KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Earthquakes may be rare in the Midwest. However, Missouri and neighboring Iowa will soon be home to more than 40 earthquake recording stations.
The recording stations will be in addition to 400 stations already in place across the western United States.
The new recording stations are expected to be in place by 2011.
The New Madrid fault line runs through five states, including Missouri, along the Mississippi River.
Missouri was last hit by a significant earthquake nearly 200 years ago.
The project is part of the National Science Foundation initiative called "
EarthScope".
