Märket

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Märket ("The Mark", Swedish pronunciation: [ˈmærkə(t)]) is a small uninhabited skerry in the Baltic Sea between Sweden and Finland (in the area of the autonomous Åland Islands), which has been divided between two sovereignties since the Treaty of Fredrikshamn (Hamina) of 1809 defined the border between Sweden and Russian empire as going through the middle of the island. The westernmost land point of Finland is on Märket. The Finnish side of the island is part of the Municipality of Hammarland.^[1]

Contents 1 Geography and history 2 Radio amateurs activity 3 See also 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Geography and history

The 6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi) wide Understen–Märket Passage links the Bothnian Sea to the Baltic proper. The area of the skerry, which measures roughly 350 metres (1,100 ft) long by 150 metres (490 ft) wide, is said to be 3 hectares (7.4 acres) which is argued to make it the smallest "sea island" shared by two countries.^[2]

The name "Märket"/"the mark", probably comes from the fact it was a good navigation mark before there were lighthouses. The route between Sweden and Åland has a passage of about 27 kilometres (15 NM) length over open sea, and it was probably good to have a mark to aim at.

There is a lighthouse on the Finnish side of the current border, which has been unmanned and automated since 1979. When it was built by the Russians and Finns in 1885 there were no clear maps of the island. After the completion of the lighthouse, it was discovered that it had been built on the Swedish part of the island.

As a result, the border was adjusted in 1985 so that the lighthouse is now located on Finnish territory.^[3] However, the overall land area given to each country could not change, and neither could the coastline, so as not to interfere with each country's fishing rights.

This dilemma resulted in an unusual shape for the international border, one that ingeniously satisfied both Finnish and Swedish interests. The adjusted border takes the form of an inverted 'S', and the lighthouse is connected to the rest of Finland only by a short stretch of land. The border is regularly resurveyed every 25 years by officials representing both countries. The last such joint inspection took place in August 2006.^[4]

The lighthouse is in urgent need of maintenance, and a Finnish interest group is trying to raise funds for its preservation. The lighthouse has been automatic since 1979 and the surrounding buildings are no longer used. The increasing general availability of GPS has made its primary function redundant.

[edit] Radio amateurs activity

Radio amateurs and CB operators around the world consider Market Reef (as they call it) a separate entity, distinct from Finland and Sweden. Market Reef used to be one of the world's most desired "countries" among radio amateurs due to its special status and inaccessibility. Usually there are one or more Amateur Radio expeditions to the island every year, weather permitting. During these expeditions tens of thousands of radio contacts are made with the entire world. At high seas, landing is only possible with a helicopter. Probably the best picture available over Märket is shown on a QSL card, a verification card sent out to verify a radio contact among radio amateurs. The official prefix is OH0, as in the rest of Åland Islands, but OJ0 is the optional call sign prefix for Market Reef. There is a fee for using the OJ0 call sign, while the OH0/own call sign is free. All radio activity on the island is by visitors on DX-peditions. When the reef got its special radio amateur status, the lighthouse keeper in the late 1960s became himself a licenced Amateur Radio operator and used initially the call OH0MA. Märkets Fyr means Märket's Beacon in Swedish.^[5]

[edit] See also

• List of divided islands

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Märket

• 2007 Radio DXpedition to Märket
• Configurable map centred on Märket from Citizen's Mapsite of Finland
• The Swedish Lighthouse Society's site on Märket
• Joint border survey between Finland and Sweden in progress from Helsingin Sanomat (International Edition), includes paragraph about Märket, with a small map.
• A recent air photo of the island

Coordinates: 60°18′03″N 019°08′08″E / 60.30083°N 19.13556°E / 60.30083; 19.13556