Lituya Bay is a fjord (inlet) located at Latitude 58°38' North Longitude 137°34' West in Alaska. The inlet is 14.5 kilometres (9 miles) long and 3.2 kilometres (2 miles) wide at its widest point. The bay was discovered in 1786 by Jean-François de La Pérouse, who named it Port des Français. 21 of his men perished in the tidal current in the bay.
Three glaciers spill into Lituya Bay. The bay is famous for its extremely high tides. The entrance of the bay is very narrow, and the tides going into and out of the bay through the entrance also cause very treacherous currents.
The same topography that leads to the heavy tidal currents also created the highest tsunami wave ever recorded anywhere in the world. An earthquake and landslide in Crillon Inlet at the head of the bay on July 10, 1958 generated a monstrous megatsunami more than 500 m high, which stripped trees and soil from the opposite headland and consumed the entire bay, destroying three fishing boats anchored there and killing two people. By the time the wave reached the open sea, however, it dissipated quickly. This incident was the first evidence and eye-witness report of the existence of megatsunamis.
Lityua Bay is a part of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.
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