New technology can give earthquake warnings on cell phones - Chico Enterprise-Record

CHICO — A 5.1 magnitude earthquake struck 12 miles from San Jose, California astatine 11:42 a.m. Tuesday.

It wasn’t a ample quake, but capable to get radical talking. There is present caller exertion disposable which tin observe and springiness earthquake warnings.

At Chico State, successful the caller subject building, determination is simply a instrumentality called a Heliquarter which is simply a machine show that tracks and displays seismic data. On Thursday, the show was tracking information successful Alaska.

According to Chico State Instructional and Research Support Coordinator Bill Koperwhats, who works successful the geology department, determination was a seismograph “back successful the day” successful the basement of the aged carnal subject building.

“It was beauteous cool,” Koperwhats said. “Students would spot it connected tours. But the exertion was truly old, dating backmost to the 1980s oregon 1990s.”

Koperwhats said erstwhile helium arrived astatine Chico State successful 2007, the instrumentality stopped working. He removed it and replaced it with a kiosk, a large show hooked up to a computer, which tin propulsion up unrecorded information from seismic stations each implicit the world.

“Kids tin locomotion done and spot wherever the information is being recorded from,” Koperwhats said.

Koperwhats said that Robert Allen, a prof astatine UC Berkeley, developed an app called MyShake. This app tin propulsion seismic web information and uses a sensor successful cellphones to observe shaking and earthquakes. It was released successful 2019. It doesn’t foretell earthquakes, but 50 seconds to a infinitesimal earlier an earthquake, it tin pass the proprietor of the cellphone what is coming based connected the seismic data.

“It functions successful California, Washington and Oregon,” Koperwhats said. “It gives a informing earlier the seismic vigor reaches wherever you are, and gives you a fewer seconds to duck, screen and prepare.”

Koperwhats said Mexico City has had an aboriginal informing strategy for adjacent to a decade.

“Mexico City’s earthquakes hap connected the coast,” helium said. “If detected, the strategy gives up to a infinitesimal and a fractional of forewarning earlier the seismic waves occur. It has saved galore lives.”

Koperwhats said erstwhile an earthquake is detected, seismic vigor tin tally 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) per second. If you are located 100 km (62 miles) from the epicenter, you person 10 seconds earlier the daze question hits you and you get an alert connected your telephone from MyShake. MyShake is disposable for some Androids and iPhones.

The Gateway Science Museum presently has an grounds called “Earthquakes and Epidemics.” There is simply a kiosk determination which shows unrecorded seismic data.

In summation to the MyShake app, the app QuakeAlertUSA by Early Warning Labs issues alerts, adjacent for little magnitude quakes, to those who download them.

Early Warning Labs said Tuesday it sent alerts to 928 users connected Android and iOS devices via the QuakeAlertUSA app. Those users, the institution said, were forecast to acquisition shaking of a level 3 connected the Modified Mercali Intensity scale, which measures an earthquake’s intensity.

Early Warning Labs said that nether U.S. Geological Survey rules, to person an aboriginal warning, the earthquake indispensable beryllium implicit magnitude 4.5 and the forecasted strength implicit MMI 3.

How to get an earthquake alert message:

• Wireless Emergency Alerts, specified arsenic an AMBER Alert and the ShakeAlert from the U.S. Geological Survey, are delivered by FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System. It is not indispensable to motion up for alerts but marque definite you didn’t crook disconnected the option. For questions, interaction your compartment telephone work provider.

• The MyShake app is disposable for escaped successful the Apple App and Google Play stores. Learn more: https://myshake.berkeley.edu/

• The QuakeAlertUSA app is disposable for escaped connected the Apple App and Google Play stores. Learn more: https://earlywarninglabs.com/mobile-app/.

• Google provides a ShakeAlert-powered earthquake alert diagnostic that is integrated into the Android Operating System. Go to Safety and exigency enactment successful Settings connected your telephone and prime “Earthquake alerts.”

The Bay Area News Group contributed to this report.