Tsunami Hazards, Modeling, and the Sedimentary Record Active
The December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Initial Findings on Tsunami Sand Deposits, Damage, and Inundation in Sri Lanka
Searching for Evidence of Past Tsunamis in Sediment Cores
Scientists can use evidence of past tsunamis to understand how tsunamis behave and assess the hazards they pose to coastal communities
Basic research to develop the geologic record of paleotsunamis and improve the ability to interpret that record is needed to mitigate tsunami risk in the U.S.
Sediment Studies after Tsunamis
The March 11, 2011 Japan Tsunami
International Tsunami Survey Team visits Japan in May 2011
On March 11, 2011 a magnitude 9.1 “great” earthquake off the east coast of Japan generated a Pacific-wide tsunami that was catastrophic along the coast of northeastern Honshu, Japan. The first tsunami wave arrived at the Honshu coastline nearest to the epicenter within about 15 minutes of the earthquake with subsequent waves arriving in the hours that followed, in places 10m or more in height. Entire communities were flooded by the waves and substantial infrastructure was damaged.
Survey Team visits Samoa and American Samoa October-November 2009
On September 29, 2009, an M 8.1 earthquake in the Samoa Islands region of the South Pacific Ocean caused a tsunami that resulted in 100's of lost lives. A rapid-response team of USGS scientists traveled to the Samoa Islands in October-November 2009 to collect time-sensitive data that would have been quickly degraded or destroyed by recovery activity and natural processes.
The December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Initial Findings on Tsunami Sand Deposits, Damage, and Inundation in Sri Lanka
Based on Survey Conducted January 9-15, 2005
From January 9-15, a multi-national team of scientists visited Sri Lanka to document the effects of the tsunami and provide government officials a summary of preliminary results of the surveys. This was the third group that documented the tsunami in Sri Lanka.
The 26 December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: Initial Findings from Sumatra
Based on Survey Conducted January 20-29, 2005
An International Tsunami Survey Team (ITST) studying the effects of the December 26 tsunami on Indonesia's island of Sumatra documented wave heights of 20 to 30 m (65 to 100 ft) at the island's northwest end and found evidence suggesting that wave heights may have ranged from 15 to 30 m (50 to 100 ft) along at least a 100-km (60 mi) stretch of the northwest coast.
Preliminary Analysis of Sedimentary Deposits from the June 23, 2001 Peru Tsunami
Shortly after the tsunami, a multi-national team of scientists visited Peru to document the effects of the tsunami. This group is referred to as the first International Tsunami Survey Team (1st ITST). In early September, a second group of scientists from the United States and Peru cooperated in a study of sediment deposited by the tsunami. The group included researchers from the United States Geological Survey USGS), la Dirección de Hidrografía y Navegación de la Marina de Guerra del Perú (DHN), Instituto Geofísico del Perú (IGP), Instituto Geologico, Minero y Metalurgico (INGEMMET), University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), University of Southern California (USC) and University of San Agustin (UNSA). This report contains photographs from the September trip, as well as some prelimary results and conclusions.
Preliminary Analysis of Sedimentary Deposits from the July 17, 1998 Papua New Guinea Tsunami
On July 17, 1998 a magnitude 7.6 earthquake was followed by a series of catastrophic tsunami waves that devastated several villages on the north coast of Papua New Guinea (PNG). Within a few weeks of the devastating tsunami, a multi-national team of scientists and engineers from Japan, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand entered the region installing seismographs, measuring water levels, and interviewing eyewitnesses.
Soon after the first team returned, a second group of international scientists became organized to retrieve the seismographs, collect more water-level and velocity data, assess damage to buildings and structures, and to examine the sediments left behind by the tsunami. The 2nd ITST arrived in Aitape, Papua New Guinea on September 29, 1998 and included representatives from Japan, the United States, Korea, and Papua New Guinea. This web page describes the efforts of the USGS scientists who participated in the 2nd ITST.
