Rogue wave
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Rogue waves are unusually large and unpredictable surface waves that can be extremely dangerous to ships and isolated structures such as lighthouses. They are distinct from tsunamis, which are often almost unnoticeable in deep waters and are caused by the displacement of water due to other phenomena. A rogue wave at the shore is sometimes called a sneaker wave.
A merchant ship labouring in heavy seas as a large wave looms ahead, Bay of Biscay, c. 1940
Although commonly described as a tsunami, the titular wave in The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai is more likely an example of a large rogue wave.
SS Edmund Fitzgerald
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SS Edmund Fitzgerald was an American Great Lakes freighter that sank in Lake Superior during a storm on November 10, 1975, with the loss of the entire crew of 29 men. When launched on June 7, 1958, she was the largest ship on North America's Great Lakes and remains the largest to have sunk there. She was located in deep water (§ Wreck discovery below) on November 14, 1975, by a U.S. Navy aircraft detecting magnetic anomalies, and found soon afterwards to be in two large pieces.
SS Edmund Fitzgerald in 1971
SS Edmund Fitzgerald, upbound and in ballast
SS Edmund Fitzgerald under way
One of Edmund Fitzgerald's lifeboats, on display at the Valley Camp museum ship