118 6ØATS  Awards issued so far by the italian ARI-Sanremo

118 are the 6ØATS  Awards issued through the end of november 2021 by the Italian ARI-Sanremo in the field of the 6Øth  Anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty Signature.

42 Basic, 39 Silver and 37 Gold  Certificates have been requested by Hams around the world and forwarded by e-mail  to them.

ARI-Sanremo ARISanremo – Associazione Radioamatori Italiani  is doing a great job in managing the Diplomas available for free.

Enter the site and clik on the 6ØATS to get the rules which are also pubblished online among all the other Certificates issued by Germany, Switzerland and Russia other then Italy.                          Click the gif aside to enter

Once having known the rules (which are really simple) click the WAP logo at the left of the main page and following the instructions, load the SES you have worked. The system will tell you which one of the three Awards you have achieved, then select the format you wish to geti t, put your e-mail and withing few minutes your Diploma will be sent !

Just remind everyone that the 6ØATS Anniversary celebration is continuing till december 31st 2021.

Australia’s Antarctic aerodrome cancelled

The Australian government has cancelled the proposed aerodrome near Davis Sation  (WAP AUS-Ø3) in the Australian Antarctic Territory (AAT), emphasising environmental concerns but probably more because of cost and engineering difficulties. The government is likely to instead announce more remote monitoring, mapping and collation of digital information on Antarctica to bolster Australian science and our territorial claim, as recommended in a recent review of Antarctic science.

The decision to abandon the aerodrome plan means Australia is giving up an opportunity to increase its influence in Antarctic forums, boost science and expand access to the continent. That loss would be greater if China, with or without Russia, were to build on the site Australia has given up, which is one of the largest ice-free areas on the continent. Under the Antarctic Treaty, which effectively “freezes” territorial claims, Australia can’t stop other states building in the AAT.

Read more at:  https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/opportunity-lost-australia-s-antarctic-aerodrome-cancelled

ARGENTINA ANTARCTIC AWARD by DX TROPHY AWARDS GROUP

DX TROPHY AWARDS GROUP issues a diploma dedicated to the “60th Anniversary of the Antarctic Peace Treaty” signature, called  “ARGENTINE ANTARCTIC AWARD“.

There are two kinds  of ARGENTINA ANTARCTIC AWARD available in CW, SSB, DIGI, MIX (CW/SSB), ALL (CW / SSB / DIGI) for two-way QSO’s / SWL’s with various Argentine stations locatewd below 60° South, in Antarctica, in any period of time on any bands.

1-The first one is reachable in 4 different classes of score and by several modes:: CW, SSB, DIGI, MIX (cw & ssb) , ALL(cw & ssb & digi).

BRONZE:  3 contacts , SILVER:     6 contacts,  GOLD:      9 contacts, HONOR ROLL: 10 and more.  If one station is missing, it can be replaced with a contact with RG6ØANT (WAP-321)

Application could be sent in a free form. QSLs  must be in the hands of the applicants. A scan copy will have to be submitted on request.

Awards are  made on glossy silver, size 250 x 200 mm. The cost of each plaque is: 49 $ or 43 Euro (including sending by registered).  For any question and information  drop an e-mail  to mydxtrophy@gmail.com

2-The second option is an electronic-free  ARGENTINA ANTARCTIC AWARD (as shown in the pic above)

To get it you need to send a list of at least 5 QSO’s with 5 different stations on any bands any modes. Send a free-form application: with  CALL- DATE – BAND – MODE – QTH (Base or Refuge). QSLs must be in the hands of the applicants. Sscan copy will have to be submitted on request.

For any question and information  drop an e-mail  to: mydxtrophy@gmail.com

Detailed information on both Awards are https://www.dxtrophy.com/argentina-antarctic-award

TNX Oleg Yu. Latyshev,  UA6GG/RG6ØANT

RI1ANX Traverse Stop Point, WAP MNB-13

Also known as 78 Temporary Camp (other then  Traverse Stop Point ), WAP MNB-13,  this camp was located at 78°01’45” South, 12°32’55” East  (Locator JB61kz ) on Queen Maud Land, Antarctica.

78 Temporary Camp has been activated by the well known Antarctic veteran  Oleg Sakharov  (UA1PBA, ZS1ANF, ZS7ANF) from january 1st   to 7th  2019 while travelling with a convoy on the way from FD 83 (WAP MNB-Ø9) to  Which Away Camp (WAP MNB-11)  

Only 77 QSOs have been made  from this very rare spot in the icy Continent.

