Bookmark & share

The Olympic Flame on the Top of the World (PDF-522K)

Preface—Establishment of a Legend

Mount Qomolangma, "The Land of Death", towers above the roof of the world—the Tibetan Plateau at her elevation of 8844.43 meters. To carry the Olympic flame to the summit of Mount Qomolangma for the 2008 Beijing Olympic games, and to provide guaranteed communication for the human conquest of Mount Qomolangma, Huawei, together with China Mobile, successfully covered the Mount Qomolangma with EDGE network with painstaking efforts.

1. Mount Qomolangma

As the main peak of the Himalayan range, Mount Qomolangma, with an elevation of 8844.43 meters above the sea level, is considered the highest mountain peak in the world. It is located at longitude 86.9 degrees east and latitude 27.9 degrees north. With hanging glaciers and towering snow-capped peaks, Mount Qomolangma looks pure and spectacular under the azure sky. In Tibetan, Mount Qomolangma is called "Chomolungma", meaning "The Third Goddess", reflecting her mystery, stateliness, and holiness.

Mount Qomolangma is grand and magnificent. There are crowds of mountains and summits within a radius of 20 kilometers around Qomolangma. The number of summits with an altitude higher than 7,000 meters is more than 40. For example, the Kanchenjunga summit of 8,585 meters high, (the third highest summit in the world), the Lhotse Summit of 8,516 meters high, (the fourth highest summit), and the Makalu Summit of 8,463 meters high (the fifth highest summit), etc., bring an incomparable grand sight of numerous summits.

Due to the hostile climate and extreme altitude, Mount Qomolangma was once called the Land of Death. The climate is particularly changeable, there is an extreme lack of oxygen and it is extremely cold. With acute high altitude disease (AHAD), even a common cold can take one's life. Besides, the ice crevasses, snow avalanches, crags and violent winds become a daunting challenge for climbers. Suffering from the atrocious weather and being unable to communicate with the outside world, nearly 200 climbers have lost their lives in the misty snow on the inclement and unconquerable Mount Qomolangma.

2. Olympic Games

At 22:00, July 13, 2001, the former IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch announced: "The games of the 29th Olympiad in 2008 are awarded to the city of Beijing!" Beijing exploded in joy and thousands of people erupted in cheers as China achieved her dream of hosting the Summer Olympics. The Olympic spirit stimulates the passion and proud in this cultural capital of the orient——China. When the Olympic flame comes all the way across the world to China, the IOC and Beijing Olympics Committee announce that the Olympic flame will pass by the highest mountain in the world, Mount Qomolangma, during the torch relay. This will be a significant moment in the event's history.

To carry the Olympic flame to the summit of Mount Qomolangma securely, torchbearers must participate in professional training sessions and special torches are required. Moreover, communication support is indispensable.

Who can make Communication possible on Top of the World?

China Mobile, a mobile service provider with the largest market value in the world and the official mobile communication partner of the Beijing 2008 Olympics, made the commitment to provide services for the torch relay team and mountaineers on the world's highest peak.

Huawei, a leader in providing next generation telecommunications networks was selected by China Mobile to install a new generation GSM Base Station on Mount Qomolangma. Huawei was committed to providing excellent product quality and customized solutions with timely response to create long-term value and potential growth for customers. Huawei would build base stations at altitudes of 5,200 meters and 6,500 meters.

3. Challenges for the Project

Compared with other projects delivered in tough areas, this project is much more difficult and challenging. On the mountains higher than 5,200 meters, huge obstacles such as extremely low temperatures, lack of oxygen, snow avalanches, crags, violent winds, transportation and power supply difficulties are critical to the project.


Acute High Altitude Disease

The AHAD is the natural physiological response of human beings at a certain altitude. AHAD occurs when the altitude reaches 2,700 meters. This causes symptoms such as headache, shortness of breath, chest pains, nausea, low fever, dizziness, and tiredness. Vomiting, diarrhea, high fever, and hydrocephalus are signs that someone is severely affected.

Two base stations on Mount Qomolangma are installed at altitudes higher than 5,200 meters; the AHAD becomes a serious challenge to the implementation of the project.
Hostile Climate

The climate of Qomolangma is always hostile to living things and there seems to be four seasons in one day. The amount of breathable oxygen at the altitude of 6,500 meters is only 38% what it is at the sea level. During the implementation of the project, the temperature at night falls below -20℃. In the windy season, which begins from October through to March, the speed of the prevailing westerly wind reaches 50 m/s, which is hurricane force 12 on the Beaufort Scale, and the temperature ranges from -30℃ to -40℃. Even in April or May which normally has friendly weather. It is common that the wind ranges from force 6 to 7, i.e. 10 – 17 m/s, on Mount Qomolangma. Thus, the hostile climate poses extremely high requirements for the quality of the equipment.
Lack of Transmission Resources

The road from Lhasa to the Qomolangma Base camp covers a distance of more than 600 kilometers. There are only 31 base stations along this route providing coverage of only 41% of the route.

The signal source of the base station on Mount Qomolangma comes from the Flannelette Temple, which is 8 kilometers away. There is no wireless or cable transmission. All these problems must be solved.
Power Supply

In most areas in Tibet, especially on Mount Qomolangma, stars illuminate the sky at night rather than electrical lights. There is no electrical power industry bureau or electrical power transmission equipment. Hence, the power supply to the base station is another difficulty.
Project Implementation

The summit of Mount Qomolangma is covered by huge layers of rock-hard snow. Beneath the shallow marine rock lie the Ordovician limestone, highly metamorphosed black gneiss, and granite of the Precambrian time. It is extremely difficult to dig a hole just 0.1 m below the surface. How can the construction team provide a solid base for the base station?

