Experts had always believed earthquakes were impossible to predict, but with the latest developments in machine learning, scientists feel this may no longer be the case.
This followed the created of machines which are able to “listen” to rocks.
When certain types of rocks are put under increased pressure shortly before an earthquake they release a low-pitched rumbling sound.
A group of researchers from Cambridge University recreated the effects on rocks of powerful earthquakes in a laboratory and then used a newly developed piece of AI to highlight cues which signified that a tremor is about to come.
The pressure effects on rocks typically occurs about a week before an earthquake hits which allowed scientists to have an inkling of when a tremor could strike.
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Study co-author Colin Humphreys, a professor of materials science at Cambridge University, told Reuters: “People have said you can’t predict earthquakes.
“People have tried. We’re now saying we believe for the first time we can predict an earthquake in a laboratory.”
AI was able to identify low rumblings that get increasingly stronger as a quake approaches in a move that could save countless lives.
The scientists believe that the machine has great potential, and the next step is to apply it to earthquake prone areas.
Following that, they will try to determine just how strong an earthquake will be.
Lead author Bertrand Rouet-Leduc, who was a PhD student at Cambridge during the research, said: “We’re at a point where huge advances in instrumentation, machine learning, faster computers and our ability to handle massive data sets could bring about huge advances in earthquake science.”