1. Home
  2. Update

How effective are earthquake early warning systems?

Source(s): British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
Upload your content

Earthquake early warning detection is more effective for minor quakes than major ones.

This is according to a new study from the United States Geological Survey.

Seismologists modelled ground shaking along California's San Andreas Fault, where an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 or more is expected within 30 years.

They found that warning time could be increased for residents if they were willing to tolerate a number of "false alarms" for smaller events.

This would mean issuing alerts early in an earthquake's lifespan, before its full magnitude is determined. Those living far from the epicentre would occasionally receive warnings for ground shaking they could not feel.

"We can get [greater] warning times for weak ground motion levels, but we can't get long warning times for strong shaking," Sarah Minson, lead author of the study, told BBC News.

[...]

Read the original story here

Attachments

The limits of earthquake early warning: Timeliness of ground motion estimates English

Document links last validated on: 16 July 2021

Editors' recommendations

Explore further

Hazards Earthquake
Themes Early warning

Please note: Content is displayed as last posted by a PreventionWeb community member or editor. The views expressed therein are not necessarily those of UNDRR, PreventionWeb, or its sponsors. See our terms of use

Is this page useful?

Yes No
Report an issue on this page

Thank you. If you have 2 minutes, we would benefit from additional feedback (link opens in a new window).