Ham radio operators needed for Jan Mayen DXpedition

Stan, SQ8X, announced that a team of 8-9 individuals (5-6 hams) are planning to visit the Island of Jan Mayen between July 4-14th, 2011.

This will not only be a DXpedition, but the team will have an unique opportunity to climb "Beerenberg" - an active strato-volcano (2275m) as well as a chance to visit many interesting sites on the island.

The team will depart from the Island of Iceland by a 60 ft. comfortable yacht. Sailing to the Island of Jan Mayen takes approx. 2-3 days depending on sea conditions. The team will spend 6-7 days on the island depending of WX.

They will have 2-3 stations on the air utilizing rather smaller
transceivers like IC-706, (maybe 756 PRO III) and verticals (or one multi-band beam + verticals).

Stan states, "Since we will be there during summer time, and due to the location over 70°N, we will probably not be able to operate on 160-40 meters as bands will probably be useless at that time. 30m may be open, but it can be tough due to auroral influences/pressure up there.
The best openings may occur on 20-15 meters.
If we have higher SSN, 12-10 may be workable, too. Keep in mind that if any stronger geomagnetic disturbances occur, all bands will be totally D.E.A.D."

A generator will be used and possibly small amps, but it all
depends on their budget.

The island is still very rare on CW and RTTY, and especially outside of Europe. So one station will be on CW and RTTY,
while the other is on SSB. The team can be split into 2 teams: one operates while the other one visits the island and then swap.

Stan mentions, "Climbing the volcano is quite challenging. Getting to the top of the volcano takes 10-12 hours. The rest of the places to see are easy to access and not that challenging. But the volcano is the best attraction to see!"

If interested in joing the team, E-mail Stan for more details at: stan.sq8x@gmail.com

OPDX