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

传统的海底地震仪（OBS）是从船上部署的，安置在海底，然后记录地震和其他地震事件的信号。记录是远程和自主进行的，科学家在后续访问台站期间恢复仪器之前无法访问数据。通常，科学家必须等待一年多才能分析收集到的数据。出于地震和海啸监测的目的，这段时间太长，无法进行有用的、往往是关键的短期研究。该项目将在海底地震仪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，最终将海底数据近实时地传输到数据分析师的桌面。OBS将连续向岸上传输低速率数据（每秒1个样本）。这个项目的一个新颖的工程方面将是双向流量的可能性，即数据分析师可以在一个有趣的事件后立即请求高速率数据的剪辑（每秒50个样本）。新一代高质量地震传感器将用于新开发的屏蔽OBS封装，该封装将允许记录从潮汐带（数小时）到仅受采样率限制的高频地震信号。地震传感器的屏蔽将显著降低深海洋流对环境噪声的污染。最终，这项新技术将为海底OBS的长时间（数年）多节点迷你阵列提供一个垫脚石，该阵列由几个同步的波浪滑翔机提供服务，这些滑翔机依次访问站点并将数据传回岸上。该项目将重点设计、建造和测试一个遥测海底地震观测站（TeSSO），该观测站由一个极宽带海底地震仪和一个差压计组成。SSO将配备声学微调制解调器，并通过波浪滑翔机连接，通过声学和卫星服务促进地面通信网关（SCG）与岸上任务控制。波浪滑翔机将在水面上巡航，并通过卫星将从SSO获得的缓冲数据中继到岸边的任务控制中心。新的双向数据传输能力将允许岸上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孕震事件。该项目借鉴了2013年ADDOSS项目中收集的专业知识，该项目以单向方式提供了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，技术上的重大改进（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）已经发生。TeSSO的实现主要依赖于工程设计和开发来组装现成的组件。两次短暂的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附近的sso之间穿梭，并按照交替的时间表传输数据。这将为一个由多个sso组成的系统奠定基础，这些系统将由一个波浪滑翔机舰队近实时地提供服务。TeSSO将能够满足来自全球地震台网的数据用户越来越多的愿望清单上的一些（但不是全部）项目，以及越来越多的海洋被动地震部署。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，认为值得支持。

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.