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Real-time radioactive precursor of the april 16, 2016 Mw 7.8 earthquake and tsunami in Ecuador

Abstract:

On the 16th of April 2016, a Mw 7.8 earthquake with a minor tsunami impacted coastal Ecuador, being the most devastating seismic event registered in northern South America in this century so far. Three hours before, an unusual increase of the environmental radiation level was registered at 222 km distance from the epicenter. Trough this study, we have been able to achieve an undeniable relation between such type of anomalies of geological origin and the seismic activity in Ecuador, solving thus the uncertainties presented in related works around this clear earthquake precursor. In this sense, our results demonstrate a full correlation in earthquake detection, reducing also the uncertainty window to less than a few hours.