In addition, during 2019 campaign, Oleg has been active from  Wolf’s Fang Runway (WAP MNB-12)  locator JB48jm, on 27 january  and from 10 to 22 february 2019 logging 730 QSOs, while on 16 and 17 january 2019, Oleg did operate from  Novo station (WAP RUS-09) locator   JB59vg  making 94 QSO.

On 2020 & 2021 seasons Oleg has been active again as ZS7ANF from   Wolf’s Fang Runway (WAP MNB-12) ay 71° 33’ South, 08° 46’ East.

 

TNX Oleg RI1ANX/ZS7ANF for the QSOz and Nick RK1PWA for the nice and even rare QSL cards

Penguin swam from Antarctica to New Zealand, potentially by accident

An Adélie penguin that washed up on a rocky New Zealand beach — nearly 2,000 miles (3,218 kilometers) from its home in Antarctica — last week, has been released back into the wild, experts say.

Nicknamed “Pingu” by locals, after the claymation children’s cartoon, the disoriented bird was found waddling around the beach at Birdling Flat on Nov. 10 and was swiftly taken to the Christchurch Penguin Rehabilitation for treatment, according to NBC News.

New Zealand’s Kaikoura Wildlife Hospital indicated in a Facebook post that Pingu was “underweight and dehydrated,” but that the young penguin, which rehabbers determined to be between 1 and 2 years old, was recovering strength on a diet of “fluids and fish smoothies.”

Read more at:  https://www.livescience.com/lost-adelie-penguin-new-zealand

British Sikh Army officer aims to be first woman of color to ski solo to South Pole

The British-born Indian Sikh Army, Captain Preet Chandi, is ready to embark on her 700-mile trek to the South Pole where she will endure temperatures as low as -50C and wind speeds of up to 60mph, while pulling a 90kg sled.

Captain Preet Chandi did embark  November 7 on the long voyage to Antarctica. Once there, she hopes to become the first woman of color to ski solo and unsupported to the South Pole. According to the latest UK government report  on diversity in the Armed Forces, Black, Asian and minority ethnic personnel made up 2.7% of officers in the UK Regular Armed Forces as of April 1, 2021. Only 0.1% of personnel who declared their religion were Sikh, the report said.

After graduating and juggling work as a physiotherapist with her Army Reserve commitments, Chandi decided to join the regular Army in 2012. Her military duties have taken her to Nepal and Kenya and, most recently, South Sudan, where she was deployed on a six-month United Nations peacekeeping tour.

Nothing about the expedition sounds easy.

After flying to Chile, she will be dropped at Antarctica’s Hercules Inlet. From there, Chandi will trek solo 700 miles across the ice to the pole, hauling a sled weighing 90 kilograms (nearly 200 pounds) with all her kit, fuel and food for around 45 days.

The sun will never set but temperatures could dip as low as minus 50 Celsius (minus 58 Fahrenheit) with wind chill. Her only contact with the outside world will be a daily check-in with her support team.

Chandi, who has adopted the nickname “Polar Preet” for her blog and fundraising efforts, has spent two and a half years preparing for the grueling expedition.

She’s undergone crevasse training in the French Alps, trekked across Iceland’s Langjökull Glacier and endured 27 days on the ice cap in Greenland — not to mention months spent dragging a heavy tire behind her back home in England, to simulate pulling a sled.

She said: “For this mission, I’m so grateful to have the Army’s support and allowing me to take time away from my day job.

Read more at: https://www.army.mod.uk/news-and-events/news/2021/10/army-officer-to-make-history-on-polar-expedition/

and ‘Polar Preet’: British Sikh Army officer Preet Chandi embarks on solo South Pole expedition | CNN Travel

Did you know about Westarctica’s huge micro-Nation?

Westarctica, formally known as the Grand Duchy of Westarctica and previously known as the Protectorate of Westarctica and the Achaean Territory of Antarctica, is a micronation situated primarily in the western portion of the continent of Antarctica and including all territory south of 60°S latitude and between 90° and 150°W longitude, without exception. It also includes the previously claimed territories of Peter 1st Island (claimed by Norway) and the Balleny Islands (claimed by New Zealand) as well as the colony of Calsahara (See Colony of Calsahara – MicroWiki (micronations.wiki).

