The Ohio/Penn Dx PacketCluster
DX Bulletin No. 1494
BID: $OPDX.1494
December 14, 2020
Editor Tedd Mirgliotta, KB8NW
Provided by BARF80.ORG (Cleveland, Ohio)
Written/Sent from Strongsville, Ohio
Thanks to the Northern Ohio Amateur Radio Society, Northern Ohio DX Association, Ohio/Penn PacketCluster Network, the AB5K's AR Cluster Networks, NJ1Q & W1AW, NG3K & ADXO, W3UR & The Daily DX, W5JON, K8YSE, W8GEX & 60m DX News, DL1SBF, DL7UXG & The DX News Letter, DXNews.com, DX-World.Net, F6AJA & Les Nouvelles DX, I1JQJ/IK1ADH & 425 DX News, Sixitalia Weekly and VA3RJ & ICPO for the following DX information. DXCC COUNTRY/ENTITY REPORT: According to the AR-Cluster Network for the week of Sunday, 6th/December, through Sunday, 13th/December there were 212 countries active. Countries available: 3A, 3B8, 3D2, 3DA, 3W, 4J, 4L, 4O, 4S, 4U1U, 4X, 5B, 5H, 5R, 5T, 5V, 5X, 5Z, 6W, 6Y, 7Q, 7X, 8P, 8Q, 9A, 9G, 9H, 9J, 9K, 9M2, 9M6, 9V, 9Y, A3, A4, A6, A7, A9, AP, BV, BY, C3, C6, CE, CE0Y, CE9, CM, CN, CP, CT, CT3, CU, CX, D2, D4, DL, DU, E4, E5/n, E5/s, E6, E7, EA, EA6, EA8, EA9, EI, EK, EL, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU, EX, EY, F, FG, FK, FM, FO, FR, FS, FY, G, GD, GI, GJ, GM, GU, GW, HA, HB, HB0, HC, HI, HK, HK0/a, HL, HP, HR, HS, HV, HZ, I, IS, J3, J6, J7, J8, JA, JD/o, JT, JW, JX, 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, P4, PA, PJ2, PJ4, PY, PZ, S0, S2, S5, S7, SM, SP, ST, SU, SV, SV5, SV9, T5, T7, T8, TA, TF, TG, TI, TK, TR, TT, TZ, UA, UA2, UA9, UK, UN, UR, V3, V5, V7, V8, VE, VK, VP2E, VP2M, VP6, VP8, VQ9, VR, VU, XE, XU, XW, XX9, YA, YB, YI, YJ, YL, YN, YO, YS, YU, YV, Z2, Z3, Z6, Z8, ZA, ZB, ZD7, ZF, 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". 4S/70, SRI LANKA (Special Event). Radio Society of Sri Lanka (RSSL), IARU's Representative for Sri Lanka, has requested the TRCSL (Tele- communications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka) the suffix /70 to be used in the month of December 2020 to celebrate 70th anniversary of the RSSL. Therefore all Sri Lankan radio amateur operators are authorized to use 4S5xxx/70, 4S6xxx/70 4S7xxx/70 and any two letter callsign users can also use the /70. The original Radio Society of Ceylon was founded in 1950 and later became the Radio Society of Sri Lanka with the change of name of the country. For more details and updates, see the RSSL Web page at: http://www.rssl.lk 4X/4Z, ISRAEL (Reminder/Special Event). During the week of Chanukah cele- brations, special Israeli radio amateur stations will be active on the air with a special callsigns ending in letters from the word "Chanukah", (4X1C, 4X2H, 4Z3A, 4X4N, 4X5U, 4X6K, 4Z7A, 4X8H and 4X0NER). "Ner" means candle in Hebrew. The number in the callsign indicates the number of the candles lit that day. Activity began on the evening of December 10th where the first candle was lit on (1400 UTC). The special event stations will operate for 9 days in row and new special event stations will join the activity every day on Chanukah Holiday until the close of the event on December 19th (2159 UTC). Special event stations will be activated as follows; on the evening of (*already happened): *December 10th -- From the historical city of Hashmonaim when the 1st candle of the Chanukah Holiday will be lit on; the event activity will start with the 4X1C crew. *December 11th -- From the city of Haifa when the 2nd candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4X2H crew. *December 12th -- From the city of Tel Aviv when the 3rd candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4Z3A crew. *December 13th -- From the city of Netanya when the 4th candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4X4N crew. December 14th -- From the city of Beer Sheva when the 5th candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4X5U crew. December 15th -- From the city of Kiryat Shmona when the 6th candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4X6K crew. December 16th -- From the city of Ashkelon when the 7th candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4Z7A crew. December 17th -- From the city of Jerusalem when the 8th and the last candle will be lit on; the activity will start with the 4X8H crew. The crew of the station 4X0NER will be active every day during the 9 days of activity and will be used as Joker for the missing letters. Important: All the new and previous day's event stations (letters) will continue to be active on the air to the end of operation on the 19th of December (2159 UTC). Activity will be on all radio amateur bands, WARC and the QO-100 Satellite using all modes. A special award will be available. The eligibility for a special certificate "Chanukah-2020" is as specified: * For Israeli amateurs: 1 QSO with all the 8 special event stations (letters). Any band or mode. Contact with the special 4X0NER call- sign is a replacement for a missing letter (only once). * For European amateurs: 1 QSO with all 8 special event stations (letters). Any band or mode. Contact with the special 4X0NER call- sign is a replacement for a missing letter (can be used twice). * For amateurs outside Europe: to contact only 4 of 8 special event stations (letters). Any band or mode. Contact with the special 4X0NER callsign is a replacement for a missing letter (can be used twice). The special certificates will be available for download independently from the Israeli Amateur Radio Club (IARC) Web site at: https://www.iarc.org/iarc/ The certificates will be digital in PDF format and not numbered. QSL Manager: Paper cards-Slava, 4Z5MU. All contacts will be uploaded on LoTW after the end of activity. Amateurs in Israel and around the World are kindly asked to send them pictures with Menorah's in their own city of residence! Special prize for the winning picture! E-mail pictures to: 4z4kxx@gmail.com 5T, MAURITANIA (Update). Tom, DL7BO, is now active as 5T7OO from Mauritania for 10 days (December 10-20th). He arrived in Nouakchott on December 9th, however his luggage and an antenna mast did not arrive which delayed his operation by one day. Activity is expected to be on 40-10 meters, possibly 160-80 later, using CW, SSB, RTTY and FT8. As this was being written, Tom was active on 40/17/15 meters FT8. QSL via DJ6TF, direct or by the Bureau. The log will be uploaded to LoTW and possibly ClubLog later. 5Z4, KENYA. Cato, LA9PF, will once again be active as 5Z4/LA9PF from Malindi for 2-3 months, sometime between January and May, and possibly between October and December. Activity is mainly on SSB and the Digital modes, with some CW. His equipment in 5Z4-land is an IC-7200 with a 300 watt PA, with either a 3 element beam at 9 meters or vertical loop, or horizontal 70m no-resonant loop. He states, "Give me a shout on Skype for a sked at: LA9PF-cato. QSL only direct to: Cato B. De Savigny, POB 5642 Malindi, 80200 Malindi, Kenya. 