TRANSPOLAR SKITREK PROGRESS REPORT #11: April 9, 1988 Prepared by Rich Ensign, N8IWJ, AMSAT Science Education Advisor For Use With The AMSAT Teachers Guide "Exploring The High Arctic From Your Classroom" Our report on the Amateur Radio Supported Transpolar Skitrek Expedition this week comes from the Soviet Union and was filed by Rick Burke, VO1SA, Portable UA0, to his Soviet friends as he left that country. Rick spent a month in the Soviet Arctic as Canadian representative to the communications team supporting the expedition. QST FROM VO1SA/UA0. MY NAME IS RICK. IT IS MY PLEASURE TO OPERATE FROM SREDNIY ISLAND. 79 DEG 33 MIN NORTH 90 DEG 13 MIN EAST. SREDNIY ISLAND IS PART OF (THE) SEVERNAYA ZEMLYA GROUP AND 627 NAUTICAL MILES FROM THE NORTH POLE. THIS SITE IS IN SUPPORT OF THE MOST NORTHERLY LARGE AIRPORT IN THE USSR. (THE) AMATEUR RADIO OPERATION FROM THIS LOCATION IS IN SUPPORT OF A JOINT CANADIAN USSR POLAR SKI TREK VIA THE NORTH POLE. 9 SOVIET AND 4 CANADIAN SKIERS MAKE UP THE MOVING GROUP. OTHER COMMUNICATION SITES LOCATED AT DIXON ISLAND/USSR, RESOLUTE BAY/CANADA AND NP28, AN ICE ISLAND NEAR THE NORTH POLE, SUPPORT THE THE PROJECT. THE AIM OF THE SKI TREK IS TO JOIN THE TWO COUNTRIES BY A WALK TO SHOW HOW CLOSE THEY ARE AND HOW MUCH THE TWO NATIONS HAVE IN COMMON. MY PRESENCE HERE WITH RECIPROCAL OPERATING PRIVILEGES IS PART OF A VERY HISTORIC EVENT FOR THE SOVIET UNION AND FOR AMATEUR RADIO WITH THE FOLLOWING FIRSTS: 1ST THIRD PARTY AND RECIPROCAL LICENSING AGREEMENTS BY THE USSR. 1ST FOREIGN AMATEUR TO OPERATE INSIDE THE SOVIET ARCTIC CIRCLE. 1ST EVER PHONE PATCH TO OUTSIDE THE USSR AND DONE BY A NON-SOVIET AMATEUR. (VO1SA/UA0 WITH VO1CU) OTHER FIRSTS BY A NON-SOVIET CITIZEN: PACKET (RADIO) QSO VO1SA-1 TO RA3APR. CW SATELLITE QSO VO1SA/UA0 WITH CI8CW. SSB SATELLITE QSO CI8CW AND VO1SA/UA0. MY THANKS TO A MASTER SATELLITE MAN FOR HIS PATIENT INSTRUCTIONS IN THAT FIELD, (LEONID LABUTIN) EX0CR/UA3CR. AERONAUTICAL MOBILE OPERATION BY A FOREIGN AMATEUR ONBOARD A SOVIET AIRCRAFT. APPROXIMATELY 40 SSB QSO'S MADE AS VO1SA/A.M. REGION 1 OVER SOVIET ARCTIC. MANY OTHER FIRSTS RECORDED BUT (THEY ARE) TOO NUMEROUS TO MENTION HERE. ON MARCH 29/88 I HAD THE PLEASURE OF ASSISTING IN THE PREPARATION OF, AND ATTENDING THE SECOND DROP TO THE SKI TREK. SKILLFUL FLYING BY THE AIRCRAFT CAPTAIN AND ACCURATE RELEASES BY THE DROP MASTER MADE FOR A VERY SUCCESSFUL AND EXCITING OPERATION. TEN PARACHUTE DESCENTS AND A FINAL LOW PASS OVER THE GROUP AND WE WERE CLIMBING TO 9000 METERS AND SETTING COURSE FOR SREDNIY ISLAND, THE AIRCRAFT EMPTY EXCEPT FOR A TELEVISION CREW AND US FEW PASSENGERS. MANY RADIO, TELEVISION AND PRESS INTERVIEWS (TOOK PLACE) IN THIS COUNTRY DURING MY STAY. THERE IS MUCH INTEREST IN THIS FOREIGN (CANADIAN) AMATEUR RADIO OPERATOR WORKING IN THEIR HIGH ARCTIC WITH THE SAME PRIVILEGES AS A SOVIET CITIZEN. AMATEUR RADIO PLAYED A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN SOME OF THESE STORIES AS TELEPHONE PATCHES WERE USED BETWEEN THE REPORTER AND THIS LOCATION. IT WAS MOST INTERESTING TO VISIT THE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ICE DRIFTING STATION (ICE ISLAND), NORTH POLE 28, ON APRIL 2/88. THE LOCATION OF 4K0DC, 4K0D AND FUTURE LOCATION OF 4K0DX. VE3CDX (BARRY GARRATT) WILL OPERATE THAT CALLSIGN FROM NP28 IN APRIL AND MAY OF 1988. AS I DEPART, THIS APRIL 3RD DATE, 1988, I LEAVE WITH MANY MIXED EMOTIONS. I AM GLAD TO BE RETURNING TO MY HOME AND WAY OF LIFE IN ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND BUT ALSO VERY SAD TO BE LEAVING THE MANY KIND GENEROUS PEOPLE WHO BEFRIENDED THIS ONE CANASKI, WHO SPEAKS LITTLE TO NONE OF THEIR LANGUAGE, AND MADE ME FEEL WELCOME AT ALL TIMES. I SINCERELY