I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet

I do live on the West Coast, after all. Today's Illumination isn't a fiat accompli, so much as a work in progress, but it's an important work that can help save thousands of lives.

The last few years have shown the world how devastating earthquakes and tsunamis can be. Every second of warning can help get people to higher ground, and so everyone's looking for better ways to detect what might be coming. In Japan, scientists are examining geomagnetic fields to see what information earthquakes and tsunamis send up before they unleash on the Earth.

There are tiny shifts and alterations in the geomagnetic fields all the time, but the more data scientists are able to gather about what "normal" looks like, the more information they can find about abnormal circumstances. The project is still in early stages, but knowing what kind of information to look for is always a great start. If it can help even one person to get to higher ground or take cover in time, I would consider it a job well done.