Broadband vibrating quartz pressure sensors for tsunameter and other oceanographic applications

Broadband quartz pressure sensors have been used for a variety of oceanographic applications such as tsunami detection, wave and tide gauging, volcano monitoring, ROV/AUVs, offshore platform leveling, pipeline laying, climate studies, drifting buoys, ocean drilling, seafloor wellhead monitoring, depth and profiling instruments, and towed arrays. Of these many applications, perhaps the most prominent one relating to public safety is NOAA's tsunami detection network. NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory ("PMEL") has developed and installed seven portable tsunameters for near real-time detection of tsunamis in the deep ocean environment. Measurement of tsunamis in the deep ocean provides data free from coastal effects that is essential for accurate forecasting of tsunami impacts. The most critical element of the system is the broadband vibrating quartz pressure sensor that makes tsunami detection possible with sufficient time to evacuate coastal residential areas. Expansion of the deep ocean tsunameter network will provide appropriate data to protect life and property during damaging tsunamis and avoid costly false alarms of nondamaging tsunamis. This paper describes the Paroscientific broadband vibrating quartz pressure sensor technology and the NOAA tsunami detection and reporting system. Further information is given at URLs http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/tsunami/ and http://www.paroscientific.com.