The buoy is moored more than 1,000kms out in the Andaman Sea from the coast of Phang Nga and Phuket. Rear-admiral Charoendee says it would be too difficult to replace the battery during the monsoon season and the task will probably have to wait until November when the sea will be less choppy.
The buoy was put in place two years ago to replace a previous one that had broken free of its anchor cable. Scientists call the device a DART. This stands for Deep Ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunami. When the current DART was positioned, the installation crew noted that it had a maximum battery life of two years.
Rear-admiral Charoendee explained that Thailand’s DART had failed three months ago, but this was not a major issue as it was a part of a larger early warning network. India and Indonesia are among the countries which maintain their own DARTs under the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System.
Battery dies on Thailand Andaman Sea tsunami alarm buoy
News in Asia
Thailand’s National Disaster Warning Centre has revealed that a device designed to give early warnings of any impending tsunami is not working. Thaworn Charoendee is an oceanographer attached to the centre and he says the problem is probably that the buoy’s battery is dead.