The Spanish National Team has once again given us another historic moment to remember with its 1-0 victory against Argentina in the World Cup final, proclaiming itself world champion for the second time. And the curious thing is that the celebration has not only been seen and heard, it has also been measured.
The seismologist Jordi Díaz Cusí, researcher at Geosciences Barcelona (GEO3BCN-CSIC), have shared on your X account a graph with the records of the institute’s Educational Seismic Network during the final between Spain and Argentina. In it, vibration peaks can be seen right at the moments of the first goal, Mikel Merino’s disallowed goal and the final whistle, captured by seismometers distributed by different institutes and centers in Catalonia.
What exactly does the graph show? In it we can see the records of nine stations, from the GEO3BCN building itself in Barcelona to institutes in Santa Coloma de Farners, Sabadell, Olot, Banyoles, Mollet, Santa Coloma de Gramenet or Torroella de Montgrí, over a period of just over half an hour.
Vibrations generated by the moments of Spain’s goal, Merino’s disallowed goal and the final whistle. Image: CSIC
Three arrows indicate the key moments of the match: Ferran’s goal, the disallowed play and the end of the match. In some stations, such as that of the Vallès institute in Sabadell, the lines are triggered very visibly at those moments; In others, the change is much more discreet. The difference, above all, depends on how many people were celebrating near each sensor.
The same happened with the measurements detected by the seismic sensor of the Royal Observatory of Madrid. And just as share the National Geographic Institute-OACNIG in its X account, the Argentina-Spain match made the city of Madrid vibrate last night.
How a seismometer notices a goal celebration. They are designed primarily for earthquakes, but they also have other uses, since they are devices so sensitive that they register any vibration that is transmitted through the ground, as well as that generated by our activity. Jumps, shouts, applause or firecrackers produce mechanical waves that travel through the terrain and reach the sensor, just as the passage of the subway or traffic on an avenue does.
This was already documented years ago in a study from the institute itself (then ICTJA-CSIC), which analyzed how the seismic station installed at its headquarters “detected the vibrations generated by phenomena such as subway circulation, traffic and the celebration of goals during the matches played at the Camp Nou.” In that same study, for example, the signal generated by Barça’s three goals against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the 2015 Champions League semifinals was analyzed.
What network has captured this data. The GEO3BCN-CSIC Educational Seismic Network is a scientific dissemination project that has been underway for several years. It is made up of Raspberry Shake seismometers installed mainly in secondary schools in the provinces of Barcelona and Girona, which they manage together with the teachers of each center. According to explained Jordi Díaz himself, when the network was expanded a few years ago, the objective was “to make seismology known to the students of the centers involved.”
According to collect the Tutiempo.net portal, there are around 18 stations of this type spread across the network.
It’s not the first time. This type of publication has almost become a tradition at the institute every time there is a high-profile match. It already happened in the 2024 Euro Cupbecause when Spain was proclaimed champion, the seismometers in Madrid and Barcelona recorded the vibrations associated with the goals of Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal.
Beyond the anecdote. Although a goal graph does not contribute anything to earthquake research, the institute itself has pointed out in the past that these educational stations also have real scientific utility. And if a local earthquake occurs, they can provide complementary data to that of permanent seismic networks.
Cover image | RTVE
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