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3Y0K Bouvet

3Y0K Team will be active from Bouvet Island, IOTA AN - 002, in February - March 2026.
Team leader - LA7GIA.
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https://dxnews.com/forum/forum/dxing/56607-3y0k-bouvet-island-peter-i-island

3Y0K Bouvet Island News 13 March 2026 K3LR Video

For the first time ever, Tim, K3LR join Adrian, KO8SCA/3Y0K from Bouvet Island! This rare opportunity will give viewers an inside look at one of the most exciting DXpeditions in amateur radio. Adrian will share updates, experiences, and insights from the team operating from one of the most remote locations on Earth.

3Y0K Bouvet Island News 1 March 2026 2

3Y0K Bouvet

Qrv now 12m FT8 (24911). Earlier station on 20m was a Pirate.

Remember their FT8 policy, ''NO FT8 edits'' so make sure you the sequence is complete!
Charles M0OXO.

3Y0K Bouvet Island News 1 March 2026

Operations today (28 Feb 2026) on the Argus as equipment begins being transferred to Bouvet Island

Bouvet Island

The sub-Antarctic island of Bouvet, located in the Atlantic Ocean, was named after the French navigator Bouvet de Lozier, who quite by chance became its discoverer in the early 18th century. However, the island's location was recorded incorrectly at the time, and for this reason it was lost to humans for the next 60 years until 1898, when its correct coordinates were finally recorded.

The volcanic island of Bouvet is a small piece of land that owes its existence to several eruptions of the Olavtopppen volcano. The island is quite harsh and inhospitable and is not particularly popular with tourists. It has a mountainous terrain, and its steep slopes are covered with glaciers that descend to the coast, revealing small beaches with black lava sand. The rocky coastal part of the island is practically inaccessible from the sea. It is only possible to get here by helicopter or boat. It is dangerous to approach the ice cliffs even in calm weather.

This piece of land is a remote territory of Norway. The island is completely uninhabited, but despite the fact that people rarely visit it, its territory has had the status of a nature reserve since 1971. The total area of the island is just over 58 km², 93% of which is completely covered by glaciers. In the film Alien vs. Predator, the action takes place in a hypothetical underground labyrinth located beneath this remote, cold island.

3Y0K Bouvet Island

Bouvet Island. Author - EY8MM.

The mysterious discovery of an abandoned ship

Bouvet Island is surrounded by secrets and mysteries.

In the 1960s, a rather battered boat, partially buried in sedimentary rock, was discovered in a small lagoon near the island. It had no identifying marks and was guarded by a colony of aggressive elephant seals. At some distance from the boat, the remains of a pair of oars, a barrel for storing drinking water, and an impressive copper tank were found. It was suggested that a shipwreck had occurred, and researchers conducted a thorough search of the surrounding area, but they were unable to find any traces of human presence, such as the remains of temporary shelters or human remains. Subsequently, untouched supplies of equipment and food were discovered in the center of the island, apparently brought here from the aforementioned boat, the cause of whose sinking the researchers were unable to determine. The whereabouts of the crew, who had a fairly good set of survival equipment, also could not be found. The researchers were limited in time and feared attacks by sea elephants, so all work had to be completed without clarifying the circumstances of this incident. The fate of the unidentified boat remains a mystery to this day.

3Y0K Bouvet Island DX NewsBouvet Island. Author - EY8MM.

Mysterious explosion on Bouvet Island

Some time later, another equally mysterious incident occurred in connection with this enigmatic place. According to unofficial data, in 1979, a powerful flash was recorded at some distance from the island as a result of an explosion, which, according to scientists, could indicate nuclear weapons testing. However, no one was able to detect its source, and no sufficient evidence of this fact was ever obtained. No country has taken responsibility for this incident, and none of the countries that have ever possessed nuclear weapons have been seen transporting such devices to this area, and the radiation background on the island has remained unchanged. The reasons for this inexplicable phenomenon remain a mystery to this day.

