Satellite Phones

[Hockey Ref]

Depending on your point of view, this could be the solution to a problem or a new curse. It's a news story about an upcoming "mainstream" satellite phone service that would bring phone coverage to far-flung places where cell phone towers don't exist. It would make it possible for hikers and backpackers to communicate with the outside world from places like Glacier. I put this in the gear section because the phone qualifies as gear, I suppose.

http://www.newser.com/article/d97f6gu01 ... efore.html

[llholmes1948]

Ref,
These certainly would be helpful for emergency use but as you say it cuts both ways. I do not relish the thought of arriving at Granite Park Chalet and listening to six people call their relatives, friends, co-workers, etc. to tell them about their vacation so far. Nor do I like the idea of encountering people on the trail who are giving a "stream of consciousness" description of their hike to someone by cell phone.

But maybe that is just me.

Lyman

"You won't believe this, Aunt Millie. We went around a bend in the trail and a glacier came right at us. We jumped out of the way just in time."

[dorf]

I didn't read the article yet, but I wouldn't worry about it, myself---at least for a while. The cost of the unit and "subscription" will be cost prohibitive for all but the hardest core wilderness travelers, and these types wouldn't be traipsing about Glacier anyway. I can see some non-savvy tourons using one, but you're not going to see them more than a couple of miles from the trailhead. I would think solo hikers with worrying spouses, climbers and Alaskans might be interested in something like this, though not enough to make anyone a profit.

[paul]

It's definitely useful for emergencies. But I agree that the use of these phones in the backcountry could be really annoying.

[Hockey Ref]

I didn't read the article yet, but I wouldn't worry about it, myself---at least for a while. The cost of the unit and "subscription" will be cost prohibitive for all but the hardest core wilderness travelers, and these types wouldn't be traipsing about Glacier anyway. I can see some non-savvy tourons using one, but you're not going to see them more than a couple of miles from the trailhead. I would think solo hikers with worrying spouses, climbers and Alaskans might be interested in something like this, though not enough to make anyone a profit.

Not sure about the subscription cost, but the hand unit (shown in the article) is about the same size as a standard cell phone. The goal is to make these units more affordable and mainstream.

[llholmes1948]

I would like to believe that Dorf is right and that these things will not become prolific.

Then again, I remember when microwave ovens cost at least $300-400 and you couldn't find a decent digital camera for under $500.

Lyman

[Buck]

Heck you can rent an Iridium sat. phone right now for about 40 bucks per week + minutes.
It's just a question of time before they're even more mainstream. Hopefully no one would break one out unless it was an emergency.

[scott-atl]

i made a call from swiftcurrent pass a few years back on a verizon phone. we got turned around at the pass by a bear warning posting. (the guy at the chalet had forgotten to post down there) our car was at swiftcurrent so we had to call a buddy to pick us up at the loop. i was surprised the call connected.

[Hockey Ref]

i made a call from swiftcurrent pass a few years back on a verizon phone. we got turned around at the pass by a bear warning posting. (the guy at the chalet had forgotten to post down there) our car was at swiftcurrent so we had to call a buddy to pick us up at the loop. i was surprised the call connected.

Come on, Scott, you didn't let a measly bear warning sign stop you...did you?

[scott-atl]

sign said 'no one past this point'. we talked about going on but thought we might get cited. i think the day before a couple was coming down towards swiftcurrent and the guy got whacked by a young grizzly. he had bear spray on his pack shoulder strap but didn't have a chance to use it. i think it was like a hit and run by the bear.

[Hockey Ref]

sign said 'no one past this point'. we talked about going on but thought we might get cited. i think the day before a couple was coming down towards swiftcurrent and the guy got whacked by a young grizzly. he had bear spray on his pack shoulder strap but didn't have a chance to use it. i think it was like a hit and run by the bear.

So technically the trail was closed, huh? Okay, then, you're off the hook!

[rjm]

The Iridium satellite system is good for a magic trick. The satellites have two big shiny antennas, like wings, that reflect a bright beam from the sun. Think of holding a mirror in the sun. The direction of those reflected beams depends on the position of the satellite and the angle of the antennas to the sun. Those beams occasionally sweep across the earth and some are easily visible. It looks like a star suddenly appearing, getting brighter for a few seconds, then fading away and disappearing. Sometimes they’re bright enough to see in daylight.

So the trick is to tell someone that you’ve been practicing making stars, and you’ll show them one. A bit of grimacing and grunting, the star appears, you relax and it fades away, and you explain that you’re still working on it. Wow! Of course, you have to know when and where to point.

Turns out there’s a website http://www.heavens-above.com You register your location and click on Iridium flares for the “next 24 hours” or the “next seven days.” You’ll get a list of a couple or several flares with the exact time, azimuth (angle from north), and altitude (angle above the horizon), along with the magnitude or brightness. You want the larger negative numbers for the brightest light. For example, I think Venus is around -3 magnitude and the moon is around -12. The brightest Iridium flares are -7 or -8.

So get a list, practice once or twice to get a feel for them, pick someone gullible, and give it try. Have a ready excuse for when they ask “Do it again!”

The International Space Station (ISS) is also frequently visible, and you can get info from that same website. You can try to pass off the ISS as your attempt to make a comet or really slow shooting star.

Around August 12 you get the real shooting stars, and lying on the beach at Lake McD or out on the boardwalk at the Pass are great places to see them.

[dorf]

Bump

http://www.computerworld.com/action/art ... geNumber=1

Just a thought: If sat phones were to become popular/mainstream, it might eliminate the need to erect cell phone towers in certain national parks?