TSUNAMI RESONANCE IN THE PALMA DE MAJORCA BAY AND HARBOUR INDUCED BY THE 2003 BOUMERDES-ZEMMOURI ALGERIAN EARTHQUAKE (WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN)

Abstract

During the tsunami of May 2003 in the Balearic Islands, generated by the Algerian earthquake, most of the damage and economic losses occurred inside the harbours, due to high frequency oscillations of relatively large amplitude, combined effect of the tsunami and local resonances. It can be said in fact that this was the more important effect at the islands, where no important inundations is known to have occurred outside the harbours, showing up that even tsunamis with low amplitudes can cause serious damages due to resonance effects. Several tide gauges recorded the seismic-generated tsunami, so comparison of simulations and observations became possible, and made this event a very interesting case for modeling experiments. The main objectives of this work is to understand how was the energy transformation of the tsunami from the source area to the Palma de Mallorca bay and harbour, and to verify if a resonance phenomenon was induced in the harbour.