The Ohio/Penn Dx PacketCluster
DX Bulletin No. 1039
BID: $OPDX.1039
December 5, 2011
Editor Tedd Mirgliotta, KB8NW
Provided by BARF80.ORG (Cleveland, Ohio)

Thanks to the Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society, Northern Ohio DX Association, Ohio/Penn PacketCluster Network, AB5K & the AR TelNet Clusters Network, ARRL Letter, K1XN & GoList, NC1L, NJ1Q & ARRL DX, K2PF, NG3K & ADXO, W3UR & The Daily DX, K4UEE, N4AA & QRZ DX, KH6BZF, KM6HB, N6GQ, WB6RSE, K8GI, K8YSE, KE8G, W8GEX (60m News), W9ILY, N0VD, WA0ROI, AT International, CE3FZL, DK8JB & The DX News Letter, DL1SBF, DxCoffee.com, DX-World.Net, ES1CW, F5NQL, F6AJA & Les Nouvelles DX, GM0DEQ, I1JQJ/IK1ADH & 425 DX News, JI5RPT, OZ6OM & 50 MHz DX News, Pete's-DX-Newsdesk, PS7AB, PT7WA, RSGB IOTA Web Site, UT7UT, VA3RJ & ICPO, VHF-DX-Portal (MMMonVHF), XV4Y and ZL3IO for the following DX information.

EDITOR'S SPECIAL NOTICE
The bulletin was sent out (remotely) a day early this week because your editor is on the road heading back home to Ohio from Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

DXCC COUNTRY/ENTITY REPORT
According to the AR-Cluster Network for the week of Sunday, 27th-November, through Sunday, 4th-December there were 239 countries active. Countries available: 3A, 3B8, 3D2, 3DA, 3V, 3W, 4J, 4L, 4O, 4S, 4U1I, 4X, 5B, 5H, 5N, 5R, 5T, 5W, 5X, 5Z, 6W, 6Y, 7X, 8P, 8Q, 8R, 9A, 9G, 9H, 9J, 9K, 9L, 9M2, 9M6, 9N, 9Q, 9V, 9Y, A2, A4, A5, A6, A7, A9, AP, BV, BY, C3, C5, C6, C9, CE, CE9, CM, CN, CP, CT, CT3, CU, CX, CY0, D2, D4, DL, DU, E5/n, E5/s, E7, EA, EA6, EA8, EA9, EI, EK, EL, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU, EX, EY, EZ, F, FG, FH, FJ, FK, FM, FO, FP, FR, FS, FW, FY, G, GD, GI, GJ, GM, GU, GW, HA, HB, HB0, HC, HH, HI, HK, HL, HP, HR, HS, HV, HZ, I, IS, J2, J3, J6, J7, J8, JA, JD/o, JT, JW, JY, K, KG4, KH0, KH2, KH6, KL, KP2, KP4, LA, LU, LX, LY, LZ, OA, OD, OE, OH, OH0, OK, OM, ON, OX, OY, OZ, P2, P4, PA, PJ2, PJ4, PJ5, PJ7, PY, PY0F, PZ, R1FJ, S0, S2, S5, SM, SP, ST, SU, SV, SV/a, SV5, SV9, T2, T32, T7, T8, TA, TF, TG, TI, TJ, TK, TL, TR, TT, TU, UA, UA2, UA9, UK, UN, UR, V2, V3, V4, V5, V6, V7, V8, VE, VK, VK0M, VP2E, VP2M, VP2V, VP5, VP6, VP8, VP8/h, VP9, VQ9, VR, VU, XE, XT, XU, XW, XX9, YA, YB, YI, YL, YN, YO, YS, YU, YV, Z3, ZA, ZB, ZC4, ZD7, ZD8, ZF, ZK2, ZL, ZP, ZS

PLEASE NOTE: The report "could" contain "Pirate/SLIM" operations or more likely a "BUSTED CALLSIGN". As always, you never know - "Work First Worry Later" (WFWL).

