Articles | Volume 14, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-14-503-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-14-503-2025
Research article
 | 
16 Dec 2025
Research article |  | 16 Dec 2025

Solar regulators for polar instrumentation: why night consumption matters

Michael R. Prior-Jones, Lisa Craw, Jonathan D. Hawkins, Elizabeth A. Bagshaw, Paul Carpenter, Thomas H. Nylen, and Joe Pettit

Data sets

CHILCardiff/solaregulators-plots: post-review v2 Mike Prior-Jones https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17457595

Model code and software

CHILCardiff/solarregulators-model: Preprint v1 (preprint-v1) Mike Prior-Jones https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15115132

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Short summary
We tested solar regulators to find their suitability for use in powering instruments in the polar regions. We found that some models waste a lot of power and may result in instruments failing during the wintertime. We developed a model to illustrate this effect, and use it to show that a good choice of solar regulator means a greater chance of successful winter data collection and allows the use of a smaller, lighter, cheaper battery.
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