Introduction to Physical Science

Unit 6: Waves, Sound, and Light

Graphing tsunamis

Introduction:

Tsunamis are huge ocean waves caused by a sudden movement of water. Most tsunamis are caused by undersea earthquakes or landslides, but they can also result from asteroids or meteorites hitting the ocean. The most important reason to learn more about these massive waves is that they can cause significant loss of life and destruction of property.

Task:

Tsunamis have occurred all over the world, but are there any tsunami "hot spots"? Find out more about tsunamis by visiting these web sites. Learn what causes them and how the water moves, then create a graph showing how many tsunamis occurred in each area listed during the years 1900-present.

Northwest Pacific Ocean – Japan, Philippines
Northeast Pacific Ocean – Western United States, Canada, Mexico, Latin America
Southwest Pacific Ocean – Eastern Australia, New Zealand, Solomon Islands, French Polynesia
Southeast Pacific Ocean – Western South America
Northwest Atlantic Ocean – Eastern United States, Canada, Caribbean, South America
Northeast Atlantic Ocean – Europe, Western Africa
Southwest Atlantic Ocean – Eastern South America
Southeast Atlantic Ocean – Western Africa
Indian Ocean – Eastern Africa, Middle East
Indian Ocean – India, Southern Asia, Indonesia

Possible Resources:

How Tsunamis Work

http://science.howstuffworks.com/tsunami1.htm

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/tsunami/

http://www.bigelow.org/virtual/buoy_sub1.html Scroll down for the tsunami animation

Tsunamis through History

http://www.bom.gov.au/info/tsunami/tsunami_info.shtml#history

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6759891/

http://www.schools.ash.org.au/ormeau/~Calvin/historical.htm

http://www.nilesema.com/tsunami.htm

http://soundwaves.usgs.gov/2007/04/

General Tsunami and Safety Information