Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
LOCATION
LAT
LON
TIME
AMPL
-------------------------------------
-------
--------
-----------
-----------
30MIN
TALCAHUANO C
36.7S
73.1W
0659UTC 1.8M/6.0FT
22MIN
VALPARAISO C
33.0S
71.4W
0659UTC 1.69M/5.7FT
20MIN
CORRAL CHILE
39.9S
73.4W
0729UTC 1.45M/4.8FT
14MIN
SAN FELIX C
26.3S
80.1W
0809UTC 0.69M/2.3FT
TIME - TIME OF MEASUREMENT
AMPL - TSUNAMI AMPLITUDES ARE MEASURED RELATIVE TO NORMAL SEA LEVEL.
IT IS ...NOT... CREST-TO-TROUGH WAVE HEIGHT.
VALUES ARE GIVEN IN BOTH METERS (M) AND FEET (FT).
AT 1034 PM PACIFIC STANDARD TIME ON FEBRUARY 26 AN EARTHQUAKE WITH PRELIMINARY
MAGNITUDE 8.8 (REVISED FROM 8.6) OCCURRED NEAR THE COAST OF CENTRAL CHILE.
THE PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER IN EWA BEACH HAWAII WILL ISSUE A TSUNAMI
WARNING FOR REGIONS NEAR THE EPICENTER.
MESSAGES WILL CONTINUE TO BE ISSUED HOURLY BY THE WC/ATWC UNTIL THE EVENT STATUS
IS UPGRADED TO A WARNING OR ADVISORY OR UNTIL THE CENTER HAS DETERMINED THAT THE
EVENT POSES NO THREAT TO THE CALIFORNIA/ OREGON/ WASHINGTON/ BRITISH COLUMBIA AND
ALASKA COASTS. SEE THE WEB SITE WCATWC.ARH.NOAA.GOV FOR BASIC TSUNAMI INFORMATION
- SAFETY RULES AND TSUNAMI TRAVEL TIMES.
become warnings. Another current inconsistency is how the TWCs and the NWS deal with
“all-clears.” The TWCs cancel a bulletin, which could be read by the public as a signal that it
is safe to return, which is not the same as an “all-clear” issued by the NWS. The NWS will soon
move from using the “alert bulletin system” to an “impact-based system,” which will introduce
another inconsistency with the TWCs. An additional potential source of confusion stems from
the fact that “information statements” are used for conveying two different types of messages:
irst to convey some initial information and the notion to stay tuned for more, and second to
convey that a certain earthquake has not generated a tsunami.
Recommendation:
The NOAA/NWS should remedy current differences between the
TWC's and the NWS's warning products and ensure consistency in the future. A mechanism
should be put in place so that pending and future inconsistencies are quickly identiied
and acted upon so that products from the TWCs and the NWS match.
