Underwater landslide may have doubled 2011 Japanese tsunami

A tsunami flowing into the city of Mikayo after the 9.0 magnitude Fukushima earthquake March 11, 2011 (JIJI PRESS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

A tsunami flowing into the city of Mikayo after the 9.0 magnitude Fukushima earthquake March 11, 2011 (JIJI PRESS/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

A seismologist at the University of Tokyo believes that the monstrous tsunami that was responsible for so much damage and loss of life during the 2011 Fukushima earthquake may have been a result of a submarine landslide the size of Paris. The researchers reached their conclusion by back-analyzing the wave motion measurements from buoys on the day of the earthquake. After modeling the size and approximate location of the landslide, other team members were able to compare bathymetry data from before and after the earthquake to locate the slide. [Source: Read more at Science/AAAS. Image: The Science Show]