Earthquake researchers in California hope to take advantage of the motion sensors in laptops to create an earthquake-sensing network. By putting computers in homes and businesses to work as seismic monitors, the researchers hope to pull together a wealth of information on major quakes, and perhaps even offer early warnings, giving a few seconds' notice of a potentially devastating quake.
An effort to develop cooperative seismic monitoring of the Indian Ocean to prevent a repeat of last year's Tsunami is being held up by Indian concerns that the data could reveal too much about their nuclear weapons testing program.
The International Monitoring System, an international network of seismographic sensors developed to verify compliance with the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, has agreed to release seismographic data that could be useful for Tsunami detection and early warning. However, the data release is on an experimental basis because there is still disagreement among the participants in the IMS as to whether the IMS should be providing early warning data.
Good overview of the status of the International Monitoring System, a global network of sensors in 89 countries that watch for nuclear tests and other seismic anamolies.
Parties to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty are expected to begin discussing next week whether to expand the responsibilities and capabilities of the treaty?s monitoring organization to include global tsunami alerts.