What is a meteotsunami? Roberto Brasero explains what is the phenomenon that threatens the Mediterranean

Spain has been testing all kinds of weather phenomena for several months. If in January 2021, it was storm Filomena that came to surprise us, seven months later it would be the volcano of La Palma, being the first time in half a century that an eruption of such level taking place in our country. And, recently, we witnessed the effects of haze.

To date, meteorologists indicate that Spain is preparing for a strong storm that, in the coming weeks, will have left intense rains throughout the country, high levels of snow in areas such as the Pyrenees, and strong gusts of wind, with the possibility that the haze will again roam through some areas of the eastern peninsula during these days.

However, there has been talk for a few days of the probability that a phenomenon known as ‘meteotsunami’, which has alerted the most sceptical, will soon reach the eastern part of the peninsula. But what is a meteotsunami and why it generates so much alertness? The presenter of Tu Tiempo, Roberto Brasero, explains.

Although the name may sound very abrupt, the fact is that meteotsunami is not as bad as the name itself seems to indicate. Roberto Brasero explains that “meteotsunami is the rissaga they know perfectly in Menorca”, that is, an oscillation of the sea level that becomes nothing more than a current from the sea.

This phenomenon occurred several weeks ago, when there was a large tsunami in Tonga, and sea level briefly oscillated off the coast of Alicante. However, this meteotsunami did not cause any harm. In the Balearic Islands, where it has happened on occasion, it has caused intense waves and strong gusts of wind, but without material or personal damage.

Brasero also tells us that there is enormous misinformation about this issue. He also warns that “there is no system to say that there is a meteotsunami alert”, so many information that has been published about weather alerts is categorically false and not verified at all.