The US Geological Survey has confirmed that what it had initially reported as an earthquake "was instead a glacial collapse and debris flow" that "caused subsequent catastrophic impacts downstream".
It had first reported the event as a magnitude 4.4 earthquake on Wednesday.
"Additional analysis of nearby seismic stations, long period seismic waves, and satellite imagery led to the determination that the seismic event was instead a glacial collapse and debris flow, and that no earthquake had occurred," the USGS said on Thursday morning.
Earlier Nepali authorities had also told the BBC that a massive chunk of ice may have collapsed from a mountain, pulling down rocks and other sediments with it.
Meanwhile, scientists are still working through the exact sequence of events that could have unleashed such a disaster.
Source: BBC
-Agencies
