The Tsunami from the 1960 Chilean earthquake affected the entire Pacific Ocean and motivated the international coordination on tsunami research and warning systems around the Pacific. However, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami affected the entire world, and reminded that tsunamis are not a local or regional problem but a global issue.

This volume contains 18 papers, mostly presented at the 24th International Tsunami Symposium held in 14-16 July 2009. They reflect the current state of tsunami science, including case studies of earthquake-generated tsunamis, tsunami forecasting and hazard assessments, and theoretical and computational modeling of tsunami generation, propagation and coastal behavior.