History of the evolution of submarine cabled observatories

Abstract

The real-time observation of the seafloor using the telecommunication submarine cables technology is the only method that can secure steady power and sufficient real-time data transmission capacity for observation equipment on the seafloor. In Japan, which has multiple seismogenic zones of mega thrust earthquake in the sea area around the country, there is a demand for disaster prevention to acquire real-time data in the seabed. For this reason, Japan has been developing and operating submarine cabled observatories for a long time. Currently, the cabled observatory is a system that is not limited to monitoring seismic activity, but can also realize multidisciplinary real-time observations by adding or replacing instruments. As a future goal, it is expected that various prediction studies will be conducted using these data, and that the results of the research will be implemented in society.