3D2/R, ROTUMA
Antoine, 3D2AG, will be on a Christmas holiday with his family and plans to do small "green" radio operation as 3D2AG/p from Rotuma (OC-060) between December 9th and January 9th, 2012. It is reported that this will be a "small ecological barefoot activity on all bands (80-6m) except 160m, sponsored by the French company 'TOTAL' within the framework of the sustainable development of the insular communities of the Pacific (supply of the batteries, the 3 solar panels of 50 watts and QSLs)". His station will be 100w, using all modes (SSB/CW) with an ICOM 706, FT-757GX and Kenwood TS-440S, into a Spiderbeam 5 band antenna, a 5 element yagi for the 6m and doublets for the 40/60/80 meters. This station will be fed only by batteries and solar panels. A special QSL will be printed on recycled paper to confirm the contacts. QSL via his home callsign, direct only ((QRZ.com) address).

A3, TONGA (Family Holiday)
NODXA/OPDX's good friends Holger/ZL3IO (DL7IO), Birgit/ZL3IQ (DL7IQ) and daughters Sassi/ZL2GQ and little Xenia will be going for a week long family holiday to Tonga in late January 2012. This is not a planned DXpedition, but they will have a K3 and a vertical antenna. Holger tells OPDX readers to look for A31IO (Holger), A31YL (Birgit) and A31GQ (Sassi). However, he states that he can't promise too much activity, but their licenses are valid for 1 year, and Tonga is only a 3 hr. flight for them. This might be a preplude for a more serious activity. QSL via their home callsign (see (QRZ.com)).

CE, CHILE
Héctor, CE3FZL, from the capital of Santiago, plans to be active on SSB during the ARRL DX Contest, December 9-10th. QSL to his home callsign (see more information in (QRZ.com)).

DXCC NEWS
Bill Moore, NC1L, ARRL Awards Branch Manager, reports that the following operation is approved for DXCC credit:
 5X1VJ ­ Uganda; 2011 Operation
Special thanks to John Sharp, K2SHA, for his help in acquiring this supporting documentation!

E4, PALESTINE (Update)
Peri, HB9IQB, who has been granted a license by the Ministry of Telecommunications & Technology in Ramallah and plans to be active as E44PM, is expected to be operational at 0001z, December 16th, or possibly a few hours before that. Operations will last for 7 days. He announced this past week, "Taking into consideration the many E-mails from SSB Ops, I will try to spend not less than 20% of the time in that mode. CW will be main mode." For more details and updates, visit the following Web page at:

EM20/EN20/EO20, UKRAINE (Special Event)
Members of the Ukrainian Amateur Radio League (UARL) are celebrating their 20th anniversary using the following special prefixes between December 1-30th. The current list of the callsigns are (as known) as follows:

  EM20C via UX5PC        EN20UARL via UT5UIA     EO20K via UR4KWA
  EM20LTD via UR3LTD     EN20UO via UX5UO        EO20M via UX7MA
  EM20L via US0LW        EN20UP via UT4UP        EO20UD via UR7UD
  EM20UARL via UT7UT     EN20UZ via UR5UZ        EO20UM via UT0UM
  EM20UJ via UR5UJ       EN20W via UR5WA         EO20UR via UT7UR
  EM20UKR via UR7UC      EO20IGN via US7IGN      EO20X via UT5XA
  EM20UU via US7UU       EO20IM via UW5IM        EO20?? via UT2HC
  EM20V via UR2VA        EO20IO via UX3IO        E?20UU via UT7UU
  EN20C via UX7CQ        EO20IZ via UX5IZ        EO20ZZ via US0ZZ

PLEASE NOTE (Caution): "Please do not merge other QSOs you've made with ET3SID and ET3AA into same envelope not related to this trip. Bob will only have the logs for the ET3AA and ET3SID for the days between December 8-13th, 2011. Thank you!"

