The CSIC Educational Seismic Network, with stations in schools in Santa Coloma de Gramenet and other municipalities, detected the peaks of vibration caused by Ferran Torres' goal, the disallowed goal by Mikel Merino, and the final whistle in the World Cup final that Spain won against Argentina.
Seismologist Jordi Díaz Cusí, a researcher at Geociences Barcelona (GEO3BCN-CSIC), shared a graph on his X account showing how the seismometers of the Educational Seismic Network recorded the vibrations generated by the celebrations during the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina. The sensors, installed in secondary schools in Catalonia, including one in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, captured the moments of Ferran Torres' goal, the disallowed play by Mikel Merino, and the final whistle that awarded the title to the Spanish national team.
The Santa Coloma school, a seismic witness to the goal
The graph published by Díaz includes records from nine stations spread across the provinces of Barcelona and Girona. One of them is located in the school in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, where the Raspberry Shake seismometer detected a peak of vibration right at the moment of Ferran Torres' goal. “At some stations, like the Vallès Institute in Sabadell, the traces spike very visibly; at others, like Santa Coloma, the change is more discreet but still noticeable,” explains the researcher. The difference depends on how many people were celebrating near each sensor.
The science behind the celebration
Seismometers are designed to detect earthquakes, but they are so sensitive that they register any vibration transmitted through the ground. Jumps, shouts, applause, or firecrackers produce mechanical waves that travel through the ground and reach the sensor, just like the passage of the metro or traffic on a busy avenue. GEO3BCN-CSIC itself documented this phenomenon in a 2017 study, which analyzed how the seismic station at its headquarters in Barcelona detected the vibrations from goals scored by Barça at Camp Nou.
A scientific tradition at every major match
This is not the first time the Educational Seismic Network has recorded football euphoria. It happened during the 2024 European Championship, when the seismometers in Madrid and Barcelona captured the vibrations from the goals of Nico Williams and Mikel Oyarzabal in the final. “It has almost become a tradition at the school every time there is a high-profile match,” comments Díaz. The network, made up of 18 Raspberry Shake stations installed in secondary schools in the provinces of Barcelona and Girona, has an educational goal: to bring seismology closer to students.
Beyond the anecdote, these educational stations have real scientific utility. If a local earthquake occurs, they can provide complementary data to that of permanent seismic networks. “The seismometers in schools help improve coverage in areas where there are no professional sensors,” points out the researcher. For the residents of Santa Coloma de Gramenet, this news demonstrates that science can also measure the joy of a goal, and that their school is part of a network that monitors tremors, whether from the earth or from excitement.
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