Our Research
The 11 March 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami underscores that the U.S. is at risk from a deadly, devastating tsunami. The extent of risk is not known. However, the 2009 Samoa tsunami, geologic evidence in the Pacific Northwest and to a lesser degree the Caribbean, historical records in Hawaii, and Alaska, and modeling studies for California and the U.S. East Coast, all indicate that there is significant risk to the US from tsunamis. The effect of a tsunami at a coast, and the resulting risk, is the result of processes that control its generation, propagation, and inundation. Although potential tsunami sources (e.g., underwater earthquakes, landslides) can be identified, it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict with any certainty the largest possible tsunami that will impact an area based solely on current knowledge of source character and tsunami generating capacity. This is borne out by the 11 March 2011 tsunami that was larger in many regions in Japan than the largest historical or predicted tsunami. However, the geologic record did portend that a mega-tsunami would hit eastern Japan. The geologic record revealed that on average every 1000 years a mega-tsunami similar to the one on 11 March hits northeastern Japan.
Basic research to develop the geologic record of paleotsunamis and improve the ability to interpret that record is needed to mitigate tsunami risk in the U.S.
Objectives
The objectives of this project are to improve understanding of tsunamis, to develop techniques to assess the threat they pose, and to develop the paleotsunami record using sedimentary deposits. See tasks for specific research objectives.
What could be more relevant than research that can save lives? This project does exactly that by increasing the understanding of tsunami hazard in the U.S. This understanding informs mitigation of tsunami hazard in numerous ways including allowing development and refinement of evacuation plans, coastal zoning, and tsunami education.
Approach
Our strategy is to apply knowledge and skill gained from past USGS tsunami projects to paleotsunami deposit studies in locations with a known, but not well defined, tsunami hazard. Because the ability to identify and interpret paleotsunami deposits is still an emerging science, by necessity our approach includes targeted studies that develop methods for utilizing tsunami deposits in hazard assessment. These studies increase the value of the location-based paleotsunami studies. The locations of the paleotsunami studies are driven primarily by tsunami hazard potential, but also partially by opportunities to collaborate with researchers both inside and outside of the USGS. This collaboration leverages USGS resources and expertise. Paleotsunami studies will be phased, with initial investigations and more detailed, focused investigations in areas where paleotsunamis deposits are found to assess tsunami hazard. Detailed studies may include tsunami generation, propagation, and inundation modeling and source evaluation components.
Publications associated with this project
Sedimentology and hydrodynamic implications of a coarse-grained hurricane sequence in a carbonate reef setting
Probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment at Seaside, Oregon, for near-and far-field seismic sources
The role of deposits in tsunami risk assessment
Reply to Comments by Kelletat (2008) comments to Dawson, A.G. and Stewart, I. (2007) tsunami deposits in the geological record [Sedimentary Geology, 200, 166-183]
Reply to Bridge (2008) Discussion of articles in "Sedimentary features of tsunami deposits"
Coarse-clast ridge complexes of the Caribbean: A preliminary basis for distinguishing tsunami and storm-wave origins
Coastal gravel-ridge complexes deposited on islands in the Caribbean Sea are recorders of past extreme-wave events that could be associated with either tsunamis or hurricanes. The ridge complexes of Bonaire, Jamaica, Puerto Rico (Isla de Mona), and Guadeloupe consist of polymodal clasts ranging in size from sand to coarse boulders that are derived from the adjacent coral reefs or subjacent rock pl
Hydrodynamic implications of textural trends in sand deposits of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka
Sandy signs of a tsunami's onshore depth and speed
A simple model for calculating tsunami flow speed from tsunami deposits
Physical criteria for distinguishing sandy tsunami and storm deposits using modern examples
Distribution and sedimentary characteristics of tsunami deposits along the Cascadia margin of western North America
Predicted sedimentary record of reflected bores
Read the news about our work
- Overview
Basic research to develop the geologic record of paleotsunamis and improve the ability to interpret that record is needed to mitigate tsunami risk in the U.S.
