NOAA
What are they?
Tsunami Warning Centres Overview
Tsunami Warning Centres – An Overview
Laura Kong (ITIC), Charles McCreery (PTWC), Masahiro Yamamoto (IOC)
April 2008, Sept 2010, Nov 2013
When a major undersea earthquake occurs near the coast and at a shallow depth, there is a possibility that a destructive tsunami can be generated that will impact near-by coasts within minutes and that can also traverse across entire ocean basins to wreak havoc 1000’s of kilometers away and up to 24 hours later. To alert far-away coasts, internationally-coordinated tsunami early warning systems have been established to provide alerts to countries on regionalto- distant tsunamis. For local tsunamis, pre-event education is absolutely critical; citizens must recognize the tsunami natural warning signs and be prepared to immediately self-evacuate since national tsunami warning centers and emergency agencies may not be able to provide timely warnings to all.
Pacific Tsunami Warning
PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING SYSTEM
PTWS OPERATIONAL USERS GUIDE, SECTIONS 2 and 3.
(as of October 2008, updated through 2018)
The Pacific Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (TWS) is coordinated through the UNESCO IOC’s Intergovernmental Co-ordination Group for the Pacific Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (ICG/PTWS). One of its most important activities is ensure the timely issuance of tsunami warnings and advisories. The Pacific TWS, through its Tsunami Service Providers (TSPs), provide international threat information to countries that have officially designated Tsunami Warning Focal Points (TWFP). The primary objective of each TSP is to continuously detect and locate major earthquakes in its Area of Service, determine whether they have generated tsunamis, and provide timely and effective tsunami information to designated national authorities. National authorities, such as National Tsunami Warning Centers or Disaster Management Officers, than have the responsibility to warn their coastal communities to minimize the hazards of tsunamis, especially to human life and welfare.
Caribbean Tsunami Watch
CARIBBEAN AND ADJACENT REGIONS
INTERIM TSUNAMI ADVISORY SERVICE
In order to take steps to establish a coordinated early warning system for tsunamis and other coastal hazards, countries of the Caribbean region formed the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Tsunami and Other Coastal Hazards Warning System for the Caribbean Sea and Adjacent Regions (ICG/CARIBE-EWS) in 2006. At that time, it will realized that it would likely be some time before the required infrastructure could be put in place, training was complete, and the region able to fully provide warning services for itself.
Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System
The Intergovernmental Coordination Group for the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (ICG/IOTWS) coordinates the Indian Ocean wide tsunami warning system that has been established as a network of national systems. The network is comprised of National Tsunami Warning Centres (NTWC) in each Member State receiving tsunami advisories from Regional Tsunami Advisory Services Providers (RTSPs) that issue regional tsunami bulletins for the Indian Ocean. Under the ICG/IOTWS, the RTSPs (Australia, India and Indonesia), which have been in operation since October 2011, are the primary source of tsunami advisories for the Indian Ocean.
Read more: Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System
Quick Links
Resources
Tsunami Awareness Poster
Available in English, Spanish, Chinese, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Singalese.
Global & Regional Hazard Maps
Tsunami Sources, Significant Earthquakes, Significant Volcanic Eruptions, Tsunami Icosohedron Globe.
TsunamiTeacher USA
Tsunami Basics
Also on YouTube
(w/closed captioning)
Learn the basics of tsunamis. Available in English, Samoan.