Reviewing the hazard models of tsunamis and earthquakes: this is what the research conducted by the University of New Mexico and published in the journal Nature Geoscience suggests, according to which in some areas the risks are higher than previously estimated.
At the same time, another study on Nature Communication, led by researchers from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (Ingv) and the universities of Padua and Pisa, tests in the laboratory that some materials from the seabed can favor the generation of tsunamis. "Understanding the chemical-physical properties of the marine subsoil and identifying its real movements before and during an earthquake is fundamental for understanding tsunamis," Stefano Aretusini of Ingv told ANSA.
One of the most important tools available to quantify the risk of a new earthquake in a specific region, in particular around the so-called subduction zones, is given by the analysis of the displacements between the various plates because knowing the movements and intensity of the thrusts it is possible to estimate the energy accumulated in specific points and predict risks of breakage, therefore earthquakes.
But it is not always possible to measure these displacements: the dynamics of the subsoil can be invisible from the outside. The new method of analysis, through data collected by GPS instruments, developed by American researchers, however, would be able to 'look' even in the deepest areas, and do it with great precision. What emerges is that the risk of very violent tsunamis could be much higher than previously thought.
