Mystery of the Megaflood

The movie, Mystery of the Megaflood, was an in depth examination of the possible causes that lead to the creation of the Channeled Scablands in Washington state. The cause of this land deformity had been long pondered by scientists for many years until the answer came from the field of geology. A geologist by the name of Brendt suggested, that instead of the theory that the scablands developed over years at a time he proposed, that the scablands had been constructed by one single catastrophic event. This, of course, sounded ludicrous to his contemporaries and Brendt was told to rethink his hypothesis. It would not be revealed until years later that one of his colleagues would confirm his theory by finding just such an event. he discovered that the megaflood was caused by the rapid melting of an ice dam that held the glacial lake that is now Missoula, Montana at bay. However, this was not the only megaflood that laid waste to this landscape. When the sediment of the area is examined there are several notable layers of deposits found. One of these is a vein of sediment made from a layer of ash that came from Mt. St. Helens. This along with other geological features and layers of deposits found along the canyon lead the argument that this megaflood was not an isolated event and that extreme floods have actually been a regular feature in this landscape throughout history.