Sediment Studies after Tsunamis
The March 11, 2011 Japan Tsunami
International Tsunami Survey Team visits Japan in May 2011
On March 11, 2011 a magnitude 9.1 “great” earthquake off the east coast of Japan generated a Pacific-wide tsunami that was catastrophic along the coast of northeastern Honshu, Japan. The first tsunami wave arrived at the Honshu coastline nearest to the epicenter within about 15 minutes of the earthquake with subsequent waves arriving in the hours that followed, in places 10m or more in height. Entire communities were flooded by the waves and substantial infrastructure was damaged.
Survey Team visits Samoa and American Samoa October-November 2009
On September 29, 2009, an M 8.1 earthquake in the Samoa Islands region of the South Pacific Ocean caused a tsunami that resulted in 100's of lost lives. A rapid-response team of USGS scientists traveled to the Samoa Islands in October-November 2009 to collect time-sensitive data that would have been quickly degraded or destroyed by recovery activity and natural processes.
The December 26, 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Initial Findings on Tsunami Sand Deposits, Damage, and Inundation in Sri Lanka
Based on Survey Conducted January 9-15, 2005From January 9-15, a multi-national team of scientists visited Sri Lanka to document the effects of the tsunami and provide government officials a summary of preliminary results of the surveys. This was the third group that documented the tsunami in Sri Lanka.
The 26 December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami: Initial Findings from Sumatra
Based on Survey Conducted January 20-29, 2005An International Tsunami Survey Team (ITST) studying the effects of the December 26 tsunami on Indonesia's island of Sumatra documented wave heights of 20 to 30 m (65 to 100 ft) at the island's northwest end and found evidence suggesting that wave heights may have ranged from 15 to 30 m (50 to 100 ft) along at least a 100-km (60 mi) stretch of the northwest coast.
Preliminary Analysis of Sedimentary Deposits from the June 23, 2001 Peru Tsunami
Shortly after the tsunami, a multi-national team of scientists visited Peru to document the effects of the tsunami. This group is referred to as the first International Tsunami Survey Team (1st ITST). In early September, a second group of scientists from the United States and Peru cooperated in a study of sediment deposited by the tsunami. The group included researchers from the United States Geological Survey USGS), la Dirección de Hidrografía y Navegación de la Marina de Guerra del Perú (DHN), Instituto Geofísico del Perú (IGP), Instituto Geologico, Minero y Metalurgico (INGEMMET), University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), University of Southern California (USC) and University of San Agustin (UNSA). This report contains photographs from the September trip, as well as some prelimary results and conclusions.
Preliminary Analysis of Sedimentary Deposits from the July 17, 1998 Papua New Guinea Tsunami
On July 17, 1998 a magnitude 7.6 earthquake was followed by a series of catastrophic tsunami waves that devastated several villages on the north coast of Papua New Guinea (PNG). Within a few weeks of the devastating tsunami, a multi-national team of scientists and engineers from Japan, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand entered the region installing seismographs, measuring water levels, and interviewing eyewitnesses.
Soon after the first team returned, a second group of international scientists became organized to retrieve the seismographs, collect more water-level and velocity data, assess damage to buildings and structures, and to examine the sediments left behind by the tsunami. The 2nd ITST arrived in Aitape, Papua New Guinea on September 29, 1998 and included representatives from Japan, the United States, Korea, and Papua New Guinea. This web page describes the efforts of the USGS scientists who participated in the 2nd ITST.
