Facts on Tsunamis
Facts on Tsunamis: An Introduction
A tsunami is a large wave or a series of large waves that are created in the ocean or another large body of water. They are usually the result of a massive earthquake below the surface of the water, a landslide, or meteorite impact, causing such a large displacement of water, that the energy built up travels a great distance to the shoreline. Many people refer to tsunamis as “tidal waves” but since tsunamis are not created or effected by tide, this is not a proper term to use.
Tsunami Facts: Characteristics
Tsunami waves are different from a typical wave that are seen on the shoreline. Most normal waves are formed from wind that occurs offshore and are very small. Tsunamis, on the other hand, can be about 100 km wide while they are in the middle of the ocean. Tsunamis are very fast too, traveling at about 700 to 800 km an hour (about the speed of an airliner) and can be very hard to spot because in the open ocean, they are roughly just a meter high. When a tsunami approaches the shore in shallower water, it begins to rise and slow down. A tsunami can rise as high as ten stories when it reaches land and travels faster than the average person can run. Also, tsunamis usually come in groups, called a wave train, spreading across several hours and the first wave is not always the biggest.
The energy of a tsunami may be dissipated by structures underneath the ocean’s surface, such as reefs, river entrances and other undersea formations. In places with a great deal of similar obstacles, tsunamis may only cause the sea to rise a couple feet. Other places may be affected differently by tsunamis as they travel 100 feet above land.
The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami Facts:
The tsunami that occurred in the Indian Ocean in 2004 was one of the most catastrophic disasters to happen in recent history. Below are several Indian Ocean tsunami facts that demonstrate how deadly tsunamis are.
The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami traveled well over 3,000 miles to the shoreline of Africa without much loss of energy, killing many people and causing a great deal of damage to the coastline. Waves from this tsunami reached 30 feet high in certain places. The amount of energy released by the Indian Ocean tsunami is estimated to have been equal to the energy of 23,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs. The force of the waves killed more than 150,000 people by the end of that day and left million of people homeless. Months later, the death tolls as a result of the tsunamis reached a total of more than 200,000 people.
The earthquake that caused the tsunami was measured to have a 9.0 magnitude. The epicenter was estimated to be in the Indian Ocean, near the west coast Sumatra, an Indonesian island. The tectonic plates that were under pressure under the ocean released a great deal of energy that displaced a great amount of water and energy waves were sent in every direction. Due to the force of the tectonic plates giving way, trillions of tons of rock across hundreds of miles were shifted about 10 yards, causing one of the most powerful earthquakes in recorded history.