FS, ST. MARTIN
Tom, DL2RUM, will be active as FS/DL2RUM from St. Martin (NA-105) between now and December 11th.. activity will be on CW, SSB and RTTY, using 600 watts. For QSL route, please use the information on the following link because he is moving:

GB2, SCOTLAND (Special Event)
The Scot's, Crocodile Rock Amateur Group (CRAG) will be operating the special event callsign GB2PG on December 3-4th and December 10-11th, from Ardrossan, Scotland. This event is to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the first shortwave transatlantic radio signals being received in Ardrossan by the American Paul Godley in December 1921. The station will be active mostly on 80­10 meters SSB with some CW. Operators will be Bob/GM0DEQ, Robbie/GM0SEI and Dave/GM6HGF. QSL QTHR via Bureau or GM0DEQ. For live blog updates, please visit

HK0NA, MALPELO ISLAND (Press Release #4)
"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Malpelo
DXpedition 2012 (Nov. 28, 2011) -- Contact: bob@k4uee.com
EDITORS: E-mail K4UEE to request high res. pictures!

Recently three U.S. members (K4UEE, N4GRN and W6IZT) of the Malpelo 2012 DXpedition flew to Cartagena, Colombia, and met with six of their Colombian counterparts. The purpose of the two day meeting was to make some critical decisions about the upcoming DXpedition to Malpelo Island. Also, checklists and inventories were finalized and all team members' responsibilities were assigned.

Since it is highly unlikely that the various Colombian authorities will permit another DXpedition to Malpelo anytime soon, a decision was made to extend the DXpedition to 16-17 days from the previous 12-14 day plan. The approximate dates of operations will be January 21, 2012 through February 5-6th, 2012.

Four team members will travel with all equipment, radios, antennas and infrastructure to Malpelo in early January. They will be transported by the Colombian Navy. They will arrive about two weeks prior to the rest of the Team and will set up camp, the two operating sites, radios and antennas. They will spend about 30 days on the island. This will allow the rest of the team to begin radio operations immediately upon arrival by chartered vessel.

As mentioned there will be two operating sites, each with a complete complement of antennas and radios with amplifiers. The first operating site will be co-located with the Colombian marine's camp on the east side of the island. It is clear to East Coast USA, EU and Africa. In order to have a clear shot at JA/Asia, the Pacific region and W6/W7, the second operating site will be located near the top of the highest mountain peak on the island. However, to lessen the physical risks to the team members, the operating site will be located on platforms situated below the actual peak. Still, it will be a 45 minute uphill climb to reach the platforms. The antennas for that site will be on the top of the mountain peak. At times there will be as many as nine stations QRV with the capability of dual mode operations on all bands.

Safety of the team is paramount. We will be installing a winch system to hoist team members and all of our equipment from our chartered ship's Zodiac onto the island. From there, manpower will carry the equipment the 300 meters straight uphill to the marine camp. The trail to the elevated operating site is extremely dangerous. We will utilize harnesses and safety ropes to minimize the risks. This is going to be a difficult and expensive DXpedition. Every effort will be made to maximize QSOs while protecting the safety of the team members. It is a delicate balance.

Your financial support is necessary and gratefully accepted. Contribu- tions can be made via our website at:

http://www.hk0na.com/sponsors We plan periodic press releases with information of interest. Also, watch the website for breaking news.

IOTA NEWS
SA-071. A QRP DXpedition, by the Cantareira DX Group, was expected to be on the air as ZV2LOW from Montao de Trigo Island this past weekend (December 3-4th). This is not an IOTA expedition, but an operation by a group of QRP enthusiasts. Activity was to be on the QRP frequencies:
CW - 14060, 18096, 21060, 24906 and 28060 kHz
SSB - 14285, 18130, 21385, 24950 and 28360 kHz
PLEASE DO NOT QSL. QSL cards will be automatically sent via the Bureau. LAST MINUTE UPDATE: Due to bad weather, the ZV2LOW operation was canceled. The station will be active from elsewhere and of course will not count for SA-071.

ISWL ACTIVITIES
The ISWL's 65th anniversary celebrations are now in their final month. The "GB65ISWL" callsign will be active throughout the month from various locations. Also, the "PG65ISWL" callsign will be activated by Fred, PA0FAW, between December 1-28th. Activity will be mainly CW, PSK and with some SSB possible from FF-PA-005. QSL via direct (see (QRZ.com)), by the Bureau, including eQSL.cc and SWL reports are very welcome. PLEASE NOTE: LoTW will not be used. The following two club callsigns will also be used throughout the month:

GX4BJC/A - Operated from Walton on the Naze, in Essex, by Herbie, G6XOU. (ISWL Council Member & QSL Bureau Manager). (WAB Square = TM22 - England & IOTA = EU-005).

