Scientists develop new app that uses your cellphone to detect earthquakes

Los Angeles Times ^ | 02/12/2016 | Rosanna Xia and Rong-Gong Lin II

[BenLurkin]

Users who download the app will be sending data to scientists when an earthquake as small as a magnitude 5 hits.

By harvesting information from hundreds of phones closest to the earthquake, scientists will be able to test a computer system that could, in the future, dispatch early warnings that shaking is seconds or minutes away to people farther away from the earthquake’s origin. For instance, if a quake started in San Bernardino, cell phones there could register the quake and quickly help send warnings to smartphone users in Los Angeles.

"This is a citizen science project," said Richard Allen, director of the Berkeley Seismological Laboratory at UC Berkeley. "This is an app that provides information, education, motivation - to the people who've downloaded it - to get ready for earthquakes. Those same people are contributing to our further understanding of earthquakes, because they're collecting data that will help us better understand the earthquake process."

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

I’d be willing to bet, like 95% of the phone apps, it promises far more than it delivers. Probably uses gps and monitors USGS website data. Hardly detecting, just pinging your battery away.

[jimtorr]

The App sends gps data to a server, which uses a magic formula to detect large ground movement before it occurs?

I won’t go to la times to find more....I don’t give them hits....

[jennychase]

UCB had installed sensors in LA area. When Earthquake occurs these sensors reports datacollection center and based on sufficient data, algorithm predicts that whether this is earthquake or not based on result sends information to app.

There is another app which is local to each mobile and do second level of algorithm run based on initial Algorithm run and tells approx rector info.

Univ of Santa Cruz is also doing similar type based on their set of installed sensor.

Results are promising, they are still tuning algorithm.

[jennychase]

Basically, it gives few secs advanced warning, sufficient to avoid lift or come out of car.

[InterceptPoint]

Not for me. I'm waiting for the Gravity Wave Detection Crowd Source App. Now that would be something.

[JoeFromSidney]

It's probably based on the accelerometer in your phone. That's the thing that tells how the phone is tilted. When the accelerometer detects an earthquake shake, it calls up the central location and reports the 'quake.

[jennychase]

No, sensors on ground.

[KarlInOhio]

Flash mob quake: everyone in Los Angeles shake your phones and freak out the USGS.

[soycd]

Don’t let it mistake that butt dialed Burrito gas attack.

[minnesota_bound]

When you are being thrown about and see buildings and bridges falling down, you really do not need an app for that. You are the app.

[SunkenCiv]

[SunkenCiv]

Whoops, my apologies to the GGG ping list, here's the C ping.

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[uglybiker]

Detect? feh!
I use sheep's bladders to prevent earthquakes!

[grey_whiskers]

Let me guess. It vibrates.

[gleeaikin]

I was in a 7.5 in Mexico City many years ago. It felt like a fast moving New York subway train. Coming home from a party my date and I ran to the middle of the intersection away from buildings and electric lines and were holding on to each other to keep from falling down for over a minute. Over the next few weeks I would feel an occasional shudder while I was lying down.

I was not real close to the 5.8 near Mineral, Virginia a few years ago, but my wall was shuddering intensely for about 15 seconds. I also needed some repointing done on a chimney. I kept a cup of water next to my computer and on 3 occasions I saw the water surface ripple. On two of those occasions I thought I felt something and a 2 or 3 aftershock was reported. The third was barely perceptible on the water surface and nothing was reported.