Unraveling Tsunami Hazards along the Lesser Antilles, Eastern Caribbean Plate

The Lesser Antilles subduction zone delineates the boundary where the Caribbean Plate meets the Atlantic segment of the North American Plate. It features the extensive Barbados complex, an impressive accretionary prism. This region is known for its potential to generate megathrust earthquakes and tsunamis. This research focuses on the tsunami hazards along the Caribbean Plate's eastern edge, presenting six distinct earthquake scenarios modeled at magnitudes Mw ۷.۵, ۸.۰, and ۸.۵ across the northern and southern segments of the arc. Our simulations highlight sediment amplification's role in tsunami generation. In the southern section, significant sediment deposits from tectonic activity increase tsunami generation potential compared to the thinner layers in the north. The study also examines bed shear stress, crucial for sediment transport, identifying areas for potential sediment displacement during tsunamis. The findings indicate that earthquakes in the modeled scenarios can trigger powerful tsunamis. Impacts on Guadeloupe from northern scenarios could see wave heights exceed ۵ m, while southern scenarios are expected to peak below ۵ m. Tsunami waves from Mw ۸.۰ and ۸.۵ scenarios can inundate the Sainte-Anne coastline by up to ۲ km inland. Additionally, our analysis shows that northern offshore islands might be vulnerable to sediment transport, as discovered in previous geological findings. To enhance understanding, further sediment transport modeling and seismic surveys with denser grids could provide insights into active fault geometries and help assess hazards from current and historical tsunami events.

کلیدواژه ها:

Tsunami ، Lesser Antilles ، numerical modeling ، sediment amplification ، bed shear stress