[RMVHF] VP6DX is now active on Ducie Island, near Pitcairn

Fri Feb 22 20:03:22 MST 2008

RMVHF and Waterton ARS

VP6DX has published the following report on their website:  www.VP6DX.com.  Please review the website for some operating hints before trying to call VP6DX.  They DO NOT listen on their own frequency but up a few Khz as posted by the operator, such as up 5 khz or on a range of frequencies they indicate.  You may have to figure out how to operate split on your transceiver...check your manual.

Anyway, they are now transmitting a 6m beacon on 50.105.5.  Its unlikely we may hear anything BUT you never know.  They would love to make some 6m contacts.  

VP6DX is also looking for contacts on 160m.  I was able to work VP6DX (their frequency 1.826) and I transmitted on 1.831 with 100 w to a vertical at 0640z.

I think the expedition will be there until the end of February so you still have a few more days to make a once in decades contact!

Good luck and 73,

Ken, W0ETT
cc:  Andy and Marta:  please forward to the WARS membership. TNX!   

> Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2008 08:59:48 -0800
> From: jjreisert at alum.mit.edu
> To: mhdxa at mhdxa.com
> Subject: [Mhdxa] VP6DX News #19- 2008 Feb 19
> 
> News #19- 2008 Feb 19
> 
> Highlights:
> 
> ... 160m contact made with opposite side of the planet ...
> ... 104,900 contacts and climbing ...
> ... QSO Statistics ...
> ... 17m RTTY operations started ...
> ... 30m RTTY frequency adjustment ...
> ... 6m beacon now on the air ...
> ... long path contacts made with Finland, European Russia on the 80m band...
> ... possibilities for 160m? ...
> ... North American 160m schedule ...
> 
> 160m contact made with opposite side of the planet
> 
> At Feb 18 Mon 1252z, the Ducie Island 160m operator was called by, and
> completed a contact with, A45XR in Oman. A45XR is located less than 300 km from
> the antipode (exact opposite location on the planet) of Ducie Island --
> essentially the most distant location from Ducie Island.
> 
> This contact took place during the late afternoon, Oman time, 1 hour 10 minutes
> before sunset. At the time of the contact, the terminator was 2000 km from
> Oman, approaching from the east-northeast.
> 
> All directions between antipodes are of equal distance. Over what path was this
> contact made?
> 
> At Ducie Island, A45XR's signals were heard best on the 305° beverage antenna.
> This suggests the signal path traveled over Japan, northern China, and
> Pakistan... exiting perpendicular from the twilight zone. It is possible a
> single E-skip hop between Oman and northeast Pakistan completed the path
> through the 2000 km daylight sector.
> 
> Congratulations to both operators!
> 
> Now that we have shown Ducie Island's topband operating team can contact even
> the farthest points on the planet, what's stopping you from trying a top band
> contact with VP6DX? If you think your antenna is inferior, or you are running
> limited transmitter power, don't give up! Look at the comments in the guestbook
> section of the VP6DX.com website: lots of stations are now in the VP6DX logbook
> with very simple antennas and low heights -- event on top band.
> 
> So give every band and mode a try. We are waiting for your call!
> 
> We are stuck on an uninhabited island with nothing to do but work any station
> who calls us. Well, perhaps that's not entirely true. It's almost time for
> breakfast... and a nap for the nighttime operators.
> 104,900 contacts so far
> 
> Current dupe rate is below 7%, which is typical for this volume of QSOs. During
> the next days we plan a greater focus on Asia openings, which are presently
> underrepresented on most bands. Openings on 12 and 10m to Europe can be weak
> and difficult, but we will try to capture all of them in the remaining days on
> the air.
> 
> 30m has received somewhat less attention to date due to competition from other
> band openings into difficult-to-reach areas. On Feb 19 Tue we added a second
> 30m antenna and started running CW and RTTY simultaneously.
> 17m RTTY operations started
> 
> RTTY totals to date also are below plan. To help correct this, and to exploit a
> more convenient propagation time for North American operators, on Feb 19 Mon we
