Recent global events such as the devastating 1998 Papua New Guinea tsunami, the 2004 Sumatran tsunami and the 2006 SE Asia undersea network cable failure underscore the societal and economic effects of submarine mass movements. These events call upon the scientific community to understand submarine mass movement processes and consequences to assist in hazard assessment, mitigation and planning. Additionally, submarine mass movements are beginning to be recognized as prevalent in continental margin geologic sections. As such, they represent a significant if not dominant role in margin sedimentary processes. They also represent a potential hazard to hydrocarbon exploration and development, but also represent exploration indicators and targets. This volume consists of a collection of the latest scientific research by international experts in geological, geophysical, engineering and environment aspects of submarine mass failures, focussed on understanding the full spectrum of challenges presented by submarine mass movements and their consequences.

Recent global events such as the devastating 1998 Papua New Guinea tsunami, the 2004 Sumatran tsunami and the 2006 SE Asia undersea network cable failure underscore the societal and economic effects of submarine mass movements. These events call upon the scientific community to understand submarine mass movement processes and consequences to assist in hazard assessment, mitigation and planning. Additionally, submarine mass movements are beginning to be recognized as prevalent in continental margin geologic sections. As such, they represent a significant if not dominant role in margin sedimentary processes. They also represent a potential hazard to hydrocarbon exploration and development, but also represent exploration indicators and targets. This volume consists of a collection of the latest scientific research by international experts in geological, geophysical, engineering and environment aspects of submarine mass failures, focussed on understanding the full spectrum of challenges presented by submarine mass movements and their consequences.

This book is a comprehensive collection of state-of-the-art studies of seafloor slope instability and their societal implications. The volume captures the most recent and exciting scientific progress made in this research field. As the world's climate and energy needs change, the conditions under which slope instability occurs and needs to be considered, are also changing. The science and engineering of submarine - or more widely subaqueous - mass movements is greatly benefiting from advances in seafloor and sub-seafloor surveying technologies. Ultra-high-resolution seafloor mapping and 3D seismic reflection cubes are becoming commonly available datasets that are dramatically increasing our knowledge of the mechanisms and controls of subaqueous slope failure. Monitoring of slope deformation, repeat surveying and deep drilling, on the other hand, are emerging as important new techniques for understanding the temporal scales of slope instability. In essence, rapid advances in technology are being readily incorporated into scientific research and as a result, our understanding of submarine mass movements is increasing at a very fast rate. The volume also marks the beginning of the third IGCP project for the submarine mass movement research community, IGCP-640 S4SLIDE (Significance of Modern and Ancient Submarine Slope LandSLIDEs). The Submarine Mass Movements and Their Consequences symposium is the biannual meeting under the IGCP umbrella.