Portal:Tsunamis

The Tsunami portal

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami at Ao Nang, Krabi Province, Thailand

A tsunami (/(t)suːˈnɑːmi, (t)sʊˈ-/ (t)soo-NAH-mee, (t)suu-; from Japanese: 津波, lit. 'harbour wave', pronounced [tsɯnami]) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and underwater explosions (including detonations, landslides, glacier calvings, meteorite impacts and other disturbances) above or below water all have the potential to generate a tsunami. Unlike normal ocean waves, which are generated by wind, or tides, which are in turn generated by the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun, a tsunami is generated by the displacement of water from a large event.

Selected article

Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis (DART) is a component of an enhanced tsunami warning system. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Events that can cause a tsunami

Earthquake epicenters occur mostly along tectonic plate boundaries, especially on the Pacific Ring of Fire.

An earthquake – also called a quake, tremor, or temblor – is the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they cannot be felt, to those violent enough to propel objects and people into the air, damage critical infrastructure, and wreak destruction across entire cities. The seismic activity of an area is the frequency, type, and size of earthquakes experienced over a particular time. The seismicity at a particular location in the Earth is the average rate of seismic energy release per unit volume. (Full article...)

List of events articles
Submarine earthquake Tsunami earthquake Submarine eruption Landslide Glacier calving Meteorite impact

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General images

The following are images from various tsunami-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Tsunami aftermath in Aceh, Indonesia, December 2004 (from Tsunami)
Image 2Satellite image of Lake Kivu (from Tsunamis in lakes)
Image 3Evacuation route sign in a low-lying coastal area on the West Coast of the United States (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 4A seawall at Tsu, Mie Prefecture in Japan
Image 5Drawing of tectonic plate boundary before earthquake (from Tsunami)
Image 6Diagram showing how earthquakes can generate a tsunami (from Tsunamis in lakes)
Image 7Over-riding plate bulges under strain, causing tectonic uplift. (from Tsunami)
Image 8One of the deep water buoys used in the DART tsunami warning system (from Tsunami)
Image 9Japanese Tsunami warning sign (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 10The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami at Ao Nang, Krabi Province, Thailand (from Tsunami)
Image 11When the wave enters shallow water, it slows down and its amplitude (height) increases. (from Tsunami)
Image 12Lisbon earthquake and tsunami in November 1755 (from Tsunami)
Image 13Plate slips, causing subsidence and releasing energy into water. (from Tsunami)
Image 14Diagram showing several measures to describe a tsunami size, including height, inundation and run-up (from Tsunami)
Image 15Tsunami Early Warning Tower board in Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 16An illustration of the rhythmic "drawback" of surface water associated with a wave. It follows that a very large drawback may herald the arrival of a very large wave. (from Tsunami)
Image 17Mast with warning system, and sign detailing escape routes, on the coast of Okumatsushima, Miyagi prefecture, Japan (this coast was severely hit by the 2011 tsunami) (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 18Calculated travel time map for the 1964 Alaska tsunami (in hours) (from Tsunami)
Image 19Tsunami warning system in East Timor (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 20The wave further slows and amplifies as it hits land. Only the largest waves crest. (from Tsunami)
Image 21Evacuation route sign on the pavement in Kamakura, Japan (from Tsunami warning system)
Image 22The energy released produces tsunami waves. (from Tsunami)

Selected tsunami article

On 26 December 2004, at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7), a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2–9.3 M_w struck with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The undersea megathrust earthquake, known by the scientific community as the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, was caused by a rupture along the fault between the Burma plate and the Indian plate, and reached a Mercalli intensity of IX in some areas. (Full article...)