Welcome to the Understanding Section of The Science of Tsunamis
This section contains resources that can help you learn about tsunamis.
The
tsunami, like the hurricane (typhoon, cyclone),
is a natural hazard that has the power to
destroy human settlements and take many
lives. Large tsunamis are triggered by massive
undersea earthquakes or volcanic explosions--events
that can cause death and destruction even
without an accompanying seismic sea wave.
When a great earthquake ravishes a coastal
region that is then lashed by a huge tsunami,
the result is complete devastation and heavy
loss of life. This is precisely what occurred
in northern Sumatra on December 26, 2004.
The PowerPoint presentation below provides
basic information about tsunamis and includes
some satellite photos of the widespread
damage that accompanied the event
Click
the image for a set of PowerPoint slides
prepared by Alan Strahler based on materials
appearing in the new fourth edition of
Introducing Physical Geography. Be sure
to view the slide notes, which contain
much additional useful information.
Click on the image to veiw an interactive exploration of techtonic plates. This animation comes from the Geodiscoveries series that accompanies
Wiley's geography textbooks.
Click on the image to veiw an exploration
of the motion of lithospheric plates and
the interactions at their boundaries.
This type of study is called plate tectonics.
Tectonics refers to the breaking and bending
of the entire lithosphere, including the
crust. This animation comes from the Geodiscoveries
series that accompanies Wiley's geography
textbooks.
Click on the image to veiw an exploration
of active Plate Boundries. This is another
area in plate tectonics. Tectonics refers
to the breaking and bending of the entire
lithosphere, including the crust. This
animation comes from the Geodiscoveries
series that accompanies Wiley's geography
textbooks.
Click on the image to veiw an exploration
of Divergent Plate motions that can cause
earthquakes in the ocean. This animation
comes from the Geodiscoveries series that
accompanies Wiley's geography textbooks.
Click on the image to veiw an exploration
of subduction of oceanic lithosphere at
a convergent margin. This animation comes
from the Geodiscoveries series that accompanies
Wiley's geography textbooks.
To
see the complete list of books by Alan
Strahler and information about book adoptions, Click
here.
To see the complete
list of books by Alan Strahler and information
about book adoptions, Click
here.
Click
here if you are interested in donating to the tsunami
disaster relief program
