Our questions 

We are curious about why some earthquakes cause tsunamis and others don’t. We will investigate these two questions:

• How does the magnitude (strength) of an earthquake affect tsunami formation?
• How does the depth (how near or far from the surface) of an earthquake affect tsunami formation?

As you interpret the data on the graphs, consider why some earthquakes cause tsunamis to form and other earthquakes do not. Here are some questions to help you:

• Does the pattern support the idea that the strength or depth of the earthquake affects the tsunami? Why or why not?
• How does the pattern help you decide what kinds of earthquakes cause tsunamis?

Our variables

Decide which variables go on which axis of the graph based on the questions above. Choose from this list and write them into the boxes below to complete the sentence:

• earthquake magnitude
• earthquake depth
• tsunami wave height