Matthew C. Brown and J. Gabriel Clapper
Departments of Computer Science and Multimedia Arts & Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Susan Reiser, Department of Computer Science and Multimedia Arts & Sciences
Tsunamis are waves produced by underwater seismic events. They can form thousands of miles from land (thus traveling for hours before striking) or can form near shore taking only minutes before impact. It is thus important to understand the phenomenon and what makes certain regions more “at risk” for particularly destructive tsunamis. The project's original hypothesis concerned the accuracy of popular media animations in displaying tsunamis striking the shore. However, subsequent research has changed the study to become focused on of the effects of the local shore terrain on the breaking of tsunami waves. Generic models of various types of coastlines were developed in accordance to literature and topographic maps. The study then subjected these terrains to tsunamis generated using fluid dynamics in Blender, an open-source 3-D animation package. The results will help to determine how dramatic the tsunami might be when striking similar coasts in the real world.
