Tsunami is a series of ocean water waves caused by the displacement of large amount of water, sending water onto land.
The sudden motion of water is mostly due to an earthquake, an underwater volcanic eruption, an underwater landslide and sometimes due to crashing of asteroid or meteoroid from space into the water body.
Since it is composed of series of waves, called wave train, the destructive effect is compounded as multiple waves reach the land.
The word “Tsunami” comes from Japanese words “tsu” which means harbor and “nami” which means wave.
Tsunami in recent years
On 11th March 2011, a massive earthquake of 8.9 on the Richter scale hit Japan triggering a 10-metre-high tsunami penetrated about 10 km inland at a speed of 500 mph.
On Feb 27, 2010, an 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit Chile, triggering tsunami along the coasts of the Pacific Ocean.
On Dec 26, 2004, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake triggering a tsunami devastated the Indonesian island of Sumatra, which killed thousands of people in several countries.
In June, 2001, a tsunami caused by a magnitude-8.4 earthquake killed at least 78 people and caused a damage of over $300 million in southern Peru.