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Extreme sea levels at Rapa Nui (Easter Island) during intense atmospheric rivers

Author

Listed:
  • Matías Carvajal

    (Universidad de Concepción
    Millennium Nucleus the Seismic Cycle along Subduction Zones (CYCLO))

  • Patricio Winckler

    (Universidad de Valparaíso
    Centro de Investigación Para La Gestión Integrada del Riesgo de Desastres (CIGIDEN)
    Centro de Observación Marino Para Estudios de Riesgos del Ambiente Costero (COSTAR-UV))

  • René Garreaud

    (Universidad de Chile)

  • Felipe Igualt

    (Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso)

  • Manuel Contreras-López

    (Universidad de Valparaíso)

  • Pamela Averil

    (Universidad de Valparaíso)

  • Marco Cisternas

    (Millennium Nucleus the Seismic Cycle along Subduction Zones (CYCLO)
    Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso)

  • Alejandra Gubler

    (Centro de Investigación Para La Gestión Integrada del Riesgo de Desastres (CIGIDEN))

  • Wolfgang A. Breuer

    (Universidad Andrés Bello)

Abstract

In addition to the tsunami hazard posed by distant great earthquakes, Rapa Nui (Easter Island), in the Southeast Pacific Ocean, is exposed to frequent and intense coastal storms. Here, we use sea-level records and field surveys guided by video and photographic footage to show that extreme sea levels at Rapa Nui occur much more frequent than previously thought and thus constitute an unrecognized hazard to the inland’s maritime supply chain. We found that extreme sea-level events, including the two most extreme (March 5th and May 5th, 2020) in our 17-month-long analyzed period (from January 1st, 2019, to May 31st, 2020), resulted from constructive superpositions of seiches on the shelf, storm surges and high tides. By further analyzing time series of atmospheric and wind-generated wave data, we conclude that these extreme sea levels are ultimately driven by the breaking of large waves near the coastline (i.e., wave setup), with lesser contribution of barometric setup and even less of wind setup. We also propose that these large waves were mainly generated from strong, long-lasting, NW winds associated with intense atmospheric rivers (long, narrow regions in the atmosphere that transport abundant water vapor) passing over Rapa Nui. Given that the intensity of atmospheric rivers and sea level are thought to increase as climate changes, a deeper understanding of the relation between meteorological and oceanographic processes at Rapa Nui is strongly needed.

Suggested Citation

  • Matías Carvajal & Patricio Winckler & René Garreaud & Felipe Igualt & Manuel Contreras-López & Pamela Averil & Marco Cisternas & Alejandra Gubler & Wolfgang A. Breuer, 2021. "Extreme sea levels at Rapa Nui (Easter Island) during intense atmospheric rivers," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 106(2), pages 1619-1637, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:nathaz:v:106:y:2021:i:2:d:10.1007_s11069-020-04462-2
    DOI: 10.1007/s11069-020-04462-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Sönke Dangendorf & Carling Hay & Francisco M. Calafat & Marta Marcos & Christopher G. Piecuch & Kevin Berk & Jürgen Jensen, 2019. "Persistent acceleration in global sea-level rise since the 1960s," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 9(9), pages 705-710, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Krešimir Ruić & Jadranka Šepić & Marko Mlinar & Iva Međugorac, 2023. "Contribution of high-frequency (T," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 116(3), pages 3747-3777, April.
    2. Ivica Vilibić & Alexander B. Rabinovich & Eric J. Anderson, 2021. "Special issue on the global perspective on meteotsunami science: editorial," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 106(2), pages 1087-1104, March.

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