Maritime Awards Society of Canada

Northern Watch, a 2008 programme that uses surveillance devices to monitor movement through the Northwest Passage, has resumed after being delayed by logistical difficulties.  A primary difficulty for defence scientists is the reconstruction of a base camp on Devon Island, northwest of Baffin Island, which is in disrepair, the location of a new, safer route to a remote lookout site, and the establishment of emergency protocols.  Despite logistical difficulties, sensors were installed in the Barrow Strait and were able to relay information for four weeks this summer, and the Northern Watch team will return to the area next summer to establish a full network that can operate year-round.  Northern Watch was stood up to provide a cost-effective means of monitoring the Northwest Passage and providing situational awareness.

(Courtesy “Daily Intelligence Brief”. World Naval Edition, November 4 2009. Office of the Asia-Pacific Advisor, Maritime Forces Pacific, Canadian Navy)