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Did Asteroid Cause Ancient New York Tsunami?

dsc.discovery.com — A giant asteroid may have triggered a tsunami that struck New York more than 2,000 years ago. It was 2,300 years ago. The Palisades that frame the Hudson River were whisper-quiet, the sandy beaches of Long Island and New Jersey empty, and Manhattan was still just an unbroken sylvan carpet.

Who dugg this? Made popular Nov 21, 2008

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  • DRT23, on 11/21/2008, -0/+22"...that struck New York more than 2,000 years ago. It was 2,300 years ago."


    Oh.
  • Joe_rigby, on 11/21/2008, -0/+13I read the description of this story less than 1 minute ago. It was 42 seconds ago.
  • dartmanx, on 11/21/2008, -2/+13"What do you think of Flushing, New York?"

    "I think it's a pretty good idea."
  • maximilen, on 11/21/2008, -0/+9The Cloverfield monster caused it.
  • neocr0n, on 11/21/2008, -0/+9I saw a Documentary about landslides and mega tsunami. One of the most likely candidates for a land slide is the island of La Palma off the west coast of Africa. Scientists believe the land slide would have a massive Tsunami slamming into the east coast of America within 6 hours. A pretty unlikely event but history has shown they do happen. It was a "Horizon" episode for anyone interested.
  • davidtowers, on 11/20/2008, -0/+9Interesting read but sounds like need more evidence:

    "We're making the pretty outrageous claim that not only did a tsunami hit the New York metropolitan area 2,300 years ago, but it was caused by an asteroid impact for which we can't find a crater," she said.
  • FadieZ, on 11/21/2008, -0/+5I was thinking "Ancient New York? Isn't that just 'York'?"
  • Kucher, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4A lot of sore wrists, maybe.
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -2/+6IT'S OVER 2000
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Get those Loose Change douches on the case.
  • Wittyfish, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4I caused your mom's tsunami.
  • kss42, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Please don't tell Michael Bay about this.
  • mishabear, on 11/21/2008, -0/+4Am I the only one who thought, "Ummm....New York didn't exist 2000 years ago."
  • TheZorch, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3These things are difficult to find evidence for because unlike the moon the earth is eroded from the elements and eventually all but the very largest craters are swept away. If the crater is below the ocean's surface and near the middle of the Atlantic the volcanic activity at the mid oceanic ridge would have covered it up long ago. An asteroid is one of the only logical causes of such an event other than a massive quake in the region, but such an event would have left geological evidence in the area that could not be so easily erased by erosion. A massive landslide on the European or African side of the Atlantic could have caused a tsunami also but then again the geological evidence after 2,000 years would still be there in some form.
  • davidg11, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3How do we get another asteroid to hit it again?
  • SadMartigan, on 11/25/2008, -0/+3La Palma erupted most recently in 1971, and has been 'relatively' active as far back as recorded history can go, every 50 to 100 years a new eruption has occurred.

    Given the right amount of seismic / volcanic activity, and it is conceivable for the western slope of the old caldera to sheer and slump off into the ocean, causing another ultra-fast, ultra-big tsunami.

    It's a nice place to visit, though. And they have some awesome telescopes up there.
  • ShadowofAres, on 11/22/2008, -0/+3No toilet. Only Krav Kalash.
  • zoziw, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3"Unbelievably, over the last 20 years we have managed to stop global warming and no longer need to worry about rising sea leve...HOLY *****!!"
  • Jhiaxuz, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3Horizon is an amazing program and worth every minute of watching. If there was an asteroid impact, it would have had implications on a much larger scale than the area which is now New York; the only 'reliable' sources of documentation would be from Indian paintings if no crater can be found.
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3I saw this too. Could happen tomorrow, or so they say.
  • crushfan, on 11/21/2008, -0/+3Yes.
  • mlbwebdesign, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2No, that was Donkey Kong :)
  • sslemon, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2As long as it wasn't a Crysis.
  • SadMartigan, on 11/25/2008, -0/+2Yes, luckily 'tomorrow' for a geologist means 'practically never' to the rest of us.
  • mal1964, on 11/21/2008, -1/+3"To get a wave 2.5 meters high that far up the Hudson, you need a wave 20 meters high at Manhattan,"
    Get The ***** Outta Here!
  • Mujokan, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Especially if you just drank 20 cans of crab juice. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2188/2171379371_8b4 ...
  • SevenTwo, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Needs more "an"
  • Techx4, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2NYC could use another huge ***** wave.. clean up that mess, noone will miss them
  • doctordbx, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Is there another asteroid movie coming out?
  • WeylandYutani, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2all fingers point to Michael Moore.
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2You'd sure miss the stock exchange... and so would the world...
  • Twenty5, on 11/21/2008, -0/+2Wow.... amazing title you have up there....
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2Interesting evidence but sounds like need more read
  • inactive, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2Thats great information, but i think what is the real life implication of this information?
  • writer0213, on 11/21/2008, -1/+2Why do I care?!

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