'Invisibility cloak' could protect coastline.

SCIENTISTS at the University of Liverpool have tested an 'invisibility cloak' that could protect against tsunamis.

City mathematicians, working with European physicists, have found that coastal defences could be made 'invisible' when water is guided through a special structure called metamaterial.

Dr Sebastien Guenneau, from the University's Department of Mathematical Science, said: "Defending land against flooding and tidal waves is a big issue for scientists and engineers all over the world.

"What is unique about this new structure is that it interacts with the water, guiding it to a particular destination rather than breaking it up and sending it everywhere.

"We now need to investigate how to replicate this effect in a 'real' life situation to protect land from natural disasters such as tsunamis, and structures such as oil rigs."