Spiegel on line: Tidal Waves in Europe? Study Sees North Sea Tsunami Risk - by Axel Bojanowski
Tidal Waves in Europe? Study Sees North Sea Tsunami Risk - by Axel Bojanowski
The last known tsunami to hit Europe was over 8,000 years ago. But new research reveals that there have been a number of deep-sea earthquakes since then, and that a landslide along the continental slopes could pose a serious risk to the cities and towns on the North Sea coast.
It was a catastrophe of apocalyptic proportions. An earthquake shook Norway's coast between Bergen and Trondheim about 8,150 years ago. The tremors ripped pieces of land the size of Iceland from shallow water and sent them crashing into the deep sea. Like a stone thrown into a pond, the landslide produced ripples of waves that spread at the speed of a train -- powerful tsunamis racing across the North Sea. Along the beaches of Scotland the waves were up to six meters (20 feet) high. Geologists have discovered a ravaged Stone-Age site there.
