Te Matakite sub-seafloor observatory

Watch an animation showing how the observatory – similar to an underwater earthquake lab – is installed. Science communicator Aliki Weststrate explains the purpose for installing this specialist equipment. Questions about the observatory were put to her by students at Otumoetai Intermediate School.

Point of interest: Te Matakite was the first of two observatories installed off the coast of Gisborne. It was named by Gisborne Boys’ High School student Matthew Proffit. Te matakite means to see into the future.

Transcript

ALIKI WESTSTRATE

For the first time in New Zealand, we lowered like an earthquake lab sitting down inside the borehole, and it’s about 500 metres below the seafloor. There are two of them sitting off the east coast of Gisborne right now as I speak, and they are going to be there for 5 years, measuring the changes that are happening as earthquakes happen down there. 

We haven’t been able to do this before in New Zealand. It was a big engineering achievement for the voyage that I was on. It was very tricky to install, and they are going to be sitting there for 5 years collecting data on the chemistry, the temperature down there, how the fluids are moving in an earthquake and when there’s not an earthquake and how the seismic waves are moving through the observatory. We have to bring a ship back in 5 years and be able to extract the data to then analyse it.

Acknowledgements
Aliki Weststrate
International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP)
Australia and New Zealand International Ocean Discovery Program Consortium (ANZIC)
GNS Science
Otumoetai Intermediate School
 
JOIDES Resolution sail-by by ZCENE Moving Media for IODP courtesy of Ocean Leadership, IODP and ZCENE
 
Footage of core pipe entering JOIDES Resolution moonpool by Amy West for IODP courtesy of Amy West, Ocean Leadership and IODP
 
Animation of CORK observatory, the two CORK locations at the Hikurangi subduction zone and footage of CORK being lowered from the deck of JOIDES Resolution by Thanos Fatouros for IODP courtesy of Thanos Fatouros, US Science Support Program and IODP
 
Footage of satellite map of North Island with Hikurangi subduction zone courtesy of GNS Science
 
Animation of CORK observatory being lowered courtesy of IODP and JOIDES Resolution Science Operator
 
Map of drilling sites for expeditions #371, #372, #374, #375, #376 and #378 courtesy of ANZIC, IODP and JOIDES Resolution Science Operator
 
Underwater camera footage by Aliki Weststrate for IODP courtesy of Aliki Weststrate, ANZIC, US Science Support Program and IODP
 
All other footage from ship to shore video conference from JOIDES Resolution expedition #375 courtesy of Otumoetai Intermediate School