Video Repeater for the Dry Valleys Region of Antarctica

• Main Authors: Peebles, Michael J., Robertson, William G., Jr.
• Other Authors: Naval Electronic Systems Engineering Center
• Language: en_US
• Published: International Foundation for Telemetering 1993
• Subjects: Antarctica; Digital Communications; Solar Power
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10150/611881; http://arizona.openrepository.com/arizona/handle/10150/611881

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 25-28, 1993 / Riviera Hotel and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada === A repeater is being designed to provide a telemetry and compressed video link from a remote robot located in the Dry Valleys Region of Antarctica, over a mountain range to California via McMurdo Antarctica. In return a command link is provided for control. A simple task normally, but a bit more difficult when considerations include the unforgiving elements of Antarctica itself. Even with a design using the most robust equipment, tradeoffs must always be made for the effects of the isolation and the weather. This paper describes one approach to the design of equipment capable of insuring the proper bandwidth, power output, and receive sensitivity that can use the energy provided by Mother Nature to continually charge the primary power source, and the engineering struggle to use electronic equipment in the severe and harsh environment of Antarctica.