> began RTTY operations on 17m during mid-day (local Ducie time). Our RTTY
> transmit frequency on this band will be about 18101 kHz (below the packet
> stations), listening down.
> 30m RTTY frequency adjustment
> 
> We have received reports that our 30m RTTY transmit frequency of 10149 is
> sometimes covered by commercial stations in Europe. We may move this frequency
> back to 10139... but listen up in the JA RTTY window of 10140-10150.
> 
> Note that some form of radar or other broadband signal from northern Asia
> occasionally covers most of the 30m band. During these times we redeploy the
> operating position to another band. This interference may cause us to miss some
> openings.
> 6m beacon now on the air
> 
> At about 2008 Feb 19 Tue 0000z the VP6DX 6m beacon began operations. The beacon
> frequency is 50105.5 kHz. Beacon power is 70 watts to a Yagi. We will try
> beaming east-northeast for two hours around our sunrise... north-northeast to
> USA/Canada/Central America for the remainder of the day.
> 
> The beacon speaker is on our picnic table, used for meals and relaxing, and
> next to the east operating tent. In addition we have a spectrum display
> monitoring a portion of the 6m beacon band.
> 
> Please submit any reception reports via the VP6DX.COM website (they will be
> forwarded to the operator team). You may call us on the beacon frequency, or
> contact any of our HF operators to alert us for an opening.
> 80m longpath to OH and European Russia
> 
> During a window around Ducie Island local sunrise (1345-1445Z), long path
> contacts have been made on both 75m SSB and 80m CW with stations in Finland and
> European Russia.
> 
> The furthest contact was to northern Finland, about 25,000 km from Ducie Island
> and 5,000 km beyond the antipodes.
> 
> The best reception at Ducie Island for most contacts is on the 195° beverage.
> Some stations were heard equally well on the 225° beverage. The stations were
> inaudible on any other direction. This suggests the path has very little skew
> off the great circle long path route.
> 
> This long path route parallels the terminator (bearing 187° from Ducie), with
> signals from Ducie traveling over Antarctica... Heard Island... Rodrigues
> Island... the Persian Gulf... Iran... and western Russia.
> 
> We encourage stations in Scandinavia and western Russia to listen during these
> times, and to call VP6DX if they hear our signal.
> 
> We will also be listening on 160m for contacts on this path (or some variant).
> It would be a thrill to put long path contacts on top band in the log. Let's
> see how far we can push propagation!
> 
> Please submit any reception reports for unusual openings, including openings on
> other bands, via the VP6DX website.
> North American 160m schedule
> 
> Most 160m operators in North America recognize that, when sun sets at Ducie
> Island (0300z), it is dark in North America and most of Europe.
> 
> Between this time and European sunrise is the only propagation window for
> contacts between Ducie Island and Europe. Many years will pass before another
> expedition arrives at Ducie Island at the bottom of the sunspot cycle. As a
> result, one of our expedition goals is to give as many stations in Europe and
> Asia a 160m contact with Ducie Island.
> 
> To accomplish this goal, North American stations (with much shorter path to
> Ducie) will need to wait.
> 
> Our top band operating team proposes that, on every evening, we will begin
> making contacts with North America no later than 08z. There is no need for
> North America top band operators to wait until their local sunrise to contact
> Ducie Island. 160m is staffed with an operator throughout the night.
> 
> As described elsewhere, the team has invested considerable work in an effective
> receiving antenna system to help us pull weak signals out from the static.
> Please give 160m a try! We are waiting for your call.
> 
> We would be delighted if DX editors would publish this information as widely as
> possible and DXers bring it to the attention of their clubs and fellow DXers.
> 
> 
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> MHDXA at mhdxa.com
> http://mail.mhdxa.com/mailman/listinfo/mhdxa_mhdxa.com
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