For the inhabitants of seismic zones It is not uncommon to be surprised by tremors, with greater or lesser intensity. Although the earthquakes They do not have the kindness to give notice of their arrival, during the last years they have constantly worked to develop systems that, through the use of technology, can warn the tremor in advance.
In this context, Googlethe internet giant allied with Android, the operating system most used by mobile devices around the world, created the new tool that anticipates information about seismic events. In this way, the “earthquake alert” system provides all the precise information about the earthquake, from its location, the magnitude and even advice on how to seek protection and take shelter during the tremor.
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“Near earthquake” this was the alert in real time
With a magnitude of 4.8 degrees on the Richter scale and a depth of 19 kilometers, on Wednesday night an earthquake shook the earth in the north of Mendoza and San Juan, areas of habitual telluric activity. It should be noted that it was a moderate-magnitude tremor, which did not measure 7 degrees or more to become an earthquake, for which it had no material or human consequences.
The regions of northern Argentina are great telluric activitybut this time the inhabitants were surprised by an alert message they received on their cell phones: “Near earthquake”, that is how Google and Android warned about the tremor, with precise information about the location, intensity and advice to seek protection .
For his part, he National Institute of Seismic Prevention (INPRES), based in the San Juan province, reported that the telluric movement began at 11:06 p.m. on Wednesday, with an epicenter located 19 kilometers northeast of Mendoza and 137 kilometers south of San Juan.
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In turn, after 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, the cell phones of San Juan residents received a new earthquake alert. In fact, the Google Earthquake and Emergencies early warning system It was activated when a seismic movement with intensity 5.7 was detected, with an epicenter in Chile. According to preliminary data from INPRES, the earthquake had its epicenter 140 km west of Mendoza; 253 km to the Southwest of San Juan and 41 km to the Northeast of Santiago de Chile. Furthermore, it occurred at a depth of 110 km.
The debut one week after launch
This brand new tool and its innovative Earthquake Warning System It was officially launched in the country a few days ago. Precisely on June 30, when he was presented to society and just five days later, he made his debut warning about the earthquake last Wednesday.
In fact, the release is so recent that most users with mobile devices using Androidthey were surprised more by the alert than by the tremor itself.
Mini seismographs: how the system works
Google’s system debuted successfully, based on similar antecedents, the Chilean warning system that gives early warning of the occurrence of tsunamis before they hit the coast, and the earthquake warning tool in the western United States. It is completely free and works as a complement to other available risk management tools.
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The truth is that to detect seismic movements, Google’s alert system uses the accelerometers installed in more than 3 billion devices with the Android operating system. This function perceives both the vibration and the speed of the movements of an earthquake, and thus obtains information to issue alerts that reach users who live in nearby areas. Specific identifies seismic patterns and determines if an earthquake is being generated in real time.
It should be noted that this functionality is only available to users with Android devices, which become a kind of mini seismographs that operate in a network, sending notifications about tremors detected with a magnitude of 4.5 or higher. Therefore, iPhone users will not be able to receive the notices.
In this way, when the network is put into operation, the mobile user receives a notification in real time, that is to say at the moment that the earthquake is developing and even until a few moments before the first tremors. The alert provides you with information about the exact location, time, magnitude of intensity, distance to the epicenter, and estimated duration of the tremor.
Two types of alert
Depending on the magnitude of the tremor, there are two types of alert issued by the system: an “attention” warning and an “action” notification. These alarms are kept updated, as the telluric event develops, in case the intensity of an earthquake increases or its category decreases.
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Following then the intensity parameters, “attention” alerts They give warning about moderate tremors, with intensity III or IV on the IMM scale, while informing about the location of the earthquake and its magnitude. On the other hand, “action” alerts report movements with a higher intensity, in which the ground shaking can reach grade V or higher on the IMM scale. In addition, it sends instructions on a full screen and with an audible signal to guide the user to find shelter.
Technology, applied to security
This new function available for android devicesis a clear example of how the advancement of technology translates into a valuable contribution to improve and add more security and prevention measures to those already existing in telluric regions.
JL