Mining sector recognises 'invaluable' mobile satcoms

The global mining community has recognised BGAN as an "invaluable tool" with the award of a top industry accolade.

BGAN won the 'Exploration - Ancillary and Analysis' category in The Mining Magazine Awards 2009, which recognise technologies and mining equipment of significance to the industry.

Paul Moore, editor of Mining Magazine, said: "BGAN is the only mobile satellite service to offer broadband data with simultaneous voice, through a single, truly portable device on a global basis.

" For mining groups it is proving an invaluable tool at the exploration phase but also throughout the life and closure of operation."
Collecting the award at a recent ceremony in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada, Inmarsat's business development director for the Americas, Frank August, said: "This award caps a fantastic year for BGAN in the mining sector, and it is a particular honour to receive it from such an industry authority as Mining Magazine.

"BGAN's advanced capabilities and global reach are ideal to meet the unique communications challenges of the mining sector."

Source: Inmarsat

Satellite Broadband impresses military technician

Sergeant First Class Flemming Ulrich field tested BGAN in his capacity as military technician.

Sgt Ulrich's two main roles are to ensure that Danish troop vehicles and weapons remain in optimal condition - despite the harsh terrain in which the soldiers are operating - and to keep his unit’s communications system fully functional.

Following discussions with Thrane & Thrane, Sgt Ulrich was given the opportunity to field-test an Explorer 500 BGAN terminal.

Easy to use
He was immediately impressed. “The Explorer 500 was easy to use,” he reported. “I used it in thunderstorms, sandstorms and wild rainstorms, and had no problems – I could always get a connection with the satellite.”

Sgt Ulrich and others were able to use the terminal to communicate with their families via email, and to update a website which provides news about the unit’s progress.

On one occasion, he was on a voice call to his wife when the unit came under fire, not once but twice. Two hours later, he was able to call her back to tell her everything was fine and that they had won that particular battle.

As a result of the field test, he has recommended that the unit deploy BGAN on a full-time basis.

Source: Inmarsat

Satellite Technology, the better choice

Found an interesting article about building a better air traffic control system with the help of satellite technology, and thought I would share it with you.

When Air France Flight 447 crashed in the Atlantic Ocean in June, seven hours elapsed before air-traffic controllers realized it was missing, delaying search and rescue efforts and bewildering air travelers over how a jumbo jet could be lost in an age when even simple cellphones can pinpoint positions.

Could it happen in the U.S. and other parts of the world? Thanks to a relatively new breed of air-traffic-control systems, that isn't likely. Air-traffic controllers in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, who control most of the air traffic across oceans, now have modern satellite-based systems that include frequent automatic position reporting from airplanes and email-like communications between pilots and controllers.

What's happened in recent years over oceans offers a glimpse of what governments and airlines hope will happen over land—a "Next Generation" system that will be a vast improvement over the ground-based radar and radio communications system in place for the past 50 years.

The Federal Aviation Administration's "NextGen" development program for the continental U.S. has a history of delays and failures. But it is now on track, according to government and industry groups, to produce in the next 10 years or so an air-traffic-control system with lots more capacity. With satellite-based data links instead of radar, which is somewhat slow and not precisely accurate, jets will be able to safely travel closer together, reducing delays. Faster communications over data links will allow controllers to handle more airplanes at one time. And with better computer systems that can predict conflicts far in advance, planes will get to pick their best route rather than be restricted to the set paths in the sky today. Systems to handle busy skies over land will be different from the oceanic system, but built with the same functions, communications and data links.

The U.S. system, called Advanced Technology and Oceanic Procedures, or ATOP, was adapted by Lockheed Martin Corp. from a system developed in New Zealand (Australia's system was the other finalist). So far, ATOP has saved airlines 330,000 flying miles per year—as far as flying to the moon and half-way back—and nearly 10 million gallons of fuel.

The system has been in use in the U.S. for four years. Data come from multiple sources on board aircraft, in case one fails, and multiple computers run together on the ground to provide backup. Planes report every 14 minutes, though controllers can change that to more frequent reporting, if necessary. If a position report is six minutes overdue, alarms go off. And the system automatically warns controllers if planes stray off course.

Controlling planes over oceans presents all kinds of challenges because aircraft are out of normal radio and radar range. For decades, controllers relied on position reports over high-frequency radio every hour or so, competing for air time with fishing vessels and all kinds of other traffic.

