All articles tagged with #earthquake warning system
Google's earthquake early warning system failed to send timely alerts to millions during Turkey's devastating 2023 quake, underestimating the quake's strength and limiting warnings, raising concerns about the system's reliability and transparency in disaster response.
The MyShake app, developed by UC Berkeley seismologists, is conducting a test alert to simulate an earthquake warning system. The app collects data from the US Geological Services ShakeAlert system and sends alerts to phones in areas where shaking is predicted. Users who are far from the epicenter will receive the alert a few seconds before the shaking intensifies, allowing them to take protective action. If users don't receive the test alert, it may be due to disabled alerts or location services. The app also collects user experience reports and motion data for research purposes. The goal of the test alert is to encourage earthquake preparedness and practice safety measures.
Google's Android earthquake warning system, which uses the accelerometer in phones to crowdsource warnings, reportedly failed to provide alerts to people in Turkey before the first tremor hit on February 6th. While Google claims that millions of people received earthquake alerts, investigators found that none of the hundreds of people they spoke to in three Turkish cities received an alert before the quake. The reliability of internet access and the nature of the quake may have affected the system. Concerns remain about the system's effectiveness during strong earthquakes and its reliability compared to traditional warnings over radio and TV.