geophone

[ jee-uh-fohn ]

noun

1. a device that is placed on or in the ground and used to detect seismic waves.

geophone

/ jē′ə-fōn′ /

1. An electronic receiver designed to pick up seismic vibrations on or below the Earth's surface and to convert them into electric impulses that are proportional to the displacement, velocity, and acceleration of ground movement. Geophones detect motion in only one direction and are usually used in groups of at least three, oriented at different angles, so that a three-dimensional record of ground movement can be obtained.

Word History and Origins

Origin of geophone¹

First recorded in 1915–20; geo- + -phone

Example Sentences

That observation argues for the installation of permanent geophone networks in tourist areas around the Dead Sea.

From Economist

This first one is from Apollo 14, taken by Alan Shepard to document a set of scientific instruments deployed by the astronauts; ion detectors, a geophone, seismic monitor, lunar environment experiment and so on.

From Scientific American

It didn’t take long for the now-familiar combination – more data from better geophone sensors, better algorithms, and more compute power – to change the oil world forever.  

From Forbes

As an able inventor, Perret  used a microphone to amplify the rumors from inside the earth; a cable can be seen in front of his face connecting the geophone to a loudspeaker, positioned on his ear.

From Scientific American

Consider Houston, TX, based Fusion Geophysical, with their clever moniker `From The Geophone To The Drill Bit´´ that recently acquired 3DGeo, a smaller deeply technological oil-field imaging/software tech leader.

From Forbes