JAKARTA, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) on Tuesday said research conducted along the southern coasts of Java and Bali has revealed strong indications that a massive tsunami occurred around 400 years ago.
Traces of the catastrophic event can still be found today by examining tsunami sand layers, marine microfossils, archaeological structures, and ancient environmental evidence, BRIN researcher Eko Yulianto said at a workshop held on Monday.
"The problem is that there are no historical documents to explain when the last giant rupture actually occurred," Eko said. "If a megathrust earthquake happens before written history, the memory of it may have already faded from historical records."
So far, the research team has conducted paleotsunami investigations across 12 major sites spanning from West Java to Bali. ■