Contract signed for world’s first SMART subsea cable, connecting Vanuatu, New Caledonia
Efforts to install the world’s first Science Monitoring And Reliable Telecommunications (SMART) seafloor cable cleared a major hurdle recently. A supply and construction contract was signed for the cable, named SMART TAMTAM, to connect Vanuatu and New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean. This concept has been advanced by the Joint Task Force SMART Cables, which has been led since 2016 by Bruce Howe, professor of Ocean and Resources Engineering in the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST).
The contract was signed by Prima, a Vanuatu telecommunications organization, and Alcatel Submarine Networks, the system supplier, with Pacific Peering being responsible for providing free and open SMART data.
“This contract for TAMTAM, coupled with the installation of the SMART Wet Demonstration project off Sicily last December, are great accomplishments,” said Howe. “This positive momentum will continue with the imminent signing of a supply and construction contract for the SMART Atlantic CAM system, supported by the Portuguese government.”
The SMART TAMTAM Cable System will catalyze an entire science and early warning ecosystem for the region. The submarine telecommunications cables integrate environmental sensors, such as temperature, pressure, and seismic acceleration to monitor climate change including ocean heat content, circulation, and sea level rise, provide early warning for earthquakes and tsunamis, and to monitor seismic activity for earth structure and related hazards.
“All of this relates to disaster risk reduction and the informed sustainable development of coastal and offshore infrastructure, including the cables themselves and their mission of global connectivity,” said Howe. “The goal is to save lives.”
Reducing risk through science, innovation, partnership
The 1.4 million kilometers of cable making up the present global network connecting the world is constantly being refreshed and expanded with new cables. By including SMART capability, a new robust component of the global ocean and earth observing system can be realized.
This major milestone has been accomplished with the support of French government agencies and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation which is providing support through the Moore SMART Cable Project at UH Mānoa and tsunami warning training and graduate education at the National University of Vanuatu.
The Joint Task Force on SMART Cable Systems was established by the International Telecommunication Union, World Meteorological Organization and UNESCO-Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. Endorsed by the United Nations Ocean Decade for Sustainable Development, the task force is composed of more than 200 experts from the science, engineering, business and law communities who are investigating and advancing the use of submarine telecommunications cables for ocean and climate monitoring and disaster warning.
The UH Mānoa-based International Programme Office funded by Moore Foundation and Schmidt Marine Technology Partners is the executive office for the Joint Task Force, facilitating individual cable projects to build the envisioned global network, capitalizing on the enormous leveraging potential of the industry.
