A continuously monitored synthetic mooring system

A synthetic rope mooring system may require frequent replacement and visual inspections to assure that the leg is intact and capable of supporting the expected mooring loads. Any mechanical damage that could greatly reduce the mooring rope life, may be the result of an accident which would occur rapidly and without warning between inspection intervals. The mooring leg inspection frequency could be increased to reduce the span of time that the mooring leg strength may be unknown, but at a great increase in the operational system costs. The visual inspections could not identify internal rope damage or determine the value of the remaining rope strength. The integrity of the synthetic rope mooring system may be more acceptable if a continuous monitor of the maximum strain in the full leg length were made available to the platform operator through a sensing system which would display the level of strain on a mooring monitor display panel.