What are ‘Felt Detailed’?

When checking out an earthquake on our website you may have noticed a ‘Felt Detailed’ button, this is a longer questionnaire of around 40 questions. Scientists currently use these to complement the strong-motion data GeoNet receives from its stations around New Zealand determining where areas of most intense shaking occurred. People are almost acting as “human sensors” that help us get a detailed picture of how the shaking was at their location.

‘Felt Detailed’ reports are also being used for several research projects, including ‘community intensities’ which provide an easy way to understand the distribution of shaking caused by an earthquake in New Zealand. Using these, scientists have created a database of more than 170,000 community intensities for earthquakes from 2004 to the present, using the online felt reports provided by the public.

So, what’s new?

The first important update is you no longer have to find the QuakeID for the earthquake. Instead, it will be automatically included in the survey based on the earthquake you are looking at. The team has also added in a dropdown address function, and your address gets turned into an ID, so the researchers don’t see your personal details.

The questions themselves have also become more streamlined, so you won’t have to click through questions that do not apply to you.

Finally, Felt Detailed will look a little different, as you will first be asked to add in your address and then be taken through to the survey.

Didn’t feel that earthquake?

If you are aware of a local earthquake that people felt, and you didn’t, you can still complete a Felt Detailed report for us. These are helpful for our researchers in compiling low intensity mapping.

Thank you!

We would like to take the opportunity to thank all the people in New Zealand who have generously filled in felt reports (both the long and short versions), providing us with an immensely valuable amount of information. Thank you!

"Completing these detailed felt reports, the public is contributing hugely to science, and helping decision-makers following a damaging event. So, the more 'felt detailed' reports we have, the better picture we have of the damage caused by an earthquake." Tatiana Goded – GNS Science Seismic Hazard Modeller

Drop, Cover and Hold

And if you feel a Long or Strong earthquake, or receive an emergency mobile alert for a tsunami, Get Gone to higher ground, or as far inland as possible immediately. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have a great website with information on what to do before, during and after an earthquake. The Earthquake Commission (EQC) also have helpful information on how to get your home, apartment, or rental prepared for a natural disaster.

As always, the GeoNet project and our monitoring capability would not be possible without the support of our partners EQC, LINZ, MBIE, and NEMA.

Attributable to: Tatiana Goded, GNS Science

Media enquiries: media@gns.cri.nz or 021 574 541