Our Research
The 11 March 2011 Tohoku-oki tsunami underscores that the U.S. is at risk from a deadly, devastating tsunami. The extent of risk is not known. However, the 2009 Samoa tsunami, geologic evidence in the Pacific Northwest and to a lesser degree the Caribbean, historical records in Hawaii, and Alaska, and modeling studies for California and the U.S. East Coast, all indicate that there is significant risk to the US from tsunamis. The effect of a tsunami at a coast, and the resulting risk, is the result of processes that control its generation, propagation, and inundation. Although potential tsunami sources (e.g., underwater earthquakes, landslides) can be identified, it is difficult, if not impossible, to predict with any certainty the largest possible tsunami that will impact an area based solely on current knowledge of source character and tsunami generating capacity. This is borne out by the 11 March 2011 tsunami that was larger in many regions in Japan than the largest historical or predicted tsunami. However, the geologic record did portend that a mega-tsunami would hit eastern Japan. The geologic record revealed that on average every 1000 years a mega-tsunami similar to the one on 11 March hits northeastern Japan.
Basic research to develop the geologic record of paleotsunamis and improve the ability to interpret that record is needed to mitigate tsunami risk in the U.S.
Objectives
The objectives of this project are to improve understanding of tsunamis, to develop techniques to assess the threat they pose, and to develop the paleotsunami record using sedimentary deposits. See tasks for specific research objectives.
What could be more relevant than research that can save lives? This project does exactly that by increasing the understanding of tsunami hazard in the U.S. This understanding informs mitigation of tsunami hazard in numerous ways including allowing development and refinement of evacuation plans, coastal zoning, and tsunami education.
Approach
Our strategy is to apply knowledge and skill gained from past USGS tsunami projects to paleotsunami deposit studies in locations with a known, but not well defined, tsunami hazard. Because the ability to identify and interpret paleotsunami deposits is still an emerging science, by necessity our approach includes targeted studies that develop methods for utilizing tsunami deposits in hazard assessment. These studies increase the value of the location-based paleotsunami studies. The locations of the paleotsunami studies are driven primarily by tsunami hazard potential, but also partially by opportunities to collaborate with researchers both inside and outside of the USGS. This collaboration leverages USGS resources and expertise. Paleotsunami studies will be phased, with initial investigations and more detailed, focused investigations in areas where paleotsunamis deposits are found to assess tsunami hazard. Detailed studies may include tsunami generation, propagation, and inundation modeling and source evaluation components.
- Data
- Publications
Publications associated with this project
Filter Total Items: 59Sedimentology and hydrodynamic implications of a coarse-grained hurricane sequence in a carbonate reef setting
Storms and associated surges are major coast-shaping processes. Nevertheless, no typical sequences for storm surge deposits in different coastal settings have been established. This study interprets a coarse-grained hurricane ridge deposit on the island of Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. The sequence was deposited during Hurricane Lenny in November 1999. Insight is gained into the hydrodynamics ofAuthorsM. Spiske, B. E. JaffeProbabilistic tsunami hazard assessment at Seaside, Oregon, for near-and far-field seismic sources
The first probabilistic tsunami flooding maps have been developed. The methodology, called probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment (PTHA), integrates tsunami inundation modeling with methods of probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA). Application of the methodology to Seaside, Oregon, has yielded estimates of the spatial distribution of 100- and 500-year maximum tsunami amplitudes, i.e., amAuthorsF.I. Gonzalez, E.L. Geist, B. Jaffe, U. Kanoglu, H. Mofjeld, C.E. Synolakis, V.V. Titov, D. Areas, D. Bellomo, D. Carlton, T. Horning, J. Johnson, J. Newman, T. Parsons, R. Peters, C. Peterson, G. Priest, A. Venturato, J. Weber, F. Wong, A. YalcinerThe role of deposits in tsunami risk assessment
