A $332,000 observatory disappears to the bottom of the Baltic Sea.
Researchers are baffled by the mysterious disappearance of a 740 kg observatory in the Baltic Sea.
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The framework of the underwater observatory before installation. Photo:Fox News. |
The observatory, located in a restricted area at the entrance to Eckernförde Bay off the coast of Germany, last transmitted data on August 21st. Installed in December 2016 by the research organizations GEOMAR and HZG, the observatory comprises two racks containing monitoring equipment weighing a total of 740 kg. A large cable connects the equipment to the mainland.
"Initially, we thought there was a transmission error," said Professor Hermann Bange of GEOMAR. "When the divers swam down to the underwater observatory last week, they only found a broken section of cable. The cable was cut into many pieces."
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The remaining section of fiber optic cable was found by divers. Photo:Fox News. |
Experts were unable to locate the missing device and were forced to ask residents in the nearby coastal area for more information. "Someone might have noticed something unusual on the morning of August 21st. Or someone might have found parts of the frame on the beach," Bange said. Local police are also participating in the search for the lost observatory.
According to Bange, the observatory is worth $332,000 and provides invaluable scientific data on changes in the Baltic Sea. Bange and his colleagues are working to recover the observatory and get it operational as soon as possible.
