Towards the end of ‘The Rig’, the crew of Kinloch Bravo attempts to talk to the Ancestor and learns that it’s about to trigger another seismic event like the Storegga Slide.
Rose and Fulmer tried to figure out the motives of the Ancestor. Fulmer, on his side, remembered Baz’s warning about a wave that is coming. Baz somewhere knew what is about to happen.
Rose encouraged Fulmer to contact Baz using quorum sensing, a process through which the bacteria communicate. Fulmer placed his hands over a sample of bacteria and gave this crazy idea a shot.
Upon focusing, he received visions that signaled the end of the world. Fulmer claimed that the Ancestor is about to trigger a new Storegga Slide, a tsunami that would kill thousands.
What are the Storegga Slides?
The Storegga Slides were a series of submarine landslides that occurred between 6225 and 6170 BCE at the edge of Norway’s continental shelf in the Norwegian Sea. These slides are among the largest known submarine landslides.
Structural failures on the continental shelf of Norway caused three underwater landslides. Nearly 290 kilometers of the continental shelf collapsed due to higher world temperatures.
The collapsed continental shelf then triggered large tsunamis across the North Atlantic Ocean.
Doggerland, an area of land populated by the Mesolithic people at that time, faced the wrath of the Storegga Slides the most.
The area worked as a landbridge linking Britain, Denmark, and the Netherlands. It was already sinking due to the melting ice. The place was believed to be a rich habitat.
Storegga Slides indeed became an apocalyptic event for the people of Doggerland, the east coast of Britain, and Norway.
The exact number of people who lost their lives is obviously not known, but one can imagine the number as Doggerland served as a ground for hunting, fowling, and fishing for the Mesolithic population at that time.
The wave that is similar to Storegga Slide in The Rig
‘The Rig’ recreates an event similar to the Storegga Slide in the final few minutes of the first season. Captain Magnus, Rose, and Fulmer try to convince the Ancestor that they can collaborate, but they run out of time.
The trio, along with the surviving members of Kinloch Bravo, escape through choppers in time. The oil rigs of Kinloch Bravo and Charlie get destroyed upon facing the impact of the wave predicted by Baz.
The wave then makes its way to the cities, and it is believed that hundreds and thousands would die as the communications are down and no one in the city knows about the oncoming wave.
Also Read: The Rig review: Fascinating and terrifying