The Ohio/Penn Dx PacketCluster
DX Bulletin No. 1449
BID: $OPDX.1449
January 27, 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, K5GS, WB6RSE,
K8YSE, W8GEX & 60m DX News, DL1SBF, DL7UXG & The DX News Letter,
DXNews.com, DX-World.Net, F5NQL, F6AJA & Les Nouvelles DX, HP1AC,
I1JQJ/IK1ADH & 425 DX News, RN3RQ, Sixitalia Weekly, and VA3RJ & ICPO
for the following DX information.

** EDITOR'S SPECIAL NOTICE: This week's bulletin was sent out earlier
 than normal to accommodate the late CQ 160M CW Contest announcements.
 Also, we wanted to provide the readers with a consolidated listing
 of the CQ 160M CW Contest participants.

DXCC COUNTRY/ENTITY REPORT: According to the AR-Cluster Network for the
week of Friday, 17th/January, through Friday, 24th/January there were 205
countries active. Countries available: 3B8, 3D2, 3V, 3W, 4J, 4L, 4O, 4S,
4U1U, 4X, 5A, 5B, 5R, 5T, 5Z, 6W, 6Y, 7P, 7X, 8P, 9A, 9G, 9H, 9J, 9K, 9M2,
9M6, 9Q, 9V, 9Y, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A9, AP, BV, BY, C3, C5, C6, CE, CE9,
CM, CN, CP, CT, CT3, CU, CX, D2, DL, DU, E4, E5/s, E7, EA, EA6, EA8, EA9,
EI, EK, EL, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU, EX, EY, EZ, F, FG, FK, FM, FO, FR, FS, FY,
G, GD, GI, GJ, GM, GU, GW, HA, HB, HB0, HC, HH, HI, HK, HL, HP, HR, HS,
HV, HZ, I, IS, J3, J6, J7, J8, JA, JD/o, JT, JW, JX, JY, K, KH0, KH2, KH6,
KL, KP2, KP4, LA, LU, LX, LY, LZ, OA, OD, OE, OH, OK, OM, ON, OX, OY, OZ,
P4, PA, PJ2, PJ4, PJ7, PY, PZ, S0, S5, SM, SP, SU, SV, SV5, SV9, T30, T5,
T7, T8, TA, TF, TG, TI, TK, TR, TT, UA, UA2, UA9, UK, UN, UR, V3, V4, V5,
V7, V8, VE, VK, VK9N, VP2E, VP2M, VP5, VP8, VP9, VR, VU, XE, XW, XX9, XZ,
YA, YB, YI, YL, YN, YO, YS, YU, YV, Z3, Z6, Z8, ZA, ZB, ZD7, ZF, ZL, ZL7,
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".

3V, TUNISIA. Operator SWL Ashraf "Ash", 3V4-002 (KF5EYY), will be active
as 3V8SF from the Scout Radio Club of Sfax city club station during the
CQWW 160M CW Contest (January 24-26th) as a Single-Op/Low-Power entry.
QSL via LX1NO or LoTW. Read about Ashraf on the following Web page at:
 http://www.kf5eyy.info

6O, SOMALIA. Ali, EP3CQ, will once again be active as 6O1OO as of January
9th, until February 5th. Activity will be limited to his spare time
because he works for the UN Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) in
Mogadishu. Operations are on 160/80/40/30/20/17/15/10/6 meters (mostly
on 40/20 meters FT8) using CW, SSB and FT8. The 6O1OO station, currently
is the only active and licensed Amateur Radio Station in Somalia. Ali
informs OPDX that he posts updates on his QRZ.com page and is looking
for some equipment donations. He posted the following on his QRZ.com
page: "Due to the harsh weather conditions super (hot, humid, windy and,
salty) there is a necessity to change the equipment antennas, wires, UPS
and defect RF units (due to overheat), I need and rely on your donations
to keep the station running. Sponsors and equipment donors, please contact
me (EP3CQ) directly."
 REMINDER: Effective as of February 11, 2019, the callsign, 6O1OO, has
been accepted for DXCC credit. QSL direct to: Ali Solhjoo, Schnacken-
burgstr. 3, Berlin 12159, Germany. QSL cards will be replied to on a
bi-monthly basis. IRC's are not accepted. See QRZ.com for more info and
picture of his station. Flash news will be posted via Twitter: @ep3cq

BP0, TAIWAN. Members of the Amateur Radio Taipei (ART) will be active
from Taoyuan as BP0P during the CQWW WPX SSB Contest (March 28-29th)
as a Multi-2 entry. Operators mentioned are: Tang/BM2AAV, Eddie/BV2DD,
Evan/BV2KS and Jie/BV3UB. QSL via BP0P. QSL also OK via ART QSL Service.

