How Wellington’s ‘Hidden Network’ helps us better understand earthquake risks

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The new technology means that fiber-optic cables effectively act as “virtual seismic sensors” in areas that do not have conventional seismographs. (file image)

When a 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck near Wellington last month, about 44,000 people reported feeling the shaking.

But beneath downtown, hidden fiber-optic cables were also recording the vibration, providing scientists with information on the impact — all the way down to individual buildings.

New technology from FiberSense, a leading infrastructure sensing and monitoring company, helps highlight earthquake risks in densely populated centers.

Cross-referencing measurements from the recent earthquake with measurements from official seismic sensors has yielded remarkable results, said Mark Englund, FiberSense founder and CEO.

Read more: * Recent Earthquakes Explained: Is All This Seismic Activity Normal? *From ‘gently rolling’ to ‘sharp tremor’, quake confuses shaking *Thousands report feeling 5.8-magnitude quake across central New Zealand *Scientists use Auckland’s fiber network to better understand the region’s volcanoes *Scientists publish latest round of earthquake monitoring equipment off the coast eastern New Zealand

“The most compelling finding is that because the fiber-based method continuously records activity as the event wave moves through the Earth, our DigitalSeismic service captured the Earth’s acceleration peak approximately 1,000 times more accurately than what was achieved by conventional seismic networks.”

The new technology operates as a series of “virtual seismic sensors” tuned every few meters along fiber cables, with sensors capable of detecting the strength and speed of an earthquake as devastating waves move through city blocks and even individual buildings.

This information is captured in real time and is available almost instantly as it is automatically stored in the cloud.

“Technology is developing rapidly,” said Anna Kaiser, chief seismologist at GNS.

Compared to traditional seismometers, which measure seismic waves with high accuracy at a specific location, the new technology measures laser light pulses that travel inside fiber-optic cables.

“During an earthquake, this traveling light is altered in a way that can be measured and can say something about the movement of the Earth between points along the cable,” she explained.

This means that the data was less accurate in that it was “more curious”.

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Anna Kaiser, chief seismologist, GNS Science, says the new technology could help provide more information quickly in urban centres.

Although it has not replaced the need for traditional seismographs, which are essential for many scientific and engineering applications, Kaiser said, it has the potential to improve the amount of data where there are no seismic instruments.

“One of the ways this technology holds promise, for responding to hazards, is to provide rapid, densely spaced estimates of ground shaking in urban centers that can complement high-resolution information from traditional earthquake networks,” she said.

The fiber network could effectively function as “a network of virtual seismographs every 10 to 20 metres,” said Richard Kellett, chief geoscientist at GNS.

This increase in station density may provide better spatial resolution, he said.

Ross Giblin / The Stuff

Fiber Science engineer Hadley Coffey explains how a fiber-optic network is being transformed into a giant sensor capable of detecting groundwater leaks, earthquakes and overhead traffic.

FiberSense’s Vice President of Research and Development Dr. Nate Lindsey described cables as a “hidden network of connections within the city.”

I used this network to take the pulse of a city, “piece by piece, building by building” so that when an earthquake strikes, measurements taken at locations every few meters along the optical fiber can be compared.

This improves conventional seismometers that are often several kilometers apart and allows scientists to better understand the effects of seismic activity in densely populated areas where fibers are commonly found, Lindsey said.

This was a “game changer” that would help first responders, utility companies, critical infrastructure owners and seismologists, as well as government authorities assess earthquake damage.

“While we cannot prevent natural disasters, we can know how we plan and respond to these inevitable events. It is critical that the quality of the data on which we build recovery plans is as complete and informed as possible.”

FiberSense is also working with seismologists at the University of Victoria and Wellington and the University of Auckland to study earthquake recording with support from EQC.

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