Last year, Hurricane Sandy caused a wall of water to engulf low-lying coastal areas on the East Coast of the United States, particularly in New York and New Jersey. Such catastrophic events underscore the vulnerability of coastal regions worldwide to extreme weather events that produce intense storm surges (increased water depth at the coast) and large, powerful waves.
帕萨迪纳—2011年，日本东北地震和海啸摧毁了日本的沿海地区。去年，飓风桑迪掀起的滔天巨浪吞噬了美国东海岸的低洼地带，特别是在纽约州和新泽西州。这些灾难事件凸显全球沿海地区在引发严重风暴潮（增高沿岸海水深度）和巨浪的极端天气事件面前的脆弱性。