Powerful tsunami on Australian east coast is inevitable - Australian Tsunami Research Centre

AS recently as 500 years ago tsunamis more powerful than any in recent centuries swept the South Pacific and experts believe even bigger waves will come and almost certainly hit Australia's east coast.

James Goff, one of the world's foremost authorities on tsunamis, said lessons can be learned from history.

"There will definitely be bigger events than we have ever known and it is inevitable that a significant tsunami will hit eastern Australia," Professor Goff, director of the Australian Tsunami Research Centre, told a Melbourne conference.

While the understanding of tsunamis is relatively simplistic, Prof Goff said there is enough knowledge to make certain conclusions possible.

One of the certainties is that in 1460 a massive volcano near Vanuatu collapsed, releasing forces 10 times that experienced when the Indonesian volcanic island of Krakatoa exploded in 1883.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national/powerful-tsunami-on-australian-east-coast-is-inevitable-australian-tsunami-research-centre/story-e6frfkvr-1226087395095#ixzz1RIFfT3oD