Mese: Maggio 2026

The Southern Aurora Donga (or ‘SAD‘) is a historic accommodation building at the Australian Antarctic Division’s Macquarie Island Research Station (WAP AUS-Ø8).

This “Donga” (temporary, moveable dwelling) provides sleeping quarters for expeditioners in a remote, Sub-Antarctic environment. Known as “The Beach House” or SAD, it was erected in 1958, serving as one of the station’s older accommodation units.

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In 2026, hard work has been done in upgrading expeditioner accommodation at Macquarie Island Research Station as part of the Macquarie Island Station Project, including upgrading bedrooms, re-cladding, and improving amenities at its structure.

The bedrooms and bathrooms have been renovated, and the building has been covered with new fabric, giving the SAD a completely new look and feel. Approximately 24 people live at the station during the winter, supporting scientific monitoring, maintaining vital infrastructure, and caring for the health and well-being of the Team.

These upgrades will help ensure personnel having a more comfortable place to live and work in one of the world’s most remote environments..

Structure itself consists of small, roughly 2×2 meters individual, or shared, sleeping cubicles, and is part of a series of buildings on the station that includes Cumpston Cottage, built in 1996..

 

Thanks and credit to:  Ausantarctic & AAD

 

 

The Ross Island Earth Station (RIES) is located on a hill overlooking the road between McMurdo Station and Scott Base at 77° 50.89′ South, 166° 40.11′ East. It was constructed in 2021-22 at T-Site (Transmitter Site) on the volcanic rock of the Hut Point Peninsula, about 1.5 km North of McMurdo Station and 3 km Northwest of New Zealand’s Scott Base.
McMurdo Station (US) and Scott Base (NZ) are Antarctic research stations, both located on the Hut Point Peninsula.

 

The area was selected specifically because it is an electromagnetically quiet and clean area suitable for sensitive upper atmospheric equipment.

This communication satellite dish replaced the dishes located at Black Island, approximately 20 miles from McMurdo.

Hut Point Peninsula (77°47′South 166°51′East) is a long, narrow peninsula from 2 to 3 nautical miles (3.7 to 5.6 km; 2.3 to 3.5 mi) wide and 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) long, projecting south-west from the slopes of Mount Erebus on Ross Island, Antarctica.

 

In 2022 the Ross Island Earth Station (RIES) satellite telecommunications center was completed near McMurdo Station, which supports satellite communications for the base.

Completed in April 2022, it serves as a cornerstone of the United States Antarctic Program (USAP) communications infrastructure.

It provides high-speed satellite links via geosynchronous (GEO) orbit, facilitating massive scientific data transfers, operational logistics, and internet services for station personnel.

Scientific Support: The station aids in global weather forecasting and storm tracking by transmitting atmospheric data collected on-site.

To survive Antarctic extremes, the large satellite dish is housed within a protective radome (a spherical weather-resistant enclosure).

Situated on the Hut Point Peninsula of Ross Island, it offers a direct line of sight to satellites that were previously more difficult to access from other locations on the continent.

While Black Island remains operational, the Ross Island Earth Station significantly increases bandwidth and provides a more reliable, direct connection to the global telecommunications grid.

Read more at: https://sam.gov/opp/699aea1766d17df2398adc152253aac3/view

Also: https://www.mcmurdostation.com/2122/antenna.html

Timelapse of the construction at:  https://www.facebook.com/reel/666848134606610

 

Ross Island Earth Station (RIES), at 77° 50.89′ South, 166° 40.11′ East, Hut Point Peninsula, Ross Island, Antarctica, will be add on WAP-WADA Directory as WAP USA-NEW

WAP has chosen the postcards that according to our opinion, best represented the last 2026 edition of the AAW.

Let us congratulate François Berger F8DVD, that since 2005 has never lost a single participation and, since then, joins regularly to the Antarctic Activity Week, always showing up a new design of his QSL.