7S60, SWEDEN (Special Event). Members of the Kristianstad Radioamateur Club (SK7BQ) will activate special event station 7S60BW throughout 2021. Activity is to celebrate 60th anniversary of their radio club. QSL via SM7BHM. 8Q, MALDIVES (Update). Nobby, G0VJG, will once again be active as 8Q7CQ (now confirmed) between January 14-29th. Operations this time will be from Reethi Faru, Filaidhoo Island (AS-013). Activity will be on 80-10 meters (possibly 60m) using SSB and the Digital modes. His equipment will be a FT-450D with a 400 watt amp into a small 6m beam, Butternut vertical for the HF bands and possibly a 3 element tri-bander. QSL via M0OXO OQRS, direct or ClubLog's OQRS. AO50, SPAIN (Special Event). Members of the Escola d'Enginyeria de Tele- comunicació i Aeroespacial de Castelldefels (EETAC), along with the col- laboration of the Territorial Council URE Catalunya, will activate the special callsign AO50UPC from Castelldefels, Spain, between December 15-30th. Activity is to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (Polytechnic University of Catalonia). Operations will be on all authorized bands using CW, SSB, EME and the satellites. Trophies and three different awards are available for download at: http://50aniversario-upc.dxfun.com For complete details, see their QRZ.com page. DR165, GERMANY (Special Event). Members of the DARC OV Mainz K07 club will activate the special event station DR165TESLA throughout 2021 to celebrate the 165th birthday of Nikola Tesla. QSL via DK8ZZ. GB100, ENGLAND (Special Event). Members of Hull and District Amateur Radio Society (HADARS) will be active as GB1OOH (GOLF BRAVO ONE OSCAR OSCAR HOTEL) from Hull starting January 1st throughout the new year in 2021. The special callsign will be activated from multiple QTHs, and be on all HF bands plus VHF and UHF. Activity is to celebrate 100th anni- versary of the HADARS. QSL via M0GPN. HF2021, POLAND (Special Event). Members of the Klub Krótkofalowców "Enigma" (SP2PBM) will activate special event station HF2021HY from Bydgoszcz between December 19th, 2020, and January 10th, 2021, to celebrate the New Year. QSL via SP2PBM by the Bureau, Clublog's OQRS (Bureau/direct) or LoTW. HZ18, SAUDI ARABIA (Special Event). The Saudi Amateur Radio Society (SARS) in coordination with the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) and the Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC) will celebrate the 18th anniversary of the launch of the Saudi satellite 1C SO-50 in December 2002. The Saudi satellite 1C SO-50 is still working to this moment, breaking all expectations due to the quality of the tech- nology made with it and how it works. A special callsign, HZ18SAT, will be active between December 17-27th. QSOs will be on the Saudi satellite SO-50 only (145.800 MHz uplink, 436.795 MHz downlink). For more details, see QRZ.com. IOTA NEWS. The following are IOTA operations that were active this past week between December 7-12th (as per the DXCluster): IOTA Callsign Island/GROUP Bands/Modes ------ ---------- ------------- ------------ AF-004 EA8AM CANARY 20m; SSB AF-004 EA8TL CANARY 15/12m; CW/FT8 AF-018 IH9YMC PANTELLERIA 160/40m; CW AF-022 ZD7FT ST HELENA 20m; SSB AS-004 5B4AOW CYPRUS 160m; AS-007 JH1HDT HONSHU 40m; CW AS-007 JH3NGD HONSHU 40m; SSB AS-007 JH7MQD HONSHU 