A system for simultaneously determining strain and temperature characteristics of an object comprising: (i) at least one optical fiber having at least two Brillouin peaks; (ii) at least one connector securing the optical fiber to the object to be monitored; (iii) a laser positioned to provide laser light to said at least one optical fiber; (iv) a device measuring frequencies of said at least two Brillouin peaks, and determining frequency shifts of said at least two Brillouin peaks for said at least one optical fiber along the length of fiber; and (v) a system calculating strain and temperature characteristics along said fiber, based on the coefficients of strain and temperature as well as the measured Brillouin frequency shifts for said optical fiber along the length of said optical fiber.