Globalstar Canada Satellite Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Globalstar Inc. (NYSE MKT: GSAT) and provider of satellite messaging and emergency notification technologies, announced that its commercial IoT satellite technology was chosen by the University of Toronto Trash Team for an innovative study of plastic pollution in Lake Ontario. The Globalstar SmartOne C Asset-Ready Satellite Trackers were purchased by the Team in its Tagging Trash Project to understand sources of plastic litter and reveal the pathways and fate of plastics in Toronto Harbour. Initial project results will be released by the Trash Team in a webinar to be held on November 23rd, 2021.
Satellite-Managed Asset-Ready Tracker
“It couldn’t be more rewarding for us to see our satellite solutions contribute to the important work that the University of Toronto Trash Team is undertaking,” said Jim Mandala, Vice President, Commercial IoT, Globalstar, Inc. “Globalstar’s complete line of commercial IoT satellite solutions are helping organizations like the University of Toronto Trash Team monitor and manage assets and optimize remote operations. All of our solutions, including the SmartOne C Satellite Tracker, operate over Globalstar’s fully modernized LEO satellite network, enabling reliable tracking of fixed and mobile assets –— essential in today’s hyper-connected, global marketplace. We congratulate the Trash Team on completing the initial phase of their project, and look forward to working with them as they continue to advance this important research.”
In Spring 2021, the University of Toronto Trash Team deployed a fleet of blender bottles at strategic locations around Toronto Harbour. Each bottle contained an embedded Globalstar SmartOne C Satellite Managed Asset Tracker. The GPS-tagged bottles were designed to represent floating plastic litter in Toronto harbour. The Trash Team uses the data captured via Globalstarcommercial IoT satellite technology to follow the pathways of the bottles and reveal movement patterns and potential accumulation zones for floating litter.
“It is evident Toronto has a trash problem in the harbour,” said Cassandra Sherlock, member of the Trash Team. “The data we are collecting will help inform placement of trash capture devices, such as Seabins, to divert litter away from Lake Ontario. The data also helps us understand where litter enters the water, how it moves from point A to B, and areas where it eventually accumulates.”
The Globalstar SmartOne C Satellite Trackers are embedded in air-tight, bright orange water bottles and housed on a small platform and secured so that the trackers are constantly facing the sky and the satellites. SPOT my Globalstar cloud-based mapping service, which is integrated with every Globalstar commercial IoT device, provides critical location data which is mapped at scheduled tracking intervals. This provides the team with waypoints marking the location of each bottle, every hour. The automated reporting from SPOT my Globalstar also enables the team to look at historical reports, taking weather, wind events and other environmental factors into consideration. The SmartOne C utilizes a motion sensor, comparative GPS positions and custom-configured sensors to gather and transmit asset status information from the bottles.
“Due to the success of this project, we are now considering using the Globalstar IoT Satellite Trackers in rivers to assess the fate and transport of plastic pollution in watersheds,” said Chelsea Rochman, Science Programming, and Application Lead for the University of Toronto Trash Team. “This work will likely begin in the City of Toronto, but then may expand to other global rivers.”