• 3Y0I Bouvet Island DXpedition “Postponed, Not Canceled”

    From ARRL de WD1CKS@VERT/WLARB to QST on Wed Mar 27 23:53:21 2019
    03/27/2019

    The 3Y0I[1] DXpedition to Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) is off, at least for now. The skipper of the MV Atlantic Tuna determined it was not safe to continue its voyage to the remote Antarctic island after the vessel suffered some damage from severe storm conditions. The DXpedition had expected to arrive on the island on March 26 and be on the air by month's end.

    "The captain of the MV Atlantic Tuna had to [m]ake a difficult but responsible decision to take a course back to Cape Town, South Africa," a March 27 news release said[2]. "But the 3Y0I Expedition is not cancelled - we don't give up that easily." The DXpedition's press officer, Stan Strzyzewski, SP8S, said he'd had a "long conversation" with DXpedition leader Dom Grzyb, 3Z9DX, who reported that the seas had calmed enough to permit crew members to inspect damage caused by a "severe cyclonic storm" on March 26 when the vessel was some 70 nautical miles off Bouvet Island. The ship was hit by waves of more than 36 feet and winds exceeding 100 MPH.

    "The fierce oceanic forces swept past the upper deck, taking one of the radars, including VSAT, VHF, and HF marine antennas, off the mast and throwing them all overboard," Strzyzewski recounted. He stressed that all members of the DXpedition team are "fine, feeling OK, and safe."

    "With lack of the most important navigational tools, the captain declared it's not safe to navigate and they need to go back to Cape Town to secure all participants on board, their equipment, and the vessel's gear," Strzyzewski continued. "In addition, all forecasts for coming hours are not positive."

    Once back in Cape Town, the team will reassess its plans and decide whether to attempt a return voyage to Bouvet in April or to postpone the DXpedition for next season.







    Wind conditions near Bouvet Island. The black X indicates the approximate location of the MV Atlantic Tuna as of March 27 at 0630 UTC.








    [1] https://bouvetoya.org/
    [2] https://bouvetoya.org/3yoi-postponed/

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