What really happened today is that OSU tested its new hurricane wavemaker at the Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory. The $1.1 million dollar simulator is designed to show how long shallow waves, the type created by tsunamis and sustained hurricanes, will impact coastal areas. It’s the largest simulator of its kind in the country.

The demo kicks off a series of research projects starting this summer. One of the first will study how wooden structures, which are common on the Oregon coast, will hold up during tsunami events. Figuring that out is important. Earlier research by OSU shows that the fastest way to evacuate from a tsunami isn’t running away, but going up. That is, going to the top levels or roofs of buildings. But if the buildings can’t withstand tsunami force waves, then the whole evacuating up idea isn’t going to work.

OSU released this video of today’s demonstration. The first highlight comes at about 25 seconds.

There’s also a high rez version at http://oregonstate.edu/media/twvwz-hiq.

According to Hinsdale Lab Director Dan Cox, the real value of this new simulator is the size of the waves it creates.

“Because the materials used for coastal construction – wood, concrete and steel – have complicated properties, they cannot be studied easily at small scale,” says Cox. “The new wavemaker is bigger and improves the accuracy of our research and applicability to real-world structures.”

Other research projects coming up include, a study on how hurricane force waves can overtop levees and the damage it does, and another study looking at the impact of these waves on coastal vegetation.

The money for the new simulator came from the National Science Foundation.