Powee Hour 82 Big Waves! by Linda Ruggieri

Giant waves like those are known as tsunamis (soo-NAH-meess). Tsunami is a Japanese word that means "harbor wave. " What causes a tsunami? An earthquake occurs in the ocean. The land below the water shakes. That causes water to swell into giant waves. The waves travel quickly across the ocean.

The tsunami that hit Tohoku started as an earthquake in the ocean eighty miles away. The quake was very strong. The tsunami waves it created kept coming for hours. The waves destroyed ships, cars, and many buildings. Scientists are studying the events of the Tohoku tsunami. The scientists hope to learn things that will make people safer the next time a tsunami happens.