The great eastern Japan earthquake and Tsunami: Field observations on the coast of Tohoku six month later

he tsunami that hit the north pacific coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 has been characterized as a mega disaster. It inundated over 560 square kilometers of land, devastating a large number of coastal communities, causing over 20,000 casualties and huge economic damage in Tohoku region. The purpose of this report is to give insight into the magnitude of the disaster and the response of the Japanese tsunami countermeasures to it, based on which a number of questions can be formulated regarding in which direction research should go. In the beginning some background information is given regarding the affected coastline, which is useful in order for the local disaster patterns to be understood. The core content is a description of the visited areas, the local tsunami behaviour, and the damage that took place. The report ends up with some suggestions for future research.