Telenor Breaks New Ground: World's Southernmost Base Station Established in Antarctica
February 06 2024 - 12:35AM
Telenor Breaks New Ground: World's Southernmost Base Station
Established in Antarctica
(Antarctica, 6 February 2024) – In a groundbreaking
venture, Telenor announces the opening of the world's
southernmost commercial base station in Antarctica, setting a new
benchmark for connectivity in the harshest of environments. The
Norwegian Polar Institute’s research station in Antarctica, Troll,
now has extended reach, connecting a vast area to the outside world
with mobile connectivity.
The base station was put into operation in February. What makes
this base station unique, aside from being the southernmost in the
world, is that it’s operated from the world's northernmost at Ny
Ålesund.
Experience with operations in polar regionsHead
of Telenor Svalbard, Christian Skottun, emphasizes that a strong
collaboration with the Norwegian Polar Institute is the foundation
for establishing mobile coverage in Antarctica.
"There has been a fruitful dialogue with the Norwegian Polar
Institute regarding the possibilities offered by a base station in
Antarctica. Telenor, with its presence in Svalbard, has extensive
experience in building and operating mobile networks in Arctic
regions. Mobile coverage is crucial for both Arctic poles. For
research communities, the ability to utilize mobile IoT in
gathering data from fieldwork is particularly attractive.
Additionally, mobile coverage opens up new possibilities for
research and environmental monitoring in the Antarctic oceanic
area.”
The primary motivation behind this audacious project is to
provide essential mobile coverage to the Norwegian Polar
Institute's research station, Troll, located in Antarctica. Troll
serves as a hub for scientific exploration and environmental
research, making reliable communication crucial for the success of
ongoing projects and the safety of researchers working in the
region.
This base station also provides a new dimension of safety as we
now are able to offer mobile coverage in the area where the polar
research station is located
"Mobile coverage is a step forward for technological development
at Troll. In addition, it provides new opportunities for research
and monitoring in Queen Maud Land," says the Director of the Polar
Institute, Camilla Brekke.
Close collaboration with satellite operatorIn
addition to close collaboration with the Norwegian Polar Institute,
Telenor Svalbard also collaborates with Kongsberg Satellite
Services (KSAT), which is responsible for the communication service
from the Troll station. KSAT owns and operates TrollSat, one of the
world's most important ground stations for collecting data from
climate and environmental monitoring satellites, co-located with
the research station at Troll. KSAT is responsible for transmitting
satellite-based information from Troll to users worldwide.
"Full mobile coverage at Troll also helps our users and
simplifies communication with the outside world. We are therefore
pleased that the satellite link from Troll also can be used for
mobile phone traffic," says Rolf Skatteboe, CEO of KSAT.
New opportunities in research Birgitte
Engebretsen, CEO of Telenor Norway, is proud and delighted
that Telenor has contributed to establishing mobile
connectivity between the poles.
"Our societal mission includes providing technology that makes
research work easier. We see that the emergence of our new
technological solutions opens up new possibilities for research,"
says Engebretsen.
Media contact:
Christian Skottun, Head of Telenor Svalbard, phone +47 951 42
699, email: christian.skottun@telenor.no
David Fidjeland, Director Media Relations, phone: +47 934 67
224, email: david.fidjeland@telenor.com
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