A new volcano monitoring data acquisition system was installed for Mexico's National Center for Disaster Prevention (CENAPRED) in Mexico City during a visit by VDAP scientists to Mexico January 24 through February 9. The new system, called Earthworm, was developed by scientists of the U.S. Geological Survey; Earthworm is now used in all the major regional seismic networks in the United States. The new system combines the functions of three computers in the old acquisition system we designed in the 1990's into a single computer.

This latest installation is part of a multi-year plan to upgrade the primary data acquisition systems in volcano observatories using Earthworm. As most volcano observatories also operate a country's national seismic network, Earthworm immediately upgrades their ability to record and locate regional earthquakes as well. In late 1999, we installed two Earthworm systems in Managua, Nicaragua, and Quito, Ecuador. Later this year, we are planning to install an Earthworm system at Rabaul, Papua New Guinea.

The new system has several advantages over the old system:

1. Replaces a system based on obsolete hardware and operating systems with one that should be able to grow for the next 10 years.
   
2. Is much more modular in design allowing for easier upgrades and custom programs tailored for each observatory.
3. Is an open source program allowing users at universities and public agencies to pool resources to enhance and improve the software.
4. Allows several systems to be networked together via either a local-area-network or a wide-area-network (the internet) to share data in real time.

The fourth advantage could have a revolutionary impact on the way volcano observatories interact with each other and other public agencies and is the main reason that we are pushing the Earthworm system. The new system gives observatories the ability to set up satellite observatories that can transmit and receive data from the main observatory in real time. These satellite observatories can be manned or simply a communication node. For example, an Earthworm system was recently installed in Mammoth Lakes, California, to transfer data from Long Valley Caldera to the USGS Western Region headquarters in Menlo Park. Now, the data can be moved more easily to scientists located hundreds of kilometers away for quick interpretation. Equally important, the new installation permits scientists to co-locate with emergency-management officials in Mammoth Lakes during a future period of unrest complete with the full steam of data available at their fingertips.

The system also provides the vehicle for countries to combine data streams and build regional networks from individual national seismic networks. Though this doesn't have an immediate impact on volcano monitoring, it can assist in quickly locating large regional earthquakes that fall near the borders of countries. Selected seismic data can be sent to the Global Seismic Network offices in Golden, Colorado, to aid in locating major earthquakes world-wide.

In summary, we are excited about the possibilities the new system gives to scientists working at volcano observatories. Not only can it aid in their immediate interpretation of volcano activity, but it can also aid in their capabilities to get information quickly to emergency officials or set up satellite observatories closer to decision-makers, regardless of where the officials are located. All these possibilities can further aid in mitigating future disasters resulting from the Earth's natural processes.