Journal of Earthquake and Tsunami最新文献

Tsunamis, such as the 2004 Indian and 2011 Japan tsunamis, routinely cause severe damage along coasts. Coastal vegetation serves as an excellent, naturally occurring protection from tsunamis. However, prior studies focusing on the wave attenuation by vegetation assumed that solitary waves would adequately represent the major aspects of tsunamis. However, there are substantial differences between solitary tsunami waves with regards to their wave profiles and how it evolves with time. This study aims to improve our understanding of the wave-vegetation interactions by employing a more realistic wave profile (tsunami-like instead of solitary). This work uses measurements obtained during the 2011 Japan tsunami to parameterize the observed tsunami-like wave profile, which is then used to investigate the wave-vegetation interaction on a sloped beach, using a nonhydrostatic wave (NHWAVE) model. The work investigates the efficiency of vegetated sloped beach in mitigating the maximum run-up height and total wave energy as function of wave height, water depth, vegetation width, vegetation density and wave model (solitary vs. tsunami-like). Results show that a vegetated sloped beach is effective in reducing the wave energy of both kinds of waves. However, when a solitary wave is used, the vegetation patch is shown to be relatively better at attenuating wave energy and in reducing maximum run-up heights. The findings indicate that the solitary wave model overestimates protections afforded by coastal vegetation, and that it underestimates maximum run-up heights. The findings drawn from this study further broaden our understanding on the wave attenuation of tsunami surges and waves by a vegetated sloped beach.

Tsunamis induced by megathrust in the Manila subduction zone impose alarming threats to the coastal cities in the northern South China Sea (SCS), and risk assessment of tsunami hazards in this region becomes demanding. One distinguishable geographic feature in this region is Dongsha Atoll, which is situated between the tsunami source zone and the China coastline. This study discusses the role of the Dongsha Atoll in modifying the tsunami impacts through numerical simulations of a group of synthetic tsunami events with $M_w=9$. Three types of representations for the Atoll in the numerical simulations are employed, specifically (i) the real topo-bathymetry of the Atoll is fully resolved (Model-1), (ii) the Atoll is removed (Model-2), and (iii) the Atoll is artificially represented by a cylinder (Model-3). The results show that without the Dongsha Atoll presence (Model-2), the tsunamis can induce a substantial increment of water level behind the Atoll and in the vicinity of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region in China. While the results obtained by realistically modeling the Atoll (Model-1) show that a large amount of tsunami wave energy/momentum can be entrapped by the lagoon and slowly radiated to the ocean. The interactions between the tsunamis and the Atoll will lead to severe flooding on the Dongsha Island on the west bank of the Atoll. However, the peak water levels behind the Atoll and at the selected mainland coastal sites are reduced, indicating that the Dongsha Atoll can offer some degree of protection for the region in its behind. Meanwhile, a slightly smaller reduction of tsunami heights is reported in the simulations with the Atoll being represented by a cylinder (Model-3), implying that the reduction effects are sensitive to the representations of the Atoll. Therefore, the full model of the topo-bathymetry of the Dongsha Atoll is recommended for future tsunami risk assessments for both Dongsha Atoll and the mainland in the SCS region.