In this episode of Blue Dot, Dave talks to Jennifer Strauss from the UC Berkeley Seismology Lab and Ken Hudnut from the United States Geological Survey. Both are deeply involved in the April 18, 2018 roll out of the "Haywired Scenario" a scientifically accurate modeling of a Magnitude 6.8 earthquake on the Hayward Fault. Our conversation revolves around the new technology called Shake Alert. Using seismic monitoring all over the state (especially in quake prone areas such as the Bay area and Southern California), scientists have developed a system to use the early arrival seismic waves, p-waves, to alert us to the imminent shaking that will follow in a matter of seconds. The early warning system can be used on computers and smart phones to let us know how long we have to brace for the hard shaking of a major earthquake. The system will also be used by transportation systems like BART and utility systems like PG&E to best safeguard our infrastructure when the next "Big One" inevitably hits somewhere in California.
Blue Dot 96: Shake Alert!
