Extracted from BBC News website                                                Wednesday 9th February 2005

UK scientists have released images of the ocean floor near the epicentre of December's giant Asian earthquake.

The pictures were obtained by the Royal Navy's hydrographic survey ship HMS Scott (above left). The team involved in this believe the tsunami occurred when a portion of the Burma plate, which had been dragged down by the edge of the descending Indian plate, rebounded upwards, transmitting huge energy to the water above.

In the image above right, the deep blue area indicates the deepest part of the ocean floor. The quake shook the rocks which disturbed the column of water above, triggering the tsunami that killed thousands of people.

For more information, see the BBC article on http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4247409.stm.