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This month's issue of Geographical features a dossier on earthquake prediction.
Of the 10 costliest earthquakes to have occurred throughout history, six have occurred in the past 13 years, with five affecting major metropolitan areas. Japan's Fukushima earthquake of 2011 was the costliest in history at nearly $300 billion. As cities become more densely populated and their infrastructure expands, they become more deadly, and costly, in the face of natural hazards.
But our understanding of how earthquakes happen and how to mitigate their impact is increasing. Fortified by improved data and technology, governments – or at least, those of developed nations – are on the point of offering shortnotice alerts of tremors in real time, which may just buy their citizens precious seconds to head for safety.
Other articles this month feature a look at how Rotterdam is incorporating ‘floating farms’ to utilise its urban space in more productive ways, a gallery piece on the Da Vinci collection focusing on his map work during his time in Florence, and a look at generating energy from space.
Geographical is included as part of the membership package for Ordinary Members, as a digital edition for Young Geographers and it can also be added to subscriptions for Fellowship. So why not join us today?