Strong winds, rain, icy cold and constant movement. That was the life for an Axis Communications network camera working as a lookout on an Arctic expedition sailboat, Belzebub II, that crossed the M'Clure Strait in the Canadian Arctic, to become the first sailboat ever to achieve this feat. The route from Greenland to Alaska had previously only been broken by an icebreaker. The PTZ dome was mounted to the top of the mast for documentation of melting polar ice and navigation.
"When sailing through ice you need someone sitting in the masthead with a bird's eye view," said Edvin Buregren, one of the international expedition team members of Belzebub II. "It's the worst place you can be when you sail; weather, wind and movement are much worse up there than down on the deck." According to Buregren, the camera enabled the crew to control the camera via the onboard Wi-Fi network to get a 360-degree view, an invaluable asset when sailing in difficult waters and harsh weather.
"The same model has been up to 35 kilometers high by a stratospheric balloon where it is much colder than it can get on the ground," said Erik Frannlid, Director of Product Management. "But the expedition through the Northwest Passage, in particular, shows the camera is capable of being subjected to tremors, vibrations, humidity and temperature changes for several months."