It had been a quiet couple of months of incoming QSL cards. But a couple of QSL Bureau envelopes came in with some interesting cards including one for a brand new country. I worked TO4A on the island of Martinique on 10M, 15M and 20M using CW during the ARRL DX Contest. All contacts were […]
For modest North American stations, particularly on the west coast, working African stations can be somewhat of a challenge. After you do log a nice list of stations it’s time to look for an award to celebrate the achievement. The Africa Stations Award (AFSA) from the FT8 Digital Mode Club (FT8DMC) is here to help. […]
The Valley of the Moon ARC (VOMARC) held their annual picnic at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park in 2025. The weather cooperated and there were plenty of shady spots to get out of the Sun. In addition to some grilling and chatting, the club did another Parks on the Air (POTA) activation. We made a total […]
Countries come in all shapes and sizes. On maps the large countries dominate. The smaller countries are easy to overlook without the aid of a magnifying glass. The FT8 Digital Mode Club promotes an award that gives these smaller countries (more accurately, DXCC entities) some well deserved attention. They issue the Worked Little Countries Award […]
The Activity Group of Belarus (AGB) offers a large number of Amateur Radio operating awards. Several of their awards are based on the zones of the world created as part of CQ Magazine’s Worked All Zones program. Zone 20 covers countries at the boundary between Europe and Asia. AGB offers up the Zone 20 Award for working Ham Radio […]
The Tropic of Capricorn is an imaginary line of latitude along the surface of the Earth. It lies along the southernmost points where the Sun can appear directly overhead at the time of the December solstice. The FT8 Digital Mode Club (FT8DMC) sponsors the Tropic of Capricorn Award for working Amateur Radio stations in countries through which the line […]
A number of different organizations offer awards for working Amateur Radio stations on all continents of the world. The American Radio Relay League’s WAC award requires just six different contacts. Thus, Continental Awards represent a low barrier to entry for modest home stations, particularly when using modes such as FT8. Interestingly, the definitions concerning what […]
Are you looking for another way to incentivize making lots of contacts with Japan on HF? The FT8 Digital Mode Club (FT8DMC) has you covered. You can get your first Worked All Japan Grid Squares Award (WAJGS) by working Japanese stations in at least 25 different grid squares. Three versions of the award, bronze through […]
The Activity Group of Belarus (AGB) offers a large number of Amateur Radio operating awards. Several of their awards are based on the zones of the world created as part of CQ Magazine’s Worked All Zones program. Zone 14 covers much of western Europe. AGB offers up the Zone 14 award for working Ham Radio stations just […]
The Tropic of Cancer is an imaginary line of latitude along the surface of the Earth. It lies along the northernmost points where the Sun can appear directly overhead at the time of the June solstice. The FT8 Digital Mode Club (FT8DMC) sponsors the Tropic of Cancer Award for working Amateur Radio stations in countries […]