Daily QSL Special - Antarctica

Oleg, UA1PBA , scientist from Russia, was operating amateur radio from the Argentine Antarctic Teniente Jubany Base. The location was in the Potter Bay on King George Island on the South Shetland Islands. At this research station working scientists from Argentina and guest scientists from several countries.
The QSL received via RK1PWA over the DARC-bureau. Oleg operated on 20, 30 and 40 meter band in telegraphie....CW.

King George Island has much different names. In Argentina: Isla 25 de Mayo, Chile: Isla Rey Jorge, Russian historical name: Waterloo. She is the largest of the South Shetland Islands, situated at 120 kilometers off the coast of Antarctica in the Southern Ocean. The Island was named after King George III(King of Great Britain).
Several countries maintain research stations on the Islands. Most of them are situated on King George Island, benefitting from the airfield of the Chilean base Eduardo Frei.
There are sixteen research stations to date in different parts of the islands, with Chilean stations being the greatest in number. Research is often a shared duty of nations, with Chilean-American Shirreff Base being an example of this.

The Station was erected in 1982, and has an average winter population of 20 people. The Teniente Jubany Research base has 15 buildings, two laboratories and a movie theater.
73 de Gerd DL5AWI

The station R1ANN was operated by Vladimir Banishevskiy (RU3HD) at the 50th Russian Antarctic Expedition.

The Novolazarevskaya station is located at the extreme southeastern tip of the Schirmacher Oasis approximately in 80 km from the Lazarev Sea coast. An ice shelf with a slightly undulating surface resting against an ice cap extends north of the station in the vicinity of Leningradsky Bay. From the south is a continental ice sheet slope. Novolazarevskaya has an airstrip that serves both research-related and commercial flights.

There are up to 180 lakes in the Oasis. The ice cover on the lakes typically persists in summer melting however on some lakes.

The base coordinates are 70°46’04” S and 11°49’54” E. The elevation above sea level is 102 m.

The warming influence of the Oasis is expressed in a growing air temperature. The average annual temperature is equal to  -11.0° and higher than at the nearest coastal stations. The average temperature oscillations from year-to-year are insignificant, within 1°.

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is the southernmost continually inhabited place on the planet. Its name honors Roald Amundsen who reached the South Pole in December 1911, and Robert F. Scott who reached the South Pole the following month.

The Base was constructed in November 1956 and has been continuously occupied since then. It currently lies within 100 meters of the Geographic South Pole.

The station has a runway for aircraft 3658 m /12000 ft long. Between October and February, there are several flights per day from McMurdo station to supply the base.

Research at the station includes glaciology, geophysics, meteorology, upper atmosphere physics, astronomy, astrophysics, and biomedical studies. Most of the scientists work in low-frequency astronomy; the low temperature and low moisture content of the polar air, combined with the altitude of over 2743 m (9,000 ft), causes the air to be far more transparent on some frequencies than is typical elsewhere, and the months of darkness permit sensitive equipment to run constantly.

There is a small greenhouse at the station. This is the only source of fresh fruit and vegetables during the winter time.

Nowadays the team has satellite phone hookups plus voice-over-IP (VoIP, or "internet phone calls") from Pole when the satellites permit, but once upon a time Ham Radio was the only way to talk to the folks at home and with other research stations in Antarctica.

The QSL card shows the SPSDL (South Pole Satellite Data Link) antenna dome, which was erected in the middle of the '80's.