Tsunami open house set for March 25 in Palmer

PALMER — March 25-31 is Tsunami Preparedness Week in Alaska and the National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC) in Palmer is inviting the public to not only learn more about tsunamis, but tour the facility as well.

NTWC Director Paul Whitmore and his staff invite the public to an afternoon of tsunami education at the Center responsible for warning both continental coasts of the United States and Canada. A planned Saturday, March 25 open house is on the calendar 1-4 p.m.

During this open house, guests will be able to meet National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) oceanographers, geophysicists, seismologists who specialize in tsunamis. NTWC staff who stand watch and issue the warnings as well as State of Alaska emergency managers will be on-hand.

Plenty of hands-on and learning activities are also on the docket. Participants can learn about tsunamis and how the waves propagate, tour a real-time seismic observatory, talk to scientists and emergency managers about the warning process, experience a virtual earthquake, learn nature’s warning signs and how to prepare. Activities provided for all ages.

How and why

Following the March 27, 1964 Alaska earthquake and tsunami, the NTWC (formerly known as The Palmer Observatory) was established in 1967. The earthquake convinced state and federal officials that a facility was necessary to provide timely and effective tsunami warnings and earthquake information to the coastal areas of Alaska. Congress provided funds in 1965 to construct two new observatories and establish a tsunami warning system in Alaska. The first observatory constructed was at the U.S. Naval Station on Adak Island in the Andreanof Islands in the Central Aleutians.

The city of Palmer was selected as the site for the primary observatory due to its proximity to bedrock for instrumentation and to communications facilities. Construction of the observatory installations, the task of engineering and assembling the data systems, and the hookup of the extensive telecommunications and data telemetry network was completed in the summer of 1967. With the dedication of the Palmer Observatory on September 2, 1967, the Alaska Regional Tsunami Warning System (ARTWS) became operational.

Originally, the tsunami warning responsibility for Alaska was shared by the three observatories located at Palmer, Adak and Sitka. Sitka, a seismological observatory since 1904, and Fairbanks were the only two seismic stations operating in Alaska in 1964. The responsibilities of Adak and Sitka were limited to issuing a tsunami warning for events occurring within 300 miles of their location. The three stations were later combined with Palmer remaining open although seismic instrumentation is still maintained at the other sites.

In 1973, the Palmer Observatory was transferred to the National Weather Service's Alaska Region and changed its name to Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (ATWC). In 1982, its area of responsibility was enlarged to include the issuing of tsunami warnings to California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. In 1996, the responsibility was again expanded to the California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia and Alaska coasts, and the name was changed to the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (WC/ATWC) to reflect those new responsibilities.

In 2003, a new facility was constructed in the yard of the original building. The complex was the first LEED certified building in the state of Alaska, and within the U.S. Department of Commerce. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification is granted by the U.S. Green Building Council, and awards environmentally sensitive construction practices. This new facility provides upgraded power and communications capability, as well as office space for the expanded staff, assuring that the center will continue to provide quality products to the public well into the future.

Following the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami in late 2004, the WC/ATWC expanded its scope to the U.S. Atlantic coast, and the Atlantic coast of Canada. On 1 October 2013, the name was changed to the National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC) to reflect this expanded geographical zone of responsibility.

The center is located at 910 Felton Street, Palmer.