Canadian-led researchers have analyzed more than 100 tide readings recorded in the wake of the December 2004 Sumatra earthquake and resulting tsunami.
The tsunami propagated waves across the world's oceans, making it the first such event to be scrutinized with continuous observations by widespread oceanic monitoring networks.
The researchers, led by Richard Thomson of the Canadian Institute of Ocean Sciences, analyzed tide records from the Atlantic coast of North America. They said they determined the tsunami wave was detected in most outer tide gauges from Florida to Nova Scotia, reaching maximum heights of 1.1 feet in some areas.
However, along the shores of Maine and Nova Scotia the arrival of the tsunami coincided with the presence of tsunami-like waves generated by a major storm tracking northward along the U.S. eastern seaboard. The combined waves reached heights of more than 3.3 feet.
Although the Atlantic Ocean has low tsunami hazards, researchers warn tsunamis from distant seismic events could threaten coastal infrastructure and habitat when the waves coincide with winter storm waves.
The study that included researchers from the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology in Moscow and the University of Victoria appears in Geophysical Research Letters.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
