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McMurdo Base Station, Antarctica
WORKSHOP FINDINGS
2021 Antarctic Subsea Cable Workshop Report: High-Speed
Connectivity Needs to Advance U.S. Antarctic Science
The projected Scientific Monitoring and Reliable Telecommunications (SMART) cable system would provide
meaningful solutions to four fundamental challenges expressed in the 2021 Antarctic Subsea Cable
Workshop Report which the NSF would like to address:
FINDING 1: Existing and future Antarctic research would be significantly enhanced if bandwidth limitations were
eliminated through the availability of a modern submarine fiber optic cable system.
FINDING 2: A new SMART submarine cable could be constructed with embedded instrumentation that would
itself enable meaningful new research and understanding of the Southern Ocean and Antarctica.
FINDING 3: Robust bandwidth for interpersonal connectivity for scientists and staff, if thoughtfully
approached, could be transformative for research and work functions, participation in Antarctic science,
education, engagement, and community wellbeing.
FINDING 4: Construction of a new SMART cable that provides essentially unlimited bandwidth to McMurdo is
feasible and could also serve as the platform to extend connectivity to deep-field research sites as well as
critical research programs at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. This level of connectivity can transform the
science and research platforms for future generations.
(Neff et al., 2021)
(Klein, 2020)