| Session Details | |
| Section | OS - Ocean Sciences |
| Session Title | Advances in Tsunami Observation and Modeling |
| Main Convener | Dr. Sébastien Allgeyer (Australian National University, Australia) |
| Co-convener(s) | Prof. Phil Cummins (Australian National University, Australia) Dr. Toshitaka Baba (Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Japan) Prof. Shingo Watada (The University of Tokyo, Japan) |
| Session Description | Recent improvements in tsunami observation platforms, such as the deployment of ocean bottom pressure recorders throughout the Pacific basin, have led to the availability of an unprecedented amount of high-quality data that can be used to study the physics of tsunami generation, propagation and run-up. These data have led to the recognition that the shallow water theory typically used to model tsunamis, while probably adequate for tsunami warning purposes, does not describe tsunami waveforms to the level of accuracy achieved by modern observations. For example, far-field observations of the tsunamis generated by the 2010 Maule and 2011 Tohoku earthquakes show significant departures from the shallow water theory that have been ascribed to gravitational self-attraction and surface loading of the solid earth by the tsunami. Observations in both near and far field suggest that dispersion is observable even for tsunamis generated by large megathrust earthquakes. The strong harbor resonances apparently induced by late-arriving dispersive wavetrains during the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, as well as the many images of tsunami-induced currents associated with jets and eddies during the 2011 Japan tsunami suggest that shallow-water theory is inadequate for modeling tsunami impacts on ports and shipping. In this session we seek contributions from researchers that shed light on our ability to both observe and model such phenomena. These would include new approaches to sea level measurements and novel ways of using conventional measurements that yield new insight into tsunami hydrodynamics, as well as modelling efforts that aim to augment the shallow water theory with the physics needed to model tsunamis to the accuracy required by modern observations. |