 

For the 2026 edition, François got a brand new special callsign, well explained on the rear side of his card: TM23AAW (WAP-358) is a special call issued for the 23th Antarctic Activity Week which took place during February 2026. The picture shows the Australian Davis Base. Davis is the most southerly Australian Antarctic Station situated on the Ingrid Christensen Coast of Princess Elizabeth Land. The station is about 20 km from the edge of the continental ice sheet (68°34’S, 77°58’E).

QSL for TM23AAW, via bureau or direct to: François Bergez, 6, rue de la Liberté, 71000 Macon, France.

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The second one is II1SR & II1SR/P (WAP-363) operated by Gabriele Rocchi IK1NEG.

II1SR is a tribute to Renato Cepparo I1SR who 50 years ago, leading a private expedition, built the first Italian research station in Antarctica, naming it after Giacomo Bove, an Italian explorer.

2026 marked the 50th anniversary (1976-2026), and II1SR was the special callsign used during the 23rd edition of the AAW to commemorate him.
23^rd Antarctic Activity Week did overlap the Imperia (Italy) Antarctic Meeting where II1SR/P was active from the Naval Museum, that’s why the /P.
HF contacts have been made using the original Swan 700CX equipment of Renato Cepparo at the time of building the Italian Giacomo Bove Base, therefore the meaning that, this activity takes on, 50 years later, has a unique historical importance.

QSL for II1SR & II1SR/P via bureau or direct to:

Gabriele Rocchi, Via Argine Destro 303/13, 18100 Imperia (IM), Italy

Two days ago, Mehdi F5PFP one of the well known  most contemporary Antarctic enthusiast, posted the announcement of the Facebook page of Polar DX Group:  (https://www.facebook.com/groups/1961114967367742?locale=it_IT) 
Here below the original msg. 
Tickets For Sale: For a 4 weeks Antarctic cruise in early 2027 aboard a durable and accredited sailing boat, with a very experienced skipper and mate; my girlfriend who’s a doctor and myself, that means in total 4 to 5 passengers and 2 crew members. This is not a DX-pedition, it is an Antarctic cruise including radio amateur activities during various stopovers.
ITINERARY:
1) Departure from Puerto Williams, Navarino island, Chile.
2) A stopover on the South Shetland islands if sailing conditions permit to activate some bases.,
3) A navigation along the West Graham Land and neighbouring Antarctic archipelagos according to passengers wishes with radio amateur activities when we stop on various islands, bases and refuges. Except during the crossings of the Drake and Bransfield straits we go ashore almost every day.
4) A possible new stopover on the South Shetland islands, on the way back from Antarctica, if sailing conditions permit.
5) Back to Puerto Williams, Navarino island, Chile.

CONDITIONS:
No need to be an amateur radio operator to join us; being in good physical shape; completely approve the project and its price.

AMATEUR RADIO ACTIVTY:
Mainly QRV after daily navigation and landing from +/- 22:00 utc to +/- 03:00 utc on 20 and 40m. This will be an old-school style and freelance radio amateur activity, so no FT8/digital modes, no sponsor to be free, no score to acheive because i have nothing to prove, just an adventure to live. If this is not not what you want for any reason, please don’t contact me.

IN ATTACHMENT:
A few photos to feel the atmosphere of the Antarctic peninsula (FT5YJ &FT5YK) and 2 videos of Sir Ernst another french sailing boat that sailed on the same zone. The movies mostly show “swiming pool” conditions but they can also be “rock & roll”.
https://youtu.be/zPuUVumIzUQ?si=wxhFGQxvi9EGtDmG
and
https://youtu.be/f_sz_HtY7Ss?si=2-VTOhnbceDRrqPh

TAKE NOTE: Anything may happen until the last minute, like a new pandemic, an accident or some other bad events, that’s why I promise nothing. However, if no serious problem arises before departure, with or without new passenger, we’re going!
Contact: f5pfp@sfr.fr
73 F5PFP

Hanging a WAP Award on the wall of the Ham radio shack is not a gesture of vanity  but it’s the real acknowledgment of years of Ham radio passion: the continuous search of difficult contacts in remote areas of the planet. 
For enthusiasts, for pure DXers, QSOs with Antarctica are undoubtedly the maximum expression of professional skill of an Old Timer!