In 2001 Travis McHenry laid claim to the largest contiguous portion of the nation by filing a claimant letter with the nine world governments that have also expressed legal claims of ownership to portions of the continent (though none to the sector claimed by McHenry). The territory consists mostly of Marie Byrd Land and a large proportion of Ellsworth Land. It has no year round residents, although seasonal Research Stations are located in the region. The nation of Westarctica was founded through a loophole in the Antarctic Treaty. (Source: Westarctica – Encyclopedia Westarctica )

On November 2, the Westarctica micronation celebrates the twenty years that have passed since the day when the then 21-year-old Travis McHenry decided to found it by claiming an uninhabited territory of over one and a half million square kilometers in West Antarctica. That is five times the surface of Italy, and therefore not so much micronation, even if it is defined and defined in this way as a sovereign project of a few people not recognized by other Countries.

Westarctica micro-Nation is a place where McHenry has never been, however, and does not even intend to visit: the twentieth anniversary will in fact be celebrated by his home in the United States, from which he plans to wave the flag of his micronation, on which he has a cross. white on a blue background, with a white crown in the upper left quadrant.

In some of its features, Westarctica still continues to be a slightly goliardic micronation, as it was largely in its early years.

Read more at: Westarctica’s huge micronation – Il Post (italy24news.com)

TM6ØANT  WAP-318 “On Air”  for 6Ø ATS

François, F8DVD, will operate TM6ØANT to commemorate the th Anniversary of Antarctic Treaty Signature.

France was one of the 12 countries who signed the Antarctic Treaty.

Twelve Countries represented by the Governments of Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, the French Republic, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, the Union of South Africa, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America, signed the Antarctic Treaty on 1 December 1959 in Washington. The Treaty officially entered into force on June 23, 1961.

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The picture here aside, show the France  representative present in Washington 1959 at the signature

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TM6ØANT activation will be from François QTH of Mâcon, France (JN26JH)  from 16 to 30 November 2021.   QSL via F8DVD.

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TNX François, F8DVD

EM25VER 25 years of Vernadsky Station (WAP UKR-Ø1)

Located on the tiny island of Galindez in the Antarctic Circle, the Vernadsky Station (WAP UKR-Ø1)  is the direct successor to the British Faraday Base, which was first established as a meteorological observatory in 1947.

Today, the Vernadsky station is operated by a rotating staff of a dozen winterers. For about ten months at a time, each winterer endures extreme isolation (there isn’t a town within 1,000 nautical miles!) and sub-zero temperatures, all in the name of scientific progress. When they aren’t busy preparing for expeditions into the Antarctic wilderness, the base’s personnel work year-round to maintain the station and conduct research on everything from penguin populations to the atmospheric effects of ultraviolet radiation.

EM25VER  (WAP-312)  Special event callsign has been issued to  celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Ukrainian Antarctic station “Akademic Vernadsky” in Antarctica.

A special Award will be issue upon request . To get the free  electronic award “25 years of the Ukrainian Antarctic station “Akademic Vernadsky” only one QSO is needed  with EM25VER.

Request  has to be sent by e-mail to  Pavlo UT1KY

China’s 38th Antarctic expedition begins

China’s research icebreaker Xuelong, or Snow Dragon, set off from Shanghai on on Friday Nov 5, marking the start of the Country’s 38th Antarctic expedition.

Hydrological, meteorological and environmental investigations in the South Pole, and monitoring of new pollutants such as microplastics and drifting garbage in the Antarctic Ocean will be carried out during this scientific expedition.

Xuelong will also carry supply and rotational staff to China’s Zhongshan Station  (WAP CHN-Ø2) and Great Wall Station (WAP CHN-Ø1) in the region.

The first batch of 154 researchers on the ship will return to China in mid-April next year.

Thanks and credit to: http://english.www.gov.cn/news/photos/202111/06/content_WS6185d2abc6d0df57f98e4940.html  and

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2021-11-06/China-s-38th-Antarctic-expedition-begins-14XOAZJU424/index.html

The WW Ham Radio community has always  searched  QSOs  with the Chinese  Research Stations in Antarctica as a friendly way  to mark the spirit of peace the Antarctic Treaty.

Several  Countries  have a Club station in their Antarctic Bases and for sure, Ham Radio is a wonderful  way to  test  ionospheric propagation  as a branch of the physical research. For us, Radioamateurs, a contact in HF (SSB or CW)  with Antarctica is always  s great goal!
… that’s  to say that … we hope, one day or another, to make HF contacts , with at least one of the Chinese scientific  Bases in Antarctica, operated by a Chinese Ham… that will be great!

Research into decarbonising Antarctic science


A UC research project evaluating the feasibility of hydrogen production in Antarctica could help to reduce carbon emissions in the future by replacing fossil fuels with a zero-carbon alternative.

