Plate tectonics, earthquakes & tsunamis Ken Hudnut U. S. Geological Survey GATE Geology Paradise Canyon Elementary School La Canada, California 9 March 2005

2 GATE Plate tectonics, earthquakes and tsunamis Part 1 - plate tectonics Part 1 - plate tectonics Part 2 - earthquakes Part 2 - earthquakes Part 3 - tsunamis Part 3 - tsunamis Part 4 - California hazards & help to design a better tsunami alert system Part 4 - California hazards & help to design a better tsunami alert system

3 GATE Earthquakes & People Earthquakes sometimes hit big cities

4 GATE If you feel an earth- quake, get to high ground!

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6 GATE HMS Scott

7 GATE Large bedforms

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NOAA buoy SystemDART

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13 GATE Does So. California have a tsunami hazard and risk? Yes!Yes! Damage in the 1964 Alaska tsunami at LA/Long BeachDamage in the 1964 Alaska tsunami at LA/Long Beach 1812 Santa Barbara earthquake had a 50-foot high tsunami at Gaviota1812 Santa Barbara earthquake had a 50-foot high tsunami at Gaviota EarthquakesEarthquakes Offshore slumpingOffshore slumping Harbors would have only a 10 to 30 minute warning time possibleHarbors would have only a 10 to 30 minute warning time possible

15 GATE Can we design a better tsunami alert system?  Reduce false alarms  don’t cause panic; educate people on how to react  Warn everybody - needs to be in the right language  Broadcast  Radio  TV  Satellite telecommunication  Cell phone  GPS  Sirens or Loudspeakers? One can trigger the next so as to propagate the alarm rapidly (not backwards, don’t want to jam comm’s with a back- propagating notification)  Buoy system can directly notify and propagate alert signal through satellite and all other telecomm links immediately  Airplane, blimp or helicopter with loudspeakers or sign towed behind it?

16 GATE Can we design a better tsunami evacuation, safety and survival system? (some of the solutions need to work even for very low-lying islands and other coastal plain areas)  Underground bunker (waterproof hatches like a submarine)  Strong tall buildings with extra capacity stairwells for people to run up very quickly to higher levels where it’s safe, and lots of emergency supplies, water and food stored up high  Could have a big red flashing light and siren on top  Boats with large capacity that can launch quickly and get out into deep water very fast  Airplanes with large capacity that can get airborne quickly  Helicopters with tremendous lifting capacity so that they can sling-load many people to safe high ground, load after load  Special roads heading straight to high ground, which could have special high-capacity cars to move quickly and make many trips back and forth to shuttle many people