Earthquakes are not predictable until today.

It gives only with installation appropriate devices the advance warning time from 20 seconds (based on the different speeds of the different seismic waves), where automatically e.g. undergrounds are stopped and atomic power plants switched off, in order to prevent the worst.

Otherwise only probabilities of earthquakes can be computed. One researched on different levels and with different methods intensivst and hope by this way, to be able to predict earthquakes in the nearest future:

· Accomplished in California to the seismically active San Andreas fault a deep drilling project is doing at present, where the scientists, also under German participation are hoping to be able to take up in time before the next quake by means of appropriate measuring instruments/probes/feelers interesting and informative measuring data over earthquakes.

· Swiss geophycisists are working at present on the confirmation of a statistics model, which computes the rock tension by micro quakes and calculate the quake by the strength, time and place of a quake.

· The structure of a network of infrasound data lets still hope, but also first scientists, who express doubts, announce themselves that one can use the infrasound data before earthquakes for a forecast.

· NASA determined higher infrared values on satellite data hours and days before larger earthquakes.

· A new satellite (Demeter) measures radio waves since summer 2004, because much interprets on the fact that before larger earthquakes corresponding electromagnetic waves are arising.

Further more there finds the privat developed satellite "quakesat" as to read on the website www.quakefinder.com and the two satellites form the german GFZ-research center CHAMP and GACE Owing to the large computers, like e.g. in the German climatic research centre, and the many new data from the remote sensing and infrasound data , and perhaps still to attractive data of the deep well research program at the San Andreas Fault, as well as the indirectly calculated data, one can hope that the earthquake forecast in foreseeable time will be possible. ( see www.gfz-potsdam.de)

Nevertheless it looks like it comes still into the range of possibility, even if it already gave many scientists, who stated, that will benever possible . Probably both sides will have right, one only can predict in the future earthquakes with appropriate forerunner symptoms (and appropriate measuring systems for it to install), however it also will come earthquakes almost without early warning characters. Perhaps this is dependig from the rocks in the deeper underground - if they are rich of quarz or not.

Animal behaviour for earthquakes are since very long time told from people, but first in the last time, scientist try to make research about it. It is still unsolved. The geophsics do not believe, that it could be able to predict earthquakes with help of animals, but there are many facts which could help by researching them, to find out the wright way to be able to do this. There exists earthquakes too, where no animal behaviour was observed before.

A good german page about occurence, developing and more about earthquakes with english links, too You can find here: www.naturgewalten.de/quake.htm