What Is A Tsunami?

Story Published: Mar 13, 2008 at 1:13 PM PDT

Story Updated: Mar 13, 2008 at 1:13 PM PDT

By Steve Pool

SEATTLE - A tsunami is a large wave that can come ashore at heights of over 100 feet tall. It is one of the most devastating natural disasters that Mother Nature can unleash.

A tsunami is frequently, yet mistakenly, referred to as a "tidal wave". But tides have nothing to do with tsunamis. It's created when something displaces a large column of water.

The most frequent causes of tsunamis are earthquakes that occur in the oceans. The rise and fall of the ocean seafloor during quakes can displace a large amount of water, causing a tsunami. But large objects, such as a huge meteorite, can also cause tsunamis.

They're hard to spot at sea, because in the middle of the ocean, where water depths are hundreds of feet, the sea level might rise only a couple of inches, but when the wave reaches shallow shores, it can reach over 100 feet high.

For More Information:

www.pdc.org
www.science.org

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