Can smartphones affixed to buildings detect earthquakes?

Using smartphone networks, scientists are testing a new, low-cost earthquake early warning system in areas with high population density and limited resources.

Written by Meghomita Das, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada (meghomita)

Citation: Das, AD, 2021, Can smartphones affixed to buildings detect earthquakes?, Temblor, http://doi.org/10.32858/temblor.201

Destructive earthquakes can strike at any time, leaving a trail of devastation. Recovery from such events may take several years. Unfortunately, scientists cannot predict the exact time when the earthquake will strike. However, extensive research in the field of earthquake early warning systems continues. Such systems can provide seconds of warning, which can save lives and prevent people from overcoming emergency management systems.

The 2009 Elkina earthquake, which struck an area near the capital, San Jose, killed 34 people and collapsed homes across Costa Rica. Credit: Captain Diana Barzic, US Army, via Wikipedia, CC-Public Domain Mark 1.0

Earthquake early warning systems work by having a densely distributed network of seismic stations capable of rapidly detecting an earthquake, and by sending alerts that warn of a shaking to the population. A significant obstacle to the design and implementation of such systems is the high cost of installing multiple science-grade seismic stations across earthquake-prone areas. For countries like India or Mexico, which have limited resources and high population density, these expensive networks are not feasible.

In a recent study published in AGU Advances, a team of scientists explored whether a low-cost, robust and operational earthquake early warning system – built on relatively inexpensive smartphones rather than earthquake stations – could become a reality in the near future in Costa Rica, a country regularly exposed to severe earthquakes. . During a six-month testing period, this network, called Alerta Sismica Temprana Utilizando Telefonos Inteligentes (ASTUTI), a collaborative effort between the USGS and the Universidad Nacional in Costa Rica, detected and sent alerts for five earthquakes that caused significant shaking in the region. San Jose, the populous capital of Costa Rica.

Smartphones and earthquakes

Smartphones come with GPS location services, constant communication over cellular networks, and a device called an accelerometer that helps your phone’s screen rotate as you move it. The accelerometer can also record any vibration your phone may experience. Marino Protti, co-author of the study and a seismologist at Observatorio Vulcanologico y Sismologico de Costa Rica (Universidad Nacional).

To create the ASTUTI Network, the team deployed 82 Android smartphones, encased in protective boxes, across Costa Rica, at an annual cost of US$20,000. They installed these smartphones inside buildings, either on the walls or floors of the ground floor. Phones are connected to AC power sources.

Prouty says accelerometers broadcast data over cellular networks in real time to the cloud. The cloud-based server receives signals from all stations. So, when an earthquake strikes and two locations detect strong ground movement, an alert is issued to people in San Jose, providing between 10 and 30 seconds of warning before the earthquake waves arrive, he explains.

San Jose skyline. Credit: Jpczcaya, via Wikipedia, CC-BY-SA-4.0

San Jose’s location in relation to the Central American Trench – where the Cocos Plate sinks beneath the Caribbean Plate – is ideal for testing the effectiveness of this network because the city is in the location of the Goldilocks. It is far enough from the trench that a timely alert is possible, but close enough that residents can feel the shaking. The ASTUTI network has also issued alerts as soon as events are detected, rather than waiting for an earthquake to increase in size or trying to characterize it. This choice gave people more time to protect themselves.

Did you feel it?

During six months of operation, a group of people selected to receive telephone alerts were notified of five events detected by ASTUTI, with magnitudes between 4.8 and 5.3. Thirteen earthquakes struck Costa Rica in that time, but the other eight did not produce such a large shaking that would warrant an alert. For two of the five detected events, ASTUTI sent out alerts as soon as possible — when the first wave of the earthquake, also called the P wave — was detected by smartphones. This gave people ample time to take precautionary measures. Furthermore, each of the five detected events was accompanied by a “did you feel it” report by the USGS. This citizen science project collects “substantial reports” from people who have felt (or not felt) the shaking during earthquakes around the world. In other words, earthquakes that shook people enough to report were discovered by the ASTUTI Network.

One of the earthquake early warning stations ASTUTI. The image on the left shows the encapsulated smartphone, and the image on the right shows the interface of the software that records data from the terminal. Credit: Brooks et al., 2021, CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0

With recent developments in earthquake early warning, there is potential to develop a network consisting of expensive sophisticated devices complemented by a larger number of low-cost devices capable of detecting the movement of the earth, says Raj Prasana, communications and electronics engineer and senior lecturer at Massey University – New Zealand who was not involved in this studying. “Together, they could become an affordable warning network, with acceptable levels of reliability,” he says.

In the next stage of development, the team plans to create a hybrid system by integrating this smartphone-enabled network with Costa Rica’s existing scientific earthquake network, which will improve accuracy and reduce the detection time of the earthquake early warning system.

What the audience wants

Creating an earthquake early warning system that effectively pushes the public to safety is a challenge, says USGS Sarah Minson, a co-author on the new study. “How do we find out what people want; how do we know if they are enjoying the system?” she asks. Because earthquake early warning systems are relatively new, Minson says, people may not know what they want or need. In addition, each country’s needs are different. People’s responses to the same alerts vary depending on how a culturally defined community reacts to natural hazards.

To this end, the team plans to develop a smartphone-based application. In the future, they will work with the Costa Rican National Risk Prevention and Emergency Management Commission to measure how Costa Ricans perceive earthquake early warning. The goal, says Prouty, is to create a more coordinated response plan to earthquakes in Costa Rica. By combining effective messaging with earthquake early warning, the public will have critical seconds to take action that can protect their lives.

references

Brooks, B.A., Protti, M., Ericksen, T., Bunn, J., Vega, F., Cochran, E.S., … & Glennie, C.L. (2021). Early warning of a strong earthquake at a fraction of the cost: ASTUTI Costa Rica. AGU Advances, 2 (3), e2021AV000407.

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