Real-time earthquake monitoring and tsunami warning operations at the U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center

The National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC) and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) collaborate to provide tsunami warning service and mutual backup to tsunami-threatened areas throughout the United States and many other countries throughout the world. With mostly home-grown analysis systems, NTWC staff rapidly locates, sizes, and otherwise characterizes major earthquakes. We determine each earthquake's tsunamigenic potential, forecast tsunami arrival times, forecast coastal inundation when possible, and disseminate appropriate warning and informational products based on this information. The initial tsunami message for an event is based solely on the seismic analysis; subsequent messages may include the tsunami observations and inundation modelling. NTWC uses three different tsunami models (ATFM, SIFT, and RIFT) to model and predict flooding and run-ups.