C5, THE GAMBIA. Operators Bogdan/SP2FUD and Zenon/SP2GCJ are once again
active as C5FUD and C5GCJ, respectively, from Brufut, The Gambia, until
January 31st. Activity will be on 80-10 meters using CW, SSB and RTTY.
QSL C5FUD via SP2FUD. QSL C5GCJ via SP2GCJ.

C6, BAHAMAS (Reminder). Buddy, WB4OMG, is now active as C6AEI from the
Grand Bahama Island (NA-080) and plans to be in the CQWW DX 160m CW Con-
test (January 24-26th) as a Single-Op/Low-Power entry. Activity will last
until the 26th. QSL via his home callsign or LoTW.

EW, BELARUS. Operators Valery/EW6W, Misuno/EU6AF, Yakov/RT1M and Tony/RT9T
will be active as EW5A from the EW6W Postavy station during the CQ 160m
CW Contest (January 24-26th) as a Multi-Single entry. QSL via EW6W.

FJ, ST. BARTHEMELY. Operators Pat/N2IEN, Lee/WW2DX, Rock/WW1X and Ray/W2RE
will be active as FJ/N2IEN, FJ/WW2DX, FJ/WW1X and FJ/W2RE, respectively,
from St. Barthemely (NA-146) between February 15-22nd. Activity will be
holiday style on various HF (160-6m)/VHF/UHF bands using CW, SSB, RTTY
and satellites. QSL via their home callsigns. The group will also be in
the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16th). No other details available at
this time.

FK, NEW CALEDONIA. Mick, JS1KSU, is now active as FK/JS1KSU from Noumea
for only a few more days. Activity has been on 20/17 meters SSB. QSL via
his home callsign, direct or by the Bureau. To see picture and updates,
see: His blog: https://ameblo.jp/js1ksu
 His Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/minoru.kosuge.73

GU, GUERNSEY. Oleg, RL5D, will be active as MU2K during the CQ 160M CW
Contest (January 24-26th) as a Single-Op/Low-Power entry. QSL via GU8ITE.

IOTA NEWS..............
 AF-063. (Update) Members of Low Bands Contest Club (OM7M) will be
 active as 5H4WZ from Pemba Island, Tanzania, between February
 6-18th. Activity will be on 160-10 meters using CW, SSB, RTTY
 and FT8. Suggested frequencies are:
 CW - 1825.5, 3505, 7005, 10105, 14005, 18075, 21005, 24895
 and 28005 kHz
 SSB - 1855, 3790, 7130, 14255, 18130, 21230, 24950 and 28495 kHz
 RTTY - 3595, 7055, 10145, 14090, 18110, 21095, 24925 and 28088 kHz
 FT8 - 1844, 3578, 7078, 10140, 14080, 18105, 21090, 24920 and
 28080 kHz
 They will also take part in the ARRL DX CW Contest (February
 15-16th) and the CQ WPX RTTY Contest (February 8-9th). Equipment
 to be used are 2x K3 TCVR, 1xTS590 with 2xPA Expert 1K3 PA
 and Vertical antennas for HF bands. Updated list of operators
 mentioned are Lubo/OM5ZW (Team leader), YL Tami/OM5MF, Jozef/
 OM4AZF, Steve/OM5AA, Karel/OK2WM, Les/SP9LJD and Neno/9A5AN.
 Logs will be uploaded to ClubLog (https://clublog.org/charts/?c=5H4WZ).
 QSL via OM3PA. They now have a Web page at:
 http://om7m.org/dxpeditions/pemba

 NA-134. Bo, OZ1DJJ, is now active as OX3LX from Asiaat Island until
 January 31st. He states this is NOT a DXpedition, and the best
 chance to work him will be around lunchtime and after dinner
 (his local time UTC-2). Also during the weekend, possibly at
 night/morning. QSL via OZ0J direct (see QRZ.com). Logs get
 uploaded to LoTW, ClubLog and sometimes eQSL. For more details
 and updates, see: http://geronne.dk/index.php/ox3lx/ox3lx-dxped


 OC-120. Sadao, JA1PBV, will be active as DU1S from Cuyo Island, in the
 Philippines, starting January 24th, and returnig back to Japan
 on February 4th. Activity will be on 40-6 meters using CW and
 FT8. QSL via JA1PBV, direct or by the Bureau.

