General Electric (GE) is working with adventure filmmaker Sam Cossman and the Nicaraguan government to install 80 wireless sensors inside one of the nation’s active volcanoes.
Cossman will descend 1,200 feet into the volcano, named Masaya, in order to test the Wi-Fi connection. He will then install the sensors over the next few weeks, making this volcano the first in the world to be connected to the IoT. These sensors will gather real-time data about the volcano, such as temperature, atmospheric pressure, gravity and gases. This data will be transmitted through GE’s open-source database Predix, with the ultimate goal being to determine indicators for when the volcano will erupt.
“The goal is to […] create the most effective early warning system in the world that would ultimately serve as proof of concept for implementing something similar to communities around the world who are exposed to similar risks,” said Cossman in a comment to Vox Media.
Cossman began his descent on August 2, with the journey being recorded on GE’s Facebook and Snapchat. GE is expected to stream live from the volcano site on Friday August 12.