40m; SSB AS-007 JJ2PIK HONSHU 30m; FT8 AS-017 JR6FC OKINAWA 15m; FT8 AS-045 HL5FUA Ullung 40m; SSB/FT8 AS-117 JA3AOP HONSHU'S COASTAL ISLANDS WEST 20m; SSB AS-206 JR7AMZ HONSHU'S COASTAL ISLANDS EAST 80m; FT8 EU-003 CS8ABF EASTERN 12m; FT8 EU-004 EA6AGA BALEARIC 15m; CW EU-005 G4WQI GREAT BRITAIN 40m; CW EU-005 M0DXT/P GREAT BRITAIN 40m; SSB EU-012 MM5AJN/M SHETLAND 20m; SSB EU-014 TK5IH CORSICA 15m; FT8 EU-015 SV9RGI CRETE 20m; SSB EU-021 TF2MSN ICELAND 17m; SSB EU-025 IT9HRL SICILY 40/20m; SSB EU-025 IT9JAV SICILY 40m; SSB EU-025 IU0FBK SICILY 20m; SSB EU-026 JW7QIA Spitsbergen 160/80/40m; SSB/FT8 EU-031 IC8HRG CAMPANIA REGION 15m; SSB EU-115 EI2KC IRELAND 17m; FT8 EU-115 EI5EM IRELAND 20m; CW EU-115 GI0LDI IRELAND 20m; CW EU-115 MI0GTA IRELAND 30m; FT8 EU-115 MI0SAI IRELAND 15m; SSB EU-131 IK3PQH/P VENETO REGION 20m; SSB EU-143 EA7HPM CADIZ/HUELVA PROVINCE 15m; SSB NA-016 ZF2CH CAYMAN 40m; SSB NA-022 VP2ETE ANGUILLA 15m; FT8 NA-026 KA2ABA NEW YORK STATE 17m; SSB NA-027 VO1AA NEWFOUNDLAND 20m; SSB NA-096 HI8MDQ HISPANIOLA 15m; FT8 NA-102 FG5GP GUADELOUPE 40m; FT8 NA-106 KP2AD VIRGIN 80m; SSB NA-112 N8EU NORTH CAROLINA STATE WEST 40m; OC-001 VK2GJC Australia 20m; SSB OC-001 VK2OWD Australia 15m; SSB OC-001 VK3VM Australia 17m; FT8 OC-026 KH2L GUAM 30m; FT8 OC-032 FK4RD NEW CALEDONIA 17m; SSB OC-034 YB9YBB NEW GUINEA 30m; FT8 OC-042 4I1EBD LUZON 20m; SSB OC-042 DV3CEP LUZON 20m; FT8 OC-073 JF7MTO/JD1 MINAMI TORISHIMA 40/20/15/10m; SSB/FT8 OC-086 KH0W NORTHERN MARIANA 15m; CW OC-150 7C9T TENGGARA BARAT 40/20m; FT8 OC-150 7C9B Sumbawa 12m; FT8 SA-002 VP8LP FALKLAND 10m; FT8 SA-011 9Z4FE TRINIDAD 17m; SSB SA-011 9Z4Y TRINIDAD 15m; CW SA-036 P41E ARUBA 20m; FT8 SA-055 LU7EHR/E Martin Garcia 40/15m; SSB/FT8 ** Thanks to the individuals who put the island/group and mode on their QSNs on their PacketCluster reports. The format we suggest is "IOTA#/Mode/Island or Group" (ex. OC-146/FT8/Celebes). AF-045. A group of Senegalese operators, who were expected to be active as 6V1A from Goree Island between December 18-20th, have postponed their operation due to the Convid-19 pandemic. AS-117. Kenji, JA4GXS, will be active as JA4GXS/4 from Otsu Island between December 25-26th. Activity will be on 40/30/20 meters using CW, SSB and FT8. QSL via his home callsign. AS-152. (Update) Members of the Arctic Legends Team (RT9K), who plan to be active as RI0Q from Bolshoj Begichev Island sometime in early 2021, are looking for funds (15,000 USDs was mentioned) to conduct this operation. To achieve their goal to operate from Bolshoj Begichev Island, the team will have to travel 3624 km (by snowmobiles 1812 km*2). The latest info indicates that the team will start their snowmobile trip on March 10th, 2021, from Norway, and will start their RI0Q operation possibly on March 17th (depending on the weather). For more details, see OPDX.1480/1482 or: https://www.qrz.com/DB/RI0Q OC-236. Members of the ORARI of Polewali Mandar Tipalayo DX Club will be active as 7C8M from Gusung Toraja Island, in the Celebes Coastal Islands, between December 26-30th. Activity will be on various HF bands. QSL via YB8BRI direct. OC-298. There is another great article (with pictures) online of Cezar's, VE3LYC, DXpedition to Tatakoto Atoll as TX0T on the Clipperton DX Club Web site at: https://cdxc.org/infos/dx/recit-dexpedition-tx0t-atoll-de-tatakoto-oc-298 PLEASE NOTE: Since the Webmasters of the