A finite volume method for the simulation of the waves generated by landslides

SummaryThis work deals with the numerical simulation of the surface waves generated by external actions such as landslides. The underlying mathematical model for the unsteady flow is the shallow water system. A finite volume method for the solution of the shallow water system in presence of irregular topography of changing shape is presented. The model and the numerical method are applied to a series of test cases with laboratory data and also to a practical case of realistic size. The numerical model is designed to work on both structured quadrilateral and unstructured triangular grids and is able to cope with unsteady wetting/drying fronts.