VDE-SAT Applications and Services Platform

For efficient search and rescue (SAR) operations, it is highly beneficial to provide the ships involved in the SAR operation with specific and individual search patterns directly to the bridge onboard ships. The objectives of the VASP project are to enable a platform for Maritime VHF communications services using VDE-SAT and demonstrate the use of VDE-SAT for the following purposes: i) collection and distribution of maritime transport and ship information to maritime authorities, ii)  distribution of individual search patterns and collection of position report from ships involved in search and rescue operations, and iii) distribution of Maritime Safety Information, in particular ice charts and weather maps. This will be done using the new VHF Data Exchange System (VDES) that the maritime community is currently developing. VDE-SAT will provide a low-cost alternative to existing communication solutions, especially in the Arctic, where the availability of communications infrastructure is limited. These services will be provided via the VASP platform and demonstrated using the VDE-SAT payload on-board the NorSAT-2 satellite

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