Real-time pressure disturbance monitoring system in the Yellow Sea: pilot test during the period of March to April 2018

Abstract

Until now, the meteotsunamis reported in the Yellow Sea have been caused by sudden pressure disturbances; however, no suitable monitoring system has been established for these disturbances. With the maximum available pressure data based on 89 automatic weather stations (AWS), a real-time pressure disturbance monitoring system was developed for meteotsunami disaster prevention. When a pressure disturbance calculated from a rate of pressure change exceeds 1.2 hPa/10 min at a certain AWS, the monitoring system detects the occurrence of a pressure jump that can generate meteotsunamis in the Yellow Sea. The real-time monitoring system is operated by sending a short message service to hazard areas where destructive meteotsunamis are expected to occur by monitoring the intensity of the pressure disturbance and its propagation direction. During the pilot test from March to April 2018, the monitoring system detected four pressure jump events in total, two of which caused meteotsunamis. On the two meteotsunami event dates, the monitored pressure disturbances exceeded the intensity criteria for a common pressure jump and showed similar propagation patterns with the meteotsunamis. In particular, both meteotsunami events occurred only when the pressure jump, spatially characterized as a linear or bow type, propagated at least 12 m/s. Despite the limited number of events during the pilot test, this study provides an example of a meteotsunami-monitoring system and implications for additional pressure jump conditions favorable to meteotsunami occurrence.