MOIST
Multidisciplinary Oceanic Information SysTem

NEAREST project

Integrated observation from NEAR shore sourcES of Tsunami: Towards an early warning system

Period: October 2006 - May 2010

Link: http://nearest.bo.ismar.cnr.it/
Contact: Paolo Favali

Description:

NEAREST is addressed to the identification and characterization of potential tsunami sources located near shore in the Gulf of Cadiz; the improvement of near-real time detection of signals by a multiparameter seafloor observatory for the characterisation of potential tsunamigenic sources to be used in the development of an Early Warning System (EWS) Prototype; the improvement of integrated numerical models enabling more accurate scenarios of tsunami impact and the production of accurate maps in selected areas of the Algarve (SW Portugal), highly hit by the 1755 tsunamis. In this area, highly populated and prone to devastating earthquakes and tsunamis, excellent geological/geophysical knowledge has already been acquired in the last decade.
The methodological approach will be based on the cross-checking of multiparameter time series acquired on land by seismic and tide gauge stations on the seafloor and in the water column by broad band Ocean Bottom Seismometers and a multiparameter deep-sea platform, this latter equipped with real-time communication to an onshore warning centre. Land and sea data will be integrated to be used in a protptype of EWS.
NEAREST will search for sedimentological evidence of tsunamis records to improve the knowledge on the recurrence time for extreme events and will try to measure the key parameters for the comprehension of the tsunami generation mechanisms.
The prposed method can be extended to other near-shore potential tsunamigenic sources, as for instance the Central Mediterranean (Western Ionian Sea), Aegean Arc and Marmara Sea.