 OC-139. Grant, VK5GR, announced this past week that a small group of
 amateurs from Adelaide will activate Kangaroo Island, the
 largest island in the OC-139 group, as VK5KI between July
 22-28th. They will operate from a property near Emu Bay on
 the north coast of the island. This coincides with the RSGB
 IOTA Contest in 2020. The plans at this stage include operating
 on all bands from 160-10m, including as a Multi-2 station
 during the contest. Outside of the contest expect to see VK5KI
 on all HF bands and modes. A special bi-fold QSL card will
 also be produced for the activation which will be available
 via M0OXO's OQRS service. The logs will be available via Club-
 Log IOTA matching and LoTW once the direct QSL cards have been
 posted. For complete details and updates, see:
 https://vk5gr-iota.net
 
 PLEASE NOTE: Since the Webmasters of the new  have
 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......

P4, ARUBA. Mat, DL4MM, is once again active as P4/DL4MM from the P40L
Pos Chiquito contest station on Aruba (SA-036) until January 30th. He
will participate in the CQ 160m CW Contest (January 24-26th) as P40AA
and a Single-Op entry. Activity outside of the contest will be on CW,
SSB and FT8 with a focus on the lower bands. He will pay special attention
for EU, AS and JA. QSL via DL4MM direct or LoTW/Bureau (after 6 months).

P4, ARUBA. Steve, K3SW, will be active as P40SW from Aruba (SA-036) during
the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16th) as a Single-Op/Assisted/High-
Power entry. There will be limited operations outside the ARRL DX CW
Contest hours. QSL via LoTW, direct QSLs to K3SW are OK with 3 USDs for
postage, card and envelope. No bureau cards.

PJ4, BONAIRE. Scott, NE9U, will be active as PJ4/NE9U from the "PJ4G
Radio House" on Bonaire (SA-006, WLOTA LH-1279) between February 8-22nd.
Activity will include the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16th) with oper-
ators Dan/K1TO, Noah/K2NG and Ron/KK9K joining Scott as a Multi-2 entry
signing as PJ4A. QSL PJ4A (also LoTW) via K4BAI. QSL PJ4/NE9U via NE9U
or LoTW. ADDED NOTE: Usually the team of operators will all be active as
PJ4/homecall before and after the contest. Checkout the PJ4G Radio House
Web page at: http://www.pj4g.com

PROPAGATION FORECAST/REPORT (January 27th-February 2nd).......
 Jan/27th AN Jan/30th AN Feb/01st AN
 Jan/28th AN Jan/31st AN Feb/02nd AN
 Jan/29th 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
 * 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
 * Realtime 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) (January 24th)
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------
 3Z50DVP via SP6DVP & (L) DU6/N6SS via N6SS (d/L) S01WS via EA2JG (O)
 4O4T via YU1FW & (L) EA5/G4VZV/M via G4VZ SN100BY via SP2PBM (B/d/O)
 5B/AI4SV via AI4SV & (L) EA5U via EA5BB SO5CAL/P via SO5CAL (d/e)
 5B60ALJ via 5B4ALJ (O/L/d) EA6/OE6MBG via EB7DX SO90PZK via SP3PWL
 9K2BS via EC6DX IG9/S57DX via S57DX T40DXXE via CO8ZZ (d)
 A42K via EA5GL (d/L) J88HF via PA3C TI2CDA via EA5GL
 C5YK via ON7YK & (L) JT5DX via JT1CO (d) TM39PVJ via F8GGZ
 CP6LA via HA3JB (d) OR1Z via ON6IX (d/e) Z81D via OM3JW (O/L)
 CT9/DL5AXX via DL5AXX & (L) P40AA via DL4MM (O/L)

 (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

 LOGS ONLINE AT CLUBLOG.ORG THIS WEEK......
 https://clublog.org/logsearch/J68HZ
 https://clublog.org/logsearch/TU5PCT

 QSLS RECEIVED VIA LoTW: 7X7X, 9Y4DG, C21NH, CX9AU, E44RU, FM5AN, JA0FSB,
 JA2NDQ, JA4FSH, JA4LKB, JA7LXY, JA7QVI, JA9NFO, JA9PPC, JF2KOZ, JR1IZM,
 JR7VHZ, KH2L, OY9JD, PZ5RA, T30NH, TR8CA, UO5ON, VP5D and YO9HP

