Northwest Begins Work on Earthquake Early Warning System

 A research grant announced Tuesday will allow seismologists to take the first steps toward an early warning system for earthquakes in the Northwest. An operational system is still a long way off, but it could eventually resemble the computerized warnings pioneered in Japan.  The $2 million grant from the Moore Foundation to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network is part of a $6 million grant shared by the University of California Berkeley, Caltech, and the USGS.  Prototype systems should be completed within the 3-year grant period.