Predicting Earthquakes

Earthquake prediction has met with mixed results, however some success has been reported in recent years. Several countries, most notably the United States, China, Japan and Russia, are actively supporting research in this area. In 1975, just two days before a magnitude 7.3 earthquake destroyed the city of Haicheng, the Chinese government evacuated 90,000 residents. The evidence used to support the prediction was a series of foreshocks occurring in the area five years earlier. Other possible clues being investigated are water levels in wells, changes in the earth's magnetic field and the behavior of animals. So far though, no reliable method exists for predicting when and where an earthquake
will occur nor how strong it is likely to be.