The scientific importance of the Catlin Arctic Survey is not purely environmental. The team will also be wearing the Equivital™ physiological monitoring system, developed by the Cambridge-based company, Hidalgo. The Equivital™ units will continuously measure and record the physiological condition of the explorers whilst on the ice and will provide an indication of their general wellbeing, as well as detailed physiological data. Equivital™ has been designed for use in a range of demanding applications, including telehealth, first responder and paramedic, occupational welfare, sports performance analysis and physical endurance research. The use of Equivital on the Catlin Arctic Survey offers an excellent opportunity to assess how the body responds in the extreme Arctic environment.

Incorporating hi-tech sensors within a comfortable belt worn around the chest, Equivital™ measures heart rate, respiration rate and effort, skin temperature and body orientation. Team members will also ingest a ‘core pill’ which passes through the stomach into the intestines. This pill contains a miniature temperature sensor, battery and radio transmitter and communicates core body temperature readings to the Equivital™ unit.

The Equivital™ unit continuously records and transmits the wearer’s physiological data, which will in turn be sent to the survey vessel’s onboard Central Data Unit before being transmitted back to the UK HQ. In particular, core body temperatures will be recorded and sent back to track team members’ physical and mental responses when exposed to extended periods in extreme, low temperatures. What this ultimately means is that, at the beginning of the expedition, when ambient air temperatures are still as low as -50C, website visitors can witness first hand the detrimental effect that such conditions have on the human body.