What is a tsunamis-?

Answer 1

The word tsunami (pronounced su-nah'-me) is Japanese for harbor wave. Some tsunami may reach heights of 100 feet (30 m) or more. They are giant waves that hit a coastal area and create destruction and usually loss of many lives.

A tsunami can be caused by a coastal or underwater earthquake, an underwater or shoreline landslide, an undersea volcano, the explosion of a volcano near shore, or even by an asteroid or other large celestial body that might crash into the ocean. Sometimes a small underwater quake will trigger a landslide that causes a tsunami.

Such waves are also (incorrectly) called tidal waves because they inundate like high tides. But they aren't true tidal waves and are not related to tides or the effects of the moon.

They can travel at 500 mph deep under the sea. They can destroy vast cities and developments on land, but don't destroy ships on the way to shore. Since they are traveling deep in the sea, they can pass right under the ships unnoticed. That's because the height of a tsunami wave might be only a foot or two at those depths. Or they might be noticed but not given any special attention because they seem harmless as they travel under the ocean surface.

But the situation changes dramatically when the waves come closer to shore. As they enter shallow waters, they begin to decelerate and gain height as the wave becomes compressed. Waves up to 100 feet (30 m) or more in height are possible. Of course, one caused by an asteroid impact could be much higher, depending on the asteroid's size. Fortunately such occurrences don't happen as frequently as those caused by earthquakes, volcanoes and underwater landslides.

More Detailed Information:

Tsunami are huge ocean waves caused by natural forces like underwater earthquakes. Tsunami are caused when the forces of these phenomena rapidly displace large amounts of water.

Most tsunami occur when there is an earthquake or volcanic eruption in the sea or ocean. This is caused when there are plate boundaries that are meeting in plate tectonics processes. Subduction in the convergent boundaries accounts for most of the tsunami. This will cause shock waves to be radiated out of the epicenter. This natural event will cause a rise or fall of the seabed. This will create a wave deep in the ocean which cannot be clearly discerned from shore until they get too close to allow escape.

These waves can travel at great speeds up to hundreds of mph! As the wave gets nearer to the shore, the wave will start to get higher as the seafloor rises in height. The waves can be as high as 100 ft. tall when they near shore.

Tsunami can be caused by landslides when there are very large landslides, such as a cliff-side of a mountain near shore that falls into a large body of water or ocean.

Tsunami can also occur when powerful bombs, like nuclear bombs, are tested, dropped, or detonated in the sea or ocean. These will also cause shock waves to be radiated out that move the ocean waters in waves as described above.

Tsunami can also occur when large asteroids fall into the water. This is extremely rare, and the asteroids must be extremely large to cause a large water displacement to form a wave. But they are known to have occurred. Meteorites will not cause high waves as they are usually much smaller than asteroids by the time they have been burned in the atmosphere on the way to the surface.

Some meteorological storm conditions, such as deep weather depressions causing cyclones, hurricanes, strong winds and other similar occurrences, can generate a storm surge,which can be several meters above normal tide levels. This is due to the low atmospheric pressure within the center of the weather depression. As these storm surges come ashore, the surge can resemble a tsunami, inundating vast areas of land. However, these are not tsunami, but storm surges.

Tsunami will definitely cause damage, casualties, and injuries. Fires can break out from gas line breaks that are ignited. Tsunami, as they reach closer to shore, will wash fishing boats and other boats, such as cruisers, onto shore, and onto streets, railroads, and buildings. Airports are destroyed, roads are impassable. The boats will be stuck on shore and usually wrecked from the force of the wave. Cars, trucks, airplanes and trains can be washed through the coastal areas damaging structures and people in their wake.

People and livestock can be caught in the wave and carried away inland and back into the sea with all the debris from the devastation. The waves will also cause fish to be washed onto the shore and stuck there to die. They flood the lands near the shore, causing entire buildings to be inundated. They are identified too late for most people in the coastal areas to escape and avoid death from them. They will damage the crops and cause nearby buildings to collapse. Some people might be trapped under the buildings and die. They uproot trees too, causing them to fall on houses and people.

Lastly, they cause economic decline as countries have to spend billions of dollars rebuilding and recovering from the damage. Millions of people can be homeless without food, clean water, proper sewage disposal and without electricity. Hospitals that may be still operating are overwhelmed, injured people may not receive timely medical care. Access to medical supplies, pharmacy supplies, and maintenance medications may not be available for months or more. People can not find loved ones and family members and there are little, if any, means of communication immediately following the tsunami. Factories and jobs are eliminated and many never rebuild in the area again. Tourist industries collapse for even years afterward.

