Earthquake Spawns Tsunamis

A magnitude 9.0 earthquake - the largest in 40 years - struck offshore of the Indonesian island of Sumatra on December 26, 2004. These images show the damage caused by the resulting tsunami to the shores of northwestern Sumatra.

The beaches of Khao Lak, Thailand were struck by a tsunami 2-3 hours after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake of December 26, 2004. Although 500 km away from the epicenter, the waves were 10 meters (33 feet) high. A resort area popular with Northern European tourists, luxury resorts dotted the coastline (January 3, 2003 image, lower center). Buildings and vegetation were scoured by the waves, leaving foundations and bare soil. Beach sand was also removed by the tsunamis. These high-resolution satellite images were acquired by Space Imaging’s Ikonos satellite.

Metadata

  • Sensor

    IKONOS/IKONOS
  • Start Date

    2004-12-29
  • Event Start Date

    2004-12-26
  • NH Image ID

    12648
  • NH Event ID

    10569
  • NH Posting Date

    2004-12-30