A Japanese Agency has said it has developed an undersea seismometer that can withstand depths of more than 10,000 meters,enabling it practically to observe undersea quakes in all waters.
The Japan agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology
said its instrument,covered in a pressure-resistant container,was installed at seven locations deeper than 6,000 meters — the furthest conventional seismometers can be placed in the Japan Trench in the Pacific,and obtained data in an experiment in December and January using the deep-sea probe ship Kairei.
The round-shaped ceramic container,roughly 44 centimetres
in diameter,is designed to cope with pressure at as deep as
11,000 meters under water,the agency said.
In analysing mechanisms of major earthquakes,detailed observations around the focus are necessary.
In the March 11,2011 quake that struck off the coast of
Japan’s northeastern coast,existing seismographs were of no
use in observation,as the trench in the area was deeper than
6,000 meters.
Researchers thus sought to develop a new instrument to
overcome this problem.
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