# A Database for Tsunamis and Meteotsunamis in the Adriatic Sea
## 4 Discussion  
The analysis of the characteristics of past events provides clues to what might happen in the future. In this perspective, a database can be an important and useful starting point to better characterize a region in terms of these phenomena. In the frame of the PMOGATE project, the realization of a database which includes tsunamis and meteotsunamis in the Adriatic region aims at providing a comprehensive picture of the events in order to highlight that the Adriatic region is prone to these events. DAMT, for the first time, brings together two phenomena, tsunamis and meteotsunamis, which although originating from different causes produce very similar effects when they hit the coast. Therefore, the measures to be implemented for the prevention and reduction of coastal hazards could be similar. DAMT was built by starting from the data included in the ITED database [1], in the Euro-Mediterranean Tsunami Catalogue [2] and in the Catalogue of Meteorological Tsunamis in Croatian coastal waters by [PERSON] [3], with the insertion of new events and new info and parameters for the events which had already been catalogued. In Table 1, short descriptions of the events included in the database are reported. DAMT aims to enhance the usability of data and is displayed by means of an ESRI WebApp that allows  
Figure 6: Example of a pop-up of the AM layer, showing the 15 May 2020 at Vrboska observation point. By clicking on the full description link, the user can retrieve detailed information on all effects observed at that location over time. the user to query the database in order to retrieve general and detailed information about events, select the events of interest and know the tsunami and meteotsunami history for each observation point. As far as tsunamis, DAMT contains observations of 24 events that have been reported from 1348 to present day, all of which were caused by earthquakes. The analysis of the database puts forth the evidence that in the Adriatic region, the most affected coasts are the Italian ones, which have been affected by 12 events since 1348. Among them, the central northern coast (Emilia Romagna) and the southern one (Apulia) experienced the most relevant events. Four tsunamis have occurred on the coasts of Croatia from 1667 to 1962, three events have affected the coasts of Montenegro in 1667, 1780 and 1979, and finally, the coasts of Alabania experienced six tsunamis from 1833 to 1920. The tsunamis included in DAMT are classified by a _reliability index_, a value indicating the quality and reliability of the data [21]. Fourteen events (about 60%) have the maximum reliability (four = definite tsunami), and only three events, all of which occurred in Albania in the 1800s, have a reliability of one (very improbable tsunami). Inserting in the database events with low reliability as well allows for keeping a record of those for which little information is available and of which one could otherwise lose track. At the same time, it allows the user to know that the information available for that event is not sufficiently robust to attribute a high reliability value to the event, and therefore, it must be considered with due attention. Regarding tsunami intensity, to each observation point was assigned a local intensity value based on both the Ambraseys-Sieberg and Papadopoulos-Imamura scales. Most of the events (80%) had intensities that were medium-low, light (2) or rather strong (3), but there were four events with strong (4) and very strong (5) intensities. Two of these tsunamis occurred in Italy in 1627 and 1930, one which took place in Albania in 1920 while the other occurred on the Croatian coast in 1979. As highlighted by a detailed study of Adriatic tsunamis [34], the analysis of DAMT confirmed that there is no evidence of tsunami effects on the eastern Adriatic side related to the western Adriatic events. However, during two events in the eastern Adriatic region, light effects were observed on the Italian coasts.