The 2004 Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami
Summary
In this multi-part activity, students study seismograms from different seismic stations recording the Sumatra earthquake of December 26th, 2004 and then determine the epicenter of the quake and track the tsunami it generated in order to quantify how much time was available for exacuation if word had been successfully communicated.
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Context
Audience
This activity is broadly applicable to grades 9-13 earth system, oceanography, and geology courses.
Skills and concepts that students must have mastered
Adding and subtracting time, simple internet searches.
How the activity is situated in the course
The activity is appropriate for introductory-level students with little previous experience.
Goals
Content/concepts goals for this activity
- Students will be able to determine the epicenter location and origin time of the earthquake using P and S wave travel times drawn from actual seismograph output.
- Students will be able to describe the propagation of the tsnuami waves as a function of time and determine the amount of warning different communities could have had before being affected by the waves.
- Students will explore cross sectional diagrams and surface features to draw the plate boundary that the quake occurred on.
- Students will explore ways in which various locations might have been spared some of the enormous loss of life through analysis of their data, studying videos, images, and news reports, and learning about existing warning systems in the Pacific Basin.
Higher order thinking skills goals for this activity
Other skills goals for this activity
Description of the activity/assignment
In this multi-part activity, students study seismograms from 3 different seismic stations recording the magnitude 9.0 Sumatra earthquake of December 26th, 2004. By comparing the arrival times of the P and S waves on each seismogram, students determine the distance from the epicenter to each station. Using that data, they can accurately map the location of the epicenter and the precise time of the earthquake. After locating the epicenter, students calculate the position of the tsunami generated by the quake at one hour intervals. From those determinations, predictions are made about how much time people had before the tsunami crashed onto their shores. Finally, students investigate some of the ways people can lessen the impact of the next great tsunami.
Determining whether students have met the goals
Students are graded on the work that they complete on the activity sheet as well as on parallel activities.
Teaching materials and tips
The activity is available for download (.doc and .pdf formats) from the website set up by the authors.
Author Dave Robison's webpage has more information that instructors may find helpful (link may be down)
Other Materials
Additional siesmograms for the earthquake are available so that instructors can customize the activity for their students.
Aside from the resources in the activity sheet, this activity requires the use of a drawing compass and scratch paper for calculations. Access to the internet is also recommended to take advantage of web resources listed in the activity, and to find specific (and updated) information regarding casualties and warning systems.
Supporting references/URLs
- A website by the authors regarding the development of the activity with links to some of the sources of data used in the activity.
- Robison, D. and S. Kluge (2005). The Sumatra Earthquake and Tsunami of December 2004: A Comprehensive Inquiry-Based Exercise for High School Earth Science Classes. The Earth Scientist, 21(2), 30. (Full Text of the issue is available as a PDF on the NESTA website.)