5 Quick Facts about Tsunami
- Tsunami is a Japanese word meaning harbour (tsu) wave (nami).
- Animals can sense a Tsunami approaching because of their superior sense of hearing. People who have survived Tsunamis say that it sounds like standing near a moving freight train.
- There are Tsunami warning systems attached to buoys in the ocean that transmit data about the ocean and serve as a warning system.
- If the water along a shoreline begins to recede dramatically, it most likely means that a tsunami will follow in a few seconds or minutes.
- A tsunami is not just one wave but a series of waves or a “wave train.”
Did you know?
- When tsunamis are near the coast, they slow down but increase in height.
- Tsunamis used to be referred to as tidal waves but aren’t anymore because they have nothing to do with the tides.
- Some tsunamis may not appear on shore as a huge wave but as a quickly surging tide.
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