A wireless sensor network for monitoring volcano-seismic signals

Abstract

Monitoring of volcanic activity is important for learning about the properties of each volcano and for providing early warning systems to the population. Monitoring equipment can be expensive, and thus the degree of monitoring varies from volcano to volcano and from country to country, with many volcanoes not being monitored at all. This paper describes the development of a wireless sensor network (WSN) capable of collecting geophysical measurements on remote active volcanoes. Our main goals were to create a flexible, easy-to-deploy and easy-to-maintain, adaptable, low-cost WSN for temporary or permanent monitoring of seismic tremor. The WSN enables the easy installation of a sensor array in an area of tens of thousands of m2, allowing the location of the magma movements causing the seismic tremor to be calculated. This WSN can be used by recording data locally for later analysis or by continuously transmitting it in real time to a remote laboratory for real-time analyses. We present a set of tests that validate different aspects of our WSN, including a deployment on a suspended bridge for measuring its vibration.