PermaSense: Investigating Permafrost with a WSN in the Swiss Alps. Forthcoming technical report

• Main Authors: Igor Talzi, Andreas Hasler, Stephan Gruber, Christian Tschudin
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2007
• Subjects: Categories and Subject Descriptors C.2.1 [Computer-Communication Networks; Network Architecture and Design; C.2.3 [Computer-Communica- tion Networks; Network Operations; J.2 [Physical Sci- ences and Engineering; Earth and Atmospheric Sciences General Terms Design; Measurement; permafrost
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.561.4667; http://www.geo.unizh.ch/~stgruber/pubs/Talzi_2007-EmNets07.pdf

Currently, there is a lack of stand-alone geo-monitoring sys-tems for harsh environments that are easy to configure, de-ploy and manage, while at the same time adhering to science grade quality requirements. In a joint computer and geo-science project we have built and deployed a wireless sensor network for measuring permafrost related parameters. Us-ing these high-precision data, geo-scientists will be able to calibrate their heat flux models in order to better predict the stability of steep rock slopes in the alps. In this paper we describe our system from a computer science and system point of view and report on some lessons learned, especially in the domain of sensor design, power-awareness and reliable data flow.