Major Tsunamis in the Sea of Japan Based on Instrumental Observations

Abstract— The Sea of Japan is a seismically active zone under high risk from tsunami waves. The destructive tsunamis that occur in this region can cause severe damage and loss of life. An overview of the most important tsunami events observed in this region in the 20th–21st centuries is presented. Eight events in the Sea of Japan were selected for consideration, including one volcanogenic tsunami: 1940 (M_w 7.5), 1964 (M_w 7.5–7.7), 1971 (M_w 7.3), 1983 (M_w 7.7–7.8), 1993 (M_w 7.7), 2007 (M_w 6.2), 2011 (M_w 9.0–9.1), and 2022 (volcanic). Particular attention was paid to the tsunamis of 1983 and 1993. Numerical simulations of the tsunami arising from these two events were compared to the corresponding waveforms derived from actual tide gauge records. Of the eight tsunami events examined, the 2011 Tohoku and 2022 Tonga events had external sources located outside of the Sea of Japan but generated tsunamis directly within the sea: (1) The 2011 Tohoku earthquake had its source zone in the Pacific Ocean east of Japan, but caused a horizontal displacement of the Japanese islands, which in turn generated tsunami waves westward from these islands; (2) The Hunga–Tonga–Hunga–Ha’apai volcanic eruption in the central Pacific produced strong atmospheric Lamb waves that induced tsunami waves upon arrival in the Sea of Japan.