Japan tsunami touches New Zealand Skip to main content

Japan tsunami touches New Zealand

By Jonathan Amos Science correspondent, BBC News
Wharves of Lyttelton
The port of Lyttelton recorded abnormal wave heights following the Japanese quake

Japan Earthquake

Tsunami waves triggered by Japan's Magnitude 9.0 quake touched all of New Zealand's coasts, scientists report.
A 86cm wave was recorded in the port of Lyttelton, the NZ township closest to the epicentre of the country's own catastrophic 6.3 tremor in February.
And a gauge at Scott Base, in Antarctica, even registered a 10cm wave, says the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA).
NZ is some 8,000km from Japan. The first waves arrived in about 12 hours.
The biggest were seen in Whitianga, in North Island, and Kaingaroa, on the Chatham Islands east of the NZ mainland, where heights (from crest to the trough) of 1.6m were measured.
Mount Maunganui (on the northern coast of North Island), and Charleston (on the west coast of South Island), and Timaru (on the east coast of South Island) also recorded wave heights over a metre.
At the majority of the 19 sea-level gauges monitored, the biggest waves did not arrive for many hours after the instruments started registering changes from normal tide readings.
At Timaru, the largest wave height did not occur until more than 40 hours after the first wave hit, the institute said.
This delay was probably due to waves bouncing off continental shelves all around the Pacific including South America and local coastal headlands and offshore ridges, it explained.
Tsunami progression (NOAA) US scientists estimated 11 March tsunami progression over the entire Pacific basin
"It's important to understand that tsunami waves can continue for some time after the first few waves hit," added NIWA Principal Scientist, Dr Rob Bell.
"It's not safe to assume that once you have seen one wave, the risk subsides and all returns quickly to normal.
"We are still recording obvious wave heights at our sea-level gauges now, days after the earthquake, which are affecting currents in harbours and estuaries.
"The size and timing of the waves recorded by the sea-level gauges are very similar to those estimated in the response phase of this event.
"The accuracy of this information is vital for civil defence and emergency management when they are making decisions about tsunami warnings, to ensure the hazardous impacts of a tsunami event in New Zealand are minimised."
More than 160 people were killed in the M 6.3 quake that struck the Christchurch area on 22 February.
A national memorial day on 18 March will feature events planned in the city's Hagley Park. The UK's Prince William will also tour devastated areas.
Quake recovery efforts are expected to cost New Zealand at least NZ$15bn ($11bn; £7bn).

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12759189
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thai penis whitening trend raises eyebrows

Image copyright LELUXHOSPITAL Image caption Authorities warn the procedure could be quite painful A supposed trend of penis whitening has captivated Thailand in recent days and left it asking if the country's beauty industry is taking things too far. Skin whitening is nothing new in many Asian countries, where darker skin is often associated with outdoor labour, therefore, being poorer. But even so, when a clip of a clinic's latest intriguing procedure was posted online, it quickly went viral. Thailand's health ministry has since issued a warning over the procedure. The BBC Thai service spoke to one patient who had undergone the treatment, who told them: "I wanted to feel more confident in my swimming briefs". The 30-year-old said his first session of several was two months ago, and he had since seen a definite change in the shade. 'What for?' The original Facebook post from the clinic offering the treatment, which uses lasers to break do...
1 comment
Read more

Ancient Rakhine City of Mrauk-U Proposed for UNESCO World Heritage Site

The Irrawaddy YANGON—Myanmar’s Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture submitted the final draft of its nomination for Mrauk-U to become a World Heritage Site to UNESCO on Monday, four months after the ministry submitted the first draft of its nomination in September 2019. If the application succeeds, Mrauk-U will be the third place in Myanmar to be inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, after the ancient cities of Bagan and Pyu. Mrauk-U is located in northern Rakhine State, around 60 km from the state capital of Sittwe. The ancient city was the seat of Arakanese kings from the 1400s until the late 1700s. At the height of their power, they controlled an area covering large parts of eastern Bengal, modern-day Rakhine State and the western part of central Myanmar. Much of the city’s remains are well-preserved and some 380 historic temples are scattered between the lush hills of northern Rakhine. Mrauk-U Heritage Trust chairwoman Daw Khin Than told The Irrawaddy on Tue...
1 comment
Read more

Sri Bhaddanta Chandramani Mahathera

The Life Story of A Distinguished And Outstanding Bhikkhu The Most Venerable Saradawpharagree Sri Bhaddanta Chandramani Mahathera The Buddhist missionary Saradaw Ashin U Chandramani was endowed with great gifts and led a famous and long life. He was a very well known, distinguished and outstanding Bhikkhu Mahathera. While living in the Kushinagar Monastery, a place close to where the Lord Buddha had passed away to Nirvana, the Government of India had offered, and he had accepted, the highest, most honourable and respected title "Guru Guru MahaGuru". He became the first ever President of all Buddhists in India.A World Buddhist Conference took place in Kathmandu during the reign of King Mahindra of Nepal. The Conference was very well attended by over one hundred thousand Buddhists from various parts of the world and it was opened by King Mahindra himself. As requested by the King, Saradawpharagree blessed all the participants with the power of Triple Gems...
Post a Comment
Read more