General Electric (GE) Global Research

General Electric (GE) Global Research is developing a fiber optic sensor cable that would span multiple kilometers of ocean volume and measure chemical ocean carbon parameters over large areas when towed from marine vessels. Conventional methods take measurements of ocean pH and dissolved carbon dioxide in water using sensors that are fixed at one point or lowered slowly from a stationary vessel. GE’s approach distributes chemical sensing capabilities over a continuous fiber optic cable cladded with polymer-based optical fiber coating, increasing the volume of water that can be measured and dramatically reducing costs compared with current-day technologies.