MRI: Development of a Telemetered Seafloor Seismic Observatory (TeSSO)

传统的海底地震仪（OBS）从船上部署，安置在海底，然后记录地震和其他地震事件的信号。记录是远程自动进行的，科学家在后续台站访问期间收回仪器之前无法获得数据。通常，科学家需要等待一年多的时间来分析收集到的数据。对于地震和海啸监测来说，这段时间太长，无法进行有用的、往往是关键的、易断的研究。该项目将在OBS和海面上的波浪滑翔机之间设计一个声学调制解调器网关，最终将数据从海底一直传输到数据分析师的桌面上。OBS将持续向海岸传输低速率数据（每秒1个样本）。该项目的一个新的工程方面将是双向流量的可能性，即数据分析师可以在感兴趣的事件之后立即请求高速数据（每秒50个样本）的剪切。新开发的屏蔽式OBS成套设备将使用新一代高质量地震传感器，可记录从潮汐带（数小时）到仅受采样率限制的高频的地震信号。地震传感器的屏蔽将大大减少深海洋流造成的环境噪音污染。最终，这项新技术将为海底长时间（几年）的多节点OBS微型阵列提供垫脚石，由几个并行的波浪滑翔机提供服务，这些滑翔机依次访问站点，将数据传输回海岸。该项目将侧重于设计、建造和测试一个遥测海底地震观测台，其中包括一个甚宽频带海底地震仪和一个压差计。SSO将配备一个声学微型调制解调器，并通过一个波浪滑翔机连接，该波浪滑翔机有助于通过声学和卫星服务实现具有岸边使命控制的水面通信网关（SCG）。波浪滑翔机将在水面上巡航，并通过卫星将来自SSO的缓冲1 sps数据中继到岸边的使命控制。一种新的双向数据传输能力将允许岸边的研究人员订购特定的更高采样率的数据片段（50 sps），以防发生有趣的地震或其他地震孕育事件。该项目借鉴了从2013年ADDOSS项目中收集的过去专业知识，该项目以单向方式提供基于波浪滑翔机的近实时访问，其中海底地震仪自动发送数据。从那时起，技术（例如第三代波浪滑翔机，低功率宽带地震仪和“智能”数据记录仪）发生了重大改进。TeSSO的实现主要依赖于工程设计和开发，以组装现成的组件。两次短期海上试验将有助于优化仪器包和SCG。在第三次试验中，波浪滑翔机将在两个邻近的SSO之间过境，并交替传输数据。这将为一个由多个SSO组成的系统奠定基础，该系统将由一个波浪滑翔机舰队近实时提供服务。TeSSO将能够解决全球地震网络以及越来越多的海洋被动地震部署的数据用户编制的不断增长的愿望清单上的一些项目，但不是全部。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

A traditional ocean bottom seismometer (OBS) is deployed from a ship, settles on the seafloor, and then records signals from earthquakes and other seismic events. The recording occurs remotely and autonomously, where the scientist has no access to the data until the instrument is recovered during a follow-up station visit. Often, a scientist has to wait for more than a year to analyze the collected data. For earthquake and tsunami monitoring purposes, this is much too long to conduct useful, and often critical, short-fuse research. This project, will engineer an acoustic modem gateway between the OBS and a wave glider on the sea surface to ultimately transmit data from the seafloor all the way to the desktop of a data analyst in near-real time. The OBS will transmit low-rate data (1 sample per second) to shore continuously. A novel engineering aspect of this project will be the possibility of two-way traffic, i.e. a data analyst can request a snipped of high-rate data (50 samples per second) immediately after an interesting event. A new-generation high-quality seismic sensor will be used on the newly developed shielded OBS package that will allow the recording of seismic signals from the tidal band (several hours) to high frequencies limited only by the sampling rate. The shielding of the seismic sensor will significantly reduce ambient noise contamination caused by deep-ocean currents. Ultimately, the new technology will provide a stepping stone to a long-duration (several years) multi-node mini array of OBS's on the seafloor, serviced by several concurrent wave gliders that visit stations in turn to transmit data back to shore. This project will focus on the design, construction and testing of a Telemetered Seafloor Seismic Observatory (TeSSO) comprising a very-broadband ocean bottom seismometer and a differential pressure gauge. The SSO will be equipped with an acoustic micromodem and is linked through a wave glider that facilitates a Surface Communications Gateway (SCG) with shore-side mission control via acoustic and satellite services. The wave glider will cruise on the surface and relay buffered 1 sps data from the SSO via satellite to shore-side mission control. A new two-way data traffic capability will allow shore-side researchers to order specific higher sample-rate data snippets (50 sps) in case an interesting earthquake or other seismogenic event occurs. This project draws on past expertise gathered from the 2013 ADDOSS project that provided wave-glider-based near-real time access in a one-way fashion, where the ocean bottom seismometer sent data autonomously. Since then, significant improvements in technology (e.g. 3rd generation wave glider, low-power broadband seismometers, and ‘smart’ data loggers) have occurred. The realization of TeSSO relies critically on engineering design and development to assemble off-the-shelf components. Two short sea trials will help optimize the instrument package and the SCG. On a third trial, the wave glider will transit between two close-by SSOs and transmit data on an alternating schedule. This will lay the ground work for a system of multiple SSOs that are served in near-real time by a fleet of wave gliders. TeSSO will be able to address some, but not all, items on a growing wish list compiled by data users from both the global seismic networks but also an increasing number of passive seismic deployments in the oceansThis award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.