MX1SWL/A - Operated from Great Sutton, in Cheshire, (/A WAB Square = SJ37 - England & IOTA = EU-005).

MX1SWL/P - Operated from other English locations, by Geof, M0BAU. (/P WAB Squares can be requested during the QSO. IOTA is EU-005).

More information is available at: http://www.iswl.org.uk or (QRZ.com)

JD1, OGASAWARA
Makoto, JI5RPT, will once again be active as JD1BLY from Chichijima Island (AS-031), Ogasawara, between December 24th and January 2nd, 2012. Activity will be on 80-6 meters, including the satellites, using CW, SSB and the Digital modes (NO 6m EME). QSL via his home callsign JI5RPT. His log search will be available on his Web site at:

KH6BZF PROPAGATION FORECAST/REPORT (December 5-11th)

 Dec/05th  AN      Dec/08th  AN-HN   Dec/10th  HN
 Dec/06th  AN      Dec/09th  HN      Dec/11th  HN-AN
 Dec/07th  AN

   SOLAR REFERENCE KEYS/INDEXES AND GEOMAGNETIC REFERENCE
   ======================================================
    NORMALITY               GEOMAG       K Values    Alpha
   -----------------        ------       --------    ------
   AN  - Above Normal       Quiet        K=0-1       0-7
   HN  - High Normal        Unsettled    K=2         8-15
   LN  - Low Normal         Active       K=3         16-29
   BN  - Below Normal       Minor Storm  K=4         30-49
   DIS - Disturbed          Major Storm  K=5         50-99
   VRY DIS - Very Disturbed Severe Storm K=6-9       100-400

LOTW (LoTW Processing Update)
The ARRL Letter reports:

"Logbook of The World (LoTW) is continuing to accept and process logs, including logs from this past weekend's CQ World Wide CW Contest. Before the contest, LoTW had just about caught up with the backlog, but due to the high number of logs submitted after the contest, it is once again seeing delays. As of December 1st, the processing delay is at 22 hours -- down from 45 hours last week -- with approximately 830,000 QSOs in 2500 logs still waiting to be processed. If it has been more than 48 hours since you uploaded a log to LoTW and your log has not yet been processed, please upload it again. Remember: Do not send entire logs that contain previously uploaded QSOs -- use the date range option when signing logs, selecting only those QSOs in a specific date range to upload to LoTW. Thanks again for your patience."

Development will also continue on the Blackberry app as well as a new Android app to hopefully be released in the near future. A fully func- tional desktop website is also in development and I hope to release it to the public soon. When that happens, I will likely retire the old DX Central website as it has been in auto-pilot for years and sorely out of date.

Anyway, it's been interesting (or frustrating) trying to develop some- thing compatible with a wide range of devices. Hopefully it will be something of value to a larger audience ­ at least I can check to see if 160M is open and not have to get out of bed!"

NP2/WP2, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS
Chuck, WA0ROI, will be active as WP2/WA0ROI from St. Croix between December 7-13th. Activity will include an entry in the ARRL 10M Contest (December 10-11th), signing as NP2N. QSL via WA0ROI, by the Bureau or direct, or LOTW to WP2/WA0ROI.

