Entire Earth vibrated for nine days after climate-triggered mega-tsunami
A mountain top in east Greenland fjord collapsed into sea and triggered a mega-tsunami
A landslide in a remote part of Greenland caused a mega-tsunami that sloshed back and forth across a fjord for nine days, generating vibrations throughout Earth, according to a new study involving Björn Lund.
Björn Lund, seismologist, associate professor in Geophysics.
A mysterious, globally observed and unprecedented 9-day-long seismic signal in September 2023 was caused by a massive landslide in Greenland. 25 million m3 of rock and ice fell into the remote Dickson Fjord and, in turn, caused a 200 metre-high mega-tsunami that continued sloshing back and forth - a phenomenon called a seiche - in the narrow fjord for 9 days. That is the conclusion of research published in the journal Science. This movement of a large mass of water generated vibrations through the Earth, shaking the planet and radiating globally observed seismic waves. Never before have scientists observed such an unusual mechanism causing a global seismic signal.
Read the article in Science: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adm9247
Article in The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/sep/12/entire-earth-vibrated-climate-triggered-mega-tsunami
Headline feature on the BBC World Service’s Science in Action radio show https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct5vd8
Narrated explainer video: https://youtu.be/60T9TKuuujs?si=vj7xrj5EDpbmRDsG
Seismic wave – tsunami – seiche animation: https://youtu.be/5et66s74OGs
For more information, contact Björn Lund:
Telephone:018-471 23 90
Mobile phone:073-083 87 55Fax:018-50 11 10
E-mail:Bjorn.Lund@geo.uu.se