We are happy to congratulate Augustyn SP6BOW for achieving his goal and thanks to the editorial staff of the Polish Ham Radio Magazine for the publication on its May-June 2026 issue.

Augustyn SP6BOW wrote:
«So, I am now the proud recipient and possessor of your valuable WAP-WADA Award, and this brings me great joy.
I would like to inform you that my award is featured in our Polish Magazine for Radio Amateurs and Radio Friends. I also wrote a comprehensive article about the WAP-WADA award and its detailed regulations. The editors were very pleased with it. I hope it will also be of interest to our colleagues in Poland. I am attaching a photo for you to view.
Best regards and I wish you good health.
73, de Augustyn SP6BOW

Congrats Augustyn,  you did great! TNX from the WAP staff!

The Australian Antarctic Program successfully completed a landmark two-voyage campaign to the remote Heard Island (WAP AUS-Ø7) and McDonald Islands (WAP AUS-NEW) in early 2026, marking the first comprehensive study of the World Heritage-listed territory in 20 years.

The project, utilizing the icebreaker RSV Nuyina, focused on critical climate research, wildlife monitoring, including checks for H5 bird flu, and environmental cleanup.

Scientists monitored glaciers, conducted wildlife assessments on seals and seabirds, and investigated the impact of H5 bird flu on local populations. The teams installed an Automated Weather Station, an autonomous remote environment monitoring system (Arteimus) at Atlas Cove, and a sea level monitoring camera system at Magnet Point, which transmits data via Starlink. The mission included comprehensive marine mapping, environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling, and the removal of rubbish from the remote sites. The campaign consisted of two major voyages, with the first in October 2025 and the second in January 2026, supported by a $17.6 million investment in marine science.

The HIMI islands, located roughly (4,000km southwest of Australia, are crucial for studying climate change impacts on pristine, sub-Antarctic ecosystems, including Australia’s only active volcanoes and glaciers. The campaign’s findings will help to inform future management of the surrounding Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI)

Thanks and Credit to: AAD

China operates five research stations in Antarctica:
Great Wall (WAP CHN-Ø1), established on Feb 20, 1985, on Fildes Peninsula, King George Island.
Zhongshan (WAP CHN/Ø2), opened on Feb 26, 1989, in the Larsemann Hills, Prydz Bay.
Kunlun (WAP CHN-NEW), established on Jan 27, 2009, at Dome A (the highest point in Antarctica).
Taishan (WAP CHN-NEW), opened on Feb 8, 2014, located between Zhongshan and Kunlun.
Qinling (WAP CHN-NEW), officially opened on Feb 7, 2024, on Inexpressible Island, Terra Nova Bay in the Ross Sea.

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Three of these stations: Great Wall (WAP CHN-Ø1, Zhongshan (WAP CHN-Ø2), and Qinling (WAP CHN-NEW) are equipped for year-round operations, while Kunlun and Taishan are seasonal Summer Stations.

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These five Stations support year-round and summer-only scientific research, with the newest, Qinling, will now enter on WAP-WADA Directory as CHN-NEW.

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The Antarctic Qinling Station, China’s fifth research station in Antarctica, commenced operations on February 7, 2024. The station is located at 74°56′04″South, 163°42′55″East.

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Qinling Station, the newest of China’s five Antarctic research outposts, is now fully equipped to support overwintering expeditions, following the completion of the main missions of the Country’s 41st Antarctic expedition. See: https://www.cctvplus.com/news/2025040

In March 2025 China announced plans of its intentions to build its sixth Antarctic Station, for summer research, at Cox Point (74°57’South, 136°41’West) in Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica.