“The account of the great destruction given in 3 Nephi 8 finds remarkable parallels with what modern seismology and vulcanology show about cataclysmic geological events and with historical reports of such catastrophes. Yet Joseph Smith never saw a volcano and never experienced a significant earthquake, nor is it likely he had read any substantial literature on the subject.
“But the region of Mesoamerica … is a place of continuing volcanic and seismic activity” (Peterson, “Mounting Evidence for the Book of Mormon,” 22).