Mega-Tsunami
In this scenario, a volcanic eruption on the island of La Palma triggers a massive landslide wherein a sizable portion of the island collapses into the sea, causing a massive mega-tsunami to race across the Atlantic Ocean and strike the east coast of the United States, inundating most of New York City, but leaving many buildings intact.
'Mega tsunami would create waves 3 MILES HIGH' Deadliest natural disaster revealed
Regular tsunamis, such as the one that struck Japan's Fukushima power plant in 2011 killing thousands, happen from time to time.
They are sparked by underwater earthquakes, which send a massive wall of water hurtling along towards the coast.
And while they can be totally devastating, they are nothing in comparison to a mega tsunami.
One of the biggest of these to hit Earth was approximately 66 million years ago when dinosaurs were wiped out.
Scientists believe the impact of an asteroid smashing into the planet sparked a wave approximately 3.1 miles high.
But smaller-scale mega tsunamis have happened more recently and could easily happen again.
RealLifeLore explains: "Unlike a regular tsunami that is created by an earthquake, a mega tsunami is usually created when a massive amount of material suddenly falls into water which displaces that water into a huge wave."
In 1958, one occurred in the US state of Alaska when an earthquake caused 90 million tons of rock to come loose and sparked a 1,724 foot-high (525 metres) wave to crash over its remote Lituya Bay.
The impact of it is said to have sent two fisherman and their boat to land on trees in a nearby forrest.
Another mega tsunami wave struck Japan in 1792 when part of Mount Unzen collapsed into the sea, killing 15,000 with 300-foot wave.
But researchers have suggested there is the possibility another mega tsunami could batter Earth.
Simon Day Simon Day, a senior researcher at University College London, caused controversy years ago when he said the Canary Islands' active volcano Cumbre Vieja erupted, it could cause a wave 3,000 feet tall.
If this happened, the entire east coast of the United States would be obliterated.
