[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/6474\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003EScientists investigate how to defend Europe against tsunamis\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003ETsunamis are a series of waves mainly caused by undersea earthquakes which can leave huge death tolls and destruction in their wake, and can only be predicted after the occurrence of the earthquake. They claimed the lives of approximately 230 000 people in Indonesia in 2004, 525 people in Chile in 2010, and 15 000 people in Japan in 2011.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERising sea levels may mean that future tsunamis will have a greater impact when they happen, as more water will flood the affected area.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWhat\u2019s more, while headlines in recent years have come from outside of Europe, our coastlines have also experienced tsunamis in the past, particularly around the north-east Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Researchers say these areas face an increasing level of risk due to the year-round presence of millions of tourists and the placement of critical infrastructure along the shores.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0027tableauPlaceholder\u0027 id=\u0027viz1476109517033\u0027 style=\u0027position: relative\u0027\u003E\u003Cnoscript\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003E\u003Cimg alt=\u0027Deadliest tsunamis in Europe 365-2016 \u0027 src=\u0027https:\u0026#47;\u0026#47;public.tableau.com\u0026#47;static\u0026#47;images\u0026#47;ts\u0026#47;tsunamiseu\u0026#47;Dashboard1\u0026#47;1_rss.png\u0027 style=\u0027border: none\u0027 \/\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/noscript\u003E\u003Cobject class=\u0027tableauViz\u0027 style=\u0027display:none;\u0027\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027host_url\u0027 value=\u0027https%3A%2F%2Fpublic.tableau.com%2F\u0027 \/\u003E \u003Cparam name=\u0027site_root\u0027 value=\u0027\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027name\u0027 value=\u0027tsunamiseu\u0026#47;Dashboard1\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027tabs\u0027 value=\u0027no\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027toolbar\u0027 value=\u0027no\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027static_image\u0027 value=\u0027https:\u0026#47;\u0026#47;public.tableau.com\u0026#47;static\u0026#47;images\u0026#47;ts\u0026#47;tsunamiseu\u0026#47;Dashboard1\u0026#47;1.png\u0027 \/\u003E \u003Cparam name=\u0027animate_transition\u0027 value=\u0027yes\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027display_static_image\u0027 value=\u0027yes\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027display_spinner\u0027 value=\u0027no\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027display_overlay\u0027 value=\u0027no\u0027 \/\u003E\u003Cparam name=\u0027display_count\u0027 value=\u0027no\u0027 \/\u003E\u003C\/object\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E \u003Cscript type=\u0027text\/javascript\u0027\u003E var divElement = document.getElementById(\u0027viz1476109517033\u0027); var vizElement = divElement.getElementsByTagName(\u0027object\u0027)[0]; vizElement.style.width=\u0027100%\u0027;vizElement.style.height=(divElement.offsetWidth*0.75)+\u0027px\u0027; var scriptElement = document.createElement(\u0027script\u0027); scriptElement.src = \u0027https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/javascripts\/api\/viz_v1.js\u0027; vizElement.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, vizElement); \u003C\/script\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs a result, scientists on the EU-funded ASTARTE project are helping to develop a tsunami warning system that is able to more accurately forecast when Europe is at risk and will allow authorities to take swift action.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProfessor Maria Ana Baptista, who coordinates ASTARTE, said: \u2018We would like to be able to save all lives in every single event, to reach zero casualties.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Tsunamis are a global problem, not a local problem, and European scientists should be in the forefront of research.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EScientists have gotten faster at predicting tsunamis in recent years, though there haven\u2019t been many opportunities to test this.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe challenge is that tsunamis can only be predicted after the undersea earthquake occurs, and in the Northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean areas, that could mean only 10-30 minutes before they hit the shore.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearchers on ASTARTE are now testing technology to quickly determine sea-floor movement and so give us an indication of how likely an area is to experience a tsunami.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe project is also examining a wide range of methods for improving resilience against tsunamis, from bolstering coastal defences and creating hazard maps to running informational training for coastguards on how to evacuate in the case of a tsunami.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EInundation maps\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearchers are working at nine test sites in Europe, where they have created tsunami inundation maps displaying what regions are most likely to be affected and how. They are also designing evacuation routes and educational programmes to train civil defence forces, coast guards and regional authorities.\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018We would like to be able to save all lives in every single event, to reach zero casualties.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EProfessor Maria Ana Baptista, Instituto Portugu\u00eas do Mar e da Atmosfera, Portugal\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProf. Baptista says that it\u2019s important to educate all people across Europe, even those living in inland areas. \u2018Tourists go all over the world. You can think that tsunamis are not so frequent in Europe. But the fact is that most European tourists travel to disaster-prone areas, so they must understand what is the phenomena and what to do, and how to become more resilient.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProfessor Tiziana Rossetto from University College London, UK, agrees that tsunamis can have a global impact, and not just a physical one.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We\u2019re globalised now, so any damage that happens to the built infrastructure and businesses in other countries can also affect the European economy,\u2019 she said. \u2018So damage to the economy in Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand or South America will affect us, and these are all areas that are affected by tsunami, which are such major events and which devastate such large proportions of the coastline and result in major loss of life.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EProf. Rossetto works on the UrbanWaves project, funded by the EU\u2019s European Research Council, which is examining how tsunamis affect coastal structures, and how coastal defences could be improved to withstand tsunamis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHer project is using brand new technology to generate tsunami-like waves in a laboratory, where the effects of tsunami on coastal buildings can be measured.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe research team built a series of flumes - huge tanks which generate mini-tsunamis - with which they run tests using model buildings to assess the damage caused. They invented a completely new kind of wave generator, which uses suction to suck air out of the tank and create really long waves, similar to tsunamis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Traditional generators are like pistons, they push the water. Our generators are more like a big tank that sucks the water up and pushes it down,\u2019 said Prof. Rossetto.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018These long, long waves are showing us completely different things from the shorter waves. In terms of understanding tsunamis, they\u2019re for the first time giving us some realistic data. It\u2019s different from what was done before.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EUsing these huge tanks, plus model buildings and coastal defences, the researchers can effectively calculate what kinds of structures could potentially withstand tsunamis.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It\u2019s designing the engineering guidance for structures to resist tsunamis or to be assessed for their damage in the case of a tsunami,\u2019 said Prof. Rossetto.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHer team has already created some simple formulations for the forces on structures from tsunamis, and this research could help make certain important structures like nuclear reactors tsunami-proof.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThey\u2019ve also looked at designing evacuation routes for cities, like ASTARTE, but Prof. Rossetto\u2019s research is looking at improving the design of buildings and tsunami-proof coastal defences which could provide civilians with a safe harbour to ride out the flood.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-5t3-1qssu1rkfusmixrbblxbond9wrqjc45qqcre6om\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-5T3-1QsSU1rKfUSMixRBbLxboNd9WrqjC45QqcrE6oM\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]