LiveScience Topics: Natural Disasters

More Natural Disasters News and Information

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  Tsunami Maker

  A tsunami generated by a piston wavemaker travels across a flume, breaks and impacts a wall, causing it to collapse.

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  Tsunami Warning System Didn't Help Samoans

  Even before the first warning was issued, it was too late for the inhabitants of the island American Samoa.

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  Big Quakes Weaken Faults on Other Side of Earth

  Study finds large quakes can weaken faults around the world.

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  Two Deadly Quakes: Is Earth Unusually Active?

  Multiple strong earthquakes in one year not unusual, though effects and damage can differ.

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  Earthquakes and Tsunamis: How They Work

  How deep-sea earthquakes can generates devastating walls of water.

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  Major South Pacific Quake Spawns Tsunami

  A major earthquake struck in the Somoa Islands region of the South Pacific Ocean.

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  Killer Hurricanes

  Why Do Certain Storms Become Mass Murderers?

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  Birth of a Killer: How Hurricanes Begin

  Tracing a super-storm from its roots in Africa to its furious assault on the Caribbean and Gulf coast. Disastrous typhoons will be on collision courses with coastal populations of the future.

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  Bitter Legacy of Hurricanes Past

  Driven by warm ocean waters, some storms can unleash a lethal package of high wind, devastating rain and surging tidal waters.

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  The Hundred Year Storm: Why Certain Hurricanes Turn Killer

  When Hurricane Ike attacked Texas, it echoed a super-storm one century ago; a terrifying deja vu of the deadliest natural disaster in American history.

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  A More Perfect Storm: How Hurricanes Intensify

  Under certain horrifying conditions two eye-walls will form, adding energy to an already dangerous cyclone. This Earth's recipe for cooking up a killer like Katrina.

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  Cat Scan of Katrina: Inside a Super Storm

  New science tools probe the anatomy and physiology of large coastal hurricanes. Researchers dissect the data of dangerous super-storms past to predict the life-cycles of future typhoons.

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  Inside Killer Hurricanes

  Why do certain storms become mass-murderers? New science discoveries reveal the inner secrets of super-storms, buying vital hours - or even days - for disaster prevention.

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  Hurricanes Spawning More U.S. Tornadoes

  Records show more tornadoes spinning off from land-falling hurricanes.

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  Japanese Quake Test

  In Miki, Japan, a six-story wooden model condominium was shaken by the equivalent of a 7.5 magnitude earthquake. The test was said to be the largest simulated earthquake ever attempted with a wooden structure.

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  Rock 'n' Roll Building Will Survive Violent Earthquakes

  Engineers are designing buildings that pull themselves back into plumb as soon as the shaking stops, confining damage to replaceable steel "fuses."

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  New Flexible Building Survives Powerful Test Earthquake

  A new structural enhancement for buildings may prevent damage from earthquakes.

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  Why Pacific Hurricanes Hit the Americas So Rarely

  Conditions in the Atlantic favor landfalling hurricanes, while those in the Pacific keep storms away from land.

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  Louisiana Native Takes on Storm Season

  Ian Giammanco is part of a team of scientists getting up close and personal with severe storms.

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  Freak Hurricane Wave Strikes Maine

  A surprisingly large rogue wave killed a girl and pulled others into the water.

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  Gigantic Lightning Jets Shoot from Clouds to Space

  Lightning observed shooting up from storm, confirmed to carry electric charge from cloud.