How tsunamis form from earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides
How tsunamis form from earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides
John Rafferty, associate editor of Earth sciences at Encyclopædia Britannica, discusses the formation of tsunamis.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Transcript
The tsunamis that we're most familiar with are caused by underwater earthquakes, volcanoes, or landslides. A part of the crust falls away or is suddenly thrust upward and that displaces the water. Very similar to if you would throw a rock into a calm lake. So that rebounding effect is going to create waves that move out in all directions. Now, the deeper the water the less you're going to see that wave at the surface, until that wave reaches the--reaches the shoreline.
Large tsunamis can approach 30 meters, or 100 feet, in height, and they can push inland up to several miles. There are smaller ones that cause very little damage or no damage because the--the run-up onto the shore is just not that significant.
Large tsunamis can approach 30 meters, or 100 feet, in height, and they can push inland up to several miles. There are smaller ones that cause very little damage or no damage because the--the run-up onto the shore is just not that significant.