TechMystery tremors linked to massive Greenland tsunami

Mystery tremors linked to massive Greenland tsunami

In September 2023, seismographs worldwide recorded mysterious vibrations in the Earth's crust. It took a year to determine their source—a gigantic, 360-foot tsunami that destroyed a research station in Greenland.

Sea wave - illustrative photograph
Sea wave - illustrative photograph
Images source: © Getty Images | Sean M. Haffey
Łukasz Michalik

22 September 2024 15:47

Unusual vibrations of the Earth's crust were noted in September 2023. The signal traveled the distance between Greenland and Antarctica in less than an hour and resonated for the next nine days. Although it was recorded worldwide, identifying its source and cause was the challenge.

A year of research and analysis, including satellite images, solved this puzzle. The unusual phenomenon was the result of a gigantic tsunami in terms of height that occurred in one of Greenland's fjords.

The root cause of the phenomenon is a climate disaster. Due to rising temperatures, a massive rock and glacier towering over Dickson Fjord lost stability and slid into the water. Suddenly, 32.7 million cubic yards of rock and ice fell into the fjord, which American authors vividly, though somewhat imprecisely, compared to the 10 pyramids of Giza.

The mass of rock falling into the water in the narrow fjord triggered a spectacular tsunami. Since the water was trapped between two slopes, the tsunami wave reached up to 360 feet (some sources say even 660 feet).

It did not cause significant damage to humans, as the fjord is uninhabited. Coincidentally, there were no cruise ships, which often visit there, inside the fjord.

The wave quickly flattened, but since it could not dissipate its energy, the rippling inside the fjord lasted for several more days, recorded by seismographs worldwide. Alongside the tsunami within the fjord, another 13-foot wave was noted, which destroyed the empty research station on Ella Island.

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