ARGOS (ARTIC R2) Satellite Communication Guide

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Contributors: PaulZC
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Platform ID

Each ARGOS transmitter has a unique Platform ID number. When you buy an ARGOS ARTIC R2 board from SparkFun, you will receive a card with it which shows:

  • Your decimal Platform ID
    • This is used and displayed in ARGOS Web
  • The 28-bit hexadecimal Platform ID
    • This is programmed into the ARTIC R2's flash memory and used in all transmissions
  • The transmission repetition interval
    • The default interval is 90 seconds

You will need to ask CLS / Woods Hole Group to add the Platform ID to your account in order to see your data.

You will need to seek special permission from CLS / Woods Hole Group to use a repetition interval shorter than 90 seconds.

We were instructed by CLS to program the (hexadecimal) Platform ID into flash memory, so that the wrong ID could not be entered into code by accident. (Entering the wrong number has happened - a polar bear that was being tracked via ARGOS suddenly appeared to be in Africa!)


If you have one of our very first ARGOS ARTIC R2 Transceiver Shields, it may not have the Platform ID programmed into flash memory. For those boards, and only those boards, it is necessary to: request a Platform ID from CLS / Woods Hole Group; use v1.0.9 of the ARGOS ARTIC R2 Arduino Library; and enter the HEXADECIMAL Platform ID into your code. Please see the Shield Hookup Guide for more details.