Scientists warn that melting of the Alaskan glacier will cause an unprecedented 'megatsunami'
In recent years, many glaciers have melted due to the effects of global warming, and it has been revealed that the total amount of glaciers lost from the earth in the 55 years from 1961 to 2016 amounts to
A recently discovered unstable slope in Barry Arm could lead to a landslide-generated tsunami
(PDF) https://dggs.alaska.gov/hazards/download/Barry_Arm_Landslide_Working_Group_2020_05_14.pdf
Ice Melt in Alaska Threatens to Unleash Unprecedented'Mega-Tsunami', Scientists Warn
https://www.sciencealert.com/ice-melt-in-alaska-threatens-to-unleash-unprecedented-mega-tsunami-scientists-warn
In May 2020, a group of scientists warned of the possibility of an imminent disaster in Prince William Sound on the southern coast of Alaska in an open letter to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources (ADNR). According to a group of scientists, the land where glaciers have melted has a very high risk of landslides and could cause a huge tsunami within the next 20 years.
A group of scientists analyzed satellite photographs of the area and found that as the Barry Glacier in Prince William Sound melted, a mountain slope about 97 km east of Anchorage, Alaska, called 'Scoop'. It has been confirmed that erosion has occurred. The scoop 'indicates that a slow-moving landslide has already occurred,' and a group of scientists said that a sudden collapse of a mountain rock wall could have more dire consequences. Points out.
The Barry Glacier, where scoops occur, is also an area where cruise ships and commercial ships frequently operate.
by Lauren Dauphin / NASA Earth Observatory / USGS
'At first I couldn't believe the numbers,' said Chunli Dai, a member of a group of scientists who wrote an open letter to ADNR and a geophysicist at Ohio State University. Based on the amount of sediment that has slipped and the angle of inclination, it is estimated that future landslides will release 16 times more debris and 11 times more energy than the 1958 landslide in Ritsuya Bay, Ohio. In other words, there will be a huge tsunami. '
If the group of scientists estimates correctly, the results can be unimaginably disastrous. This is because the landslide that occurred in Lituya Bay in 1958 caused a huge tsunami that could be compared to the explosion of an atomic bomb, and its height is estimated to have reached 524 meters. The tsunami that occurred in Lituya Bay in 1958 is considered to be one of the 'highest tsunamis in modern times.' Another landslide in Taan Fiord, Alaska in 2015 caused a 193 meter high tsunami.
A group of scientists said, 'Such landslides can occur for several reasons and can change from slow-moving to fast-moving landslides. Often, landslides are caused by heavy or prolonged rain. Earthquakes can also cause landslides, and hot weather that promotes the melting of perennial frozen soil, snow, and glacial ice can also trigger landslides. '
It should also be taken into account that Alaska is not the only place where glaciers are melting rapidly, increasing the risk of similar landslides and tsunamis on many lands around the world. 'This is really scary, maybe we're like a volcano,' said geologist Bretwood Higman, a member of the group of scientists who wrote the open letter to ADNR and a member of the nonprofit Ground Truth Alaska. We need to renew our perception that glaciers are dangerous. '
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