See related questions for more detail

a tsunami is a giant flood

Answer 2

A tsunami is a giant wave usually caused by earthquakes. Two plates in the earth push together, creating friction which causes a giant wave, like the recent one in Japan.

The Tsunami has once again demonstrated the fury of nature and the tragedy it can cause. It showed us that nature could be as harsh as it is benevolent. The Tsunami, an extraordinary calamity of unprecedented proportions, is a reminder that no matter how much wealth or power man acquires, he is still at the mercy of the elements. The havoc created by tsunami can never be forgotten. The most powerful earthquake in 40 years quickly turned into one of the worst disasters in a century, as walls of water crashed ashore across South Asia. The number of human casualties, mostly children and women, is horrible and is increasing with the passage of time. Every person you meet in the tsunami-hit area has his own story to tell but no one is there to listen him or her.

In poor countries, living is so hand-to-mouth that there is scant time to think about the distant future. This dreadful disaster of such a vast dimension has led to outbreak of diseases like cholera, gastroenteritis, hepatitis B, malaria, and dengue fever. It (tsunami) ravaged some of the most fragile economies in Burma, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia.

Religion and Science

Today, in the aftermath of the tsunami disaster, we are caught up in the same debate between traditional beliefs and scientific solution. The fisherfolk, despite devastation caused to them by the sea, are offering traditional prayers to the goddess called Gangamma, believed to be their protector. They think that sea goddess is angry due to their past sins and now needs to be appeased. Fisherfolk is badly riddled with ancient superstitions.

Role of India

India refused aid from foreign governments and assured them that India has enough to meet its requirements. In expression of neighbourly solidarity and sympathy, India offered a helping hand to affected neighbour countries despite It's own problems. The loss of critical infrastructure of less developed countries is a double blow. It makes getting assistance to victims that much more harder. Lack of coordination between government and relief agencies creates chaos and makes the mockery of the disaster management.

Corruption and disaster

Corruption has made its presence felt everywhere and everytime. It could be noticed in the leakage of foodgrains meant for tsunami victims into the open market. People with power have not let this opportunity go from their hands in exploiting the poor masses. It is disturbing to find officials insisting on death certificates for the payment of compensation to the family of those killed. Such administrative bottlenecks should be avoided. The humanitarian concerns are often absent in our government's policies of disaster management, as well as functioning of its agencies, which are supposed to provide relief to victims of disasters.

Role of defence forces

Defence forces played a crucial role in all aspects of the disaster. The active roles of defence forces that came to the rescue of the victims and helped build confidence among the affected people

Role of media

Media played an important role in tackling the agony and the pain of the tsunami victims. It is the media because of whom many people could get united. Star News, a TV news channel operating in India, went one step further. It put an L.C.D near a relief camp, which helped victims lessen their mental pain and distress. The media could have played a vital role in dispelling the impression of cynicism generated in the sections of Western media when India declined foreign aid.

On the other side of the fence, print media also violated the dignity of the dead by showing images of mass burial. The relatives of the affected people fiercely condemned this act. The excessive coverage of the visits of VIPs and famous personalities often hinders the relief work. Media should give minimum coverage to visits of these people so they will automatically stop coming because of lack of reward.

Conclusion

The need of the hour is to put the human back into humanitarian. Relief cannot be measured solely in monetary terms, because only a miniscule fraction or at times nothing reaches the needy. The boycott of used clothes and packet-food indicate that the victims need emotional and psychological touch and not just monetary and material relief. The victims desperately require a human contact to resettle their shattered emotional lives. The trauma of the disaster has engulfed the lives of affected people and they need to be given psychological counselling to help them come out of their severe trauma.

The lesson that I learnt from this dreadful disaster is that the Tsunami has reunited people and thrashed the inner egos. Tsunami removed the status-based divisions, having spared no section of the community. Individual acts of heroism, collective efforts that saved lives, nations coming together in the relief efforts are signs of hope.

Answer 3

a tsunami is a wall of water that can be big enough to destroy city's, it is like a flood but a wall of water

Answer 4

A tsunami is caused by an earthquake that occurs under the sea. The tsunami is produced which is a large wave that can cause severe damage on land.