Did you feel it? Community-made earthquake shaking maps

Abstract

Since the early 1990's, the magnitude and location of an earthquake have been available within minutes on the Internet. Now, as a result of work by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and with the cooperation of various regional seismic networks, people who experience an earthquake can go online and share information about its effects to help create a map of shaking intensities and damage. Such 'Community Internet Intensity Maps' (CIIM's) contribute greatly in quickly assessing the scope of an earthquake emergency, even in areas lacking seismic instruments.