Natural Hazards & Earthquake Monitoring

Overview#

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake strikes at 04:23. By 04:24, the system has generated a geofence around the estimated impact zone, created prepositioning recommendations for search and rescue assets based on population density and construction vulnerability in the affected area, and queued a mass notification campaign targeting residents in the highest-shaking zones. The emergency manager reviewing the first alert at 04:25 has all of that context already assembled and ready to confirm.

Argus Natural Hazards and Earthquake Monitoring provides real-time earthquake detection through integration with USGS seismic data feeds. When significant seismic events are detected, the system automatically generates geofences around affected areas, creates prepositioning recommendations for emergency response resources, triggers mass notification campaigns, and initiates aftershock monitoring. The platform supports configurable magnitude thresholds, automated resource positioning guidance, and dashboard-based monitoring statistics for emergency management operations.

Open Standards#

FDSN Web Services (fdsnws/event/1/): The capability queries seismic event data via the International Federation of Digital Seismograph Networks Web Services specification, using the USGS /fdsnws/event/1/query endpoint for both real-time polling and historical backfill.
GeoJSON (RFC 7946): All geofence geometries generated around earthquake epicentres are encoded as GeoJSON Feature objects with Point geometry and coordinate arrays, and USGS real-time feeds are consumed in GeoJSON format.
USGS Earthquake Hazards Program GeoJSON Feed v1.0: Real-time seismic event data is ingested from the USGS standardised hourly GeoJSON feed (/earthquakes/feed/v1.0/), which packages FDSN event data in GeoJSON with defined property vocabularies for magnitude, depth, alert level, tsunami flag, and intensity.
Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) / Community Decimal Intensity (CDI): Shaking intensity is stored and surfaced using these two standard seismic intensity scales; MMI is derived from instrumental data and CDI from public felt reports, both provided by USGS ShakeMap.
ISO 8601: All event timestamps, prepositioning windows, and API response datetimes are represented in ISO 8601 format, ensuring interoperability with downstream emergency management systems.
GraphQL (June 2018 specification): The module exposes its queries, mutations, and type system through a GraphQL API, allowing clients to request only the earthquake fields and statistics they need.
OAuth 2.0 / OpenID Connect (OIDC): Access to all earthquake monitoring queries and mutations is enforced through the platform's OAuth 2.0 bearer-token authentication layer, consistent with OIDC identity assertions.

Last Reviewed: 2026-02-24 Last Updated: 2026-04-14

Key Features#

Real-Time Earthquake Detection: Continuous monitoring of USGS seismic data feeds with configurable polling intervals and backfill capability for historical data.
Magnitude-Based Response Thresholds: Graduated response triggers from event recording at magnitude 2.0 through automatic mass notifications at magnitude 4.0 and above.
Automated Geofence Generation: Circular geofence creation around earthquake epicenters based on magnitude and location for targeted notifications and resource coordination.
Prepositioning Recommendations: Automated resource positioning suggestions with confidence scoring, contributing factor analysis, geographic coordinates, and acknowledgement workflows for operations staff.
Mass Notification Campaigns: Multi-channel notification generation for significant events with geofence-based targeting, delivery tracking, and scheduled or immediate delivery options.
Aftershock Monitoring: 72-hour monitoring windows following significant events with continued detection and alerting.
Monitoring Dashboard: Real-time statistics including total events tracked, recent activity counts, maximum magnitude readings, active geofences, and active recommendations.

Use Cases#

Emergency Response Coordination: Automatically detect earthquakes, assess severity, and trigger coordinated response actions including resource prepositioning and public notifications.
Public Safety Alerting: Deliver timely earthquake notifications to affected populations through multi-channel mass notification campaigns targeted by geographic area.
Resource Management: Guide emergency resource positioning based on earthquake characteristics, population proximity, and confidence-scored recommendations.
Situational Awareness: Provide emergency managers with real-time dashboards showing seismic activity, response status, and historical trends for informed decision-making.
Regional Monitoring: Maintain continuous seismic awareness across configured geographic areas with configurable sensitivity and response parameters.

Integration#

The module integrates with USGS real-time GeoJSON feeds and the USGS Event API for seismic data. Cross-domain connections include geofencing services for area-based targeting, PSAP alerting systems for mass notifications, and social media verification for earthquake report validation.