[12-21-07 – Satellite Today] Inmarsat has signed a deal with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO to further upgrade and enhance the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System, Inmarsat announced Dec. 20. The deal will see Inmarsat provide its Broadband Global Area Network (BGAN) service for 50 sea-level stations in the Indian Ocean. BGAN, which delivers broadband data connectivity via the Inmarsat-4 communications satellites, will enable the transmission of sea-level observation every minute, versus the current system that uses meteorological satellites to transmit data every 15 minutes.
    Faster transmission could be vital when a tsunami happens. Increasing the transmission frequency will provide more time and information for national warning authorities to alert coastal populations at risk. The signing of this deal comes just before the three-year anniversary of the tsunami that devastated parts of south-east Asia in December 2004.