Neel Mehta
A team of explorers marooned on board a vessel off the Antarctic coast is using Inmarsat satellite technology to communicate with the outside world.
The researchers, students and reporters were on their way home from the month-long Australasian Antarctic Expedition when the vessel got stuck in a thick ice cluster on Dec. 24, Inmarsat said Tuesday.
Nardev Choudhary, an expedition member, said the team is using an Explorer 710 satellite terminal for broadband connectivity while on the field.
Choudhary said the terminal has helped the team stream videos and broadcast news on social media while aboard the Akademik Shokalskiy.
The expedition’s goal was to retrace Australian explorer Sir Douglas Mawson’s steps and revisit the sites his team went to.
Rescuers plan to evacuate the 52 passengers from the ship with the use of a helicopter.
