Disasters

​In the aftermath of a disaster such as an earthquake, it's of the utmost importance to quickly find live victims buried under the rubble. A new device, created by a team led by ETH Zurich's Prof. Sotiris E. Pratsinis, could make doing so cheaper and easier than ever.

​When tsunami-triggering events such as underwater earthquakes occur, sound waves known as acoustic gravity waves (AGWs) are sent out through the water. Now, scientists from Cardiff University have developed a method of analyzing those waves, to predict how destructive the tsunami will be.

​​One of the more unsavory consequences of natural disasters can be the lack of access to toilets. Design firm Nendo has taken aim at this dilemma, developing a flat-packed toilet that can be carried in a bag and built on-site with the help of commonly found waste materials. ​

​When Hurricanes Maria and Irma tore through Puerto Rico last month, Alphabet's X lab was quick to answer the call. Following a successful launch, its internet-beaming balloons have now been switched on and are already providing hard hit parts of the population with connectivity.

While current seismometers can pick up tremors with precision, they’re short-ranged and expensive. Now a Stanford study has demonstrated that an extensive earthquake-detection network could already exist right under our feet: the optical fiber cables piping high-speed internet throughout cities.

​Japanese architect Shigeru Ban has made his name by using cardboard and wood to craft low-cost disaster housing, and he will need to be at his enterprising and creative best as he tackles his next big project – to design thousands of new shelters in a major refugee settlement in Kenya.

​If you ever find yourself stuck in a disaster zone, your rescuer could be a soft robotic snake. A Stanford team has developed a flexible robot that grows like a vine, squeezing through rubble to find trapped survivors and even delivering water to them.

Japanese researchers have built on last year's disaster relief excavator to create a remotely-operated prototype with two arms that can rotate 360 degrees around its central pod. The team has also developed a four-fingered "hand" to help the robot get to grips with heavy duty construction work.​

​​Drones could bring benefit to disaster-relief scenarios by serving as temporary communications networks in place of those destroyed by the event. Researchers have now taken a step forward in this area by demonstrating a drone-based cell network that offers coverage kilometers away. ​

Drones are poised to make a very positive impact on search and rescue efforts going forward. Looking to make a contribution of its own, Land Rover has teamed up with the British Red Cross for a purpose-built search and rescue drone that launches from the roof of a bespoke Discovery.

In the future, remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches could help map out disaster areas and search for survivors. Now two new studies have looked into how accurately the bugs’ movements can be tracked, and how much autonomy they need to be efficient explorers.

In areas where clean water isn’t easily accessible, solar stills can help purify available water that might be dirty or salty, but they can be expensive and inefficient. Now, a new type of solar still that uses carbon-coated paper could be cheaper and twice as efficient.