Center for Embedded Network Sensing

We have examined seismic data and wireless network characteristics from 100 broadband stations installed from Acapulco to Tampico in Mexico over a period of 1.5 years (2005-2007). The instruments were part of the MASE (Middle America Subduction Experiment) which has the objective to build a geodynamical model of the subduction process beneath the Middle America Trench. The stations had a 5-6 km spacing and were connected wirelessly with each other providing a unique data set. It allows examination of various aspects in tomography, shear wave splitting, wave travel times as well as extensive analysis of the wireless network used for data delivery. Tomographic and SKS splitting studies in this area show the presence of a 50-80 km thick flat slab under the western part of the array, and a steeply dipping slab beneath its center to a depth of ~550km and ~375 km inland.

The research in wireless area displays no correlation between SNR and throughput and a rough correlation between the throughput and the distance for the majority of the links. Various network tuning techniques were applied to further investigate the properties of the communication hardware and data transmission. A new disruption tolerant shell (DTS) was tested that provides duplex communication with the network and handles breaks in the RF communication by temporarily storing data and transmitting when a conection has been restored.