Scientists have found a way to protect against earthquakes - it will cost 6 billion rubles

Although seismic activity in Russia is mainlyit appears only in the south and east of the country, for other countries the problem of the sudden occurrence of earthquakes remains very relevant. Tremors can pose a great danger to the public, not to mention the occurrence of a tsunami and more serious consequences like an accident at a nuclear power plant. Therefore, scientists are constantly developing new technologies that can as quickly as possible warn citizens of impending disaster, because here the bill goes on for a second.

American seismologists created ShakeAlert -special earthquake warning system, which should promptly notify the inhabitants of the US West Coast about the slightest earthquake. For her work, she uses 400 seismographs installed throughout the state of California. As soon as at least one sensor recognizes the first signs of an earthquake, specialists immediately receive a corresponding warning.

The system is able to calculate the magnitude of the approaching aftershocks, the estimated time before they start, and the approximate radius of the earthquake, forming a kind of "safety zone".

Read also - 10 of the most devastating earthquakes in history

And recently, scientists have made it possible to send disaster warnings not only to computers, but also to smartphones.

The most interesting thing is that the US government has not yetwants to allocate funds for the development of ShakeAlert. The cost of installing one such system comes to $ 100 million plus the cost of its further maintenance. Nevertheless, seismologists report a high probability (99%) of the occurrence of an earthquake in California, which can affect both Los Angeles and San Francisco. Now the question is whether the officials will manage to transfer the required amount of money, or will it be too late.

West Coast USA (pink) - most at risk for earthquakes

Alert systems like ShakeAlert successfullyworking in other countries. For example, using one of these networks, established in 2007 in Japan, 52 million people in the country were promptly warned of a serious 9-magnitude earthquake in 2011, which made it possible to minimize casualties. At that time it was the strongest earthquake in the history of Japan.

Last year, the same system announced the aftershocks of Mexico City residents, giving them a 30-second advantage over the elements. The power of the earthquake was 7.4 points.

Read also - In the US, more than 3000 earthquakes occurred in a few days. More is expected in California

Scientists believe the government does not wantallocate funds for ShakeAlert due to the small number of earthquakes over the past 15 years. The last most devastating earthquake occurred in the United States in 1994, just in the state of California. Then 60 people died, and the cost of the restoration work exceeded 13 billion dollars. Nevertheless, on July 4 of this year, an earthquake occurred in California - it is the strongest in the history of the state in the past 20 years. The last push of magnitude 7.1 was recorded in the south of the state back in 1999, but at that time, fortunately, no one was hurt. This time, too, there were no casualties and major damage. But how long will it be "lucky"?

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