Raspberry Shake: The Earthquake Monitor Shaking Up An Industry

by Amanda Hawkins July 13, 2023

After we met Raspberry Shake, we knew PurpleAir shared the same mission to empower communities with accessible data, so individuals can make more informed decisions.

But unlike PurpleAir, Raspberry Shake doesn’t tackle air quality.

Instead, their technology is focused on earthquake monitoring. Their compact earthquake devices show users details about seismic activities even as far as the other side of the planet. From volcanic eruptions to earthquakes over 19,000km away—Raspberry Shake has documented it all.

All this helps users better understand earthquakes and everything else moving below our feet. Today, they’re making rapid earthquake detection available through their apps, and seismic data accessible for anyone to use in their research, hobbies, and more.

At PurpleAir, we’re always working alongside organizations that share the same passions for science and innovation. Together, we’re cultivating a community and empowering individuals with the scientific data they need to build a better world.

Because at PurpleAir, we believe in making air quality knowledge accessible to everyone. And we’re not alone in that mission. That’s why we wanted to highlight this amazing community-driven brand today.

Who is Raspberry Shake?

Raspberry Shake is an innovative seismology instrument company, specializing in making complicated earthquake detection equipment simple. The Raspberry Shake device is a small yet powerful user-friendly seismograph, driven by the Raspberry Pi single-board computer.

Anyone can use it to record and visualize earthquakes and other ground motions, and costs less than most smartphones. By sharing their data online, users can contribute to earthquake detection and analysis, as well as learn from each other’s experiences.

Raspberry Shake Website Earthquake monitor

Explore Earthquake Data with their Mobile and Web Apps

In their quest to help users do more with the data and “Watch the Earth move,” Raspberry Shake has developed a comprehensive software ecosystem. This includes the ShakeNet mobile app, Station View web app, and DataView web app. With these tools, users can easily visualize earthquake activity and seismic data to better understand what’s shaking beneath their feet.

Here is a quick overview of each earthquake app and how they work.

ShakeNet Mobile App

Access to the latest earthquake events and real-time seismic data from your own device, on your smartphone.

Interactive map: Explore their global map showcasing earthquake events and the entire ShakeNet network of monitoring stations.
Latest earthquake activity: Stay up-to-date with one of the most comprehensive lists of earthquake events and see how they were recorded on your own device.
Real-time data: Connect directly with your own device(s) and view real-time seismic data from Raspberry Shake stations located all around the world.
Seismic data visualization: Dive deeper into earthquake details with interactive graphs and charts displaying seismic data.

Download the ShakeNet app for iPhone or get ShakeNet app for Android right here.

ShakeNet Mobile App

Station View Web App

A global map displaying the extensive network of Raspberry Shake devices and recent earthquake activity.

Worldwide coverage: View the entire Raspberry Shake network live streaming from around the world, with details of all the most recent earthquake events.
Display filters: Customize the displayed data based on events, data type, and the Raspberry Shake device model.
Station details: Access data from any Station on the network, search for specific stations, and view detailed information about each station, including real-time seismograms and spectrograms.
Data exploration: Observe activity and Station coverage around the world, zoom in on specific areas, and download data for further investigation.

DataView Web App

For users seeking to dig into the details, DataView offers advanced features for in-depth exploration of seismic data.

Extensive data access: Access all the data recorded from any station connected to the Raspberry Shake network.
Real-time streaming: Watch a live data feed from any device connected to the network.
24-hour plots: View 24 hours of data, from any device and date with advanced filtering tools.
Comparative display: Compare data from multiple stations to identify patterns and correlations.

Now, anyone can study seismic activity from their own homes—without spending thousands of dollars and needing technical expertise.

Plus, the Raspberry Shake earthquake monitors help create a rich earthquake monitoring network. In fact, they’re now the largest online, real-time streaming seismic network in the world. As such, they help researchers and scientists to gather more data and arrive at more accurate conclusions.

"Raspberry Shake is more than just a product. It's a community of people who are passionate about watching the Earth move and want to learn more about our living breathing planet. We started this project because we wanted to make seismology accessible and fun for everyone."—Mike Hotchkiss, Marketing Director

How People Use Raspberry Shake Worldwide

So, what else makes this device so special? Well, one key advantage is how detailed the data is when it comes to different types of ground vibrations. For example, different activities have different seismic signatures or patterns. Footsteps, traffic, explosions, and earthquakes aren’t all alike.

So, these are up to the users to determine and analyze. Their app also shows all the latest earthquakes, and if you own a Raspberry Shake device—you can even see how it recorded an earthquake event.

Because Raspberry Shake can detect seismic activities of all magnitudes, it can be used for all kinds of data-driven insights. While the device is primarily used by seismic enthusiasts, many users have found other creative uses as well.

And some of them came as quite a surprise, even to the experts over at Raspberry Shake:

Cultural Noise: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Raspberry Shake seismographs recorded subtle changes in the Earth's vibrations. This helps us to understand the effects of human activity on the seismic vibrations of the Earth.
Animal Conservation: The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo also uses the devices to find the ideal habitat with the least vibrations from human activity for the rare black-footed ferrets.
Wildlife Research: Scientists leverage it to study the low rumbles that African elephants use to communicate with each other over long distances.
Cheering Crowds: When fans celebrate a goal or a victory, they create a seismic signal often strong enough to be detected by Raspberry Shakes in the area.
Helicopters: Helicopters create unique seismic signatures that can be identified by the seismographs, as their rotors generate low-frequency sound waves that shake the air and ground.
Earthquake Education: Teachers in Vancouver, for example, are demonstrating seismic activity and earthquakes through a program called School Shake.

Collaborate with PurpleAir & Raspberry Shake

Our planet is always moving. It’s living. It’s breathing. It’s always shifting. But we don’t always see and feel these motions, making it difficult to study and measure their impact.

But now, anything is possible with this ground-breaking earthquake monitoring device.

Just like PurpleAir, Raspberry Shake is shaking up an industry. And we are here for it. With our low-cost air quality monitors, we hope to empower community scientists to lead new discoveries and innovations. We can’t wait to hear your stories and see how you use both devices for your community projects.

Connect with Raspberry Shake

Raspberry Shake is on a mission to democratize technology and science through its compact seismograph. If you want to join the Raspberry Shake community and start your own adventure watching the Earth move, visit their website to learn more.

Connect With PurpleAir

At PurpleAir, there are tons of organizations and researchers around the world using our data—from Google to the EPA. We’re thrilled to see research like this being used to help local neighborhoods, and we look forward to seeing plenty more in the future.

Are you a technology company or institution looking to work with PurpleAir?

We’d love to connect and see how we can help you. Whether you’re interested in our air quality monitors or using our air quality data for your projects, feel free to reach out.