Urban activity monitoring using wireless geophones in Singapore

ABSTRACT

Urban activities in megacities around the world are not only the most severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but also the most consequential for the effectiveness of the mitigation measures. Therefore, monitoring and understanding the realtime changes of different sectors of an urban society is vital for policy making and dynamic pandemic management. By analyzing the high-frequency seismic signals, we separate the motor vehicle signal and the runner signal from the environment and background noise. We quantify the impact of the pandemic and its corresponding mitigation measures as traffic flow at nonessential workplaces, essential workplaces, and recreational areas. Enabled by the anonymity of seismic data, our study achieves an unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution that is pivotal to understand the heterogeneity and evolution of pandemic responses in different sectors of an urban society. The rich seismic-derived information provide a unique opportunity for realtime urban activity monitoring and dynamic policy making to ensure a successful pandemic mitigation while minimizing negative impacts on urban lifestyle. © 2021 Society of Exploration Geophysicists First International Meeting for Applied Geoscience & Energy