Explanation Text

"Tsunami"

A tsunami is a natural disaster that is a series of waves that move quickly in the ocean caused by strong earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, or just asteroids or meteors in the ocean. The term of “tsunami” comes from the Japanese which means harbour (“tsu”) and wave (“nami”). 

      Tsunamis have very long wavelengths. This can be hundreds of kilometers long. Usually, tsunamis start suddenly. Waves travel at high speed across the ocean with little loss of energy. They can remove sand from the beach, destroy trees, throw and drag vehicles, homes, and even destroy entire cities. 

       In the depths of the ocean, tsunami waves do not dramatically increase. But as the waves move inland, they build to higher and higher heights as the depth of the sea decreases. The speed of a tsunami wave depends on the depth of the sea and not the distance from the source of the wave. 

        Tsunami waves can move as fast as jets over deep waters, only slowing when they reach shallow waters.Tsunamis cannot be prevented. However, there are ways to help stop people dying from a tsunami. Like issuing a warning sonar before the big waves reach the shore. Because the earthquake that caused the tsunami could be felt before the waves reached the shore, people could be warned to go somewhere safe.