Quantcast
ZME Science
  • CoronavirusNEW
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
Home Science Geology

Medieval tsunamis in the Alps – could happen again

Mihai Andrei by Mihai Andrei
November 1, 2012
in Geology

If you think about tsunamis, you’ll probably think about Japan, Indonesia, maybe America… the last place you’d image would be the Alps, right? Well, you might have to go back to that.

About 1500 years ago, a massive flood took place in Geneva, Switzerland, wiping out everything in its path, crippling the local community. Now, researchers believed they found the culprit in the form of a tsunami, a threat which is still pretty much posed today. The presumed wave was caused by a huge landslide, wrecking the entire medieval city, which was probably already a known trading hub at the time.

Far from the ocean, the massive wave had its origin in the Rhône River, which feeds and flows through Lake Geneva. The Swiss team analyzed a huge sediment deposit at the bottom of the lake and came to the conclusion that it once belonged above the lake and slid into the Rhône near the place it flows into the lake. The sudden splash created a tsunami that flower through the 580-square-kilometer lake towards Geneva, the study suggests; the height would have been between 3 and 8 meters, quite enough for that period.

But perhaps more important, researchers warm, is that this danger isn’t a thing of the past. A similar event happening today would cause much greater damage, significantly affecting not only Geneva, but also the neighboring cities of Lausanne, Nyon, and Thonon-les-Bains, threatening over 300.000 people who live in the area. The damage could be amplified by the fact that towards Geneva, the lake narrows, creating a funnel effect which acts as an amplified for waves. Still, there’s no need to panic, because there isn’t any hint of an immediate threat. Still, it is something to consider.

Get more science news like this...

Join the ZME newsletter for amazing science news, features, and exclusive scoops. More than 40,000 subscribers can't be wrong.

   

“If this has happened five to six times since the last glaciation, there’s reason to believe it could happen again in the future,” said University of Geneva geologist Guy Simpson, who study team’s modeler. “A three-meter [ten-foot] wave that hit Geneva today would be a scary wave.”

The research will be published in Nature

Tags: sedimenttsunami
Mihai Andrei

Mihai Andrei

Andrei's background is in geophysics, and he's been fascinated by it ever since he was a child. Feeling that there is a gap between scientists and the general audience, he started ZME Science -- and the results are what you see today.

Follow ZME on social media

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
  • More

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.