F requently A sked Q uestions

• Why go back to Mellish - You were there last year?
  That's right!  Our trip in April 2001 was a survey for a return trip.  There was no guarantee that the reef was still there after cyclonic activity in recent years.  Mellish Reef is an external territory of Australia so access is relatively easy for the Australian-led team, both in terms of geography and bureaucracy.
  
• Where is it on the Most Wanted lists?
  We can always expect some variation in different surveys simply because of the differing sample sizes and demographics involved.  Presented below are the results of some recent surveys.

  VK9M is number 37 on the ARRL Most Wanted List, and number 28 on the 425DX News survey for 2002.

  N4AA's "The DX  Magazine" survey conducted in September 2001 rates VK9M: 
  World Wide # 30
  Europe # 31
  World (without EU or USA)  # 44
  U.S.A. # 38

  Results published on 31-Dec-01 by the German DX Foundation survey;
  SSB: #19
  CW: #19
  RTTY: #42
  Mixed: #16

  
• When and why then?
  April, 2002.  April is a excellent time for the higher bands such as 10M and more so 6M because of the enhanced conditions due to the Equinox.  We can't go much earlier than this because cyclone season extends from November - March, and that could be dangerous.  You may remember the 3B6RF DXpedition went QRT early because of a hurricane threat... we can do without that!

  Above - Previous cyclone tracks around Australia As you can see, the Coral sea has it's fair share!

  

• How are you getting there?
  The team is heading out on two 43' catamarans; "Bach & Byte" which is owned by Team Leader David Gemmell, VK4GL, and his wife June. This is the same vessel we traveled to Mellish Reef in April 2001.  The second cat "Spellbound" is owned by Geoff Toomey.  Geoff is not a ham but reckons the sailing will be fun all the same!  Having the second cat means we can take more operators and equipment than last year.  Thanks Geoff for the extra help, we appreciate it.
  
• What did you learn from the Site Survey trip in April 2001?
  The reef was still there!  Overwhelming dog piles proved that Mellish is still a highly desire entity, and certainly worth returning too!

• Can I e-mail a sked request?
  NO.
  
• What bands are you active on?
  160 - 6M including WARC.  Expect a serious effort on low-bands and we also have a dedicated 6M station.  Refer to the Frequency Table for planned specific frequencies.  To see when we're likely to be operating on the low bands during our local evening you can refer to the Sunrise/Sunset page.  To help with scheduling the difficult EU & East Coast NA paths we have devised a 4-station MF/HF scenario to make best use of the low bands and our available resources.
  
• What modes are you active on?
  CW, Phone and RTTY.  Less than 15% of our QSOs on our 2001 Site Survey trip were CW so we will work more CW this time!  For RTTY there will be three x 1 hour slots everyday with bands chosen on which is providing the best propagation at the time, refer below:

  USA and South America: If on 15M, for a daily 1 hour slot sliding between 0000 - 0300 If on 20M, for a daily 1 hour slot sliding between 0500 - 0800

  Europe: On 15M, for a daily 1 hour slot sliding between 1200 - 1500

  Asia/JA/Oceania: On 15M, for a daily 1 hour slot 2200 for 1 hour

  
• How long are you active for?
  We plan to be active for around ten days but actual arrival will depend on the weather and sailing conditions.  Naturally we're at the mercy of Mother nature herself so let's hope the weather is fine during this time... and no earlier- than- anticipated QRTs!
  
• QRP Operation... are you serious?
  Yes!  We've had requests from QRP enthusiasts about offering a QRP contact... and that's easy... just wind down the wick to 5 watts! Steve, G4EDG, a keen QRPer himself will be looking after our QRP operations.  Be patient though!  To satisfy as many  DXers as possible during our ten days of operating we'll be operating as normal initially and envisage QRP operation in the last few days once we've gotten everybody else out of the way!  This should be less frustrating for you QRP bunch.
  
• Why no satellite?
  If space were unlimited for operators, equipment, and life support then gear for operating Satellites would not be a problem.   As it stands though, there's no room for the relatively large antenna systems required... sorry!
  
• What equipment will you be using?
  Yaesu - the choice of DXers.  Heil headsets, Honda generators, Force 12 SVDAs and SCS multimode modems.  Refer to the Equipment page for further details on all this good gear!
  
• Can you see Cluster spots on Mellish?
  No!  We won't have internet access so we won't be able to see DX spots... so there's no point posting messages intended for our eyes.  Contact your Regional Pilot if you have any constructive comments to make during the operation.
  

• When was Mellish Reef last activated?

Mellish Reef has only ever been activated eight times so far before;

• April 2001 VK9ML - Team: VK4GL, VK4APG, VK4BKM, VK4CWT & Bill Brosnan

• October 1995 VK4ALF/9 - Steve, AA6LF, active for 4 days.  (Info from ARRL)

• September 1993 VK9MM - Team: VK4CRR, P29DX, V73C & VK2BJL/4 
  WA4DAN, K5VT, G3WGV, VK2BEX & VK4DHM (See A.R.A. Dec `93 issue)

• January 1989 VK9ZM - Team: KJ9I, NM2L, VE3IEO, JR1RCQ, ZF2KN, VE3CPU & KD2HE

• October 1984 VK9MR - Team: VK2WU, VK3CE, VK5ARO & VK2CIA (See A.R.A. Vol 7 Issue 4,8,9)

• May 1982 VK9ZR - Team: DJ9ZB, EA8AK, VK3DHT, VK2BJL & KB7NW 
  Website: http://home.australis.aunz.com/~binder/mellish2.htm

• October 1978 VK9ZR - Team: VK2CK, VK2BJL, JA1KSO & WA8MOA
  Website: http://home.australis.aunz.com/~binder/dxvk9zr.htm  

• July 1972 VK9JW - Team: VK3JW, VK4XY, VK4FJ and VK4KS
  (We thank Steve, KZ2I [ex WB2VFT] for providing this historical information & QSL image)
  


• How many baked beans were consumed on the last trip?
  Well... only one 220g tin, if you must know!
  
• Can I e-mail a QSL request?
  No.  Please refer to the QSL Information and QSL Policy.
  
• Will e-QSLs be available?
  No.  A "normal" QSL card will be available.  Don't waste your time sending VK9ML an e-QSL as we will not be collecting them. Refer to the QSL Information and QSL Policy.
  
• Can I leave some comments in the Guest Book?
  YES, please do!  - No sked requests though. Please keep your comments brief and to the point.

  The Guest Book page is here.
    

• Will logs be available on-line?
  Yes! We plan to provide and update on-line logs twice daily. We experienced problems last trip in using a satellite phone to transfer log data but this time we will employ a reliable high speed PACTOR II link.  On top of that we're using the 5-Star DXers Association logging/server system (as used at D68C) to log and network our laptops.  This is a great system and we can extract log data at any time without disrupting the operation of any stations.  We're indebted to John, G3WGV for his help.
  
• Why isn't there an e-mail Mailing List facility to announce News?
  We found from establishing an e-mail mailing list facility for the VK9WI Willis Island 2000 DXpedition that many subscribers (including us) received spam e-mail as a result.  Most annoying!  We figure that if you're on the internet anyway then just check the website instead, and no chance of getting spammed !!!  The VK9ML Forum is a great place to catch up on related topics.
  
• How do we contact you?
  Easy!  You can e-mail us here:
Will you be doing something in 2003?
We ran a survey on where we should consider.  Results were posted in News Bulletin #34.