Inuvik Satellite Station

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Receiving station in March 2011

Coordinates: 68 ° 19 ′ 3 ″  N , 133 ° 32 ′ 2 ″  W.

Relief Map: Canada
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Inuvik Satellite Station​
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Canada

The Inuvik receiving station is a satellite receiving station in Inuvik ( Canada ), which went into operation in February of 2010. Among other things, it is used to receive the TanDEM-X satellite . The receiving station is a joint project of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), the Canadian Center for Earth Observation (CCRS) and the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC).

Location

Inuvik is a city in northwest Canada beyond the Arctic Circle with currently approx. 3000 inhabitants. The city can be reached by road all year round and is one of the Northwest Territories .

Project

The ground station is operated by DLR and is to be used in particular to receive data for the German satellite mission TanDEM-X . The ground station in Inuvik thus completes the DLR network. Further stations are located at the Antarctic research station GARS-O'Higgins and in Kiruna , Sweden. The system has an antenna with a diameter of 13 meters. In addition to the partner countries Germany and Canada, other scientists and countries can also access and evaluate the data. An important goal of the project is the development of new technologies for earth observation. Within the scope of this project, a daily amount of data of up to 350 gigabytes is expected, which is transferred from the memories of the high-resolution satellites TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X to the station. To receive this large volume of data, multiple daily visual contact with the satellite and a connection time of two and a half hours are necessary.

Expansion and maintenance

The Canadian company PrioraNet (PNC) is responsible for the expansion and maintenance. The company was created through a joint venture between the Canadian company Iunctus Geomatics and the Swedish group Swedish Space Cooperation (SSC). Another identical receiving station is currently being built by PNC, which will primarily serve earth observation missions of the French space agency CNES . The Canadian government already operates a meteorological measuring station on the site. DLR plans to expand the successful cooperation and to set up a ground station center in Inuvik with international participation.

As of 2018

The 13 meter diameter satellite antenna was built with funds from the Helmholtz Association to control the satellite. With this mission, a soil profile of the earth was created up to 2016 that is accurate to one meter. In the future, the data to and from the antenna will be transmitted via an underground fiber optic line through the whole of northern Canada , which will significantly improve the quality of the transmission. An eastern fiber optic branch is fully operational as far as Inuvik, coming from the province of Alberta . At the end of 2018, a western line from British Columbia , also located in the permafrost ground, was only in operation as far as Ferry Hill; another northern section is currently served by radio link that is susceptible to interference . The fiber optic route that is missing here as far as Inuvik is now being expanded, after which there will be a ring-shaped network of high stability, the "Canada North Fiber Loop".

The operator of the entire facility, called Inuvik Satellite Station Facility ISSF, is owned by the Canadian federal government. Four satellite dishes are under his supervision, each of which is operated by:

  1. the French Center national d'études spatiales , CNES, together with the Swedish Space Corporation , SSC
  2. the DLR (Federal Republic of Germany)
  3. Natural Resources Canada
  4. the Swedish SSC

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Canada: First glass fiber in permafrost helps German satellites , heise.de , December 31, 2018. With a map of the fiber optic cable route and a current picture of the bowl, now painted with a traditional hunting scene of the Gwich'in people.
  2. ↑ Town of Inuvik: Inuvik Satellite Station Facility (ISSF). Retrieved on January 7, 2019 (English, photo of the entrance to the facility, a large sign lists the four operators).