IBM, Grillo, and the Linux Foundation to develop early earthquake detection systems
The Linux Foundation — in partnership with IBM and startup Grillo — today announced an initiative called OpenEEW to accelerate the deployment of open source earthquake early warning (EEW) detection systems around the world. The organizations say OpenEEW will incorporate sensing, detection, and analysis components from Grillo’s EEW platform, along with a Docker software version of the detection component that can be deployed to Kubernetes and Red Hat OpenShift on IBM Cloud.
An estimated 3 billion people live with the threat of earthquakes globally. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, in California, there’s a 94% chance that an earthquake will not be just a foreshock. Yet only a few countries — like Mexico, Japan, Turkey, Romania, China, Italy, portions of the U.S., and Taiwan — have EEWs, in part because they can cost upwards of $1 billion.
OpenEEW, which was created with support from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Clinton Foundation, and Arrow Electronics, includes internet of things elements like hardware and firmware that can detect and transmit motion. Real-time detection systems can be deployed on platforms from Kubernetes to Raspberry Pi, and software allows users to receive alerts on devices, wearables, and mobile apps.
