MyShake app developers point to the fact there are only a handful of traditional seismic detectors and geodetic networks around the world. On the other hand, smartphones are much more prevalent, and their accelerometers can be tapped to detect earthquakes.
MyShake has been reportedly downloaded by 70,000 users worldwide. (Photo : Twitter/AAAS)
Smartphones are becoming more than just communication and entertainment devices, as they have started to serve more practical functions such as a disaster detection device. Developers, for instance, have teamed up with seismologists and unveiled an app Friday called MyShake that effectively transforms smartphones into earthquake detectors.
Unlike the elaborate infrastructure seen in theShakeAlert system, MyShake only relies on the smartphone's accelerometer to detect quake activity. Its algorithm allows the app to estimate the earthquake's location and magnitude, CBS News reported. This information is then forwarded to a central database, where seismologists analyze data real-time.
"We show that smartphones can record magnitude 5 earthquakes at distances of 10 km or less and develop an on-phone detection capability to separate earthquakes from other everyday shakes," the app's developers explained in a paper published in the journal Science Advances.
"We show that smartphones can record magnitude 5 earthquakes at distances of 10 km or less and develop an on-phone detection capability to separate earthquakes from other everyday shakes," the app's developers explained in a paper published in the journal Science Advances.
MyShake has been reportedly downloaded by 70,000 users worldwide. (Photo : Twitter/AAAS)
Smartphones are becoming more than just communication and entertainment devices, as they have started to serve more practical functions such as a disaster detection device. Developers, for instance, have teamed up with seismologists and unveiled an app Friday called MyShake that effectively transforms smartphones into earthquake detectors.
Unlike the elaborate infrastructure seen in theShakeAlert system, MyShake only relies on the smartphone's accelerometer to detect quake activity. Its algorithm allows the app to estimate the earthquake's location and magnitude, CBS News reported. This information is then forwarded to a central database, where seismologists analyze data real-time.
"We show that smartphones can record magnitude 5 earthquakes at distances of 10 km or less and develop an on-phone detection capability to separate earthquakes from other everyday shakes," the app's developers explained in a paper published in the journal Science Advances.
"We show that smartphones can record magnitude 5 earthquakes at distances of 10 km or less and develop an on-phone detection capability to separate earthquakes from other everyday shakes," the app's developers explained in a paper published in the journal Science Advances.
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