The research, in collaboration with Antarctica New Zealand and Callaghan Innovation, is looking at how hydrogen could be generated, used and stored at Scott Base (WAP NZL-Ø1) and various remote field camps to reduce the reliance on carbon-based fuels currently used for transport, cooking and heating.

Currently Antarctica New Zealand uses fossil fuels for transport to and operation of remote field camps but wants to investigate the feasibility of generating and using hydrogen as an alternative fuel. Turning excess energy from the turbines into hydrogen would help reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels and also transporting those fuels to Antarctica.

“Hydrogen is a step in the right direction,  if not the eventual answer to providing a zero-carbon alternative to fossil fuels in Antarctica.”

Read more at: https://www.miragenews.com/research-into-decarbonising-antarctic-science-664229/

Yukidori Biological Research  Hut, WAP JPN-NEW

Japanese Yukidori Hut (69°00’30”South, 39°46’00”East) about 20 km to the South from Syowa base (WAP JPN-Ø3), it’s a site for observation and scientific measurement such as geosphere and marine life. Yukidori is Japanese for “snow petrel”.

Yukidori Biological Research  Hut  will be added  as “New Entry” on WAP –WADA Directory

Yukidori Valley situated in the middle part of Langhovde, on the East coast of Lützow-Holm Bay, Continental Antarctica, contains a prominent melt stream and two lakes.

The Biological Research Hut was constructed in 1986 near the beach at the mouth of the Valley so that there would be minimal impact on the flora, fauna, and terrain of the Area.

A typical continental fellfield ecosystem has developed in this Valley. Since 1984, the long-term monitoring program has continue dover here, in particolar, to monitor temporal and spatial changes in vegetation of mosses and lichens. To ensure adequate protection and monitoring of these ecosystems, the area of Yukitorisawa has been designated as Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) No.141 in 2002, under the Antarctic environmental protection act.

Langhovde Glacier (69°13’ South, 39°48’ East) is a glacier at the Est side of the Langhovde Hills, flowing north to Hovde Bay on the east shore of Lutzow-Holm Bay, Antarctica. It was mapped from surveys and air photos by the Japanese Antarctic research Expedition 1957–62, and named for its proximity to the Langhovde Hills.

Read more at: 141.pdf (env.go.jp). Entry into the Area is prohibited except pedestrians with the Permit holder. No living animals and plants or microorganisms, poultry products, uncooked dried eggs, herticices nor pesticides shall be deliberately introduced into the Area. The pedestrians should avoid walking on vegetated area or disturbance to birds and natural features.

The location of the Area and its boundaries are shown on the attached map.

 

Yukidori Hut, which serves as the business base, has a generator so that electricity is available. There is also a freezer for storing the processing collected samples. There are also four beds where researchers can live while continuing their studies.

Read more at: https://www.env.go.jp/nature/nankyoku/message/articles/09.html

At the light of these evidences, Yukidori Biological Research  Hut (69°00’30” South, 39°46’00” East) at Yukidoi Valley, Queen Maud land, East Antarctica,  will enter into the WAP-WADA Directory as WAP JPN-NEW

TNX Yath Yoshikawa JG2MLI, Takumi Kondo JG3PLH and Gabry IK1NEG

The race for the 6Øth ATS Awards

Hams around the world seem to have discovered the interest in various Awards connected with the th Anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty Signature.

Just take a look at the numbers of Awards issued by the various Countries that have join the initiative, to realize this!

Russia in the lead, followed by Germany, Italy and Switzerland.

We may ask ourself a question: Where does this desire to put an Antarctic diploma in our shack come from?

Surely from the sensitivity of the Amateur Radio population to the issues related to Peace, Scientific research, to the fact that Antarctiva is a place where weapons are banned and … last but not least, the desire of every DXer to log a QSO with the Continent that has always fascinated us, and to which,  the most exciting pages of the South Pole exploration are linked.

In this context, WAP has been protagonist for over 40 years , with its Antarctic Directories , but also withy his commitment and .. why not, with his Diplomas.

Returning to the th ATS (Antarctic Treaty Signature), ARI Sanremo  ARISanremo – Associazione Radioamatori Italiani  … who doesn’t know the wonderful city of Sanremo? … has so far issued over 100 of these Awards!

To the various OMs  of this ARI (Italian Amateur Radio Association) Group,  who deal with the management of these Diplomas (issued free of charge to the Hams WW who request them), certainly we deserve the applause and our Thanks!