Fiber-optic cables – including the networks already deployed for communications purposes – can be used to detect earthquakes and other ground movements. The optical data cables can also pick up seismic signals from hammer shots, passing cars or wave movements in the ocean.
These are some of the significant conclusions of a study published in Nature Communications. Its main authors are Philippe Jousset and Thomas Reinsch from GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), section Geothermal Energy Systems, in Potsdam, Germany.
