mallin Consultants Ltd.
Submarine Cables for
Ocean/Climate Monitoring
Photos courtesy of NEPTUNE Canada and
Canadian Scientific Submersible Facility
Content
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Introduction to Mallin Consultants
Example of Data, or why cables matter
Description of NEPTUNE Canada
Description of a subsea telecom system
Considerations for use of submarine cables for
ocean/climate monitoring
• Very rough costs
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Introduction to Mallin Consultants
• Providing advice to Owners including
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Engineering
Permitting
Feasibility
Project management
• Project Management including
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Cost control
Schedule control
Design control
Risk management
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Example of Data, or why cables matter
• Tsunami readings from NEPTUNE Canada
• Comparison to model
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Observation of the 2009 Samoa tsunami by
the NEPTUNE-Canada Cabled Observatory:
Test data for an operational regional tsunami
forecast model
1Richard
Thomson, 1Isaac Fine,
1,2Alexander Rabinovich, 3Steve
Mihály, 4Earl Davis, 3Martin
Heesemann, and 1Maxim Krassovski
1Fisheries
2P.P.
and Oceans Canada
Shirshov Institute of Oceanology
3Ocean Networks Canada
4Natural Resources Canada
Geophysical Research Letters (in press)
Tsunami heights associated
with the Mw = 8.1 September
29, 2009 Samoa earthquake
NEPTUNE BPR
records (tides
removed)
Coastal tide
gauge data
(tides removed)
BPR 1027-S
BPR 889
BPR Barkley
BPR Folger
TG Bamfield
TG La Push
Comparison of IOS
regional tsunami
model (blue line)
with observations
(red line)
Description of NEPTUNE Canada
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800km ring
100kW power at 10kV
4Gb/sec at each node, expandable to 20Gb/s
IEEE1588 time delivery
Telecom technology on the ring
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mallin Consultants Ltd.
15 tonne “trawl
resistant” node
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Network Configuration
Repeaters
Node
R
Node
BU
Shore
Terminal
R
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
Shore
Terminal
Node
BU
BU
Science
Platform
Node
Junction
Box
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
BU
Node
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Junction
Box
BU
Branching Units
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Node
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
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Logical Network Diagram
Data Archive
Core
Router
Core
Router
2.5Gb/sec SONET waves
Node
Node
Node
Node
Node
Node
Node
Layer 2 Switches
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Subsea Equipment
Instrument interface (Ethernet) Node
Amplifier compatible carrier (SONET)
Optical converter (WDM)
Fibre breakout (BU)
Node
Shore Station
Node
Node
Node
Primary
Junction
Box
10/100Base-T
or Serial Data
Instruments
Node
Node
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IEEE 1588 PTP Time Distribution
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Timing Transmitted via Ethernet
Master Clock Locked to GPS
NTP Stratum 1
PTP Grandmaster
Node
Primary
Junction
Box
PTP Client
Instruments
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Low Voltage Enclosure
NEPTUNE Canada Capital Cost
Core infrastructure including JBs and cabling
Science instruments, DMAS, overhead
Total
$ 75,000,000
$ 25,000,000
$ 100,000,000
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Description of a subsea telecom
system
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Shore to shore
Subsea equipment minimised
Constant current power at 1A
No fibre breakout except at BUs
No actual time delivery subsea
Optical power management
1 Tb/sec per fibre pair
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Summary of NEPTUNE Canada
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100kW “Constant Voltage” power
25 × 10Gb/sec waves on 1 fibre pair
Comms and power readily accessible on seabed
IEEE 1588 PTP time distribution over Ethernet
Wet mate connectors
Lots of iron on the seabed
No expectation of 25 year life for science
instruments
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Summary of a subsea telecom system
• 1A Constant Current power - ~120W per repeater
• 100 × 100Gb/sec waves on 1 fibre pair
• Only access to rudimenatary comms and low
levels of power on seabed (in repeater housings)
• No accurate time delivery to seabed
• No connectors
• Minimal equipment on the seabed
• High expectation of 25+ year life
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Content
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Introduction to Mallin Consultants
Example of Data, or why cables matter
Description of NEPTUNE Canada
Description of a subsea telecom system
Considerations for use of submarine cables
for ocean/climate monitoring
mallin Consultants Ltd.
Repeater Installation
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Subsea Connectors
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Failures
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Network Configuration
Repeaters
Node
R
Node
BU
Shore
Terminal
R
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
Shore
Terminal
Node
BU
BU
Science
Platform
Node
Junction
Box
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
BU
Node
Junction
Box
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Junction
Box
BU
Branching Units
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Node
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
Science
Platform
mallin Consultants Ltd.
Some issues for New Builds
• Repeater Access:
– Component count α failure rate
– Very low count of very high quality parts in a
repeater
• BU insertion
– Expensive
– Dedicated fibre more so
– Introduces failure point
– Sharing fibre with commercial traffic – drift…
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Challenges for
Instruments – New
Builds
• Must have a design
life that matches the
system
• Only failure modes
that do not impact
system are
acceptable
• Power is very limited
• Comms are very
limited without
access to fibre
• No accurate
time delivery
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Challenges for cable re-use
• Cost assessment versus new build
– Cable Costs about 20% of overall
costs for observatories
• Longevity
– Life is partly spent
• Compromises for design
– Comms on optical amplifier systems okay
– Power with constant current likely a
compromise
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Considerations
• Pros:
– Great benefits from reliable
instruments in the deep ocean
– Deep ocean very poorly understood
– Telcos are the only ones there now
• Cons
– Telco systems are critical infrastructure
– Instrument capability will be severely limited
– Incentive for the Owner?
– Cost?
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Very Rough Capital Costs
To make the math easy:
Cable length
Repeater spacing
Item
Fibre
Amplifier Pumps (per repeater)
Base cost, 1fp
Development Cost
Changes per repeater
Shore Equipment
Cost for power and Data changes
Other costs
Through hull - develop and build
Instruments - develop and build
Repeater power balance
Owner's costs inc contract and QA
Additional installation
Total
5,000 km
50 km
Cost
Amount
Unit Cost
$ 1 per m 10,000 km $ 10,000,000
100 $ 10,000,000
$ 100,000
$ 20,000,000
$ 8,000,000
100 $ 10,000,000
$ 100,000
2 $ 2,000,000
$ 1,000,000
$ 20,000,000
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Very Rough Marine Maintenance Costs
Using data from NEPTUNE Canada workshop 2011 as a guide
Junction box connectors (ports) used
36
Cruise days
45 days
Allowance for new instruments
20%
Cruise days for maintenance
36 days
Number of days per port
1 day
Vessel + ROV dayrate
$ 50,000
Annual marine maintenance cost per used port $ 50,000
Ocean monitoring number of port equivalents
100
Annual marine maintenance cost
$ 5,000,000
Alternatives
• Dedicated science cabled
observatories
– Pros
• Purpose built
• Near unlimited possibilities
– Cons
• Nearshore or just off the
shelf
• Offshore Oil environmental
management
– May need to build systems very
similar to dedicated
observatories
mallin Consultants Ltd.
Conclusion
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Ocean/Climate Monitoring important
Dedicated cables offer unmatched access
Use of new build telco cables not confirmed
Use of retired telco cables feasible but limited
Offshore Oil may offer an opportunity in some
areas
mallin Consultants Ltd.