Largest undersea observatory

From 2007, NEPTUNE Canada (North-East Pacific Time-series Undersea Networked Experiments) laid approximately 530 miles (853 km) of power transmission and fibre optic communication cables over the northern part of the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate, one of the smallest on the planet, off the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. Going live on 8 December 2009, Neptune allows scientists and members of the public to view data over the internet. Connected to shore by four fibre networks, with the fastest one being 10 Gbit/second, the observatory currently has 130 instruments with around 400 sensors in total (this varies, as some are modified and replaced), and even a remotely controlled ocean floor rover vehicle with HD cameras and sensors. Weighing 275 kg (606 lb) out of water and only 40 kg (88 lb) in water due to foam flotation devices, the crawler can be controlled by the internet. Nicknamed 'Wally' after the animated character 'Wall-e', Wally 1 has now been joined on the seabed by Wally 2. Neptune is now part of the wider research programmes run by the Ocean Networks Canada initiative.

The project cost Can$145-million (US$145-million) and has five 13-tonne 'nodes' that are plug-in points for the scientific instrumentation.