Tsunamis

Tsunamis are a series of waves that sends surges of water onto a piece of land.  They can reach heights up to 100 feet.  These massive walls of water can destroy a huge destruction when they crash the shoreline.  These jaw-dropping waves are usually caused by underwater earthquakes within tectonic plate boundaries.  When the ocean floor at one of these boundaries rises or falls unexpectedly, it displaces the water above and shoots the on going waves which will then become a Tsunami.  Approximately 80% of Tsunamis occur with the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire" which is where many tectonic shifts create volcanoes and earthquakes normal.

Tsunamis can speed across the ocean at 500mph, which is just about as fast as a jet airplane.  If that pace is constant, it can make it across the entire Pacific in less than a day!  And because of their long wavelength's, Tsunamis lose very little energy throughout its course.  It is usually composed of multiple waves, called a wave train.  The best way to help defend a tsunami is an early warning that lets people reach higher ground.  "The Pacific Tsunami Warning System is a coalition of 26 nations headquartered in Hawaii.  It maintains a web of seismic equipment and water level gauges to identify tsunamis at sea.  Similar systems are proposed to protect coastal areas worldwide."

website http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/tsunami-profile/
picture:  www.youtube.com