Researchers will soon be listening to Southampton using the city's network of optical fibre cables.

The team of researchers from the University of Southampton and the National Oceanography Centre will use a pioneering technology called Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) to capture sounds and vibrations through underground fibre networks in Southampton and London.

This is part of the SOUNDSCALE project, which is investigating the possibilities and risks of this technology before it becomes more prevalent.

The cities’ optical fibre networks, connected via the National Dark Fibre Facility, allow researchers to measure the 'sound of a UK city' on a large scale for the first time.

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Dr Rafael Mestre, a lecturer in emerging technologies at the University of Southampton, and leader of the SOUNDSCALE project, said: "DAS is an emerging technology that essentially turns the vast network of existing optical fibres within telecommunication and energy cables into an array of passive listening devices that are several kilometres long."

Professor Mohammad Belal, a co-investigator on the project from the National Oceanography Centre, said: "DAS can provide real-time insights into changing conditions that may signal impending environmental hazards such as flash floods, storm surges, or rising sea levels by continuously monitoring vibrations and disturbances in urban coastal environments."

However, the team is also mindful of the potential privacy and security risks this technology could pose.

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Dr Alexandra Anikina, a co-investigator and researcher at the Department of Art and Media Technology, said: "This technology poses potential risks to our privacy and security, opening up new opportunities for surveillance.

“DAS might change how we interact in shared spaces, and it’s important to work closely with local communities, not only through science and critical theory but also through the arts, to understand these changes.”

Professor Matt Ryan, co-investigator of the project and expert in public policy and democratic innovations from the University of Southampton, added: "With DAS we want to integrate citizens directly in its development and implementation so they can prioritise and anticipate issues before it is too late to change direction."

The project has been funded by UK Research and Innovation's cross-research council scheme.