2018 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Monitoring Endangered Species from Space - A First Application of ICARUS Technology for Long-Term High-Resolution Tracking of Cryptic Animals
| Project/Area Number |
17K15054
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
Vincenot C.E. 京都大学, 情報学研究科, 助教 (80751908)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
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| Keywords | ICARUS / ISS / space tracking / biologging / bats / pteropus / satellite / biotelemetry |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
The project has been significantly delayed because of postponements in the availability of the ICARUS space tracking technology (see below), which is the core element essential to the development of our study. We have thus had no choice but to request an extension of the project period.
On the positive side, we have done everything that we could perform in the meantime to be able to start effective deployments as promptly as possible. We have already tested in the field tag attachment procedures, contributed to the tag development through tight interaction with Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, which is leading the ICARUS project, and I-GOS, the company in charge of tag development. Most recently, we have through collaboration deployed the first prototypes in the field to test ground-to-ground transmission, and have planned the logistics for the first full-scale deployment (incl. space transmission to the ISS) and field beta-testing. We have also held regular teleconference meetings with ICARUS heads and have visited I-GOS and will visit them again in June to expedite the start of this final step. Finally, we have also secured to be among the very first circle of commercial deployment of the full system, thereby preserving the novelty of this Kaken Hi project.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
4: Progress in research has been delayed.
Reason
Technical deployment in space of the ICARUS system has been strongly delayed due to the rescheduling of ISS activities as well as delays in the start of the terrestrial processing facility in Russia. Consequently, the present Kaken Hi project, which is entirely dependent on the availability of the ICARUS space tracking technology, has also been on hold for reasons totally out of our control and which were unforeseeable and impossible to work around. We have therefore requested an extension of the project funding to complete it successfully. In the meantime, we have performed everything we could to quickly jump start the project once ICARUS is operational and have also deployed the system with ground-to-ground transmission instead of ground-to-space transmission (see achievement report).
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
We plan to quickly implement the initial full project, in an accelerated fashion, as soon as the the space link of the ICARUS system is online. This step is totally out of our hands and dependent on Roscosmos, Russia's space agency, Yet, through tight communication with the ICARUS and I-GOS heads, we will be informed promptly and will be among the very first people to beta-test the system. We plan to deploy the tags for field testing as soon as possible, most probably at the end of summer.
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| Causes of Carryover |
The project has been delayed, due to factors totally out of our control and impossible to work around (see project report). Full-scale deployment of ICARUS tags, on which this project entirely depends, had to be postponed to next year.
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