 QSLS RECEIVED VIA MAIL: FY0P, H5AQ, RD0B/P (AS-005), TT8SN, VK9CZ,
 ZD7BG, ZD7W and ZK3A (OC-048)

 QSLS RECEIVED VIA THE BUREAU: 5W0GC, LZ/LU1FAM, LZ117ML, LZ380PM,
 LZ430PPW, LZ815NI, VY2TT, XR201H, XR208A, XR208B, XR208C, XR208D
 and YJ0GC
 --- We would like to see more QSL Bureaus (such as AS/US/SA/AF.. etc)
 to send in their info....

SILENT KEY. It has been reported that Wayne M. McKenzie, K8LEE, became a
Silent Key (SK) from a rare type of blood cancer. He had been on several
DXpeditions including CY9C several times. In his last days he was still
actively working 6M meteor scatter. He was an SSIDXG member and helped
build antennas for VP8SSI and 3Y0PI. He was a DXer, VHFer and contester.
He set some VHF contest records in the 1970s and 1980s. His 6M beams were
impressive, says WA4JQS. Some of the DX calls he had been on the air with:
CY0AA, K8LEE/CY0, VP2MLE, VP2DX, C6DX, 5H3US, K8LEE/5H3, TI2AA, TI2A,
J6DX, J8DX, 40YDX, 4N6EE, TX5C, PJ2/K8LEE, PJ2T, W1AW/8, HI2DX, W1AW/9,
TI5/K8L33 and CY9C (2016).

V3, BELIZE. Victor, WB0TEV, will once again be active as V31VP from Black-
man Eddy between February 5-11th. Activity will be on 80-10 meters using
SSB, RTTY and FT8. He plans to be in the CQ WPX RTTY Contest (February
8-9th) as a Single-Op entry. QSL V31VP via WB0TEV, direct or by the Bureau.
If you miss him on this trip, he will return with Scott/K5PS (V31CQ) at
the end of March to be in the CQWW WPX SSB Contest (March 28-29th) as a
Multi-2 entry.

V7, MARSHALL ISLANDS. After passing through Chagos Islands [VQ9] (see
below), Randy, WW6RG, will be active as V73/WW6RG from Kwajalein Atoll
on February 4th. He hopes to be active from the KARC facility between
0400-0530z and 0630-0800z on 20 meters SSB with 100 watts. If not, his
activity will be with his QRP radio. QSL via WW6RG.

VP2M, MONSERRAT. A W1 U.S. team will be active as VP2MSS from Gingerbread
Hill, Montserrat (NA-103) during the ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16th)
as a Multi-Single entry. QSL via LoTW.

VP8PJ SOUTH ORKNEY ISLAND DXPEDITION NEWS (Press Release #10, dated
January 20th).[edited] South Orkney Islands DXpedition VP8PJ (AN-008) --
 Permits - Landing and camping at South Orkney requires permission from
 several government agencies. This multi step process takes months to
 complete. We recently received our final approval, the "Antarctic
 Conservation Act Permit" from the National Science Foundation. Other
 agencies in the process were: the US Department of State and the Environ-
 mental Protection Agency. We appreciate the cooperation and assistance
 we received from these agencies to complete and submit the detailed
 applications and other required documentation. 
 
 New Corporate Sponsor -- Joining the list of corporate sponsors is The
 DX Store, a supplier of quality products for the amateur radio market.

 Equipment Status -- After 8 weeks our sea container arrived in Punta
 Arenas, Chile on January 13, 2020.

 Operating Schedule -- The team will follow a rotating 4 hours on and
 8 hours off schedule. In their off-time they?ll catch up on sleep, per-
 form equipment/campsite maintenance, operate from positions available
 for roving operators, or (weather permitting) go back to Braveheart for
 a shower and hot meal.

 Island Assignments -- Each team member is assigned tasks while on the
 island. Major activities are prioritized and staffed accordingly. The
 Braveheart crew will help with the heavy lifting and other setup activ-
 ities. After landing, designated teams will first erect the WeatherPort
 shelters, install the power grid, and furnish the sleeping and operating
 shelters. Meanwhile the antenna teams will install the HF antennas,
 followed by the low band antennas. Weather permitting, setup is expected
 to take approximately two days. 

