Submarine landslide

A submarine landslide is the downslope movement of sediment or rock beneath a body of water. It can reshape the seabed and generate tsunamis.

Slope failure: The collapse or displacement of material on a slope when resisting forces no longer balance driving forces. A submarine landslide is slope failure occurring underwater.
Earthquake: The shaking of the ground caused by sudden movement along a fault or other source. Seismic shaking can destabilize saturated sediment on continental margins.
Submarine landslide tsunami: A tsunami generated when a landslide rapidly displaces water beneath or at the sea surface. Fast-moving failures can displace water and create locally severe waves.
Subaerial landslide: The downslope movement of rock or sediment on land exposed to the atmosphere. It shares gravitational failure with submarine landslides but occurs above water.
Pore water pressure: The pressure exerted by water within the pores of sediment or rock. Rising pore pressure can reduce sediment strength and initiate failure.
Gas hydrate: An ice-like solid in which gas molecules are trapped within a lattice of water molecules. Changes in hydrate stability may affect sediment strength, though their role varies by setting.
Storegga Slide: A major submarine landslide off Norway that occurred about 8,200 years ago. Its deposits and tsunami record make it a canonical example of a large margin failure.
Rockslide: The rapid downslope movement of a coherent mass of rock along a failure surface. A rockslide emphasizes coherent rock movement, unlike many sediment-rich submarine failures.
Undrained shear strength: The shear stress saturated soil can withstand when water cannot drain during deformation. It helps determine whether a rapidly loaded submarine sediment slope can remain stable.
Rapid sedimentation: The fast accumulation of sediment, which can bury layers faster than they consolidate. Rapid burial can leave weak, water-rich layers beneath submarine slopes.

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