Abstract
A tsunami magnitude scale Mt is unique among the many scales in seismology, because it is based on instrumental tsunami-wave amplitude, its level being adjusted to agree with moment magnitude of an earthquake. Despite the simple definition, the Mt scale reliably measures the physical size of an earthquake as well as the overall potential of a tsunami. By taking account of the definition of Mt and the scaling relation of earthquake fault parameters, a method for estimating tsunami run-up heights from earthquake magnitudes is developed. The application of the method to a number of the height data of previous tsunamis suggests that the uncertainty lies within a factor of 1.5. For practical purposes, the relationships discussed here are summarized into a simple diagram. The present method is practical and robust enough to be used for near-field tsunami warning purposes where rapid evaluation of tsunami heights is required.
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© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Abe, K. (1995). Estimate of Tsunami Run-up Heights from Earthquake Magnitudes. In: Tsuchiya, Y., Shuto, N. (eds) Tsunami: Progress in Prediction, Disaster Prevention and Warning. Advances in Natural and Technological Hazards Research, vol 4. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8565-1_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8565-1_2
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