American scientists from Ohio State University concluded that sea landslides can cause powerful tsunamis that threaten coastal areas. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine Geophysical Research Letters (GRL).
The experts’ conclusions are based on examining the consequences of underwater rock and soil collapse in the geological area known as the Cascadia subduction zone off the coast of Oregon. It extends along the west coast of North America from Vancouver Island in Canada to Cape Mendocino in Northern California.
The collapse, known as “Landslide 44-K” or simply 44-K, occurred when huge pieces of rock rolled from a height of 1,200 meters at a 13-degree angle and advanced another 10 kilometers along the base. Despite the resistance of the water, the landslide progressed at a speed of approximately 60 meters per second, leaving behind a deformed mark 275 meters thick for kilometers.
According to scientists’ calculations, the impact of the 44-K landslide was sufficient to cause a large tsunami, but it is unclear whether such a tsunami occurred in this event. The researchers also could not find out exactly when the event they described occurred.
There are examples of such disasters in historical chronicles. According to researchers, an earthquake that occurred in 1929 in the southeast of the Canadian island of Newfoundland triggered an underwater landslide moving at a speed of 15-30 meters per second. The displacement of rocks created a powerful tsunami that destroyed many coastal settlements and cut underwater communication cables between the United States and Europe. 29 people were victims of the disaster.
“Undersea landslides can sometimes move so fast that they damage the infrastructure of global internet cables running across the ocean floor, cause tsunamis, and even intensify. Without better seafloor imaging technologies, past landslides and future landslide threats may go undetected,” said study co-author Derek Sawyer.
Previously off the coast of Japan appeared A new island due to the eruption of an underwater volcano.