Kim, H.; Kim, M.-S.; Lee, H.-J.; Woo, S.-B., and Kim, Y.-K. 2016. Seasonal Characteristics and Mechanisms of Meteo-tsunamis on the West Coast of Korean Peninsula. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 1147 - 1151. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.

A meteo-tsunami is produced by atmospheric disturbances, such as pressure jumps, and the seasonal frequency changes of meteo-tsunamis might be dependent on the seasonal synoptic weather features. Therefore, an analysis of the synoptic atmospheric mechanism for the cause of meteo-tsunamis is important for predicting the meteo-tsunamis precisely and reducing the sudden damage. As the west coast of the Korean peninsula is a region with frequent meteo-tsunamis, the outcome of an analysis of the tidal level observation data at 1-min intervals shows that meteo-tsunami have occurred 92 times (3-SD(exceeding the 3 times of standard deviation): 28 times, 2-SD: 64 times) over the last 12 years (2002–2013). Meteo-tsunamis occur every season but have the greatest frequency in the spring (MAM; 53.3%) and winter (DJF; 26.1%). In particular, strong meteo-tsunamis in excess of 3-SD have occurred in spring (53.6%) and winter (28.6%). Climatologically, low pressure systems often passes through the Korean peninsula located in the mid-latitudes during spring. In this season, the potential instability of the atmosphere is increased on the Yellow sea. On contrast, the Siberian high pressure system periodically extends to the Korean peninsula during winter. This can cause atmospheric dynamic instability from the boundary between the land and sea.