Thousands of seismometers on a single cable

Project manager Fabian Walter (at rear) and his colleague Ma?gorzata Chmiel check if the cable is fully functional. (Photo: Wojciech Gajek) - Fibre-optic cables are emerging as a valuable tool for geoscientists and glaciologists. They offer a relatively inexpensive way of measuring even the tiniest glacial earthquakes - plus they can also be used to obtain more accurate images of the geological subsurface in earthquake-prone megacities. Today's fibre-optic cables move data at tremendous speeds, enabling us to stream films and TV shows in HD or even 8K resolution. Modern telecommuters rely on these superfast broadband fibre-optic networks - but optical fibres also lend themselves to more unusual applications. For example, operators of critical infrastructure have long used fibre-optic cables to monitor their facilities. "The idea of using optical fibres for multiple purposes is nothing new," says Andreas Fichtner, a professor of geophysics in the Department of Earth Sciences at ETH Zurich.