Earth Observatory of Singapore 4.69

A deepening comprehension of our planet processes, resources and history is needed to cope with the major challenges of a restless Earth: as long as we do not fully understand how our dynamic planet works, we are susceptible to disasters.

Natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and global climate change pose great threats to our rapidly expanding populations all over the world. The devastations of Acehnese and Thai coasts in 2004, of Kashmir and New Orleans in 2005, of southwest Java in 2006, of Sumatra again in 2007, of Sichuan and Myanmar in 2008, of Haiti in 2010 and of Japan in 2011 are recent examples of our vulnerability and our exposure.

Southeast Asia is, of course, no exception: during the first decade of the 21st century it has suffered numerous catastrophic events. The region faces also the lurking threat of sea-level rise whose long-term local effects are still unknown.