Speaker
Description
The CENALT (CENtre d’ALerte aux Tsunamis) is responsible for the French NTWC (National Tsunami Warning Centre). Since Its entry in operation, its objective is to transmit a message in less than fifteen minutes for any earthquake that could trigger a tsunami in the Western Mediterranean Sea and the North-East Atlantic Ocean. The data collected from French installations and from institutions from countries around the monitored basin are processed with software that permit to make an early location of the seismic events and to measure the expected sea level effect on the shore. The on-duty analysts interactively revise all the information produced and use references based on historical tsunami and earthquake databases as well as computed tsunami scenario to be able to send the more comprehensive message possible. Communication tests as well as exercises are performed monthly to test and validate the different transmission mode latencies (Global telecommunication system, email and fax) and the efficiency of the system. Furthermore, large scale exercises are organized like in the last quarter 2014 when CENALT participated to the international NEAMWave14 tsunami exercise organized by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (Unesco/IOC). These different tests and exercise permit to insure the operability of the overall warning system.
