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Note on the 1964 Alaska Tsunami Generation by Horizontal Displacements of Ocean Bottom. Numerical Modeling of the Runup in Chenega Cove, Alaska

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Abstract

A numerical model of the wave dynamics in Chenega Cove, Alaska during the historic M w 9.2 megathrust earthquake is presented. During the earthquake, locally generated waves of unknown origin were identified at the village of Chenega, located in the western part of Prince William Sound. The waves appeared shortly after the shaking began and swept away most of the buildings while the shaking continued. We model the tectonic tsunami in Chenega Cove assuming different tsunami generation processes. Modeled results are compared with eyewitness reports and an observed runup. Results of the numerical experiments let us claim the importance of including both vertical and horizontal displacement into the 1964 tsunami generation process. We also present an explanation for the fact that arrivals of later waves in Chenega were unnoticed.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank S. Tinti, J. Stroh and others for all their valuable advice, critique and reassurances along the way. We are thankful to reviewers and the editor for valuable suggestions making the manuscript easier to read and understand. This study was supported by NOAA grants 27-014d and 06-028a through Cooperative Institute for Arctic Research. Numerical calculations for this work are supported by a grant of High Performance Computing resources from the Arctic Region Supercomputing Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks as part of the US Department of Defense HPC Modernization Program.

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Correspondence to D. J. Nicolsky.

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Nicolsky, D.J., Suleimani, E.N. & Hansen, R.A. Note on the 1964 Alaska Tsunami Generation by Horizontal Displacements of Ocean Bottom. Numerical Modeling of the Runup in Chenega Cove, Alaska. Pure Appl. Geophys. 170, 1433–1447 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-012-0483-7

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