Nodes and Junction Boxes

Eleven secondary nodes and junction boxes are scheduled for installation in 2014. These components serve as electrical and communications outlets to 23 kilometers of extension cables and instruments that will be installed at depths of nearly 9000 feet beneath the ocean's surface and in some of the most extreme environments on Earth – hydrothermal vents. They come in three "flavors"  – Medium Power and Low Power Junction Boxes, and Low Voltage Nodes and they are configured specific to the instruments that will be attached to them by extension cables. They have up to 8 ports and each box/node has 375 volts and 1 Gb/s transmission capabilities. In concert, the power and real-time Internet communication capabilities that these systems provide are transforming the kinds of questions that scientists can ask about the oceans, and the ways that they can be answered. The nodes and junction boxes were designed and built at the University of Washington Applied Physics Lab. In addition, to these nodes and junction boxes, a Benthic Experiment Platform (BEP), developed by Oregon State University as part of the Endurance Array will also be deployed at the Offshore 600-m site. The BEP houses a Low Power Communications housing, designed by UW APL, and numerous sensors inside a hazard-resistant frame.