The nature of this island is not particularly diverse: there is virtually no open soil or vegetation here. The main representatives of the island's fauna are seals, penguins, elephant seals, and sea lions, as well as about a dozen species of seabirds. As for the flora, only moss and lichens can be found here. Scientists sometimes visit the island to study whale migrations.

Throughout the year, the island has very windy, mostly cloudy weather, with frequent precipitation in the form of light rain and snow. Between 1955 and 1958, a single small lava field appeared on the western coast, creating a small area for bird nesting.

Bouvet Island has been recognized as the most isolated island on the planet. In an area of 3,146,000 square miles around this island, no other land has been found, an achievement that no other place on our planet can boast.

3Y0K. Where is Bouvet Island located. Map.

3Y0K Bouvet. Sunrise 03-23-2026 at 05:51 GMT sunset at 17:54 GMT
3Y0K Bouvet comments forum

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190 Comments

100%
Rating: 5 of 5
Hughie the heli pilot
  • Callsign: VK2
  • 2026-03-21 10:25:04
100%
Rating: 5 of 5
Dave
  • Callsign: KN2M
  • 2026-03-15 20:31:58
Personally, I am thankful for limited QSO's that became available to North American stations. My wife was very very disappointed when her call sign failed to be in the log for the 3Y0J trip. That operation was even worse for NA stations with basically only limited 30m propagation slots and a very short time on the island. At least now she has it in the log. Personally, I found 3Y0K to offer limited QSO times for me as an employed and working NA operator. It seems to me, there were limited spots in the evening time and the majority of those became FT8 with no obvious schedule or band/mode plan. Had I not persisted each evening to look for them on CW, I would have missed the last evening on the island. In the few days that I was able to be at my station as early as 2000Z, I just could not find them. The DQRM when I did hear them on 40 and 80 CW was continual to the point I would estimate 40% to perhaps 50% of the time I had some difficulty. I heard carriers, stations calling CQ, unusual noises, di-di-dah di-dah-dah-dit over and over and over again. In general, we should not be too surprised the emphasis changed to FT8. Unfortunately, this contrasted with expectations that would not be the case. Other problems included too few few official announcements and almost no guidance of operating times and modes. They did manage to sneak in one announcement indicating an imminent departure from the island the next day though. By contrast, the J51A trip that overlapped seemed to be well run and without a lot of nonsense. It interfaced with the ARRL DX contest too and was spotted routinely. There were no rogues, no idiots that I heard and lots of stations got an extra country for the contest. I have been around ham radio for a very long time. I have seen many changes. I am not a regular FT8 participant. I do use the mode during Field Day and I spent time setting up a separate computer, rig and antenna for 3Y0K in order to possibly make an FT8 contact, knowing it might be required. I never had the chance. They were never on when I was available. ARRL DX took one weekend away and the only weekend that I really could have actually worked them on the higher bands proved to be disappointing as they closed up and went QRT. Others criticized operator skills. My wife and I have participated in several DX entity opportunities. Let me say this, unless you have experienced a wall of stations calling you, then you really don't know how you would react. I am sorry to say personality, politics and monetary considerations shaped, molded and led to exactly what we saw and heard both before and during the trip. Criticisms will likely be common for a while. Many will be correct, honest and forthright. Some will be useful and others probably simple bellyaching. I am not going to complain about an operator sitting in a tent on a deserted island for an extended period of time without a bathroom, enduring constant cold and wind, no change of clothes, repairs of things that should "not" have failed and being with strangers you really did not know and would possibly never want to know. The overall picture becomes very clear to me. THE most important thing is the group safely returns. Period. In the greater scheme of things, we all know these contacts do not make us better people. It is unfortunate but some operators showed how they were worse than they were before. The QSOs may reward us for skillful operating or a greater presence on the radio with our peers but that is about all. It is regretful that the all the bad issues played out as they did. It is not necessary to go any further, but we should thank each and every participant for their role in this adventure. They risked their health and safety. That alone is not to be ignored and we all should be grateful.