QSL INFO AND NEWS

  QSL-INFO from DB0SDX (dated December 3rd)
  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
  4J85W via DL6KVA         FM/KL7WA via UT5UGR         PW2D via M0OXO
  4K85K via 4K4K           FR/F6CAM via F6CAM          PY2LSM via 6K5YPD
  4L1HD via DL8KAC         FR5DZ via F6CXV             R115GV via RU3XP
  4X2M via 4X6YN           FY5KE via FY1FL             R1941MB via R2DX
  9M6/JA4DPL via JA4DPL    GB65ISWL via G6XOU          RT4F via RK4FWX
  A71EM via EA7FTR         GJ6UW via M0BLF             SO4M via SP4MPG
  CS2C via OK1RF           HB60LU via HB9DWL           ST2UOK via EA7FTR
  CS4ODX via CU3HY         IO5O via IK5RLP             SV8GKE via SV3DCX
  CT8/W1NN via W1NN        IR2R via IZ2EWR             T88CR via JA8CCL
  DA35HEB via DL4NWM       IS0/K7QB via IN3QBR         TL8ES via IK3GES
  DL/N2WB via N2OO         J6/W0MU via W0MU            TM4Q via F6FYA
  E70YL via E77E           J68HZ via K9HZ              TM4TLT via F4KIP
  EA8OM via DJ1OJ          JW7XM via LA7XM             TM6M via F4DXW
  ED7FCD via EA7URS        LU/DL3KZA via DL3KZA        UE70MB via RD3FI
  EG0FCD via EA7URS        LZ1363PTT via LZ1KZA        UP20BEW via UN7BEW
  EG2ISC via EA2VE         OH8X via OH2UA              UP20B via UN7BWA
  EH5DC via EA5KB          OH9TT via OH8MSM            UP20GW via UN9GW
  EM0RSE via UZ9RR         OL3Z via OK1HMP             UP20IT via UN7IT
  EM20UARL via UT7UT       OM3RRC via OM3CLS           UP20KAZ via UN7ECA
  EM20UU via US7UU         OM7M via OM3PA              UP20LU via UN9LU
  EN20UARL via UT5UIA      OR2A via ON1CB              UP20NR via UN7NR
  EO20HC via UT2HC         OX3LX via OZ1PIF            UP20N via UN7NFD
  EO20IGN via US7IGN       PI4DX via PD1DX             UV0I via UR5IFX
  ES5/YL2GQT via YL2GQT    PI9SRS via PD9RAY           VX3NOO via VE3NOO
  ES9C via ES5RY           PJ2/PA0VDV via PA0VDV       W2/CT1GIF via W2-Bureau
  EW6AF via DL8KAC         PJ2/WI9WI via WI9WI         XF1M via XE2HUQ

QSL MANAGER CHANGE. Buzz, NI5DX, reports that he has assumed the duties of QSL Manager for Abdulla, A71CV, whose previous manager (A71AN) is now a SK. Abdulla will soon send Buzz his logs and the two will work on the design of a new QSL card. Once the design is complete it will be sent to UX5UO for printing. This process could take as long as 6-8 weeks, so no cards should be expected from NI5DX until the cards are received from the printer.

QSL MANAGER CHANGE. Dick, W0RAA, originally reported that N1NK would handle the QSL Manager duties for J6/W0MU and the contest callsign of J6M which was used in the CQWW CW Contest this past weekend. That has changed and all QSL requests should go to Mike, W0MU, at his (QRZ.com) address.

QSL MANAGER CHANGE. Ralph, K2PF, reports that effective immediately, he is taking over QSL responsibilities from AA7V for VP2V/N3DXX. QSL direct only.

QSL RECEIVED VIA LoTW: 3DA0HC, CE2/VE7SV, CO8TW, D60VB, DP6T, FY5KE, G3NKC, HC2A, HK1N, IK7JWY, KH6LC, KH7X, KL8DX, NP2KW, OD5PY, PJ2T, PW7T, RG9A, SM2EKM, SQ5M, ST2AR, UN6P, VA7ST, VE6BBP, VE7AX, VK9CW, VK9CX, WL7E, XU7ACQ, YL2PP, YB1ALL and ZD8ZZ

QSLS RECEIVED VIA MAIL: 3A2LF, 3D2AD, 4U1ITU, 4W6A, 5R8NL, 5W1A, 5W8A, 8Q7EJ, 8R1EA, 9A2YM, 9Q50ON, A52PP, A71CT, AH0J, C31CT, DL2JRM/P, E51CG, EK6LP, EK6TA, ES5QD, FG4NN, FM5BH, FP/G3ZAY, GD4IHC, GM0GAV, GW3LEW, JA5AUC, JY6ZZ, LX8RTTY, M0TIX, MM0RAI/p, OD5NJ, PJ5/SP6IXF, RI1ANC, SV2ASP/A, TF3CW, TM5SM, UN8GV, V85TL, VK0KEV, VP2MSC, VP2MVX, VR2XMT and Z30U

