College (CMO) Geomagnetic Observatory
Station Id: CMO
Location: Fairbanks, AK
Latitude: 64.8741°N
Longitude: 147.8597°W
Elevation: 197 meters
Orientation: HDZF
Sections
Background
The Geomagnetic Program, then part of the US Coast and Geodetic Survey, began work in Fairbanks during the Second International Polar Year, 1932-1934, as part of an effort with the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution. Collaborative work with the University of Alaska began in the 1940’s, with the first full-fledged College observatory commencing operation in 1948. Today, the College observatory is located on the College International Geophysical Observatory (CIGO), a facility established in 1996 through a collaborative effort between the USGS Geomagnetism Program and the University of Alaska. The CIGO is managed by the University’s Geophysical Institute. In 2009, the 46-acre site was renamed to the Jack Townshend CIGO, in honor of longtime USGS employee Jack Townshend, the visionary and developer of the site.
Other Operations at CIGO
- A borehole seismometer for the USGS Global Seismic Network
- A seismometer for the Alaskan Tsunami Warning Center
- A small coil-calibration facility developed in collaboration with the University and the USGS
- A magnetometer operated for the Geophysical Institute Magnetometer Array
- An infrasound array operated by the Infrasound Research Group of the UAF/GI
Customers
- The Space Weather Prediction Center of NOAA in Boulder
- The United States Air Force Weather Agency at Offutt Air Force Base in Omaha, Nebraska.
- The International Service of Geophysical Indices
- The Kyoto World Data Center
- Academic, governmental, and private scientists engaged in pure and applied work
Photos
An Aerial view of College International Geophysical Observatory (CIGO).
Magnetic observatory buildings at the College International Geophysical (CIGO) magnetic observatory, Fairbanks, AK.
