Phenomena
Tsunami
Oceanography
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A tsunami is a series of waves in a body of water caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, typically in an ocean or a large lake; the word comes from Japanese for harbour wave. The displacement can be triggered by an undersea earthquake, a volcanic eruption, an underwater explosion or a landslide, and is fundamentally different from ordinary wind-driven waves or tidal forces. Tsunami waves have exceptionally long wavelengths, so in the open ocean they resemble a rapidly advancing tide rather than a breaking wave, and they typically arrive at a shore as a series of waves over minutes to hours that can reach heights of tens of meters.
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Associated With
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami is one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history.
The 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami is among the most thoroughly documented tsunami disasters.
The Mariana Trench marks a subduction zone, the class of structure that generates most large tsunamis.
Caused By
The largest tsunamis are generated by sudden seafloor displacement in subduction-zone megathrust earthquakes.
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