Tsunami Risk for the East Coast of the USA
How realistic is the threat of a “mega-tsunami” to the eastern seaboard of North America?As I hear predictions of natural disasters hitting the USA for its sinfulness, I look, as a scientist, to see how God may use his own creation against man in judgment.
Normally, I would think the west coast is the general target area, but apparently the east coast is very vulnerable.If hit, it would also create more disaster, as it has a higher population. The source of the tsunami could be the currently very unstable Cumbre Vieja, the most active volcano in the Canary Islands.The violent earthquake that would erupt would spread across the Atlantic and directly hit the east coast of America.
A second cause is if an asteroid hit the Atlantic Ocean.Here is an asteroid watch and risk site by NASA.So far, the risk is low.
Any place on the coast is at risk of tsunamis, and the East Coast is no exception. In 1929, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake in Newfoundland triggered a large underwater slump that ruptured the new transatlantic cable in 12 places. The slump also produced a tsunami that was recorded along the eastern seaboard as far south as South Carolina and across the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal. In Newfoundland, the tsunami reached heights of over 20 feet and claimed 29 lives.
Earthquakes do occur along the east coast of America. The 1886 Charleston, South Carolina earthquake was felt as far away as New York and Wisconsin, and it had a probable magnitude of about 6.8. It didn’t produce a tsunami, but demonstrates that large earthquakes can happen on the east coast.
Large earthquakes do occasionally occur elsewhere in the Atlantic that may pose a tsunami risk to the east coast. The 1755 Lisbon, Portugal earthquake produced a very large tsunami that was observed in the Caribbean and probably produced waves along the east coast.
There has been quite a bit of media attention on east coast tsunamis caused by large landslides.
In 2000, potential landslide sites off the coast of Virginia and North Carolina hit the headlines.
Failures of unstable sections of the continental slope are thought capable of sending 18-foot-high tsunamis towards the coast. There has been even more attention paid to a mega-tsunami caused by the partial collapse of one of the Canary Islands in the Eastern Atlantic.
Of particular concern is Cumbre Vieja volcano, which shows signs of fracture. A large failure could impact most of the Atlantic Ocean. There is no agreement on the probability of such a failure, but there is no question that such an event is far rarer than large earthquake-driven tsunamis typical of the Pacific basin.
Because of the potential for an east coast tsunami, a bill to strengthen the U.S. tsunami warning system currently winding its way through Congress proposes to install several deep pressure sensors in the Atlantic and Caribbean as well as add more in the Pacific basin.
If a tsunami were to take place close to North America, at which location would it most be expected to take place? The least?
The most likely? Alaska by a long shot. Faults associated with the Alaska-Aleutian subduction zone are capable of producing more earthquakes and larger-magnitude earthquakes than any other region of North America. In the past century this zone produced great tsunamis in 1946, 1957, and 1964, with numerous more localized tsunami events, including the highest tsunami wave heights ever recorded—over 1,700 feet in Lituya Bay in 1958. The least likely coast is also a no-brainer—the arctic coastline of Canada. There are no plate boundaries and few faults in the Arctic Ocean.
If I were to rank the North American coastlines from most likely to least likely, I would probably list them like this:
Middle America trench along Mexico and Central America
West Coast of North America
If you want to know which city in the U.S. continental mainland (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) is most vulnerable, it’s Crescent City, California. Eleven people in Crescent City died in the 1964 tsunami, there was significant damage in 1960, and observable tsunamis in 1946, 1952, 1957, and 1965.
Anatomy of a Tsunami
More about Cumbre Vieja
Cumbre Vieja, the most active volcano in the Canary Islands, lurches as a violent earthquake wracks its upper slopes. A third of the mountain breaks away and plunges into the Atlantic Ocean, pushing up a dome of water nearly 3000 ft. high. They don’t yet know it, but tens of millions of Americans from Key West, Fla., to South Lubec, Maine, have just 9 hours to escape with their lives.
The collapse of Cumbre Vieja unleashes a train of enormous waves traveling at jetliner speed. The first slam into nearby islands, then the African mainland. By the time they reach the East Coast of North America, the waves are up to 80 ft. high, and in low-lying areas, sweep several miles inland.
The tsunami’s potential range of destruction 9 hours after the collapse of Cumbre Vieja.
One can see that a tsunami hitting the east coast of America is quite possible.As only God can control a situation like this, it is good to have his favor on us.If we do not deserve his favor because of unbelief, and/or sin in or lives, then it is wise to consider that God does use natural forces to punish man for his wickedness.
Update November 2, 2013:
Another possibility is a tsunami from an asteroid impact:
News from the Wall 18 – Part 1
News from the Wall 18 – Part 2
Earthquakes increase in end times,Click here for more
To read about solar eclipses connected to end time events, Click here for more.
To read about solar cycle 24 and the end times, Click here for more.
To read about star signs in the end times. Click here for more.
To read about famine in the end times Click here for more.
To read about earthquakes increasing in Jerusalem in the end times Click here for more.
God has promised to “shake the nations” in the last days.
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