Google turning Android smartphones into earthquake detectors

SAN FRANCISCO: Google added an earthquake alert system in California and is working on converting Android-powered smartphones as tremor detectors.

Android phones will receive warnings triggered by ‘ShakeAlert’ earthquake early-warning system implemented on the West Coast by the US Geological Survey and partners.

ShakeAlert uses signals from hundreds of seismometers across the state to trigger warning messages that “an earthquake has begun and shaking is imminent,” according to the system’s website.

“We saw an opportunity to use Android to provide people with timely, helpful earthquake information when they search, as well as a few seconds warning to get themselves and their loved ones to safety if needed,” principal software engineer Marc Stogaitis said in a blog post.

People anywhere with smartphones powered by Google’s Android operating software were also invited to let handsets be part of a crowdsourced network for detecting earthquakes.

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Smartphones are typically equipped with tiny accelerometers that sense movement and can catch shaking caused by earthquakes, said Stogaitis.

“This means your Android phone can be a mini seismometer, joining millions of other Android phones out there to form the world’s largest earthquake detection network,” said Stogaitis.

According to Google, Android phones that detect an earthquake activity can automatically send a signal to a data center, where computers quickly interpret motion and location data in aggregate to determine whether a quake is happening.

Earthquake alerts are starting in California because the state has an extensive seismometer network in place. The alerts are expected to spread to other locations during the coming year as the phone-based detection network is established.

California is prime earthquake territory and residents are routinely warned of the inevitability of the next “big one.” Major earthquakes are relatively rare on the US east coast.