newhave decided NOT to post or dedicate a Web page to announce upcoming IOTA operations, PLEASE send your IOTA operations information to the OPDX, and we will post it here in an upcoming bulletin...... OJ0, MARKET REEF. Joseph, AD7D/OG7D, is planning on operating from Market Reef as OJ0D during the summer of 2021, primarily on QO-100 satellite. He will post more details of his schedule as it gets confirmed in the next few months. QSL via LoTW. ADDED NOTE: Joseph is also planning to operate as OG0D using the QO-100 satellite from the Aland Islands soon (possibly sometime in January 2021). Stay tuned for details. OPDX MAILING LIST (Just A Reminder). Details on how to subscribe and unsubscribe from the "OPDX Mailing List" are at the bottom of this bulletin. PLEASE pass the word around.... Thanks and 73 de Tedd KB8NW P.S. OUTLOOK users read below. PH20/PH21, THE NETHERLANDS (Special Event). Members of the Radio Scouting Fellowship of the PA3EFR/J-Plusscouts will activate two special callsigns: PH20XMAS - Between December 6th, 2020, until January 3rd, 2021 (owner PA3EFR) PH21HNY - Between December 10th, 2020, until January 31st, 2021 (owner PE2PVD) These callsigns will operate on all frequencies from different QTH's around The Netherlands. They hope to be able to work everyday on SSB and the Digital modes. PJ5, ST. EUSTATIUS. In the middle of his 2021 October trip to St. Kitts (V4) [see below], John, W5JON/V47JA, will be going to St. Eustatius between October 25th and November 1st, 2021, and be active as PJ5/W5JON. His radio equipment is a Yaesu FT-450D, Amplifier and dipoles. Activity will be on 40-6 meters using SSB and FT8, including an entry in the CQWW DX SSB Contest (October 30-31st). ALL QSLs go to W5JON direct or via LoTW. NO Bureau QSLs. PROPAGATION FORECAST/REPORT (December 14-20th)....... Dec/14th AN Dec/17th AN Dec/19th LN Dec/15th AN Dec/18th HN Dec/20th AN Dec/16th 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 Meanwhile, check out the following Web sites for propagation: * VOACAP predication Web page at: http://www.voacap.com/hf and http://www.voacap.com/prediction.html * DX.QSL.NET Propagation page: https://dx.qsl.net/propagation * A daily HF radio wave propagation forecast can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/thomasfranklingiellaw4hm * SolarHam Web page: http://www.solarham.net * Radio Propagation/Space Weather/Sunspot Cycle Information at: http://sunspotwatch.com * Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) & National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminisration (NOAA): https://www.swpc.noaa.gov https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/solar-cycle-progression * News and Information About The Sun-Earth Environment: https://www.spaceweather.com * Monthly propagation charts between four USA regions and twelve overseas locations are at: http://arrl.org/propagation * Information and tutorials on propagation are at: http://k9la.us * Graphic propagation tool by DR2W: http://www.dr2w.de/dx-propagation * Point to point propagation at: http://www.predtest.uk/p2p.html * Real-time propagation at: http://www.predtest.uk * Also on Twitter: https://twitter.com/@GiellaW4hm QSL INFO AND NEWS................... QSL-INFO from DB0SDX by Lothar, DL1SBF (www.qslinfo.eu) (December 13th) and by OPDX from other sources ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4E1FNS via