Subduction Propagation
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Subduction Propagation animation
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As the tsunami moves across the open ocean it is almost undetectable on the ocean surface.
In this example, the tsunami waves are only about half a metre high but have a wavelength of 200 kilometres. Travelling at speeds of up to eight or nine hundred kilometres an hour (the speed of a commercial passenger jet), it will take each wave about 15 minutes to pass a slow moving ship.
Topic contact: hazards@ga.gov.au Last updated: October 27, 2011
