Satellite communications: WMO-IOC Satcom Forum 7 Dec 2016 Satcom - a resource for satellite data communication users on land and at sea Mike Prior-Jones, Chair of SATCOM Forum

Why satellite? because it reaches the places other services cannot reach – remote locations, oceans and poles because it offers resilience to infrastructure failures – such as during natural disasters because you can deploy a single solution in a wide range of locations

Types of satellite service message-based services like an SMS message cheap, compact terminals low power consumption great for stations that report a little data daily or hourly stream-based services like dial-up modems or broadband internet from 2.4kbit/s to 500+ kbit/s more expensive and need more power

Isn’t it expensive? it doesn’t have to be: message-based services sending a few messages per day can cost ~$16 USD/month Satcom Forum can advise on how to choose a tariff however, fast streaming services can get very expensive if you use a lot of data but may be cost-effective if they save staff time or allow less frequent field visits

What is Satcom Forum? a resource for satellite data communication users in environmental science a place to share and learn best practice: access to technical information to help you choose which satellite service best suits your application access to experts from industry access to other users’ case studies and experience an advocacy group for users’ interests an official group backed by WMO and IOC

What does Satcom Forum do? provides information and guidance on how to choose a satellite system that meets your needs advocates with the networks for the specific needs of scientific users – tariffs, terms and conditions, feature requests puts you in touch with experts

Who is involved? experienced satcom users from the meteorological and oceanographic communities representatives of the satellite networks and resellers representatives of the equipment manufacturers WMO and IOC secretariats

Disaster tariff pilot project disaster alerting over terrestrial networks (e.g. cellular) is prone to infrastructure failures just when it’s most needed a satellite terminal offers a reliable way to send or receive critical alert messages in an emergency however, most satellite services require payment of a monthly service charge, making this prohibitively expensive

Disaster tariff Satcom is looking to work with the commercial satcom networks to develop a tariff that suits disaster-response applications: zero standing charge pre-paid messages shared across multiple measurement sites “if the river level is more than N, report the level every hour” , or a tide gauge reporting an abnormal change in sea level (a precursor to a tsunami)style of reporting Satcom is looking for trial sites where we can demonstrate these ideas – please get in touch

How to get involved SATCOM forum wish to set up and run a demonstration, and ask CHY delegates to: Suggest suitable location for such a demonstration: define 2-3 case studies in emergency domains such as tsunami or flash floods Especially where landline or cellular communications may be disrupted

How do I find out more? contact one of the following: Chair: Mike Prior-Jones (mike.prior-jones@ttp.com) Vice-chair: Johan Stander (johan.stander@weathersa.co.za) Secretariat: David Thomas (dthomas@wmo.int) https://wiswiki.wmo.int/Satcom website with documents from recent meetings

Mike Prior-Jones Chair, WMO-IOC Satcom Form CHy are invited to participate in Satcom, including identifying some use cases that would demonstrate the importance of Satcom to hydrology Thank You Mike Prior-Jones Chair, WMO-IOC Satcom Form