Sismos a l'Ecole: A Worldwide Network of Real-Time Seismometers in Schools

Abstract

After each large destructive earthquake in the world, shocking images are presented to the adults and children on the TV and through the Internet. All sorts of questions arise: Some of them are very rational, whereas others are driven by fear of a global catastrophe or even a curse. For example, in March 2011, after the giant Tohoku, Japan, earthquake, seismologists everywhere were asked to provide explanations and often to give their opinion on what had happened. How could there be such a disaster? Can it happen to us? Many took the time to talk to students in classrooms to make clear what we know and what we are still trying to understand and also tried to limit irrational fears. Teachers, as well as researchers, were on the front line, particularly those who actively participate in networks of educational seismology in the United States (e.g., Levy and Taber, 2005), England (e.g., Denton, 2009), Italy (e.g., Cantore et al. , 2003; Solarino and Eva, 2009), Switzerland (e.g., Sornette and Haslinger, 2009), and other countries in the world. Thanks to Sismos a l’Ecole (SaE) network stations, accessible in real time in various parts of the world, students saw the waves of the many aftershocks passing through their school and through other schools in the world. Thus, they immediately understood that the waves of Japanese earthquakes first arrived at the high school stations in Taipei, then in Canberra, and then in Istanbul before arriving under their feet at their school. Let us see how this network is structured and how it allows …