Entire Earth vibrated were from massive nine-day tsunami

The recent phenomenon of a nine-day tsunami that caused the entire Earth to vibrate underscores the profound impact of natural disasters on our planet. This extraordinary event, which originated from an undersea volcanic eruption, generated waves that traveled across vast oceanic distances. The resultant vibrations were detected by seismometers worldwide, indicating not only the strength of the tsunami but also its capacity to influence geological structures far beyond its immediate vicinity . Such occurrences challenge existing paradigms within geosciences and necessitate a reevaluation of how we understand seismic activities associated with tsunamis.

The seismic event was detected by earthquake sensors around the world but was so completely unprecedented that the researchers initially had no idea what had caused it. Having now solved the mystery, the scientists said it showed how global heating was already having planetary-scale impacts and that major landslides were possible in places previously believed to be stable as temperatures rapidly rose.

The collapse of a 1,200-metre-high mountain peak into the remote Dickson fjord happened on 16 September 2023 after the melting glacier below was no longer able to hold up the rock face. It triggered an initial wave 200 metres high and the subsequent sloshing of water back and forth in the twisty fjord sent seismic waves through the planet for more than a week.

The team used the seismic data to pin down the location of the signal’s source to Dickson Fjord in East Greenland. They then gathered other clues, including satellite imagery and photographs of the fjord that were taken by the Danish Navy just before the signal appeared.

A satellite image showed a cloud of dust in a gully in the fjord. Comparing photographs before and after the event revealed that a mountain had collapsed and swept part of a glacier into the water.

The researchers eventually worked out that 25 million cubic metres of rock - a volume equivalent of 25 Empire State Buildings - slammed into the water, causing a 200m-high “mega-tsunami”.

Since the end of the 20th century, the amount of ice loss reported from the dozens of glaciers monitored by climate scientists has been measured in feet rather than inches. Relative to 1970, glaciers in this reference network have lost a little more than 26 feet of water equivalent as of 2023 – the equivalent of slicing 94 feet off the top of each glacier. 

Stroeve said that the increasing rate in which the world’s glaciers were shrinking, fragmenting or disappearing altogether was yet another reminder of the urgent need to curb carbon emissions. 

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Sarah H

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