--------------------------------------------
4 April 2005
Lat 42'49"S Long 88'13"E
South Indian Ocean
The 2005 Microlite DXpedition to The Kerguelen Islands is now history.
11.5 days of operating netted almost 68,000 QSOs using the callsign
FT5XO. The operators for this DXpedition were AG9A, GI0NWG, HB9ASZ,
M0DXR, N6MZ, N0TT, SP5XVY, VE3EJ, VK6DXI, W3WL, W7EW and 9V1YC.
In an effort to equitably cover the variety of openings, bands, and
modes available, the team actively reviewed the QSO stats each day and
adjusted the operating plan accordingly.
The final numbers are as follows:
CW: 45687 68%
SSB: 19903 29%
RTTY: 2358 3%
EME: 6
-------------
TOTAL: 67954
Band-Mode breakdown
Band CW SSB RTTY TOTAL
---------------------------------
160m: 1173 16 0 1189
80m: 3578 957 0 4535
40m: 9643 2774 160 12577
30m: 9683 0 616 10299
20m: 4012 4640 327 8979
17m: 5144 2168 497 7809
15m: 4485 3964 758 9207
12m: 4411 3499 0 7910
10m: 3558 1885 0 5443
6m EME: 6
Continental breakdown
---------------------
Europe: 53%
Japan: 21%
USA: 17%
Other Asia: 5%
All others: 1% or less each
The journey began in Durban, South Africa on the afternoon of March 9
aboard the R/V Braveheart. Kerguelen was reached on the morning of
March 19, and camp assembly was started that same afternoon. The
first QSOs began at about 0700 UTC on March 20.
The operation took place from an old abandoned whaling station at the
center of the island called Port Jeanne d'Arc, which is approximately
30km southwest from the French base at Port Aux Francais. The
operating site was close to the seashore with good take-offs in most
directions.
Antennas consisted of half-wave vertical dipoles for 20m and up,
quarter wave verticals for 30m and 40m (with 2 elevated radials each),
and two Battle Creek Specials for 80m and 160m. With the exception of
the Battle Creek Specials, all antennas were designed and built by
ZS4TX. Radios consisted of three Kenwood TS50s, a Yaesu FT897, an
ICOM 756 ProIII, and one Yaesu FT1000MP. We also had several small
amplifiers for the low bands.
Because we broke from tradition and chose the Austral mid-autumn for
this DXpedition we were able to take advantage of excellent 10 and 12
meter equinox openings which would have otherwise been impossible
during the Austral summer (when most of these types of Antarctic
DXpeditions usually take place). The drawback is that Kerguelen drops
far below the Antarctic convergence at this time of year bringing with
it a noticeably cooler and harsher climate.
The weather during our stay was typical for islands below the
convergence, with strong wind, rain, sleet and even heavy snow
alternating throughout the day. In fact, during the space of just one
hour the weather changed many times from calm and sunny to a 45 knot
howling blizzard. Winds could come from any direction, but the
prevailing trend was usually from the southwest.
Static from snowstorms often produced S9+40 noise, forcing us to
abruptly stop operations until it died down. The intensity of these
snowstorms also caused the antennas to develop kilovolts of static
voltage across the coax connectors (something we learned the hard way
when a large voltage spike from one of the antennas destroyed a power
supply and transceiver during an antenna switchover).
The last QSO was made at approximately 0200 UTC on 31 March. With
calm weather throughout the morning the teardown went smoothly and on
schedule. The ship is now on its way to Fremantle (Perth) Western
Australia and should arrive on the morning of April 11. The total sea
travel time for both legs of the journey is about 22 days. Operating
time was just over 11 days, which works out to a 2 to 1 ratio of
travel to operating.
We purposely advanced minimal publicity about this trip in the hope
that the chase would be more of a challenge. With good operating
skills combined with attentiveness to both propagation and band
openings it is our belief that FT5XO should have been available to all
who wanted a QSO. For our part, a great effort was made to work the
weakest of stations and cover as many openings as possible within our
limited time frame. Reading some of the feedback and looking at the
final QSO stats we stand firmly behind the belief that it is mainly
skill, not hardware, that makes a successful DXpedition. Small teams,
light gear and strong operators are the key. We hope that your call
made it into our log on at least one band.
With the extremely high expense and travel time necessary to reach
these remote Antarctic islands we wish to say thank you in advance for
all contributions sent with your QSL cards.
Special thanks to ZS5BBO and all the members of the Highway Amateur
Radio Club in Durban, South Africa who made our air to sea transit
exceptionally smooth. Thanks also to TAAF (Terres Australes et
Antarctiques Francaises) for their kind support for our adventure.
And finally, we would especially like to thank our sole organizational
sponsor, the Northern California DX Foundation. Their continued
support for DXpeditions to the far reaches of the world helps to keep
one of the most exciting aspects of amateur radio alive. Without the
NCDXF, this trip would not have been possible.
73, and see you on the bands.
The Microlite Penguins DXpedition Team
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