$332,000 observatory disappears at the bottom of the Baltic Sea
Researchers are baffled by the disappearance of a 740kg observatory in the Baltic Sea.
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The frame 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 21. Installed in December 2016 by the research organizations GEOMAR and HZG, the observatory consists of two racks containing monitoring equipment weighing a total of 740 kg. A large cable connects the equipment to the mainland.
"At first we thought there was a transmission error," said GEOMAR professor Hermann Bange. "When divers swam down to the observatory on the seabed last week, they only found the broken cable. The cable was cut into many pieces."
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The remaining fiber optic cable was found by divers. Photo:Fox News. |
Experts have been unable to locate the missing device and are turning to people in nearby coastal areas for more information. “Maybe someone saw something unusual on the morning of August 21. Or maybe someone found parts of the frame on the beach,” Bange said. Local police are also involved in the search for the missing observatory.
According to Bange, the observatory cost $332,000 and provides invaluable scientific data on changes in the Baltic Sea. Bange and his colleagues are working to get the observatory back up and running as soon as possible.