Tsunami Basics
Natural event that caused the 2011 tsunami in Japan
What is an earthquake?
Where most tsunamis occur
What are areas along plate boundaries, especially around the Pacific Ocean?
How tsunamis move across the ocean
What is outward in all directions from the source?
two factors that increase a community’s tsunami risk
What are being near the coast and at low elevation?
the goal of engineering tsunami solutions
What is to reduce damage and protect people?
Two main types of damage tsunamis cause
What are flooding and destruction of structures?
type of earthquake is most likely to cause a tsunami
What is a strong, shallow earthquake at a colliding plate boundary?
What happens to a tsunami wave as it gets closer to shore
What is it gets taller and slower?
How population size affect tsunami risk
What is more people means a higher potential for loss of life?
Top two criteria engineers use when designing tsunami protection
What are effectiveness and cost?
Two purposes of tsunami warning systems
What are to detect the tsunami and warn people in time?
Besides earthquakes, the two other causes of tsunamis.
What are volcanic eruptions and landslides?
What wave amplitude describes
What is the height of the wave from crest to crest?
How shoreline shape affect tsunami damage?
What is narrow bays can concentrate wave energy?
a limitation like budget, materials, or environment
What is a design constraint?
Three-part system is often proposed to reduce tsunami impact
What are detection sensors, warning plans, and design solutions?
What analyzing past tsunami data help scientists do
What is forecast where future tsunamis may occur?
Why waves get smaller after crashing on shore
What is they transfer energy to the land and surroundings?
Why it is helpful to know the location of a tsunami epicenter
What is it helps predict which areas may be hit and how soon?
one way seawalls help protect communities
What is they block or deflect the wave?
Why is the 2011 Japan tsunami used as the anchoring phenomenon for this unit?
Because it shows how even prepared communities can suffer serious damage, and how understanding science can improve future safety.
the relationship between earthquake depth and tsunami risk
What is that shallow earthquakes are more likely to displace the seafloor and cause a tsunami?
one limitation of using models to study tsunami waves
What is they might not show energy transfer or scale accurately?
role elevation play in tsunami impact
What is higher elevation areas are less likely to be flooded?
Why a solution work well in one town but not in another
What is because each community has different geography, needs, and constraints?