Tsunami and Earthquake Research at the USGS

On our Tsunami and Earthquake Research web site, you will find general information on how local tsunamis are generated by earthquakes as well as animations, virtual reality models of tsunamis, and summaries of past research studies.

Learn more about tsunamis in the United States.

Learn more about our active research projects:
Probabilistic Forecasting of Earthquakes and Earthquake Effects in the Coastal Zone
Tsunami Hazards, Modeling, and the Sedimentary Record
U.S. West Coast and Alaska Marine Geohazards

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  Honshu, Japan: March 11, 2011

  Preliminary simulation of the tsunami from the March 11, 2011 M=9.0 subduction zone earthquake

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  Mentawai Islands, Indonesia: October 25, 2010

  Preliminary simulation of the tsunami from the October 25, 2010 M=7.7 subduction zone earthquake

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  Bío Bío, Chile: February 27, 2010

  Preliminary simulations of the tsunami from the February 27, 2010 M=8.8 subduction zone earthquake

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  Samoa Islands: September 29, 2009

  Preliminary analysis of the tsunami from the September 29, 2009 M=8.1 Samoa Islands subduction zone earthquake, southwest Pacific Ocean

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  Earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean: December 26, 2004

  Field photographs and reports from the region, overview of the tectonic setting and seismological chacteristics of the earthquake, summary of tsunami generation modeling, and comparison to the March 28, 2005 event in the same location

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  Tsunamis in the U.S. Pacific Northwest

  How do various parameters that describe an earthquake influence the resulting local tsunami?

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  The 1952 and 2003 Tokachi-Oki Earthquakes and Tsunamis

  Comparison of the September 25, 2003 M=8.3 and the 1952 M=8.1 Tokachi-Oki earthquakes, near Hokkaido, Japan

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  all studies