There is actually a small chance that a magnitude 9 earthquake will hit Seattle this year

Yesterday, The New Yorker's Kathryn Schulz reported that there is a one-in-10 chance of an enormous 9.0-or-higher earthquake hitting the Pacific Northwest at some point in the next 50 years. Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, Eugene, Salem, and Olympia are all at risk; an estimated 13,000 could die.

To (somewhat) calm the growing panic, The Seattle Times hosted a Reddit AMA with the director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, John Vidale, as well as Debbie Goetz of Seattle's Emergency Management Office and Sandi Doughton, a science writer for the Times. They revealed that, as of right now, the chances of the apocalyptic earthquake striking in 2015 are about one in 300. Which doesn't seem like a lot, but it's actually far more likely than your odds of dying in a car accident (one in 4,000) or dating a supermodel (one in 88,000).

But look on the bright side — there's a 299-in-300 chance the quake won't happen this year (but don't let that stop you from preparing for it!).

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That said, a "pretty big one" is still likely to hit sometime soon, with scientists saying there are one-in-three odds it occurs in the next 50 years. "You're overwhelming likely to see some action in the Pacific Northwest," Vidale said.