Just in time for Canada's 150th Birthday, Radio Amateurs of Canada has added two new Operating Awards: the RAC 150 and Canada C3 Expedition Awards.

Canada C3 Expedition Award

A Canada 150 Signature project, Canada C3 is a 150-day expedition (June 1 to October 28) from Toronto, Ontario to Victoria, British Columbia via the Northwest Passage. It will bring awareness to Canada’s coastline and inspire a deeper understanding of Canada’s coastline our land, our peoples and our country.

The purpose of the award is to track the voyage of the Polar Prince as she travels from Toronto to Victoria via the Northwest Passage and to study radio propagation in the Arctic regions of Canada. The Polar Prince has a radio on board which transmits her progress using the WSPR mode. The special event call sign CG3EXP is being used on the 40, 30 and 20 metre bands.

WSPR (pronounced "whisper") stands for "Weak Signal Propagation Reporter". It is a computer program used for weak-signal radio communication between Amateur Radio operators. Additional information is provided below.

Stations will listen for WSPR signals from CG3EXP and record the 6-character Maidenhead Grid Square transmitted and the location of the ship at the time of the reception.

When different observations worth 150 points are recorded and filed with the organizers, a certificate suitable for framing will be awarded. This will be a totally online operation. Applications will only be accepted by email and all certificates will be emailed to the recipients. A list of procedures is provided below.

Please visit the Canada C3 Expedition Award webpage at https://www.rac.ca/operating/rac-awards/canada-c3-expedition-award/ for additional information and for a link to download the logging spreadsheet.

For more information on the Expedition please visit https://www.rac.ca/canada-c3-update-june-27/ and stay tuned to the RAC website at https://www.rac.ca/.

The RAC 150 Award program

To celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday, the 14 special RAC call signs will be activated by volunteers throughout the second half of 2017 starting with the Canada Day Contest on July 1.

Stations making contacts with a number of RAC stations will have the opportunity to download an award corresponding to the number of different stations worked.

Please visit the RAC 150 Award webpage for additional information and for a link to download your award.

For additional information please visit the RAC Operating Awards webpage.