Megaflood

A megaflood is a flood which suddenly releases a huge amount of water. In geomorphology it is sometimes called an outburst flood.^[1][2] At the end of the last ice age, many large floods were caused by the collapse of ice sheets or glaciers which formed the dams of glacial lakes.

Examples of older outburst floods are known from the geological past of the Earth. Landslides, lahars, and volcanic dams can block rivers and create lakes. When the rock or earth barrier collapses, or is eroded, this triggers a flood. Lakes also form behind glacial moraines, which can collapse and create outburst floods.^[3]

1. ↑ O’Connor J.E. and Beebee R.A. 2009. Floods from natural rock-material dams. In: Burr D; Carling P. and Baker V. (eds) Megafloods on Earth and Mars. Cambridge University Press.
2. ↑ Goudie A. 2004. Encyclopedia of Geomorphology. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-27298-X
3. ↑ Burr D.M; Baker V.R. & Carling P.A. (eds) 2009. Megaflooding on Earth and Mars. Cambridge University Press.