A map of the world, as seen from ZL9.
The dxpedition site is at the old meteorological station at Beeman Point, Campbell Island. There are mountains all around, which will provide a challenge to operating in certain directions. The following plot shows the elevation angle of the horizon in various directions. Northerly paths in particular are strongly impacted by the surrounding hills.
Paths to US, Central America, and long-path to Europe lie to the East down Perseverance Sound, and propagation should be excellent in these directions. Short path to much of Southern and Central Europe is only slightly affected by the hills, but short paths to Scotland, Scandanavia and much of Asia are particularly impacted by Beeman Hill to the north of the site. Since JA is relatively close this should not be a great problem, however, LP is likely to be more productive for some parts of EU on the longest northerly “short” paths. Although the site may not be ideal from a radio viewpoint, access to the island is carefully controlled by the NZ Department of Conservation, who whose mission is primarily related to conservation and not ham radio operation! They have granted us permission to use the Beeman Point location, and this site also provides practical advantages such as a dock and some shelter. ZL9CI operated successfully from this location13 years ago, so even with a less-than-perfect radio location, we know we will be able to get out.
K3EL 