Tsunami Detection Model for Sea Level Measurement Devices

Abstract

Sea level measurements are of critical importance in the verification of tsunami generation. When a large earthquake occurs in a subduction zone and the Regional Tsunami Service Providers of UNESCO/IOC issue alerts, sea level measurements are used to verify tsunami generation and take further actions (i.e., the evacuation of coastal areas). However, in some cases, if the tsunami source is very close to the coast, there is not enough time between the identification of an event and the issue of alerting bulletins. In addition, when the tsunami is not generated by a large earthquake but rather an atypical source (i.e., landslide or volcanic eruption) or prior information from the earthquake is not available before the arrival of the tsunami, it is of vital importance to have other means for the verification of tsunami generation. The algorithm presented in this paper, already installed in several operational devices, is capable of acquiring, processing and moving data back into the data server of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (EC-JRC) or any other relevant database; it can also be used for any sea level measurement of interest with corresponding triggering criteria.