How do you maintain reliable data transmission from remote volcanic peaks that rise 25 centimetres per year – without power, without roads and under snowdrifts taller than a person? For Chile’s Hydraulic Works Management team, the solution is RipEX2.
https//www.racom.eu/eng/case/extreme-conditions-volcanic-region
Challenge: Transmitting High-Value Data from an Extreme Environment
Laguna del Maule, a glacial volcanic lake on the Chile–Argentina border at 2,165 metres above sea level, is one of the most geologically active regions on Earth. From 2016 to 2020, the terrain rose 1.8 metres without a single eruption, prompting an urgent need for continuous geotechnical monitoring.
The monitoring mission faced severe obstacles:
- no access to grid power or infrastructure
- monitoring stations accessible only by helicopter
- long radio distances across rugged mountain terrain
- extreme weather including snow depths up to 4.5 metres
- high stakes – interruptions could mean missing early warning signals
Reliable, autonomous communication was essential to protect both scientific understanding and public safety.
Solution: A Multi-Hop, Solar-Powered Network Built on RipEX2
After rigorous field testing, the team selected RACOM’s RipEX2 radio modems for their resilience, energy efficiency and long-distance RF performance.
Key system features:
- a six-stage multi-hop network using RACOM’s Flexible protocol
- solar-powered RipEX2 modems with advanced sleep mode to reduce consumption
- autonomous operation designed for inaccessible and harsh environments
- opportunistic LTE fallback via mPCIe modules where cellular coverage exists
- robust hardware engineered to withstand snow, wind and temperature extremes
The network was designed and deployed in partnership with MT Ingeniería y Construcción, ensuring expert local support.
Results: Continuous Monitoring Across One of the Most Inaccessible Regions in South America
The RipEX2 network has delivered:
- uninterrupted real-time data transmission from remote monitoring stations
- high availability even under severe winter conditions
- reduced field maintenance and helicopter interventions
- year-round energy autonomy using solar power only
- a reliable communication backbone supporting world-class volcanic research
With RipEX2, Chile’s Hydraulic Works Management team now maintains 24/7 insight into one of the planet’s fastest-changing volcanic systems – a powerful example of how RACOM technology enables science and safety in the most extreme environments.
