From iotforall.com
Thorigné-Fouillard, France – Feb. 26, 2020, 6:00 pm CET – In a novel example of the broad applications of LoRaWAN® Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, Kerlink (AKLK – FR0013156007), a specialist in solutions dedicated to the IoT, today announced its Wirnet™ gateway is powering a radon-sensing project on Europe’s most active volcano, Mount Etna.
The recently deployed network linking Mount Etna on the east coast of Sicily to scientists in Clermont-Ferrand, France, 1,200 kilometers away, transmits radon measurement data, which helps scientists monitor activity of the volcano. Radon is a natural radioactive element found in high concentrations near volcanoes and uranium deposits and is one of the potential precursors of volcanic eruptions.
For many years, scientists have measured radon in the soil of the 3,300m-high Etna, which required on-site visits. A new system of autonomous radon sensors, designed and deployed by French scientists in Clermont-Ferrand and supported by the LoRaWAN® network, remotely and continuously measures radon in plumes of volcanic gas. The system also allows measuring radon emissions near the top of the volcano, an area that was out of reach for soil samples in the winter.