"The team used a detailed mathematical model, recreating the angle of the landslide and the uniquely narrow and bendy fjord, to demonstrate how the sloshing of water would have continued for nine days, with little energy able to escape.
"The model predicted that the mass of water would have moved back and forth every 90 seconds, matching the recordings of vibrations travelling in the Earth's crust all around the globe.
"The landslide, the researchers wrote, was a result of the glacier at the foot of the mountain thinning, becoming unable to hold up the rock-face above it. This was ultimately due to climate change. The landslide and tsunami were the first observed in eastern Greenland.
"Co-author Dr Stephen Hicks, of UCL Earth Sciences, said: 'When I first saw the seismic signal, I was completely baffled. Even though we know seismometers can record a variety of sources happening on Earth's surface, never before has such a long-lasting, globally travelling seismic wave, containing only a single frequency of oscillation, been recorded. This inspired me to co-lead a large team of scientists to figure out the puzzle.
"'Our study of this event amazingly highlights the intricate interconnections between #ClimateDhange in the atmosphere, #destabilisation of #Glacier ice in the cryosphere, movements of water bodies in the hydrosphere, and Earth's solid crust in the lithosphere.
"'This is the first time that water sloshing has been recorded as vibrations through the Earth's crust, travelling the world over and lasting several days.'"
Read more:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/09/240912142355.htm
