A tsunami is a long-wavelength, gravity-driven water wave phenomenon typically generated by large, sudden displacements of the seafloor due to subduction-zone earthquakes, but also by submarine landslides, volcanic eruptions, or impact events. In deep ocean, tsunamis travel at jetliner speeds with low amplitudes and very long periods (minutes to an hour), behaving as shallow-water waves whose phase speed depends on water depth. As they shoal on continental shelves, energy conservation forces rapid increases in wave amplitude and reductions in wavelength and speed, producing highly nonlinear run-up, strong nearshore currents, and complex inundation patterns that are central to hazard assessment and numerical modeling.
In April 2012, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle was found on Graham Island in the Haida Gwaii archipelago off the coast of British Columbia. It belonged to Ikuo Yokoyama, a survivor of the earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern ...
Environment
Mar 15, 2026
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The Mediterranean Sea is widely perceived as having a low tsunami risk. History and recent modeling technology have demonstrated that destructive waves have already hit the French coast and could do so again. The results ...
Environment
Mar 14, 2026
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Volcanic eruptions are significant geologic hazards. Underwater volcanoes are challenging to study, yet they play an integral role in marine geology and may cause destructive tsunamis that can threaten coastal communities.
Earth Sciences
Feb 20, 2026
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People living on the low-lying shores of the Bristol Channel and Severn estuary began their day like any other on January 30, 1607. The weather was calm. The sky was bright.
Earth Sciences
Jan 29, 2026
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For decades, researchers thought that an October 1843 earthquake on the small Greek island of Chalke caused a powerful tsunami and led to the deaths of as many as 600 people. But a new analysis of primary accounts of the ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 22, 2026
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This Christmas Day marks 21 years since the terrifying Indian Ocean tsunami. As we remember the hundreds of thousands of lives lost in this tragic event, it is also a moment to reflect on what followed. How do communities ...
Environment
Dec 22, 2025
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An international research expedition involving Cornell has uncovered new details as to why a 2011 earthquake northeast of Japan behaved so unusually as it lifted the seafloor and produced a tsunami that devastated coastal ...
Earth Sciences
Dec 18, 2025
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A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck off northern Japan late Monday, injuring 23 people and triggering a tsunami in Pacific coast communities, officials said. Authorities warned of possible aftershocks and an increased ...
Environment
Dec 9, 2025
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A major earthquake rocked Japan's northern coast on Monday, with the country's meteorological agency recording several tsunami waves and local media reporting injuries.
Environment
Dec 8, 2025
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A satellite deployed to measure ocean surface heights was up to the challenge when a massive earthquake off the Kamchatka Peninsula triggered a Pacific-wide tsunami in late July.
Earth Sciences
Nov 27, 2025
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