IASPEI - Picture Gallery

IUGG XXIV General Assembly July 2-13, 2007 Perugia, Italy
(S) - IASPEI - International Association of Seismology and Physics of the Earth's
Interior
JSS002 Oral Presentation 1752
Overview of the restoration program from the giant earthquakes and
tsunamis project
Prof. Teruyuki Kato
Earthquake Research Institute The University of Tokyo IAG
Kenji Satake, Koshun Yamaoka, Fumihiko Imamura, Hirokazu Iemura
A giant earthquake occurred off Sumatra Island, Indonesia and generated large tsunami in Indian
Ocean on December 26, 2004. This event caused devastating disasters in the countries surrounding the
Indian Ocean. Motivated by this event, we have initiated a multi-disciplinary and international research
project called the Restoration Program from the Giant Earthquakes and Tsunamis which is supported by
the Japanese government. The ultimate goal of the project is to propose an effective measure to
mitigate disasters from giant earthquakes and tsunamis such as the 2004 event. We tackle this problem
by interdisciplinary and international approaches. Synergetic works among different academic disciplines
are important for ultimate restoration from the disasters due to earthquakes and tsunamis. The
knowledge on the mechanism of earthquakes and tsunamis is to be utilized to elaborate the software
and hardware system of early warning system and to construct a strong and resilient city against
earthquake and tsunami. Education and outreach of such basic knowledge of earthquakes and
tsunamis, function of early warning system and earthquake resistant construction are indispensable for
effective mitigation of human casualties in a society. The project consists of four sub-theme of natural
science, civil engineering and social science as follows: 1) Clarification of mechanism of the giant
earthquake and tsunami and its prediction: This sub-theme tries to clarify the mechanism of giant
earthquake and tsunami using various geophysical schemes such as seismology, paleoseismology and
geodesy.2) Research on developing human resource for enforcing the human power against the natural
disaster: This sub-theme is mostly devoted to build capacities of human power for resilient community
against earthquake and tsunami through education and outreach.3) Research on effective use of
tsunami warning system and mitigation of tsunami hazard: This sub-theme tries to propose an effective
measure of monitoring, transmitting and disseminating tsunami information in real time manner for
tsunami disaster mitigation.4) Restoration program and city planning from the disasters due to giant
earthquakes and tsunamis: This sub-theme searches for coastal disasters due to earthquake and
tsunami and tries to propose an effective plan for restoration from the earthquake and tsunami.Each
sub-theme is composed of 3-5 research subjects and the program strongly encourages synergetic
efforts among international community of related scientists through international workshops and
symposia as well as related field researches. The term of the project is three years from April 2005 to
March 2008, so that the project will terminate in the next year. However, we try to build up long lasting
international researchers community for earthquake and tsunami, particularly in the Asian countries,
toward our ultimate goal of mitigating disasters related to giant earthquakes and tsunamis that may
occur in other areas along the subducting plate boundaries over the globe.
Keywords: earthquake, tsunami, restoration