Researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) have begun equipping commercial cargo ships with low-cost tsunami sensors to provide real-time early detection data as they move through the North Pacific. The researchers, funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, are partnering with Matson, Maersk Line and the World Ocean Council to equip 10 ships with real-time geodetic GPS systems and satellite communications to enable each vessel to act as a tide gauge and send data to SOEST to analyze for indications of a tsunami wave.

The network has the potential to  be a low-cost and widely spread complement to existing detection systems.

Sources: Huffington Post and University of Hawaii, December 2015.

Photo credit: Aushiker on Flickr.

Article in Huffington Post — ‘Scientists Cleverly Use Cargo Ships For New Tsunami Warning System’, Overview from University of Hawaii
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cargo-ships-tsunami-warning_5678b016e4b014efe0d69ad3, http://www.hawaii.edu/news/2015/12/16/novel-tsunami-detection-network-uses-navigation-systems-on-commercial-ships/?c