Telescience capability for the Sondre Stromfjord, Greenland, incoherent-scatter radar facility

SRI International (SRI) operates an upper-atmospheric research facility in Sondre Stromfjord (Sondrestrom), Greenland. In the past, the facility's remote location and limited logistical support imposed constraints on the research that could be carried out at the site. Campaigns involving multiple instruments were often constrained due to limited space, and experiments requiring coordination with other geographically separated facilities, though possible, were difficult. To provide greater access to the facility, an electronic connection between Sondrestrom and the mainland U.S.A. was established, providing access to the National Science Internet. SRI developed telescience software that sends data from the incoherent scatter radar at the Sondrestrom facility to SRI's offices in Menlo Park, California. This software uses the transmission control protocol (TCP/IP) to transmit the data in near real time between the two locations and the X window system to generate displays of the data in Menlo Park. This is in contrast to using the X window system to display data remotely across a wide-area network. Using CP to transport data over the long distance network has resulted in significantly improved network throughput and latency. While currently used to transport radar data, the telescience software is designed and intended for simultaneous use with other instruments at Sondrestrom and other facilities. Work incorporating additional instruments is currently in progress.