Beside Asuka Base (WAP JPN-Ø1) and Miizhuo (WAP JPN-Ø2) Showa or Syowa Station is the 3rd Japanese permanent research station in Antarctica. The fourth one is Dome Fuji (WAP JPN-Ø4).
Located on East Ongul Island, Queen Maud Land, Syowa Station was established in january 1957 and since then, serves as a research outpost for astronomy, meteorology, biology and Earth sciences.. It comprises over 60 separate buildings, large and small, including a 3 storey administration building, living quarters, power plant, sewage treatment facility, environmental science building, observatory, data processing facility, satellite building, ionospheric station, incinerator, earth science building, and radiosonde station. Fuel tanks, water storage, solar panels, eliport, water retention dam, and radio transmitter are also present on the site.
8J1RL is one of amateur radio club station of Japan Amateur Radio League (JARL), located at the Japanese research station “SYOWA” in Antarctica. Operators Taka (JA1AGS) and Hiro (JH7JCX) actually at Syowa, are member of the 61st Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition Team (JARE).
JARE61 did start last Feb 2020 and will continue through Jan. 2021 with the official callsign 8J1RL.
Check https://www.nipr.ac.jp/english/outline/numeral/01.html for more info on the four Japanese stations in Antarctica.
QSL via Bureau to 8J1RL, SASE to JARL or JG2MLI, (NO LoTW & PayPal)