The Mega-Tsunami of Doctor Evil

[ciphergoth]

For those of you with digital TV or cable...

There's a rather fab Horizon about mega-tsunamis on BBC4 at 10pm, with more recent information on what's going on at 10:50. After watching it, I mailed one of the scientists on it asking:

I hope you'll forgive the intrusion of your time of this rather silly question that I'm sure you've been asked before.

Few can have watched the BBC Horizon programme about mega-tsunami (recently reshown on BBC Knowledge) without imagining a supervillan placing nuclear devices in the fissure at La Palma in order to hold the Eastern seaboard of the USA to ransom for, say, one beeleeon dollars. Has anyone ever considered whether this would be feasable?

This is an especial risk given that the inactive volcano to the north of the island could make very attractive housing for, say, an underground base filled with jumpsuited minions.

I would be grateful for any light you can shed...

He replied:

I guess if SPECTRE can build a space launcher base inside a Japanese volcano without anyone noticing they can do anything, but shifting La Palma would require multimegaton devices placed at least a kilometre below ground (to tamp the explosions) ---- note that the water tunnels are all in the north of the island, so Dr. Evil would have to start from scratch ---- and unless the villain concerned was particularly into unnecessarily complex plot devices ("you do this every time" to quote Scott Evil) there are more direct ways to hold the US to ransom with hydrogen bombs ......

On the other hand the number of paranoid Americans who e-mailed me asking if the A-Rabs could do it without anyone noticing until the bombs went off did give me cause to ponder the differences in collective psychoses between Europe and the US (I blame Admiral Yamamoto ......).

The ironic twist is that climate change due amongst other things to large Americans driving around in their large SUVs may cause increased rainfall over the summits and so raise the water table in the volcanoes, triggering collapse during their next eruptions: thus the Americans may do it to themselves (and us) ......

Comments

spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

It happens in the Christopher Brookmyre novel Not The End of the World. In this case it's a Christian Fundamentalist trying to punish the 'evil' Californians. I recommend the book. Porn stars, cops, suicide, submariners and a Christian rock band.

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[ciphergoth.livejournal.com]

...but, but California is on the Western seaboard!

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

damn my geography. It may not have been California. Anyway, if you don't know the story, in the words of Tony Wilson, 'you should probably read more'.

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[babysimon]

It was California, specifically LA, and you MUST read the book...

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[akicif.livejournal.com]

Oh, yeah. That Brookmyre's dead good. Heard him described as Banksie with the brakes off, (leading to speculationabout what sort of "Culture" Chritopher M Brookmyre would write about).

The new one, "The Sacred Art of Stealing", seems to begin with a paean to the joy of the Commercial Blowjob....

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[valkyriekaren.livejournal.com]

I've skimmed the first couple of chapters of it. Will get round to reading the rest sometime soon.
And playing 'spot the Warren Zevon reference', though I suspect zotz is way better at that game than me.

Re: spoiler for novel "Not the End of the World"

[zotz]

Indeed. It didn't involve La Palma, but something else.

[wechsler.livejournal.com]

You've gotta love the way this man thinks ;)

[adjectivegail]

*laughs* my housemates have been argueing about this for months - one of them's a geology student, the other's a geography student. but, i just printed out your email and his reply and took it downstairs to show them, thinking they'd laugh... instead i managed to re-immerse them in the argument *head --> desk*
oh well, i thought it was amusing...

Update

[wechsler.livejournal.com]

According to Horizon Update, said Mega-Tsunami resulting from the collapse of La Palma wouldn't just hit the eastern seaboard of the US... it'd wallop much of the south coast of England and Ireland too.

Arse.

[jhg.livejournal.com]

Class!


J

[adjectivemarcus.livejournal.com]

Woohoo! Top Boffin Action! Nice one!