletal metal tower with balcony and light of Martel Inlet Light House  (WAP BRA-LH ØØ1),  was constructed on a concrete basement in the year 2007 and   lies exactly at 62° Ø5’ Ø2” South, 58° 23’ 31” West.  Its markings / pattern is  red and white tower, red lantern  with a Focal height of 14 metres (46 ft),  with a Range of 10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi). Light is sourced by solar power . It is administered by the Brazilian Comandante Ferraz Research Base (WAP BRA-Ø2)

 

Martel Inlet Light House  has the Admiralty  number G 1387.5,  NGA number 2729, WAP Reference for  LH in Antarctica & Peri-Antarctic areas  WAP BRA-LH ØØ1.

It was first activated in 1985 by ZXØECF.
Lighthouses in Antarctica and Peri-Antarctic areas are recently been included in the new  “WAP LH Award” among WAP-WACA & WAP-WADA, the two main Antarctic Awards.

Grytviken station, (WAP GBR-29) South Georgia Island

On: By: Gianni Varetto

Even in the most distant corners of the world, the ruins of man’s industry are abundant. One of the most haunting locations is the abandoned settlement of Grytviken, a forgotten whaling station founded in 1904 by Norwegian sea captain Carl Anton Larsen. Serviced by 300 men during its heyday, the productive station took 195 whales during its first season alone, spearheading a highly profitable trade that saw every part of the animal, from blubber to meat to bones, put to use.

This is raw drone footage of the shore whaling, including the British Antarctic Survey Base (WAP GBR-29), graveyard and Hydro Dam.

Footage was recorded with a DJI Mavic Air in April 2018, recorded by Geometria Ltd. for the Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. All flights were operated under permit from GSGSSI.

Thanks and credit to: Daniel McCurdy

Today, Grytviken is a haunting ghost town on the shores of King Edward Cove, a collection of decaying buildings, vintage oil tanks, silent processing plants and abandoned whaling ships. Far beyond the reaches of vandals, it remains frozen in time. The South Georgia Museum, accessible to cruise ship tourists, is located within the former house of the whaling facility manager and his family.
See more at: https://www.urbanghostsmedia.com/2013/10/abandoned-whaling-station-grytviken-south-georgia-photos/ 

On the Ham radio wise, Grytviken Station (WAP GBR-29) was last activated  on 2007 by VP8DJV & VP8DKG, while the 1st station reported active  from Grytviken Station was VP8BK on 1956.