How Do Earthquakes Generate Tsunamis

Tsunamis can be generated by tectonic earthquakes, which occur due to earth's crustal deformation, and abrupt dynamics of tectonic plates. A geological theory of plate tectonics has been developed to explain the large scale dynamics of the Earth's lithosphere, which sometimes results in tectonic earthquakes. It proposes that Earth's lithosphere is broken up into seven major and many minor plates, called tectonic plates. Tectonic plates or lithospheric plates are large, irregularly shaped slabs of solid rock, consisting of oceanic and continental lithosphere. Plate boundaries at the edge of tectonic plates undergo large deformations due to interaction between two plates, which causes earthquakes. Large volumes of water above the deformed area gets disturbed from its stable equlibrium due to the disturbances caused by these earthquakes. The largely disturbed mass of water strives to gain its original stable equilibrium configuration to minimize system's internal energy. This system includes water mass and earth's surface beneath it, which attracts water to its minimum potential energy position through gravity. This process creates gigantic and massively destructive water waves known as tsunami. Tectonic activities and Tectonic motion have been estimated using various space geodetic technologies such as Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), and Global Positioning System (GPS).