How are we able to track/predict if an earthquake will produce/create a Tsunami and in turn estimate how big the wave will be and how long it will take to hit a coastline?

Question

There was a magnitude 8.1 earthquake off New Zealand’s coastline and a tsunami warning has been issued with predictions of how big the wave will be in places and when it will hit. How are scientists able to predict this?

Edit: Grammar and spelling lol

In: Earth Science

Answer 1

Not my area of expertise. The magnitude tells us basically how much energy was in the earthquake then we know how much water that can move which can tell us how big the wave would be. Think of your hand under water in a bathtub the more force you put into moving your hand the more waves you make in the tub. Earthquakes happen more along fault lines and there are a few different types of fault lines and knowing that may make a difference as well.