Direct-to-satellite IoT communication service scaling up remote operations around the globe (case study in Central Asia)
Université de Fribourg
Lay summary
Low-cost satellite communication service for remote systems to improve data logging transfer in a case study in Central Asia
Astrocast™, SensAlpin GmbH, University of Fribourg
Many environmental changes are the result of a changing climate. This means that observing and studying changing environmental variables allows us to document climate change. To make meaningful statements about ongoing global climate change, we need well-distributed time series of monitored environmental variables over several decades. In situ field measurements, such as meteorological or hydrological monitoring, are particularly important. However, obtaining these data sets with consistent quality is challenging, especially in remote, cold and inaccessible high-mountain and high-latitude regions.
Satellite communication has become a valuable technology for transmitting data from such remote stations, but it is still associated with high costs and power consumption. As a result, this service is often limited to projects of a certain duration or to institutions with sufficient financial resources. For remote stations such as those in the Central Asian Tien Shan and Pamir, data retrieval depends heavily on access to the field.
This project aims to apply a cost effective low-power satellite communication system to monitoring stations observing snow, glacier and permafrost changes in the Tien Shan and Pamir. Therefore, the communication technology developed by AstrocastTM will be integrated into such monitoring stations. The engineering company SensAlpin GmbH will implement a protocol between the Astronode S+ satellite transducer and the Campbell Scientific data logger system, whereas AstrocastTM will set up the AstroNode S+ for cold and high-altitude environments.
This system was tested in the Swiss Alps (see photos) and is ready to be implemented at the first sites in Central Asia in the summer of 2023. For example, satellite communication will allow us to retrieve borehole temperatures on an hourly basis from a recently drilled permafrost borehole in the Inner Tien Shan and at a second site, we will be able to collect near real-time meteorological data such as air temperature.
As well as providing rapid access to data recorded in remote and inaccessible areas, the satellite communication system will also provide information on the health of the station and enable detection of station failures. This is crucial for such monitoring sites to limit data loss. Within the next two years, all cryosphere monitoring sites in Central Asia will be equipped with our low-cost satellite communication system.
Finally, this developed data transmission system will not be limited to the project partners, but also to other polar and high-altitude monitoring projects that wish to use AstrocastTM technology in combination with Campbell Scientific data loggers. Thus, the project helps to make close-to-real time data transmission affordable and accessible to everyone.
Planned installations in the Tien Shan and Pamir in summer 2023 and 2024
Planned in 2023:
BH_new (Kirgistan22): N41.80033172 E78.08483933 (already installed in 2022, Kyrgyzstan) – permafrost borehole
GL457: N 37.4080717 E 72.8216264 (AWS installation planned in 2023, Tajikistan)
BS_ice: N41.7873496 E77.7549015 (AWS installation planned in 2023, Kyrgyzstan) – on glacier
Permafrost_Kazakhstan: location is not yet defined
Planned in 2024 and 2025:
Permafrost_Tajikistan: location is not yet defined
Zulmart_rock: N38.882199 E73.0146973 (AWS installed in 2019, Tajikistan)
Yakartsha_rock: N38.9904257 E68.5784562 (AWS installed in 2021, Tajikistan)
Barkrak_rock: N 42.1244423 E70.9933179 (AWS installed in 2016, Uzbekistan)
Details
| Regional focus | High-altitude |
| Location | Central Asia, Switzerland |
| Funded amount | 70,000 CHF |
| Project dates | 1st January 2023 – 31st October 2024 |
| Category | SPI Technogrants |
Field Notes
Experiencing -30°C on the Zulmart Glacier from the warm comfort of my officeFrom saddles to storms. A journey to the Grigoriev Ice Cap