 Fundraising -- We appreciate the support from the worldwide DX and
 amateur radio community. With the addition of Japan?s Nara DX Associ-
 ation, The Spokane DX Association and W4DXCC By SEDCO Convention, we
 currently have fifty-two clubs/foundations signed on, over 500 indi-
 viduals and 60 Premier Sponsors who each donated $200(USD), or more.
 We continue to make progress towards our goal of the radio team paying
 50% of the project cost with sponsorships paying the remainder. Is your
 DX club listed on our website?

 Thanks for your continued interest and support of our project, we?ll
 publish one more press release before leaving home in early February.

 Good luck in the pileups.
 73, Team VP8PJ
 Website: https://sorkney.com/
 Please direct your questions to: info@sorkney.com

VQ9, CHAGOS ISLANDS. Randy, WW6RG, will once again be active as VQ9RA
from Diego Garcia (AF-006) starting January 30th, for a very short visit
(possibly one day). He suggests to look for him around 0430-0530z and
1000-1130z on 20 meters SSB with 5 watts. QSL via WW6RG.

W8S SWAINS ISLAND DXPEDITION NEWS (Update, dated January 20th) [edited].
The following is from the Swains Island DXpedition Web page:
 50 days to go....
 The preparations are part of the fun too. An amazing load of work is
done by all team members. Antennas, hardware, software, the camp set up,
medical well being, transportation, satellite connections, inter camp
communication, operating schedules, vaccinations to name just a few....
 Yesterday we had a video conference call between all international
team members to discuss the final loose ends. All lights are green.
 The European members will depart from Amsterdam and Frankfurt on Saturday,
March 7th. Flying through Singapore, New Zealand and Samoa to their neigh-
boring islands American Samoa. Our American members will depart the same
weekend to meet up in Pago Pago, American Samoa.
 The vessel Manu?Atele* will bring us to the Swains atoll. This will be
a 24 hour journey. Landing on the island will be done by smaller boats
 at high tide to minimize reef issues. A serious challenge. Think of all
the radio equipment, antenna materials, tents, generators, fuel and food
for two weeks. The ship will leave after landing. Hopefully picking the
team up again after 14 days.
 * https://swains2020.lldxt.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/MV.jpg
 For more details and updates, see: https://swains2020.lldxt.eu

ZF, CAYMAN ISLANDS. Operators Dan/N6MJ, John/K6AM, Tim/N6WIN and Bill/
W9KKN will be active as ZF1A on Grand Cayman Islands (NA-016) during the
ARRL DX CW Contest (February 15-16th) as a Multi-Single entry. Look
for activity outside of the contest on 160-10 meters including 30/17/12
meters. QSL via K6AM, direct, by the Bureau or LoTW.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 The following stations are expected to be active in the
 CQ 160 Meters CW Contest (January 24-26th, 2020)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Thanks to Bill, NG3K, for providing OPDX readers with the following
consolidated listing of the participants in the 2020 CQ 160 Meters CW Contest.
For a more detailed listing (and up-to-date changes/corrections) in HTML
format, please visit Bill's Web page at:
 https://www.ng3k.com/Misc/cq160c2020.html (By call sign)
 https://www.ng3k.com/Misc/cq160cd2020.html (By entity)
 
 The 2020 CQ World Wide 160-Meter Contest Web page and rules:
 https://www.cq160.com/rules.htm

------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Contest DXCC Class QSL
 Callsign Entity Route
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3V8SF Tunisia SO LP LoTW; QSL via LX1NO
4L2M Georgia SO HP EA7FTR
4X2M Israel MO 4X4DZ
7A2A Indonesia M/S LoTW
C6AEI Bahamas SO LoTW; QSL via WB4OMG
EW5A Belarus MO EW6W
HI3AA Dominican Republic SO LoTW; QSL via NK4DX
IR8W Italy MO LoTW
LX20I Luxembourg SO LX2A
MU2K Guernsey SO LP GU8ITE 
OZ5E Denmark MO OZ1ACB
P40AA Aruba SO DL4MM
PJ2T Curacao MO LoTW; QSL PJ2T via W3HNK
PJ4A Bonaire SOHP K4BAI
SP8R Poland MO LoTW 
TC0X Turkey MO HG5DX
UA7K Russia (Europe) MO LoTW
VO2AC Canada M/2 LoTW; QSL via VE3FU (B/d)
ZF5T Cayman Islands SO LoTW; QSL via K5GO (d)
ZP9MCE Paraguay SO ZP9MCE

 (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