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.

Satellites continue to acquire imagery of areas severely damaged by the tsunami of December 26, 2004. This image of Meulaboh, Indonesia, was collected on January 7, 2005, by DigitalGlobe’s QuickBird satellite. Meulaboh is located on the coast of Sumatra, roughly 150 kilometers (93 miles) from the epicenter of the magnitude 9.0 earthqukae that generated the tsunami. The image shows where the tsunami washed over a narrow peninsula, eroding the beach and destroying many of the town’s buildings.

Metadata

  • Sensor

    QuickBird/QuickBird

  • Start Date

    2005-01-07

  • Event Start Date

    2004-12-26

  • NH Image ID

    12671

  • NH Event ID

    10569

  • NH Posting Date

    2005-01-12