Tsunami

Many natural events leave devastating consequences, without doubt fatalities as well. Most of these events, if not all, are in one way or another associated with some area of the scientific world. Tsunamis have been relatively rare in the Indian Ocean; they are most common in the Pacific. Oceanography is the field of science that is most appealing; hence this first research will be based on the tsunami that stuck Africa in December 26, 2004.

Tsunamis, also known as seismic sea waves, are caused by sudden changes in the seafloor, generally earthquakes and more rarely large landslides. Tsunamis are sometimes mistakenly called "tidal waves", but they are not caused by tidal action. Not all earthquakes generate tsunami; to generate a tsunami, the earthquake must meet all of the following requirements: occur under or near the ocean, be large, and create vertical movements of the seafloor. A tsunami earthquake releases its energy over a couple of minutes, much more slowly than the sudden lurching earthquakes. In fact, some tsunamis earthquakes can not be felt by people, since their energy is released so gradually. Much of the earthquake's energy is transferred to the water column above it, producing a tsunami. All oceanic regions of the world can experience tsunami, but the Pacific Ocean is especially vulnerable because of the many large earthquakes associated with the "Ring of Fire" along its margins.

This tsunami was caused by an earthquake which the U.S. Geological Service estimated to have energy equal to that of 23,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs. With such brutal force the casualties were just as atrocious. More than 150,000 people were dead or missing and millions more were homeless in 11 countries, making it perhaps the most destructive tsunami in history. “The violent movement of sections of the Earth's crust, known as tectonic plates, displaced an enormous amount of water, sending powerful shock waves in every direction.” That was the explanation USGS, which monitors earthquakes worldwide, had for such a catastrophe who changed the lives of millions in an instant.

Once a tsunami reaches shallow water near the coast it is slowed down. The top of the wave moves faster than the bottom, causing the sea to rise dramatically. The powerful pulse of energy travels rapidly through the ocean at hundreds of miles per hour.

A rupture estimated more than 600 miles long, displacing the seafloor alone does not sound capable of causing such catastrophe; but the trillions of tons of rock that were moved along hundreds of miles caused the planet to shudder with the largest magnitude earthquake in 40 years. Above the seafloor there was the ocean, when these two powerful events encountered the killer waves converted to be a tsunami. Tsunamis are considered one of nature’s most deadly phenomenons despite the fact that