Without any modern vehicles, how can the equipment be transported to the camp on the mountain at an altitude of 6,500 meters, where people get out of breath when they take just a few steps?

4. Customized Solutions

Facing all these problems and difficulties, Huawei proposes a customized solution. The new generation base station is built on 3G and IP technologies and is equipped with many advanced capabilities, such as the solar power supply, satellite communications system and Ethernet fiber transmission. The equipment complies with the European ROHS (The Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) environment protection standard which means it is able to adapt to extreme environment and weather conditions on Mount Qomolangma. This type of base station is ranked the second in the centralized procurement of GSM equipment by China Mobile. It helps China Mobile to transform the GSM network to an IP network.

Solutions to the Base Station at an Altitude of 5,200 Meters:

Radio coverage: The BTS3006C is installed on the mountain slope to the south of the camp. The 2-way power divider is used to cover the two directions of the summit and the camp.

Transmission: Microwave transmission is adopted. The source comes from the BTS at the Flannelette Temple, which is 8 kilometers away.

Power supply: Solar power supply and batteries are adopted. The batteries are placed in a heating box buried underground.

Monitoring device: The Emerson monitoring device is adopted. The BSC provides one 64 kbit/s monitoring timeslot to transmit the monitoring information.
Installation: The BTS equipment and the auxiliary facility box are installed on the upper layer of the double-layer steel platform. The lower layer is the weight platform on which more than 500 kg stones are stacked. 

Solutions to the Base Station at an Altitude of 6,500 Meters:

Radio coverage: The BTS3002E developed by Huawei is installed.

Transmission: IDR satellite transmission is adopted, and is controlled by the BSC in Lhasa.

Power supply: The 3000 W gasoline engine is used to provide the power supply. It consumes 7 to 8 kg gasoline every 24 hours. The 200 AH batteries are also placed in a heating box for the power supply.

Installation: The BTS3002E is installed against a pole. The gasoline engine, gasoline, and batteries are placed in the tent for protection against the wind and snow.

Monitoring device: The Emerson monitoring device is adopted. A GPRS channel provided by the BTS is used to transmit the monitoring information.

Besides providing innovative and customized solutions to create long-term value and potential growth for customers, Huawei is also highly evaluated by customers for its superior risk management, perfect logistics support and its timely delivery.


Superior Risk Management

For the project of network coverage on Mount Qomolangma, Huawei fully estimates the risks of the scheme and provides effective solutions. For example: 

Perfect Logistics Support

Logistics support: After the scheme design of China Mobile was complete, the equipment was scheduled to be delivered on August 10. Upon receiving the requirements of China Mobile, Huawei responded instantly by starting the reliability assessment and arranging for the equipment. Ahead of other suppliers, Huawei delivers the equipment by air two days in advance of the schedule.

Heating device and medicine: Huawei arranged for heating devices, climbing equipment, oxygen, anti-AHAD medicine and sufficient food. Besides, high-quality vehicles are made available in case of emergencies. 

Efficient Project Implementation

In the afternoon on September 3, 2007, the project of GSM network coverage on Mount Qomolangma by China Mobile started. At 13:30 on September 14, base station 1 at the altitude of 5,200 meters starts to work. Accordingly, it boasts being the highest one in the world at that time.

From October 25 onwards, 145 alpine porters and 21 yaks started to carry the equipment, to the second site, in seven batches.

On November 8, five equipment installers, accompanied by three professional mountaineers, started off from the lower camp to the site at an altitude of 6,500 meters.

At 15:00 on November 12, all hardware equipment was installed and the test on a single base station was successful. On November 13, the last batch of gasoline engines was carried from the camp to the site at an altitude of 6,500 meters. 

Scheduled Delivery

Sharp at 13:00, November 13, the world's highest base station run by China Mobile opened. A moment later, a voice from Mount Qomolangma reached Wang Jianzhou, general manager of China Mobile, after traveling a distance of thousands of miles via the Huawei base station at an altitude of 6,500 meters. This is the voice that proclaims to the world that Huawei has successfully delivered another "Mission Impossible", and a new communication legend was established on the top of the world. 

5. Boundless Communication Hereafter

If you were able to reach the summit of Mount Qomolangma, you would have a lot more fun there than was ever possible before. In addition to getting a bird's eye view of the world, you can make a phone call to anyone in any place of the world, surf the Internet, chat with your friends on line, send exciting pictures to your friends and do whatever the information age can provide.

However, those could never happen when you are at an altitude of 8844.43 meters, until Huawei built the EDGE network at 13:00 on November 13, 2007. It is Huawei that ended the era of communication desolation on the cold Mount Qomolangma.

In May 2008, when the Olympic flame comes from the ancient Greece across more than 100 cities to the roof of the world, the base station developed by Huawei will demonstrate the common human dream of challenging the toughest. The world will then once again raise a toast to its one dream—Swifter, Faster, Stronger!

For the climbers, Mount Qomolangma is always a holy place in their heart regardless of whether there is signal coverage or not. With reliable communication, timely search and rescue, and accurate GPS location, climbing Mount Qomolangma is no longer a totally hazardous game that challenges life.

The legends of exploration never stop and the pursuit of dreams continues. Only the obstinate and arduous Mount Qomolangma seems to be a little tamer under human's conquest.