Because of the inaccuracies and time between reports, planes were spaced far apart—often about 100 miles—to ensure safety. That added to delays since flights had to wait for space in the stream of planes and made it difficult for lots of flights to get on ideal tracks for winds, slowing flights and increasing fuel burn. It also made it hard to change altitudes when the ride got bumpy. Now, with more-accurate and timely position reporting, separation between airplanes can be reduced to as little as 30 miles over oceans. (Over land, planes are kept at least five miles behind one another, but that may well be reduced when satellite-based navigation replaces radar.)

Not all planes across oceans have data-link capabilities, and high-frequency radio is still used with some flights and as a backup with others. Many aircraft also have satellite phones that controllers can call. And some nations, notably Brazil and Senegal, which were handling Air France Flight 447, don't yet have modern oceanic air-traffic-control systems. The Airbus A330 jet with 228 people aboard crashed on June 1 about 930 miles off the coast of Brazil. Senegal never took control of the jet from Brazil, and it wasn't until seven hours later that controllers in Madrid and Brest, France, raised an alarm, investigators said.

For the full article: Visit The Wall Street Journal

Add to your emergency kit

Modern gadgets are being added to emergency kits everywhere. When it comes to most major emergencies such as natural disasters and terrorist attacks, a satellite telephone can not only be useful but in many cases satellite telephones can be vital. During 9/11, the latest tsunami and hurricane disasters , satellite phones were used as an excellent form of communication amongst victims and emergency workers.

Safety kits usually consist of tools, first-aid and sometimes rations of food and water. Today, safety kits around the world, are having satellite telephones put in them to add an extra element of security.

Satellite phones have proven invaluable in recent emergencies as well; cruise ships, tankers and yachts have used satellite telephones to alert authorities of pirate activity off the west coast of Africa. Satellite telephones also continue to provide communication services for research teams in Antarctica and other remote parts of earth.

You don’t have to be the victim of a catastrophic event to need an emergency satellite telephone, power outages can knock out cell phone towers. And even if they don't knock out the cell phone towers, cell phone networks generally jam due to the influx of traffic in emergency situations. These phones are also being increasingly used by army personnel, whether it be on the battlefield or used to phone loved one's at home from anywhere in the world.

Those who love the outdoors, such as boating, camping, mountain climbing or biking, having an emergency satellite telephone increases safety in dangerous places. There are thousands of people every year stranded in the wilderness, deserts or out at sea that could have been easily rescued had they kept a satellite telephone with them.

Obama wins Nobel prize then NASA bomb the moon

Twin impacts on the moon's surface occurred early Friday in a search for water ice. Scientists will now analyze data from the spacecraft's instruments to assess whether water ice is present. The satellite traveled 5.6 million miles during an historic 113-day mission that ended in the Cabeus crater, a permanently shadowed region near the moon's south pole. The spacecraft was launched June 18th as a companion mission to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

"The LCROSS science instruments worked exceedingly well and returned a wealth of data that will greatly improve our understanding of our closest celestial neighbor," said Anthony Colaprete, LCROSS principal investigator and project scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "The team is excited to dive into data." In preparation for impact, LCROSS and its spent Centaur upper stage rocket separated about 54,000 miles above the surface of the moon on Thursday at approximately 6:50 p.m. PDT.

Moving at a speed of more than 1.5 miles per second, the Centaur hit the lunar surface shortly after 4:31 a.m. October 9th, creating an impact that instruments aboard LCROSS observed for approximately four minutes. LCROSS then impacted the surface at approximately 4:36 a.m.

Source: Satnews

Inmarsat donates 70 BGans

Inmarsat has enhanced its commitment to disaster response with a donation of 70 BGAN terminals to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

Inmarsat chairman and chief executive Andy Sukawaty said the agreement further extends the use of Inmarsat equipment for disaster relief.
"Inmarsat was founded on the principle that communications can save lives, and there is no better use for our services than that," said Andy.
"We remain deeply committed to continuing our involvement in disaster relief programmes, and to strengthening our partnership with the ITU."

Following the launch of its ITU Framework for Co-operation in Emergencies, industry leaders in technology, financing and airfreight services are now able to rally around the ITU's rapid response efforts, helping countries hit by disasters through the use of information communications technology (ICT) when terrestrial networks are disrupted or destroyed.
ITU chief of emergency telecommunications Cosmas Zavazava said: "The ITU continues to attract partners committed to using technology to save lives. This people-oriented partnership is one such example."

