Title: Tsunami: Maine's Geologic Hazards: Maine Geological Survey: Maine ACF
Headings: Tsunamis in the Atlantic Ocean
Tsunamis in the Atlantic Ocean
Background
What is a tsunami?
How big can tsunami get?
What was the most devastating recorded tsunami?
Tsunamis in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea
Large Historic Tsunamis in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea (abbreviated list)
Tsunamis in the Gulf of Maine
Tsunami Threat to the East Coast of the United States and New England
Caribbean Islands - Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions
North Carolina/Virginia Continental Shelf - Submarine Landslide
Volcanic Eruption and Landslide - La Palma, Canary Islands
Tsunami Monitoring Systems
So should we be worried in Maine?
Selected Bibliography
Originally published on the web as the January 2005 Site of the Month.

Content: Note: Wave heights and slopes are exaggerated in comparison to water depths. Figure 3 summarizes how the characteristics of a tsunami change as the wave propagates through deep water towards the coastline. Figure 3. Image showing the characteristics of a tsunami as it passes through the mid-ocean and approaches a coastline. Note the high speed (>400 mph in 4000 m depth), large wavelength (213 km), and low amplitude (usually a meter or less) of the wave as it passes through deep water. Because of their large wavelength and deep water (thus low amplitude), most tsunamis pass in the mid-ocean unnoticed. However, as the wave encounters shallower water, its velocity slows, wavelength decreases, and its amplitude increases ( image from GlobalSecurity.org ). When a tsunami reaches a coastline, several key factors influence its destructive force. These are the height of the tsunami, its runup height, and its runup distance.