Tsunami - http://www.tmba.tv/broadcastanimation/weathergraphics/what-casues-a-tsunami/ What Causes a Tsunami- TMBA created this 3d animation for the Discovery Channel to explain to viewers how shifting tectonic plates can cause a Tsunami.

Tsunami is a Japanese word which means "harbor wave." In the past these damaging ocean waves were sometimes known as tidal waves but, the term fell out of favor with the scientific community, because tsunamis have nothing to do with tides. Over 80% of tsunamis form in the Pacific Rim region. There is a geographically active area there known as the "Ring of Fire," which is prone to volcanoes and earthquakes due to the existence of tectonic plate boundaries in the ocean floor. Tsunami facts can be difficult to understand and scientists are still attempting to determine what causes them and how to predict them earlier so lives can be saved.

The earth is actually made up of huge "plates" like a jigsaw puzzle. Where these plates fit together is known as the plate boundary. The causes of a tsunami are the plates when they shift against each other. In a divergent plate boundary, the plates move away from each other. Where there is a convergent plate boundary the plates push toward each other or collide. Transform boundaries are formed where plates shift past each other horizontally.

If the there is a shift, like an earthquake, on the ocean floor and a plate boundary rises or falls, it displaces the water above. The destructive force causes a tsunami to form.

To learn more about what causes a tsunami you can visit the TMBA website: http://www.tmba.tv/broadcastanimation/weathergraphics/what-casues-a-tsunami/

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