This week, three brave Russians made history by parachuting from the Earth’s stratosphere to the North Pole. The mission not only set a world record but also served as a test for a new prototype communications system designed for use in the Arctic. Mikhail Korniyenko, Alexander Lynnik, and Denis Yefremov jumped from an Ilyushin-76 plane at a height of 10,500 meters and spent about two and a half minutes in freefall before opening their chutes 1,000 meters above the ground. Despite wearing heated masks, they all suffered frostbite to their cheeks due to the extreme cold temperatures of around -50 Celsius.
The descent was captured in a stunning video that showcased the bravery and skill of these three men. They landed near Russia’s Barneo polar base, where they were able to power up a server using diesel generators and establish a connection to a satellite using equipment dropped from a lower altitude. This successful landing demonstrated the importance of communication systems in the Arctic region as nations like Russia, the United States, and China compete for resources, trade routes, and military advantage in the area.
Nikita Tsaplin, managing partner and co-founder of Russian hosting provider RUVDS, commented on this experiment stating that their goal was to see how practical it would be to build a low-cost solution for computer access to satellite networks. While this experimental system is not as advanced as systems like U.S.-based Iridium Communications Inc., it marks an important step towards improving communication capabilities in one of Earth’s most remote regions.