HOPE THIS PROJECT IS ONLY A BEGINNING OF MANY SUCH EVENTS IN THE FUTURE OF AMATEUR RADIO. GOODBYE DEAR FRIENDS. DOS VEE DAH' NYA. 73 VO1SA/UA0. On April 8th the skiers reached 87 degrees north latitude with the Pole only 330 km to the north. Their lightened packs along with moderating temperatures and good ice conditions have allowed them to make excellent progress of late. The third air drop is scheduled to take place on Wednesday April 13th. The "moving group" as the skiers are known will arrive at the North Pole on or about April 24th. They will be joined by a number of dignitaries and press from Canada and the Soviet Union who will fly in, weather permitting. Barry Garratt, 4K0DX, will also be travelling to the Pole from Ice Island North Pole 28. * * * * * * * * * A continuing series of Progress Reports like this one may be accessed via packet BBS, AMSAT Nets and the main educator source, the W0RPK AMSAT Bulletin Board on 515-961-3325. Progress Report #12 will be issued on April 16, 1988. TRANSPOLAR SKITREK / PROJECT NORDSKI COMM - SKI TEAM POSITION LOG ----------------------------------------------------------------- Daily reports are made by the team to communications support stations on Sredniy Island, USSR, Russian ice island North Pole 28 and Resolute Bay, Canada via amateur radio. These reports are relayed south at 1500z in the 20m amateur radio band on 14.125mHz USB. Reports are automatically taped at W0RPK and reduced to daily information notes for continuing logs. DAY/TIM UTC LATITUDE LONGITUDE REMARKS ----------- --------- --------- -------------------------------------------- 10Apr 11:37 87d32.6mN 93d29.5mE -30dC 272km to the pole everything ok 34km 09Apr 10:38 87d14.2mN 91d48.4mE 08Apr 11:55 87d00.2mN 91d03.5mE -28dC Best single day progress 37km 07Apr 10:08 86d40.6mN 92d38.6mE -28dC 600km total 369km to the pole 26km 06Apr 10:57 86d26.3mN 93d18.3mE -40dC Lots of ice everybody ok 27km 05Apr 11:01 86d12.4mN 92d07.2mE 421km to go to the pole 22km 04Apr 10:39 86d00.7mN 91d44.5mE -37dC 22km 03Apr 11:49 85d48.8mN 92d20.5mE -36dC Everybody ok 02Apr No position report 01Apr 11:12 85d23.2mN 93d40.0mE -37dC Slept in before starting 8km 31Mar No change 30Mar No change 29Mar 11:38 85d18.9mN 94d55.3mE -35dC 2nd air drop a success - stopped 24km 28Mar 10:26 85d07.1mN 95d17.4mE -38dC Open water a problem 12km 27Mar 10:48 85d00.1mN 95d31.5mE -45dC clear wind light good ice 31km 26Mar 12:15 84d43.1mN 95d50.5mE -42dC Clear wind NW 2-3mps 2days prog32.4km 25Mar No position report 24Mar 13:00 84d25.6mN 95d58.2mE -37dC wind 40km/hr snowstorm 0km 23Mar 13:00 84d28.9mN 96d12.4mE -33dC Strong head winds 20-40km/hr 15km 22Mar 13:02 84d19.0mN 97d02.9mE Everything good ice, temp, progress 28km 21Mar 13:00 84d03.5mN 97d40.4mE -39dC ice excellent few leads&hummocks 21km 20Mar 11:40 83d51.8mN 97d27.4mE -36dC wind 1-2mps good ice & spirits 26km 18Mar 13:00 83d37.9mN 97d21.7mE -31dC no wind or open water good cond 22km 17Mar 13:00 83d11.7mN 97d26.6mE -35dC SE wind 3-5meters/sec 24km 16Mar <1st air drop successful on 14MAR > 15Mar 13:00 82d58.7mN 97d28.9mE 14Mar <17Mar for R&R and experiments > 13Mar 11:16 82d52.2mN 97d19.8mE -42dC wind 3-4meters/sec 24km 12Mar No position report 25km 11Mar 11:36 82d28.8mN 97d13.0mE 10MAR 11:58 82d16.9mN 97d24.6mE -45dC 20km 09Mar 12:30 82d09.3mN 97d47.0mE -30dC 12km 08Mar No position report 20km 07Mar 12:23 81d56.6mN 97d15.1mE 17km 06Mar No significant progress - Open water - Very windy - camped early 0km 05Mar 12:44 81d35.8mN 96d52.4mE -21dC Snow wind 33meters/sec 14km 04Mar 11:13 81d32.3mN 97d 0.0mE -28dC 20km 03Mar 11:24 81d21.2mN 96d12.8mE 7km 03Mar 07:31 81d15.0mN 95d50.0mE Starting point on Cape Arktichesky