Google launches earthquake alerts for Android in the US

Google is expanding its Android Earthquake Alerts feature, which allows users to receive earthquake alerts in all 50 states and six US territories.

Here's What We Know

The system, introduced in 2020, turns smartphones into seismometers with accelerometers that detect the initial P-waves of earthquakes.

While California, Oregon, and Washington already have their own ShakeAlert system, most other states do not have specialised alerts.

Google uses data from phones to detect earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 4.5 and send two types of alerts: "Remember" for mild tremors and "Take Action" for strong tremors.

The feature is already available in 97 countries, and will be fully rolled out in the US in the coming weeks. You can view earthquake information in Google Search or set up alerts in the Settings menu.

Source: 9to5Google