Tsunami effects on west coast

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Tom

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I've been watching live helicopter news feeds of the Tsunami reaching the Santa Cruz harbor. A number of vessels broke away from their moorings, a couple of vessels sank, one was carried out to sea, and several docks were damaged. The largest of the first 3 reported surges was 6-8 feet at a speed of 14 knots.

Anyone who has moored at Santa Cruz knows that, due to its design, this harbor is continually subject to 1-2 feet surge. But locals were caught unprepared when they ignored the tsunami warning issued for 7-8 am today.

Further north, Pillar Point harbor at Half Moon Bay was bracing for a large surge, but it turned out to be minimal.

I heard that Crescent City had some serious surge, but haven't seen/heard any details.

This tsunami was catalyzed by yesterday's large earthquake off the coast of Japan.
 
I was amazed at how horrific the tsunami was going to be. One reporter on either CNN or MSNBC as I flipped back and forth, reported that it would be as tall as 20 feet travelling at 600 miles per hour. Some were predicting this would be the event of a lifetime as the tsunami came ashore. Schools were closed and businesses abandoned per the panicky reporters. A reporter in Oregon reported that "every business is closed and dark" in preparation for the surge. This at 6 am. Aren't most businesses closed and dark at that hour?

As the morning progressed they were still spreading panic about the west coast when it had already passed by Hawaii with "reported 7 foot waves". Wasn't there anyone that could go look? If there is a fire somewhere we have on the scene pictures before all the fire engines arrive. How many hurricane videos are there. Yet not one cameraman was on scene to show the "devastating" tsunami headed toward the west coast of the US. One weatherman did everything but hyperventilate reporting how serious and dangerous this was going to be.

Our 24 hour news has forgotten how to factually report the news. It's all about hype and hoopla.

Now, having said that, there are hundreds dead and some remarkable destruction in Japan. And there is some damage in California. I'm guessing the poorly protected marinas that have deteriorated docks are the ones we're being shown.
 
Our 24 hour news has forgotten how to factually report the news. It's all about hype and hoopla.

Guess what - it's working as designed.  The station that screams the loudest gets the biggest audience.  And the audience is what they're selling - to the companies that pay the station to air their commercials.  The more people in the audience, the more they can charge for the commercials.  If they can keep your eyes for longer than 15 minutes it's just that much more money in the bank.
 
bucks2 said:
Our 24 hour news has forgotten how to factually report the news. It's all about hype and hoopla.

The stations broadcast 24 hours, but it's not exactly 24 hour news.  The same content gets repeated.
 
Tom, thanks for your post. I guess a tsunami size can be any ones guess. I certainly will not be anything but scared out of my pants, if I lived in a vulnerable area.

  One thing I learned today that a cross-ocean tsunami will move at the the speed of a Jet-liner...600-700mph.

Don't ask me to provide proof.  :)

  I suppose the speed of the actual wave hitting the shore is much reduced in speed having been slowed substantially by the shore to sea incline.

  I am sure a tsunami expert will bob to the surface on this forum to clear things up.

  What me worry?..I live in Florida elevation 100', 4 miles from the water.

carson
 
Aye Carson, I don't think anyone can predict the height or force of a tsunami, even if they observe it going by Hawaii. San Francisco was bracing itself this morning, but experienced very little surge. Santa Cruz isn't very far south, and the damage is still occurring there.

Folks shouldn't underestimate the power of the ocean, and it's best to be safely on high ground with no tsunami than to be at sea level with one of those powerful surges coming in.

Several years ago we found ourselves in treacherous seas south of San Francisco. The forecast was dead wrong, and there were 28 foot seas that afternoon, causing us to head for refuge at Half Moon Bay. I was convinced we'd capsize as we made the U-turn into the harbor and took the seas broadside. All the commercial fishermen were caught by the same incorrect forecast and followed us in. The following morning there were 43 foot waves outside the harbor. One fisherman told me he was caught 25 miles offshore and was convinced he was going to die.

Harbor design/protection certainly has some impact. Santa Cruz harbor is open directly to Monterey Bay, whereas Half Moon Bay has two sets of breakwaters across the entrance.
 
From the things I have heard and read a tsunami is almost invisible as it crosses the ocean in deep water.  once it gets into shallower water the wave begins to build so that it can be seen.  Also the impact of the tsunami upon any given shoreline has a lot to do with whether it comes straight in or at an angle and upon the topography of the location.

I believe that I've heard that the worst locations are ones that have a bay that faces directly into the wave so as the wave arrives the full force is captured in the bay and becomes more focused and compressed as it moves into the bay.  My understanding is this is why it is so hard to predict where the wave will have the more severe impact, as opposed to a location nearby that hardly notices it.

I have no special knowledge of tsunamis, bu t this is what I believe I have learned from educational programs and reading.  ::)
 
Honest John,

You just became our defacto tsunami expert  ;D
 
There is a Hawaiian-based NOAA network of deep water buoys in the Pacific that is designed to pick up and track the tsunami wave train as it crosses the Pacific.    What is moving 500-600mph  is the wave train front of the tsunami not the mass of water.  The water molecules in waves move in circular orbits until the wave breaks as it shoals.  Then the circular orbits disintegrate into straight line trajectories and the entire mass runs up onto the shore.  That mass will be moving along 20-25 mph but with tremendous force.

At sea, the entire wave train will have a low height, but a miles long length.  The buoy wave gauges pick up the anomalous wave easily -- it will be completely different than the general patterns of swells and seas.

 
Carl has a bachelors degree and some graduate work in geology and a few years of field experience in California.  And out here in California, seismology is a spectator sport.  We can take a picnic lunch and go watch the North American Plate grind against the East Pacific Plate just outside of town.

Google hell!  However, I will admit to a bit of judicious Wikipedia-ing.  8)
 
carson said:
  What me worry?..I live in Florida elevation 100', 4 miles from the water.

Carson,

I think I heard that the tsunami reached inland 6 miles in one place. 

Betty
 
Betty,  A huge tsunami attacking Florida would submerge a lot of FL. Luckily my house is on one the few mountains...err hills here, 100' elevation. Yet 1 mile from my house downhill would be at 7' ASL.(above sea level).  Japan, what a tragedy.

carson

 
Well, it didn't reach Michigan.  I went down to The River and all I saw was chunks of ice bobbing around.  Looked south into Canada and all I saw was a couple Canadians drinking beer and sun bathing.  It's above 32F and summer has come to the mid-west!!!!
 
That fellow that tried to take some pic's of the tsunami near the Klamath River should be a candidate for the Darwin Awards... http://www.darwinawards.com/  Just another case of 'Nature' thinning out the herd... ???
 
5 were swept away on Oregon and California coast (as posted by Marc L).
http://www.koinlocal6.com/news/local/story/Tsunami-sweeps-5-out-to-sea-in-Oregon-and/NP4mzoo5jEmqzJnQw7BD3g.cspx

Most damage was north of SF bay to far Southern Oregon coast.
 

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