GPS Devices: Early Detection of Major Earthquakes

French scientists have discovered a precursor phase that occurs hours before a major earthquake by analyzing GPS data from over 3,000 geodetic stations. The researchers found that earthquakes begin with a slow displacement at the fault's hypocenter, which gradually accelerates before the rapid sliding that produces seismic waves. While the precursor phase was not detected in all earthquakes, the scientists believe that developing a systematic fault monitoring system could potentially detect these precursor slips in the future. In-depth knowledge of faults and real-time data would be crucial for an effective earthquake detection system.