Scientists Accelerate Research to Use AI for Earthquake Prediction

Predicting earthquakes has been a major challenge worldwide, but recent research and new technologies are attempting to solve this problem.

The University of California, Berkeley, and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services have developed a cutting-edge application called “MyShake.” This app uses advanced technology and public data to detect earthquakes.

The MyShake app collects motion data from users' mobile phones and sends alerts based on the earthquake’s location.

Richard Allen, Ph.D., Director of the Seismology Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, who is involved in the development of this technology, says that this app can provide warnings ranging from a few seconds to several seconds, depending on the intensity of the earthquake and the availability of phones.

However, some experts believe that no system has yet been able to make completely accurate predictions about earthquakes.

Tom Heaton, a geologist at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), who has studied earthquakes for over 50 years, states that earthquake prediction is a problem of self-organized chaos, and no system has been able to accurately predict the date, time, and location of an earthquake.

When a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Japan, the Japan Meteorological Agency issued the first-ever "mega-earthquake advisory," warning about the possibility of more earthquakes. However, the agency clarified that predicting the date, time, and location of earthquakes is impossible.

Recently, an AI-based earthquake prediction system was tested in China, and the results were astonishing.

The algorithm understood real-time changes in earthquake data and successfully predicted 70% of earthquakes a week in advance. This system accurately predicted earthquakes within 200 miles of the occurrence.

Sergey Fomel, a geologist at the University of Texas who led the experiment, said, "The success of the experiment conducted in China is extraordinary, and this is a complex problem that has seen many failed attempts."

These new technological advancements and experiments offer hope that earthquake prediction will improve in the future, helping to protect human lives.