Sound signals of tsunamis from a slender fault

Abstract

Since the speed of sound in water is much greater than that of the surface gravity waves, acoustic signals can be used for early warning of tsunamis. We simplify existing works by treating the sound wave alone without the much slower gravity wave, and derive a two-dimensional theory for signals emanating from a fault of finite length. Under the assumptions of a slender fault and constant sea depth, the asymptotic technique of multiple scales is applied to obtain analytical results. The modal envelopes of the two-dimensional sound waves are found to be governed by the Schrödinger equation and are solved explicitly. An approximate method is described for the inverse estimation of fault properties from the pressure record at a distant hydrophone.