I am an underwater volcanologist with interests in the formation and evolution of the ocean basins, the origin of life, life on other planets, the role that chemosynthetic microbial communities play in the formation of metal deposits, and the dynamic behavior of processes associated with all aspects of plate tectonics. I am involved in developing a program that will extend the internet beneath the sea to create submarine natural laboratories on the Juan de Fuca Plate that will be linked via Internet to the laboratories, classrooms and living rooms of North America. Each laboratory will have extensive arrays hundreds of intruments with multiple sensor tuned record and transmit in real-time information about the physical, chemical and biological changes taking place during underwater volcanic eruptions, or large submarine earthquakes. These data and other forms of imagery will be transmitted ashore using fibre-optic-power cables for use by scientists, students and policy makers as required by them. The web site for this work is www.neptune.washington.edu

www.neptune.washington.edu