Motes in Antarctica!

Can you imagine a place where the temperature can get to -82°C? A place without sunlight for half the year. Imagine a frozen desert with no permanent human population - the coldest, driest and windiest continent on earth... It is in this place that research scientists from the Institute of Remote Sensing Applications at the Chinese Academy of Sciences have deployed a wireless sensing system using Crossbow's Mote platforms. Being a resident of sunny California I can barely fathom such an environment. If the temperature drops below 50°F (10°C), I want a cup of hot chocolate and a fire to cuddle in front of. Imagine being in a place where the climate is so harsh - there are no plants or animals. Talk about extreme sensing!

China News reported that the wireless sensor network called the 'Unmanned Wireless Intelligent Snow and Ice Observation System in Extreme Environments' has been successfully set up around the Dome-A area near the South Pole, which is the southernmost point on Earth's surface. Dome-A (Dome Argus) is the highest and possibly coldest place in Antarctica and perhaps the coldest naturally occurring place on Earth. It is the highest ice feature in Antarctica, comprising a dome or eminence of 4.093 m elevation.  The system was co-developed by Crossbow Technology and the Chinese Academy of Science to develop a solution that can consistently work under extreme environmental conditions such as a 4-month polar-night, -82°C temperature lows and an annual average temperature of -55°C. The wireless system deployed by CAS scientists is designed to overcome the low-temperature, high-altitude and soft snow-surface.

The deployed system consists of two base stations and four nodes. Each node is powered by two low-temperature resistant batteries which are expected to last for one year. The communication capability between each node can achieve ranges of up to 1000m. Each node samples environmental data every 15 minutes, including temperature (weather temperature, snow temperature and the snow temperature below 1 meter), humidity, sunlight, and air pressure. The collected data is sent wirelessly to the central base station that collects and sends the data to Beijing every day. Meanwhile, the other remote base station is used to store the data locally to be collected later by an expedition team. The two base stations ensure that no data is lost in the communication.

The Antarctic ice sheet where Dr. Xiao and his scientific expedition team ventured is the highest point on the continent. The group hopes to gather vital information on the environment and observing conditions around Dome-A to determine whether or not it is a viable location to expand the observatories in the region. Dome A claims the best astronomical sky conditions in the world, as it is devoid of clouds and boasting steady air that makes for clear viewing. Imagine...Motes in Antarctica!

Comments

[Crossbow Technology]

Answer:

The IRIS Mote was used in this project as it provided better coverage and power performance. We do not have any data testing regarding use of the product in high temperatures as this experiment was focused on cold weather climates. The low temp test for this project was from +30 - -80 degrees C. The standard temperature range specification for the IRIS Mote without special packaging is -10 - +60 degrees C as the battery is the limiting factor. If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me directly at shana@xbow.com.

[MElWakil]

Hi there,

How can I get more technical information about this deployment? For example, what kind of mote was used? Also, I need to know more about the enclosure that you used. Can it tolerate high temperatures as well?

Regards.