EB7DX E7DX via E77E LZ105AJ via LZ1ZF 4L1AN via N4GNR EP3ASA via EA5GL LZ180SK via LZ2VP 4L8A via M0OXO FK8CE via N4GNR LZ50GU via LZ1GU 4U75UN via HB9BOU FK8GX via W3HNK OA9DVK via IZ6BRJ 7C9T via HA3JB FM4TI via EA5GL OD5YA via IZ8CLM 7X5NZ via EA7FTR FM5DN via KU9C OG60IPA via OH4MDY 8P6ET via KU9C HB15SOTA via HB9DPR & (L) OX/OZ4OZ/MM via OZ4OZ 9A0DIG via 9A3SM II1DCC via IK1RAE R30EMER via RW9QA 9H1XT via 9H1BT IO5CNPP via IZ5RHU R30MCHS via R4CR A41KJ via N4GNR J73CC via EA5GL S520SAFE via S56IPS A41NN via A61BK JW7QIA via LA7QIA S521PMC via S521PMC* C31CT via EA3QS KP2B via EA7FTR SP95IARU via SP7AH (O/L) CX4ACH via IK2DUW L50FV via LU3FV ST2NH via EA7FTR CX7CO via EA5GL L70M via LU9MAB VQ9T via DU7ET DP70DARC via DK5ON LY7Z via LY9Y YI1DYS via IK2DUW (e) eQSL only (d) direct only (B) Bureau only (*-B) DX's- Bureau (O) OQRS only (C) ClubLog only (L) LoTW only (N) No QSL needed (I) No IRC (P) PayPal (NB) No Bureau (n) no printed QSLs (*) They send via the Bureau - No QSL needed LOGS ONLINE (New/Updated) AVAILABLE ON CLUBLOG.ORG THIS WEEK...... https://clublog.org/logsearch/7Q7RU (Updated 12/12th) QSLS RECEIVED VIA LoTW: 2U0WZY, 9G5AR, 9N1CA, BG9NJY, C31MF, EA1I, EA9ACD, IS0KNG, JY5IB, LX1EA, OY5ET, PJ4/DL6KR, RU2K, S01WS, S79W, TF3SG, TX0T, VP2ETE, VP9NM and ZF1EJ QSLS RECEIVED VIA MAIL: 7H9H (OC-275), AD5A/P (NA-092), JH8SGR (AS-078), and VK4DX/P (OC-137) QSLS RECEIVED VIA THE BUREAU: NONE REPORTED THIS WEEK!!!! --- We would like to see more QSL Bureaus (such as AS/US/SA/AF.. etc) send in their info.... T6, AFGHANISTAN (Update). Robert, S53R, has been active from Kabul since early September 2019 and has been active as T6AA and T6A during major contests. However, Robert will be returning to his home in Slovenia for the holidays on December 15th. He is expected to return to Kabul in the first week of January to work for the World Food Program (WFP), and will continue to be there until the summer of 2021. Robert is still trying to fix the interference on the lower bands, for which he only made 3 QSOs on 160m. During the holidays, Robert will process all QSL requests he has received directly and via the OQRS. QSL via his home callsign or LoTW. V4, ST. KITTS. John, W5JON, will once again be active as V47JA from his Calypso Bay, St. Kitts, West Indies vacation home, located 200 feet from the Caribbean Sea, between October 16th and November 12th, 2021. Activity will be on 160-6 meters (incl. 60m) using SSB and FT8, with emphasis on 6m and 160m - FT8. Equipment is a Yaesu FT1000MP, FT450D and an Elecraft KPA500 Amplifier. John states his antennas are a Mosley Mini32A 10/15/20m, 33' Vertical 10-40m, 35' Top Loaded 80m Vertical, 160m Vertical and 6m 5 element Yagi. ALL QSLs go to W5JON direct or via LoTW. NO Bureau QSLs. ADDED NOTE: John will make a side trip to Saint Eustatius Island (PJ5). See PJ5 above. Z8, SOUTH SUDAN (Update). Diya, YI1DZ, is expected to return to Juba after his holiday on December 16th, and continues to be active as Z81D after the inspection at his workplaces (under the UN-WFP) and antennas. He should reappear on the bands before the end of this year. Activity will be on 80-10 meters (including 60m) using SSB and FT8. No CW. If the space con- ditions allow it, Diya will make a 160m antenna. QSL via OM3JW. All QSOs will be uploaded to QRZ.com, ClubLog, eQSL and LoTW.
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