Kure-Osity #4 7 September 2005 by H. Ward Silver, NØAX ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) K7C Team Member
K7C Web site: http://www.cordell.org/htdocs/KURE/ Working and QSLing the Expedition Team members are converging on Honolulu to complete preparations and sail for Kure on the 15th of September. Captain Bill Austin is preparing the Machias to be our home away from home for the next month and local kahunas Kimo KH7U and Pat NH6UY are doing yeoman service in handling gear and shipping chores. For example, to prevent importation of invasive species to Kure, new clothing is required and all supplies will be deep frozen before shipping! To do my part, I've purchased the world's ugliest tennis shoes just for the island and you'll no doubt seen my colorful apparel in several photos. Now, the important part - working the Expedition. For those DXers located around the Pacific Rim, we ask your forbearance and patience as we take advantage of any openings to the other side of the world. Kure is very rare in Europe and the propagation path takes us directly over the North Pole and through the auroral zone. If the propagation gods smile upon us, we will be able to put many EU call signs in the log, but only if our friends closer to Kure give them a chance. The same goes for the various regions of North America - be disciplined and stand by when requested. While you are listening for Kure, also take some time to listen to the NCDXF beacon system's outpost in Honolulu, KH6WO. (The system is described at www.ncdxf.org/beacons.html) If you can hear that beacon, you can probably hear us and maybe we can hear you. We will be particularly interested in reports from the US, SA, and JA of 10- and 12-meter beacon reception. From EU, reception reports on 17-meters and up will be of interest. You can contribute those reports through our relay stations listed on the Web site and in the previous Kure- Osity Bulletin. Our first goal will be to give as many different DXers a contact with the island and that may mean focusing on the one or two most reliable bands for the first few days. Later in the expedition, we'll try to explore openings on more marginal bands. Pay close attention to the DXA Web site and to the K7C operators instructions and bulletins. Because we are at the bottom of the sunspot cycle, we won't have the luxury of big openings on any band we choose. Be alert and don't depend on the spotting networks to lead you to us - keep that Big Knob turning! Speaking of DXA, the K7C expedition will aim for the highest standards of logging accuracy, even under trying conditions of personal or ionospheric circumstance, but don't presume that if the call sign is "close" you'll get a card. Use the band-mode status display on the DXA Web site (www.cordell.org/DXA) to confirm that your call is in the log. If it is, don't make "insurance QSOs", depriving some other DXer of their contact. Make sure that your clock and calendar are set properly to avoid time and date errors on your QSL. The mark of a good DXer is accurate logging and QSLing - after all, are we radio operators or computer screen watchers? If possible, I will file one more bulletin before the Machias shoves off from the pier and we begin our adventure. All is well, and we hope to be QRV on schedule from the oldest and furthest of the Hawaiian Islands, setting your imaginations and S-meter needles jumping! The NJDXA is a proud sponsor of the K7C DXpedition Additional information can be found at: http://www.cordell.org/htdocs/KURE/index.html ---------------------------------------------------------- Archives http://www.mail-archive.com/dx-news@njdxa.org THE DXR is sponsored by the North Jersey DX Association. Please visit our website: http://www.njdxa.org/index.php scroll to bottom for subscribe/unsubscribe options ----------------------------------------------------------
