Project Title

EAGER: Antarctic Broadcasts: Broader Impacts Through Telepresence (ABBITT)

Summary

Event Number:
Y-604-L

Program Manager:
Ms. Elizabeth Rom

ASC POC/Implementer:
Samina Ouda / Bruce Felix / Elaine Hood

Principal Investigator(s)

Ms. Gail A Scowcroft
gailscow@uri.edu
University of Rhode Island
Office of Marine Programs
Kingston, Rhode Island

Location

Supporting Stations: ARSV Laurence M. Gould
Research Locations: Drake Passage transit

Description

The goal of the Antarctic Broadcasts: Broader Impacts Through Telepresence (ABBITT) project is to greatly improve education activities related to NSF-funded Antarctic research. The project will test technologies that have been developed for ship-to-shore transmissions in a region where they have not been used - extreme southern latitudes - and test the delivery of broader impact activities using this technology while at-sea onboard the ARSV Laurence M. Gould (LMG) and from Palmer Station. The Inner Space Center (ISC) at the University of Rhode Island is a leader in developing ship-to-shore telepresence technologies - communications technology that optimizes live video, audio, and data transmissions via advanced satellite and terrestrial networks that link remote locations to the rest of the world. The ISC facility includes a fully equipped broadcast studio that allows for the production of professional quality programming and live, interactive broadcasts. The grantees will produce live interactive broadcasts from the LMG and Palmer Station that will be delivered to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) during the testing phase.

Field Season Overview

This season the project will design, install, and test mobile telepresence units (MTUs) on the LMG during a transit to Palmer Station. The MTU is a portable system, consisting of devices that allow multiple audio/video inputs for routing, switching, mixing, and encoding for transmissions. The MTU becomes part of the same secure network as the ISC, as it is tunneled through the shipboard network, the satellite earth stations, and across the terrestrial public Internet. The Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras already on the LMG will feed into the MTU system. All of these content sources become part of the system that will allow for engaging programming to be delivered live from the ship during the pilot broadcasts to the NMNH. The broadcasts are intended to increase public awareness and understanding of the changing Antarctic region; increase public understanding about Antarctic research and the scientific process as viewers learn what Antarctic scientists are doing and about the techniques and tools they use; and to extend the capacity of the LMG to make connections between polar scientists, students, and educators.

Deploying Team Members