How is a tsunami wave different from a normal wave?
The waves you see at the beach are generated by wind blowing over the sea surface. The size of these waves depends on the strength of the wind creating them and the distance over which it blows. Generally the distance between these waves, known as the wavelength, ranges from a couple of feet to perhaps a thousand feet. The speed of these waves as they travel across the ocean ranges from a few miles an hour up to sixty miles an hour in some instances. Tsunami waves resulting from physical mechanisms (see above question) behave much differently than wind generated waves. The magnitude of the disturbance causing the tsunami is the primary factor influencing the size and strength of the waves. The height of the wave when it is generated is very small, usually less than a few feet. The distance between successive wave crests or the wavelength however, is much larger than that of a normal wave and may be hundreds of miles apart. Depending on the depth of the water in which the tsunami is tra
