How Google’s Earthquake Alerts Protected Millions — And How to Turn It On in Quake-Prone Countries When two massive earthquakes (7.2 and 7.5) struck Venezuela recently, the country had no national early warning system. But millions of Android phones lit up with loud alerts seconds to minutes before the shaking hit — giving people precious time to drop, cover, and hold on. Google’s clever system turns the accelerometers in over 2 billion Android phones into a giant crowdsourced seismic network. It detects the first waves, confirms the quake, and blasts notifications to users in the affected area. In Venezuela, it reached 11.4 million people — proving technology can save lives even where governments can’t. How to activate it (works in nearly 100 countries): Open Settings on your Android phone. Tap Safety & Emergency (or search for “Earthquake alerts”). Select Earthquake Alerts and toggle it ON. Keep Location services ena...
Virgin Galactic will unveil its new SpaceShipTwo today VIRGIN GALACTIC 19 FEBRUARY 16 by JAMES TEMPERTON SpaceShipTwo serial number two will be carried to 50,000 feet by the White Knight Two "mothership" (pictured) before blasting itself to the edge of space John Francis Peters Virgin Galactic will unveil the latest version of its SpaceShipTwo spacecraft later today, 18 months after a pilot was killed when the previous model exploded . Company founder Richard Branson said the new spaceship looked "beautiful" and was the result of 700 engineers working "day and night" for 15 months. "We've got some wonderful surprises later on today," he told ITV's Good Morning Britain . Branson will unveil the new SpaceShipTwo at the company's spaceport in the Mojave Desert, California later today. The six-passenger craft will carry six passengers on a five-minute journey into suborbital space , reachin...