scholarly journals Influence of Ocean Topography on Tsunami Propagation in Western Australia

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. 629
Author(s):  
Charitha Pattiaratchi

Western Australia is susceptible to tsunamis from seismic sources that originate from distant sources including the Sunda Arc. Many surface and subsurface topographic ocean features are located between the Australian continent and locations where tsunamigenic earthquakes occur. These include the Venin Meinesz Seamounts (including Christmas Island) and Horizon Ridge, Exmouth, Zenith and Cuvier Plateaus. Numerical simulations of idealised tsunamigenic earthquakes along the Sunda Arc revealed that these topographic features have a large influence on the distribution of tsunami heights, propagating speeds and energy distribution. The interaction between tsunami waves and Venin Meinesz Seamounts and Horizon Ridge, located close to the earthquake locations, scatter the tsunami energy into several beams. Exmouth Plateau acts as a focusing feature to increase wave heights between North West Cape and Barrow Island whilst Cuvier Plateau deflects energy towards Shark Bay. Although Zenith Plateau has a local effect, it does not influence tsunami waves along the coast. Southwest Australia is “sheltered” from the direct effect of tsunami waves from Sunda Arc due to the combined effects of the Seamounts and Cuvier Plateau in the scattering and refraction of tsunami waves.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chandra Salgado Kent ◽  
Curt Jenner ◽  
Micheline Jenner ◽  
Phil J Bouchet ◽  
Eric Rexstad

Estimates of the abundance of Breeding Stock D humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are key to the conservation and management of what is thought to be one of the largest populations of the species. Five years (2000, 2001, 2006, 2007 and 2008) of aerial surveys carried out over an eight-year period at North West Cape (Western Australia) using line transect methodology allowed trends in whale numbers to be investigated, and provided a base for comparison with estimates made approximately 400km south at Shark Bay (Western Australia). A total of 3,127 whale detections were made during 74 surveys of the 7,043km 2 study area west of NWC. Pod abundance for each flight was computed using a HorvitzThompson like estimator and converted to an absolute measure of abundance after corrections were made for estimated mean cluster size, unsurveyed time, swimming speed and animal availability. Resulting estimates from the migration model of best fit with the most credible assumptions were 7,276 (CI = 4,993–10,167) for 2000, 12,280 (CI = 6,830–49,434) for 2001, 18,692 (CI = 12,980–24,477) for 2006, 20,044 (CI = 13,815–31,646) for 2007, and 26,100 (CI = 20,152–33,272) for 2008. Based on these data, the trend model with the greatest r 2 was exponential with an annual increase rate of 13% (CI = 5.6%–18.1%). While this value is above the species’ estimated maximum plausible growth rate of 11.8%, it is reasonably close to previous reports of between 10–12%. The coefficient of variation, however, was too large for a reliable trend estimate. Perception bias was also not accounted for in these calculations. Based on a crude appraisal which yielded an estimated p(0) of 0.783 (from independent observer effort, CV = 0.973), the 2008 humpback population size may be as large as 33,300. In conclusion, the work here provides evidence of an increasing Breeding Stock D population, but further surveys are necessary to confirm whether the population is indeed increasing at its maximum rate.


2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 105-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick W. M. Corbett ◽  
Rayana Estrella ◽  
Andrea Morales Rodriguez ◽  
Ahmed Shoeir ◽  
Leonardo Borghi ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Jui-Chun Freya Chen ◽  
Wu-Cheng Chi ◽  
Chu-Fang Yang

Abstract Developing new ways to observe tsunami contributes to tsunami research. Tidal and deep-ocean gauges are typically used for coastal and offshore observations. Recently, tsunami-induced ground tilts offer a new possibility. The ground tilt signal accompanied by 2010 Mw 8.8 Chilean earthquake were observed at a tiltmeter network in Japan. However, tiltmeter stations are usually not as widely installed as broadband seismometers in other countries. Here, we studied broadband seismic records from Japan’s F-net and found ground tilt signals consistent with previously published tiltmeter dataset for this particular tsunamic event. Similar waveforms can also be found in broadband seismic networks in other countries, such as Taiwan, as well as an ocean-bottom seismometer. We documented a consistent time sequence of evolving back-azimuth directions of the tsunami waves at different stages of tsunami propagation through beamforming-frequency–wavenumber analysis and particle-motion analysis; the outcomes are consistent with the tsunami propagation model provided by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. These results shown that dense broadband seismic networks can provide a useful complementary dataset, in addition to tiltmeter arrays and other networks, to study or even monitor tsunami propagation using arrayed methods.


Author(s):  
Janaka J. Wijetunge

Purpose This paper aims to describe a multi-scenario assessment of the seismogenic tsunami hazard for Bangladesh from active subduction zones in the Indian Ocean region. Two segments of the Sunda arc, namely, Andaman and Arakan, appear to pose a tsunamigenic seismic threat to Bangladesh. Design/methodology/approach High-resolution numerical simulations of tsunami propagation toward the coast of Bangladesh have been carried out for eight plausible seismic scenarios in Andaman and Arakan subduction zones. The numerical results have been analyzed to obtain the spatial variation of the maximum tsunami amplitudes as well as tsunami arrival times for the entire coastline of Bangladesh. Findings The results suggest that the tsunami heights are amplified on either side of the axis of the submarine canyon which approaches the nearshore sea off Barisal in the seaboard off Sundarban–Barisal–Sandwip. Moreover, the computed tsunami amplitudes are comparatively higher north of the latitude 21.5o in the Teknaf–Chittagong coastline. The calculated arrival times indicate that the tsunami waves reach the western half of the Sundarban–Barisal–Sandwip coastline sooner, while shallow water off the eastern half results in a longer arrival time for that part of the coastline, in the event of an earthquake in the Andaman seismic zone. On the other hand, most parts of the Chittagong–Teknaf coastline would receive tsunami waves almost immediately after an earthquake in the northern segment of the Arakan seismic zone. Originality/value The present assessment includes probabilistic measures of the tsunami hazard by incorporating several probable seismic scenarios corresponding to recurrence intervals ranging from 25 years to over 1,000 years.


Author(s):  
Ali Abdolali ◽  
James T. Kirby

Most existing tsunami propagation models consider the ocean to be an incompressible, homogenous medium. Recently, it has been shown that a number of physical features can slow the propagation speed of tsunami waves, including wave frequency dispersion, ocean bottom elasticity, water compressibility and thermal or salinity stratification. These physical effects are secondary to the leading order, shallow water or long wave behavior, but still play a quantifiable role in tsunami arrival time, especially at far distant locations. In this work, we have performed analytical and numerical investigations and have shown that consideration of those effects can actually improve the prediction of arrival time at distant stations, compared to incompressible forms of wave equations. We derive a modified Mild Slope Equation for Weakly Compressible fluid following the method proposed by Sammarco et al. (2013) and Abdolali et al. (2015) using linearized wave theory, and then describe comparable extensions to the Boussinesq model of Kirby et al. (2013). Both models account for water compressibility and compression of static water column to simulate tsunami waves. The mild slope model is formulated in plane Cartesian coordinates and is thus limited to medium propagation distances, while the Boussinesq model is formulated in spherical polar coordinates and is suitable for ocean scale simulations.


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