Speaker: Dr Bill Fry, Principal Scientist, GNS Science, and National Tsunami Model, Director

Date: Thursday, 13 February, 6.00 pm (Door open from 5.30 pm)

Venue: National Aquarium of New Zealand, 546 Marine Parade, Napier

Places are limited to 80 people. Please arrive early to secure your spot.

Admission: Gold coin donation

Physics is revolutionising our understanding of earthquake and tsunami risk in New Zealand and around the globe. For the first time, we are now able to develop realistic models of our biggest earthquakes, including complex interactions of systems of faults and their role in the distribution of land inundation when tsunamis are generated. By analysing these models, we open the door for a wealth of advances that will make us a more resilient and safer Aotearoa. In this talk, Dr Bill Fry will explore how we got here and where we are going, including clear paths toward achieving such fanciful topics as “natural hazard digital twins”, “multi-hazard early warning” and tsunami forecasting with Artificial Intelligence.

Dr Bill Fry is an internationally respected seismo-tectonophysicist and natural hazards scientist, whose primary focus is earthquakes and tsunamis. His research has had a fundamental impact on our understanding of these natural hazards, and also, importantly, on how New Zealand communities prepare for, manage and respond when they occur.

This is an excellent opportunity to hear from a leading expert about scientific research into a topic of direct relevance to Hawke’s Bay.