Meteorological tsunamis on the coasts of British Columbia and Washington

Thomson, Richard E.; Rabinovich, Alexander B.; Fine, Isaac V.; Sinnott, Denny C.; McCarthy, Abigail L.; Sutherland, N.A.S.; Neil, L.K.

doi:10.1016/j.pce.2009.10.003

Cited by 64 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Although meteotsunamis are not catastrophic to the extent of major seismically induced basin-scale events, the wave heights of meteotsunamis examined at many stations in this study were higher than those recorded during the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. In other regions, for example, the British Columbia-Washington coast (Canada and USA) and the Bristol Channel (UK), meteotsunamis typically have small wave heights relative to the tidal range (Haslett and Bryant 2009;Thomson et al 2009). In contrast, the meteotsunamis along the south-west Australian coast, which experiences diurnal tides with a mean tidal range of *0.5 m (Pattiaratchi 2011), have wave heights equivalent to, or a factor 2 larger than, the tidal range, similar to those observed in the Mediterranean Sea.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of meteorological tsunamis along the south-west Australian coast

Pattiaratchi

Wijeratne

2014

Nat Hazards

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Tide gauge data were used to identify the occurrence, characteristics, and cause of tsunamis of meteorological origin (termed 'meteotsunamis') along the Western Australian coast. This is the first study to identify meteotsunamis in this region, and the results indicated that they occur frequently. Although meteotsunamis are not catastrophic to the extent of major seismically induced basin-scale events, the wave heights of meteotsunamis examined at some local stations in this study were higher than those recorded through seismic tsunamis. In June 2012, a meteotsunami contributed to an extreme water-level event at Fremantle, which recorded the highest water level in over 115 years. Meteotsunamis (wave heights [0.4 m, when the mean tidal range in the region is *0.5 m) were found to coincide with thunderstorms in summer and the passage of low-pressure systems during winter. Spectral analysis of tide gauge time series records showed that existing continental seiche oscillations (periods between 30 min and 5 h) were enhanced during the meteotsunamis, with a high proportion of energy transferred to the continental shelf oscillation period. Three recent meteotsunami events (22 March 2010, 10 June 2012, and 7 January 2013) two due to summer thunderstorms and one due to a winter frontal system were chosen for detailed analysis. The meteotsunami amplitudes were up to a factor 2 larger than the local tidal range and sometimes contributed up to 85 % of the non-tidal water signal. A single meteorological event was found to generate several meteotsunamis along the coast, up to 500 km apart, as the air pressure disturbance propagated over the continental shelf; however, the topography and local bathymetry of the continental shelf defined the local sea-level resonance characteristics at each location. With the available data (sea level and meteorological), the exact mechanisms for the generation of the meteotsunamis could not be isolated.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Observations of meteorological tsunamis along the south-west Australian coast

Pattiaratchi

Wijeratne

2014

Nat Hazards

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“…This study systematically investigates 1-min raw sea level data over a longer time interval and over a larger area, directly benefiting from the upgrade of sea level network following the 2004 Sumatra devastating tsunami. As the tsunami network with a 1-min resolution may be found on the US West Coast as well, and high-frequency phenomena has been recorded there also (Thomson et al, 2009), it would be interesting to compare high-frequency sea level oscillations observed at the US East Coast with oscillations observed at the US West Coast. Meteorological conditions and topographical features are different along the two coasts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A survey of strong high-frequency sea level oscillations along the US East Coast between 2006 and 2011

Pasquet

Vilibić

Šepić

2013

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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A systematic survey of high-frequency sea level oscillations (<6 h) measured between 2006 and 2011 along the US East Coast is performed. Raw 1-min resolution sea level data is used. After performing a data quality check, the nine most intense events, with maximum recorded wave heights ranging from 40 to 100 cm, are identified. Focusing on three of these events enables us to recognize two different generation mechanisms: (i) topographically-trapped edge waves which are found to be a significant contributor to the strongest observed oscillations, and (ii) standing waves, which occur over enclosed shallow waters and may result in significant wave heights of up to 100 cm. A reproduction of the observed oscillations is a part of a future work, which will include an assessment of a generating force in the atmosphere, allowing for a better prevention of potential flooding along the US East Coast

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“…Various observational networks are available for both atmospheric and oceanic measurements, but no standards for meteotsunami observations have yet been developed and therefore not a single network was adopted to properly capture meteotsunamis. Investigations of meteotsunamis are mainly based on standard meteorological and oceanographic networks, which mostly have insufficient accuracy and too coarse temporal resolution (e.g., 6-min NOAA CO-OPS air pressure network or 10-min regional meteoocean buoy network in the Gulf of Maine) and do not properly capture high-frequency processes at a minute timescale (Thomson et al, 2009;Šepić and Rabinovich, 2014). Some operational networks are more advanced: in particular, on the Balearic Islands (Marcos et al, 2009;Tintoré et al, 2013) and in the Adriatic Sea (Šepić and Vilibić, 2011), but they are either in the pilot-phase of development or not incorporated into a meteotsunami warning system.…”

Section: Research Gaps and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modern Approaches in Meteotsunami Research and Early Warning

et al. 2016

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The understanding of meteotsunamis-significant atmospherically generated long ocean waves in the tsunami frequency band-has advanced considerably during the last two decades. Scientists and specialists use near-field in situ data and remote observations, as well as atmospheric and ocean modeling, to study destructive events. The phenomenon has been reported and investigated worldwide, indicating its relevance as a marine natural hazard and demonstrating the urgent need for meteotsunami warning systems for certain countries. In this paper we summarize the present knowledge of the phenomenon, identify particular research gaps, and propose near-future critical components of meteotsunami research. We emphasize a potential concept of merging yet-to-be-developed meteotsunami warning systems and existing tsunami or multi-hazard early warning systems.

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Meteorological tsunamis on the coasts of British Columbia and Washington

Cited by 64 publications

References 22 publications

Observations of meteorological tsunamis along the south-west Australian coast

Observations of meteorological tsunamis along the south-west Australian coast

A survey of strong high-frequency sea level oscillations along the US East Coast between 2006 and 2011

Modern Approaches in Meteotsunami Research and Early Warning

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