How JAESN and UWI seismographs in six schools as IRIS eyes Jamaica's Earthquake risk

The University of the West Indies is serious about detecting Earthquakes.

So much so that they've upgraded their Jamaica Seismograph Network by installing a few of them at six (6) high schools as reported in the article “UWI Earthquake Unit to install seismometers at six schools”, published Tuesday, February 23, 2016, The Jamaica Observer.

The seismographs are being installed in partnership with Fulbright scholar, Katherine Ellins, to establish the JAESN (Jamaican Educational Seismic Network). Each seismograph station will become part of an international educational network called IRIS (Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology’s and will greatly broaden the detecting power of the Jamaica Seismograph Network. 

This is a part of the Seismographs in Schools Programme where seismographs are used by teacher’s around the world to introduce students to seismic instruments and interpreting real-time seismic data both at the Secondary school and University level.

The idea is to tap into social media and crowd-sourced data to improve the real-time monitoring of earthquakes, especially as some eighty (80) earthquakes detected by the Earthquake Unit at the University of the West Indies was not felt by Jamaicans as noted in my blog article entitled “Why 80 Earthquakes by Earthquake Unit in 2015 means Big One and Tsunami in 2017”. 

JAESN installing seismographs in six schools - How IRIS eyes are on Jamaica's Earthquake risk

It'll also serve to inform the building industry as to what part of the island experience the most earthquakes, given that  many builds are being built with faulty blocks based on testing by BSJ (Bureau of Standards Jamaica) as reported in my blog article entitled “Why Collapse due to BSJ's Faulty Block makers may occur spontaneously without an Earthquake”. 

It'll also allow them to develope a more practical grasp of physics, particularly as it relate to waves and the mathematics involved in making these calculations. ODPEM (Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management) will do well to support this venture.

This may possibly including the science teacher across Jamaica to make student aware of the danger of Earthquakes and tsunamis on out little island as noted in my blog article entitled “Tsunami watch needed urgently for real this time”. 

In the process of doing this, JAESN will create citizen scientists, encouraging students to take an interest in Geology and Earth Sciences. They will develop a better understanding of the fundamental concepts in the Earth Sciences, particularly geosciences and geography.

Here’s the link:

Jamaica Seismograph Network