Monitoring involves which of the following?

• A. Building shelters for disasters
• B. Recording physical changes, such as tremors around a volcano, to help forecast when and where a natural hazard might strike
• C. Negotiating aid after disaster
• D. Educating the public before hazard

Answer: (B)

Monitoring focuses on watching and recording changes in physical conditions to detect signs that a hazard may become active. By tracking signals such as tremors around a volcano, scientists can interpret patterns and forecast when and where an eruption might occur, enabling early warnings and evacuations. This ongoing data collection distinguishes monitoring from actions like building shelters, negotiating aid after a disaster, or educating the public before hazard, which are preparedness or relief activities rather than the active observation that monitoring entails. A practical example is seismic monitoring for volcanoes, where tremors and ground deformation provide essential indicators of potential activity.