Tsunamigenic potential of a Holocene submarine landslide along the North Anatolian Fault (northern Aegean Sea, off Thasos island): insights from numerical modelling
<p>The North Anatolian Fault in the northern Aegean Sea triggers frequent earthquakes of magnitudes up to <span class="inline-formula"><i>M</i><sub>w</sub>∼7</span>. This seismicity can be a source of modest tsunamis for the surrounding coastlines...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2019-01-01
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| Series: | Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences |
| Online Access: | https://www.nat-hazards-earth-syst-sci.net/19/121/2019/nhess-19-121-2019.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>The North Anatolian Fault in the northern Aegean Sea triggers frequent
earthquakes of magnitudes up to <span class="inline-formula"><i>M</i><sub>w</sub>∼7</span>. This seismicity can be
a source of modest tsunamis for the surrounding coastlines with less than
<span class="inline-formula">50</span> <span class="inline-formula">cm</span> height according to numerical modelling and analysis of
tsunami deposits. However, other tsunami sources may be involved, like
submarine landslides. We assess the severity of this potential hazard by
performing numerical simulations of tsunami generation and propagation from a
Holocene landslide (<span class="inline-formula">1.85</span> <span class="inline-formula">km<sup>3</sup></span> in volume) identified off Thasos. We
use a model coupling the simulation of the submarine landslide, assimilated
to a granular flow, to the propagation of the tsunami wave. The results of
these simulations show that a tsunami wave of water height between <span class="inline-formula">1.10</span> and
<span class="inline-formula">1.65</span> <span class="inline-formula">m</span> reaches the coastline at Alexandroupoli
(58 000 inhabitants) 1 h after the triggering of the landslide. In the same
way, tsunami waves of water height between <span class="inline-formula">0.80</span> and <span class="inline-formula">2.00</span> <span class="inline-formula">m</span> reach
the coastline of the Athos peninsula <span class="inline-formula">9</span> <span class="inline-formula">min</span> after the triggering of
the landslide. Despite numerous earthquakes of <span class="inline-formula"><i>M</i><sub>w</sub>>7</span> and strong detrital input (on the order of <span class="inline-formula">30</span> <span class="inline-formula">cm ka<sup>−1</sup></span>), only
a few Holocene landslides have been recognized so far, asking for tsunami
recurrence in this area.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1561-8633 1684-9981 |