Storegga Tsunami Event: Prehistoric Giant Wave 8,000 Years Ago Likely Destroyed Stone Age Coastal Communities [Study]

Tsunamis are forces of nature to be reckoned with and are known for their notorious track record in history causing widespread coastal flooding, damage, and fatalities. The term "tsunami" was coined in Japan during the Edo period (1603-1868) and it "tsu" refers to port and "nami" to wave, which portrays that a wave is hitting a port.

In 2011, a powerful earthquake in Japan triggered a massive tsunami that left approximately 18,500 people dead. In 2004, a major earthquake in the Indian Ocean caused a deadly tsunami that struck several countries in South and Southeast Asia, including Indonesia and Sri Lanka, killing around 230,000 people, according to official estimates.

Although these modern natural disasters have been well-recorded, a new study found an ancient tsunami called the "Holocene Storegga tsunami" also caused fatalities thousands of years ago at a time that is relatively recent, in terms of geologic times.

The Storegga tsunami event occurred more than 8,000 years ago in the North Atlantic Ocean, where it likely destroyed Stone Age coastal communities.

Holocene Storegga Tsunami Event

The study was published in the Journal of Quaternary Science in December 2023, entitled "Evaluating the impact of the Storegga tsunami on Mesolithic communities in Northumberland."

The research paper explored the Holocene Storegga tsunami event 8120 to 8175 years ago, when prehistoric giant waves reached heights of up to 3 to 6 meters around the mainland United Kingdom.

Researchers in the study mentioned that the event coincided with a large population decline in Mesolithic communities or settlement in Northern Britain at that time. This Mesolithic site is at Howick, Northumberland, where a nearby sediment deposit has been found to have the potential to be tsunamigenic origin by nature.

Although the Storegga tsunami also struck parts of Western Norway and coastal Greenland, the focus of research centered in the coastal Mesolithic settlement in the Northern UK, an area in what is now Scotland.

However, the paper's scientists assert that the tsunamigenic origin of the sediment is still uncertain.

Storegga Tsunami Simulation

Tsunamis are caused by earthquakes, as well as volcanic eruptions, landslides, and other events that could disturb or shake the oceans. In the case of the Storegga tsunami, the authors of the December 2023 study used a numerical model to simulate the prehistoric giant wave in Northumberland.

Results of the simulation show fatal impacts within the intertidal zone of Mesolithic communities in the region. Furthermore, the tsunami submerged a large area, leading to the loss of key resources like hazelnuts for the Stone Age communities.

In a separate yet related 2021 study published in the journal Frontiers, researchers found that a multi-phase submarine landslide caused the "Storegga Slide" 8200 years ago. The findings were based on an archaeological review of the large-scale marine event in Mesolithic Northern Europe.

The discovery of what triggered the Storegga tsunami event is significant, since in today's time, major tsunamis are often caused by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, with submarine landslides not being a common factor. In the past, evidence shows that asteroid strikes on Earth can also cause tsunamis.