QSLS RECEIVED VIA THE BUREAU: 5R8VB, 7P8VB, 7Q7VB, 8Q7DV, 9J2VB, 9U0VB, 9X0VB, DR1A, ER6A, HH2/OH2TA,SN3R, SN3X, TM89YON, TO5T, TX1B, V85/UA4WHX, YB41AR, YE8S, YE9FCCC, Z2/UA4WHX and Z23MS

V3, BELIZE
Guenter, DL2AYK, will be active as V31YK from Belize between February 27th and March 11th, 2012. Activity will be on 80-10 meters, possibly 6 meters, using CW, SSB, RTTY and possibly some PSK31. He also plans to be active in the ARRL DX SSB Contest (March 3-4th) as a Single-Op entry. QSL via his home callsign, direct or by the Bureau.

V6, MICRONESIA
Operators Chip/K7JA and his XYL Janet/KL7MF will be active as V63RR and V63QQ, respectively, from Pohnpei Island (OC-010) between December 5-2th. Activity will be strictly holiday style on 20-6 meters. QSL via K7JA.

VK, AUSTRALIA
Tino, VK3EGN, will be active in the CQ 160-Meter CW Contest (January 27-29th) as a Single-Op entry. He states that he will be using a 3 element vertical HW beam (kite lifted) antenna from Ocean Grove Beach. QSL via VK3EGN to the Bureau.

W6, UNITED STATES (Special Event)
Mark, KM6HB, in conjunction with the Anaheim Police Radio Club (W6APD), will operate as W6W from December 8-11th. This special event will commemorate the 70th anniversary of the heroic Marine Corp stand at the battle for Wake Island in the early days of World War II. Please know that W6W will be operating form the Southern California area and does not count as KH9. A picture QSL card will be available. No certificate is being offered. Operating frequencies will be 80-10 meters in the general portions of the bands. More information is available at (QRZ.com)QRZ.com under W6W. QSL via KM6HB: Mark McMullen, P.O. Box 27271, Santa Ana, California 92799.

XV, VIETNAM
Yan, XV4Y (ex-XV4TUJ), located in Mekong delta (south of Vietnam), informs OPDX that "conditions on 80m have greatly improved and in the last days good DX results showed my setup is not that bad." Yan states, "During my spare time this winter (high season for work here) I will focus on 80m CW mainly to Japan, Pacific and North America around 1400z. Family life and work does not allow me good operating time to Europe (early morning here). Many stations are active from Viet-Nam this winter and that is good news. However few are present on low bands. People who want to try work XV on 80m could follow my twitter account (XV4Y) where I announce my DX schedule. QSL via OK1DOT, LoTW and eQSL." Yan's Twitter and Web page can be found at:

YN, NICARAGUA
Jeff, N6GQ, will once again be active as YN2AA from Grenada, Nicaragua. He informs OPDX that he will be there a few days before the ARRL DX SSB Contest (March 3-4th, 2012). Activity will be on 160-10 meters, possibly 6 meters EME (maybe 2m too). Jeff will use a K3 radio and 1 KW amp into the following antennas: a Tribander, 2 element 40m beam, wires and beverages for 80/160m. QSL via NN3W, by the Bureau or direct. U.S. stations, please send SASE; DX stations, please send SAE with GS or IRC. Bureau service will take time. Logs will also be uploaded to LoTW.

PLEASE NOTICE (as of February 12, 2007), NEW ADDRESS CHANGES FOR THE OPDX INTERNET HELP/SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE REQUEST:

Help: opdx-request@barf80.org Subject:help
Subscribe: opdx-request@barf80.org Subject:subscribe
Unsubscribe: opdx-request@barf80.org Subject:unsubscribe

OPDX WORLD-WIDE WEB HOME (provided by John, K8YSE (k8yse@papays.com):
http://www.papays.com/opdx.html

ALSO VISIT THE NORTERN OHIO DX ASSOCIATION'S WEB HOME PAGE:
http://www.papays.com/nodxa.html