UN-backed emergency communications, including BGAN terminals, have been deployed recently to help victims of the devastating earthquake in Sumatra, the tsunami that struck American Samoa and other South Pacific islands and the double-cyclone crossing

Inmarsat-sponsored Télécoms Sans Frontières mobilised to each disaster to set up emergency communications centres and provide humanitarian calling facilities for affected populations.

Antarctica + Iridium

'The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) has approved a resolution requiring members’ passenger ships to be fitted with satellite tracking devices based on Iridium (Iridium Communications Inc.) (NASDAQ: IRDM). The devices will report ships’ positions at least once per hour when cruising in Antarctic waters. These devices use Iridium’s short-burst data (SBD) service to transmit position reports from the ships at sea to a shore-based server, which can be accessed through a secure Internet connection by ship operators, search-and-rescue authorities and other authorized users. '

Source: Satnews

Free emergency calling out at sea

What is 505 Emergency Calling?
505 Emergency Calling is a new safety communications facility for FleetBroadband. It allows vessels in an emergency situation to make voice calls directly to a Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) by simply calling the short code number ‘505’.

What is the tariff for 505 Emergency Calling?
This is a free facility provided by Inmarsat. You will not be charged for your call providing the number is only used in emergency situations.

Which Inmarsat service is 505 available on?
505 Emergency Calling is available with Inmarsat FleetBroadband using any FleetBroadband terminal (FB500, FB250, or FB150). No additional equipment is required to access the facility.

Who is 505 for?
It is designed to be used by any vessel equipped with FleetBroadband but without GMDSS-compliant facilities. 505 Emergency Calling is ideally suited to small to medium-sized vessels in the merchant, leisure and fishing sectors. It is also expected that larger vessels will be interested in this facility as a back-up service.

How to use 505 Emergency Calling?
Simply call 505 and initiate the call in the normal way, either by pressing theor # key. You will be automatically connected to an appropriate MRCC, depending on the Inmarsat region you are in. When connected you will be asked to provide the following information:
Who you are (vessel name, telephone number and callsign)
Where you are (your position in latitude and longitude or a bearing and distance from a known geographical point)
What is wrong (nature of emergency/difficulty)
Type of assistance required
Number of persons on board

Source: Inmarsat

Cheaper crew calling launches out at sea

Ships' crew can now make cheap rate phone calls 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with FleetBroadband, making it easier to stay in touch with home.
Enhanced Super Quiet Time (ESQT) is a new service from Inmarsat that allows mariners to phone family and friends at reduced cost using pre-paid cards.
It is available on all FleetBroadband terminals - FB500, FB250 and FB150 - from 1 October.

Inmarsat maritime market manager Kartik Sinha said: "This evolution of our FleetBroadband proposition puts the focus firmly on crew welfare.
"For mariners spending long periods at sea, being able to make lower cost voice calls to family and friends whenever they want will really raise morale.
"It is also another benefit of FleetBroadband to ship owners and managers, who recognise the importance of having a happy crew."

Source: Inmarsat

Satellite technology helps flood victims in Philippines

Mobile satcoms are providing vital emergency communications after Tropical Storm Ketsana caused severe flooding in The Philippines.
The storm hit the country on 26 September, bringing nine hours of torrential rains which caused massive floods - the worst to hit Manila and surrounding provinces for 40 years.
Eighty per cent of Manila was submerged and a state of calamity was declared in eight regions of the country as 435,000 people were displaced and more than 240 lost their lives.

The Inmarsat-sponsored emergency communications aid agency Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) swiftly deployed a team equipped with BGAN and Mini M to the country from their regional base in Bangkok, Thailand.
"We installed an emergency communications centre, equipped with BGAN connectivity, to support the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) in Manila and to provide technical assistance to facilitate aid coordination and enable relief workers to communicate right at the heart of the affected area," said a TSF spokesman.
With so many left homeless by the floods TSF may also offer humanitarian calling services using its Mini M mobile satphones.

TSF says it is monitoring the situation across the region as Ketsana threatens several countries including Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand.
According to the latest information available for Vietnam, over 100,000 people have been evacuated and more than 20 deaths have been reported.
In addition to this first humanitarian tragedy, a second tropical storm will probably hit on Thursday the North of the Philippines.

Source: Inmarsat