An incomplete catalogue of tsunamis in the written record hinders tsunami risk assessment. Tsunami deposits, hard evidence of tsunami, can be used to extend the written record. The two primary factors in tsunami risk, tsunami frequency and magnitude, can be addressed through field and modeling studies of tsunami deposits. Recent research has increased the utility of tsunami deposits in tsunami risAuthorsB. JaffeReply to Comments by Kelletat (2008) comments to Dawson, A.G. and Stewart, I. (2007) tsunami deposits in the geological record [Sedimentary Geology, 200, 166-183]
[No abstract available]AuthorsA.G. Dawson, I. Stewart, R.A. Morton, B. M. Richmond, B. E. Jaffe, G. GelfenbaumReply to Bridge (2008) Discussion of articles in "Sedimentary features of tsunami deposits"
[No abstract available]AuthorsB. E. Jaffe, R.A. Morton, S. Kortekaas, A.G. Dawson, D.E. Smith, G. Gelfenbaum, I.D.L. Foster, D. Long, S. ShiCoarse-clast ridge complexes of the Caribbean: A preliminary basis for distinguishing tsunami and storm-wave origins
Coastal gravel-ridge complexes deposited on islands in the Caribbean Sea are recorders of past extreme-wave events that could be associated with either tsunamis or hurricanes. The ridge complexes of Bonaire, Jamaica, Puerto Rico (Isla de Mona), and Guadeloupe consist of polymodal clasts ranging in size from sand to coarse boulders that are derived from the adjacent coral reefs or subjacent rock pl
AuthorsR.A. Morton, B. M. Richmond, B. E. Jaffe, G. GelfenbaumHydrodynamic implications of textural trends in sand deposits of the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka
Field observations and sediment samples at a coastal-plain setting in southeastern Sri Lanka were used to document the erosional and depositional impacts of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and to interpret the hydrodynamic processes that produced an extensive sand-sheet deposit. Tsunami deposit thicknesses ranged from 6 to 22??cm with thickness being controlled partly by antecedent topography. The dAuthorsR.A. Morton, J.R. Goff, S.L. NicholSandy signs of a tsunami's onshore depth and speed
Tsunamis rank among the most devastating and unpredictable natural hazards to affect coastal areas. Just 3 years ago, in December 2004, the Indian Ocean tsunami caused more than 225,000 deaths. Like many extreme events, however, destructive tsunamis strike rarely enough that written records span too little time to quantify tsunami hazard and risk. Tsunami deposits preserved in the geologic recordAuthorsK. Huntington, J. Bourgeois, G. Gelfenbaum, P. Lynett, B. Jaffe, H. Yeh, R. WeissA simple model for calculating tsunami flow speed from tsunami deposits
This paper presents a simple model for tsunami sedimentation that can be applied to calculate tsunami flow speed from the thickness and grain size of a tsunami deposit (the inverse problem). For sandy tsunami deposits where grain size and thickness vary gradually in the direction of transport, tsunami sediment transport is modeled as a steady, spatially uniform process. The amount of sediment in sAuthorsB. E. Jaffe, G. GelfenbuamPhysical criteria for distinguishing sandy tsunami and storm deposits using modern examples
Modern subaerial sand beds deposited by major tsunamis and hurricanes were compared at trench, transect, and sub-regional spatial scales to evaluate which attributes are most useful for distinguishing the two types of deposits. Physical criteria that may be diagnostic include: sediment composition, textures and grading, types and organization of stratification, thickness, geometry, and landscape cAuthorsRobert A. Morton, Guy Gelfenbaum, Bruce E. JaffeDistribution and sedimentary characteristics of tsunami deposits along the Cascadia margin of western North America
Tsunami deposits have been found at more than 60 sites along the Cascadia margin of Western North America, and here we review and synthesize their distribution and sedimentary characteristics based on the published record. Cascadia tsunami deposits are best preserved, and most easily identified, in low-energy coastal environments such as tidal marshes, back-barrier marshes and coastal lakes whereAuthorsR. Peters, B. Jaffe, G. GelfenbaumPredicted sedimentary record of reflected bores
Where a steep slope blocks an inrushing tsunami, the tsunami commonly reverses direction as a reflected bore. A simple method for relating vertical and horizontal variation in sediment size to output from numerical models of depth-averaged tsunami flow yields predictions about the sedimentary record of reflected bores: 1. Near the reflector, a abrupt slowing of the flow as the reflected bore passeAuthorsB. Higman, G. Gelfenbaum, P. Lynett, A. Moore, B. Jaffe - News
Read the news about our work