The physics-heavy analyses of two databases....detected a point in time where a newly initiated earthquake transitions into a slip pulse where mechanical properties point to magnitude. Melgar and Hayes also were able to identify similar trends in European and Chinese databases. Their study was detailed in the May 29 issue of the online journal Science Advances. Overall, the databases contain data from more than 3,000 earthquakes. Consistent indicators of displacement acceleration that surface between 10-20 seconds into events were seen for 12 major earthquakes occurring in 2003-2016. GPS monitors exist along many land-based faults, including at ground locations near the...