Satellite telemetry

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The satellite telemetry is a telemetry method in which movable objects using transmitters that with satellites will be in contact, tracked.

method

The moving objects, whose position or movements are tracked, are equipped with a transmitter that receives the signals from the satellites of the ARGOS or GPS system. The transmitter calculates its position from these signals and sends them via a satellite. In addition to the position accurate to within a few meters, height and speed can now also be calculated. Animals carry the transmitter like a backpack (mostly with birds ) or as a collar with larger mammals .

history

Satellite telemetry emerged with the establishment of the ARGOS system in the 1970s. The system initially consisted of only two satellites, the transmitters weighed about one kilogram. They were first created for migratory animals such as polar bears and caribou in the 1980s . With the increasing size of the transmitters for monitoring vehicles , they could also be used in bird research from a weight of less than 200 grams . From 1984 the first experiments were carried out on bald eagles , whistling and trumpeter swans and giant petrels. From 1990 onwards, little swans and a griffon vulture were equipped with satellite telemetry transmitters for the first time in Europe . Since 1991 over 80 white storks have been telemetered. To date, well over 50 bird species have been examined using satellite telemetry. The transmitters have been reduced to about 20 grams and can be operated with solar energy , which means they will work for years.

advantages

In contrast to conventional telemetry, satellite telemetry transmitters determine their position independently. The objects being transmitted do not have to be tracked with a receiver, also because of the greater range of the satellite transmission. As a result, satellite telemetry is much less labor intensive, but satellite telemetry transmitters are very expensive. With satellite telemetry, compared to conventional bird ringing, the entire space-time pattern of bird migration can be recorded, i.e. daily stages, flight altitude profiles, as well as resting areas and duration.

swell

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Striwerda, TE; Fuller, MR; Seegar, WS; Howey, PW; Black, HD (1986): Birdborne satellite transmitter and location program. J. Hopkins APL Tech. Digest 7, pp. 203-208
  2. ↑ Berthold, P .; Nowak, E .; Querner, U. (1997): A New Dimension in Bird Research: Satellite Telemetry. Falke 44, pp. 134-140

literature