# Seismic Observations in Bucharest Area with a Raspberry Shake Citizen Science Network
## 1 Introduction  
Technological developments in recent years and the appearance of low-cost instruments have made possible the development of worldwide citizen science networks in various science fields [1, 2, 3]. One of these networks is the Raspberry Shake Network [4], which is a global community of citizen scientists, geophysical institutes, and private enterprises sharing data from Earth monitoring devices, such as the low-cost Raspberry Shake (RS) seismographs. This citizen science network continues successful educational initiatives from the last decades from various educational networks integrated with the \"Seismographs in school\" project, promoted by the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) in the United States [5], the \"Schools Seismology Network\" in the United Kingdom, managed by the British Geological Survey [6], the Australian AuSIS network [7], the French \"Sismo a l'ecole\" [8], the \"Seismology in Schools\" project managed by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) in Ireland [9], or the ROEDUSEIS project led by the National Institute for Earth Physics (NIEP) in Romania [10]. The RS seismograph is based on the Raspberry Pi computer and combines the latest technologies in the field of electronics, becoming one of the smallest and most accessible electronic seismographs on the market, with semi-professional performance. Correcting all the shortcomings of previous generations of educational seismometers by becoming a plug-and-go earth monitor, RS has captivated hobbyists, citizen scientists, and teachers. Although some RSs are installed for various scientific studies, information about what they record and where they are installed is available not only to researchers but also to all those interested in the study of earthquakes or those who want to find out new information about earthquakes [11]. This category usually includes students and teachers, but also general people interested in earthquake science with science hobbies. Normally, seismological devices such as broadband instruments from the URS (URban Seismology) project [12] installed within cities have been used to provide data for local seismic hazards assessments, building monitoring and civil engineering analyses. By using a citizen seismic network, many urban activities can be seismically recorded [13] and more citizens can become interested in the interpretation of the recorded seismograms. In recent years, citizen seismology has achieved several important goals, combining the interest of citizen science in general and, especially, in informing and raising seismic risk awareness. Romania is a seismic country, with more than 1000 earthquakes reported yearly. Bucharest is the capital city of Romania, and its seismic hazard is dominated by the Vrancea [14] intermediate-depth seismic source, which can produce, on average, 2-3 large magnitude seismic events in each century. The National Institute for Earth Physics (NIEP) noticed a lack of seismic education in Romania and initiated the first seismic education program starting in 2012 through the ROEDUSEIS project [10], setting up an Education, Outreach, and Training team (EOT) at the same time ([[https://eertis.eu/erlb-2200-000x-0091](https://eertis.eu/erlb-2200-000x-0091)]([https://eertis.eu/erlb-2200-000x-0091](https://eertis.eu/erlb-2200-000x-0091)), accessed on 18 January 2023 ). Thus, every year, NIEP through EOT hosts a series of educational events [15] (e.g., Otherwise School, Magurele Science and Technology Summer School, Researchers Night, Seismology Workshops for students, teachers, and others) that aim to popularize geosciences among citizens, but also increase the awareness and reduction of seismic risk. Only in the \"School Otherwise\" program does the average number of visitors to NIEP exceed 1000 people annually. The other events are usually held in public spaces and the number of participants is much higher.