Question of the Week: Earthquake Warning

What single improvement to current earthquake detection and warning systems would help most in terms of limiting their destruction (both material and to humans)?

“We don’t have seismometers everywhere. How you deal with that is the question.”

- Miaki Ishii, Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences

“What is most needed in terms of earthquake forecasting is an understanding of which faults are really active.”

- Jeffrey J. Park, Yale Professor of Geology & Geophysics

“Well I think a big improvement would be a reliable and very fast warning system for local tsunamis.”

- Phil R. Cummins, Australian National University Natural Hazard Professor

“When it’s good times, you need to prepare. You need to compile the base maps, have a routine system.”

- Wendy W. Guan, Director at Harvard Center for Geographic Analysis