Funding is provided to evaluate the initial operation of the first cabled deep seafloor observatory and to make plans for it futures. The Hawaii Undersea Geo-Observatory (HUGO) was developed and installed as an automated submarine volcano observatory on the summit of the undersea Loihi seamount approximately 50 miles due south of Kilauea volcano on the island of Hawaii It is connected to the shore via fiber optic cable. HUGO was designed to monitor activity on Loihi by collecting data from a variety of experiments that were to be connected to a junction box at the end of the cable. At its deployment in October 1997, these experiments included a seismometer, a hydrophone and a pressure sensor. Other proposed sensors would monitor earthquakes and eruptions, geology, geophysics, biology, hydrothermal venting and other activities on the underwater seamount. The system operated and collected data for seven months, until April 26, 1998, when an electrical failure terminated operations. Seven months of continuous seafloor measurements will be worked up for publication. The seafloor junction box will also be recovered, and a study will be undertaken to evaluate the failure mode of the observatory in order to determine whether a repair or re-installation is scientifically warranted or technically feasible.
