The difference for the depths in the San Francisco path depends whether
the length of the waves is reckoned at 210 or 217 miles. The length of
the waves on the San Diego path were 186 or 192 miles.[81]
_The wave of 1868._—On August 11, 1868, a sea wave ruined many cities
on the South American coast, and 25,000 lives were lost. This wave,
like all the others, travelled the length and breadth of the Pacific.
In Japan, at Hakodate, it was observed by Captain T. Blakiston, R.A.,
who very kindly gave me the following account:
On August 15, at 10.30 A.M., a series of bores or tidal waves
commenced, and lasted until 3 P.M. In ten minutes there was a
difference in the sea level of ten feet, the water rising above high
water and falling below low water mark with great rapidity. The
ordinary tide is only two and a half to three feet. The disturbance
producing these waves originated between Iquique and Arica, in about
lat. 18.28 S. at about 5 P.M. on August 13. In Greenwich time this
would be about 13h. 9m. 40s. August 13. The arrival of the wave at
Hakodate in Greenwich time would be about 14h. 7m. 6s. August 14:
that is to say, the wave took about 24h. 57m. to travel about 8,700
miles, which gives us an average rate of about 511 feet per second.
These waves were felt all over the Pacific. At the Chatham Islands they
rushed in with such violence that whole settlements were destroyed. At
the Sandwich Islands the sea oscillated at intervals of ten minutes for
three days.
Comparing this wave with the one of 1877 we see that one reached
Hakodate with a velocity of 511 feet per second, whilst the other
travelled the same distance at 512 feet per second.
An account of this earthquake wave has been given by F. von Hochstetter
(‘Über das Erdbeben in Peru am 13. August 1868 und die dadurch
veranlassten Fluthwellen im Pacifischen Ocean,’ Sitzungsberichte
der Kaiserl. Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien 58. Bd., 2. Abth.
1868). From an epitome of this paper given in ‘Petermann’s Geograph.
Mittheil.’ 1869, p. 222, I have drawn up the following table of the
more important results obtained by F. von Hochstetter.
The wave is assumed to have originated near Arica.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account