scholarly journals Landslide geometry and activity in Villa de la Independencia (Bolivia) revealed by InSAR and seismic noise measurements

Landslides ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuang Song ◽  
Chen Yu ◽  
Zhenhong Li ◽  
Veronica Pazzi ◽  
Matteo Del Soldato ◽  
...  

AbstractInterferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) enables detailed investigation of surface landslide movements, but it cannot provide information about subsurface structures. In this work, InSAR measurements were integrated with seismic noise in situ measurements to analyse both the surface and subsurface characteristics of a complex slow-moving landslide exhibiting multiple failure surfaces. The landslide body involves a town of around 6000 inhabitants, Villa de la Independencia (Bolivia), where extensive damages to buildings have been observed. To investigate the spatial-temporal characteristics of the landslide motion, Sentinel-1 displacement time series from October 2014 to December 2019 were produced. A new geometric inversion method is proposed to determine the best-fit sliding direction and inclination of the landslide. Our results indicate that the landslide is featured by a compound movement where three different blocks slide. This is further evidenced by seismic noise measurements which identified that the different dynamic characteristics of the three sub-blocks were possibly due to the different properties of shallow and deep slip surfaces. Determination of the slip surface depths allows for estimating the overall landslide volume (9.18 · 107 m3). Furthermore, Sentinel-1 time series show that the landslide movements manifest substantial accelerations in early 2018 and 2019, coinciding with increased precipitations in the late rainy season which are identified as the most likely triggers of the observed accelerations. This study showcases  the potential of integrating InSAR and seismic noise techniques to understand the landslide mechanism from ground to subsurface.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronica Pazzi ◽  
Matteo Del Soldato ◽  
Chuang Song ◽  
Chen Yu ◽  
Zhenhong Li ◽  
...  

<p>Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) enables detailed investigation of surface landslide movements but lacks information about subsurface recognition/identification. It can be obtained by means of direct measurements (e.g., geotechnical data) and geophysical techniques. InSAR observations, seismic noise measurements, and geotechnical data were integrated to assess the deformation on the ground surface and to determine the depth of the failure surface of the Villa de Independencia landslide, Cochabamba (Bolivia) affecting the village. It is a compound slow-moving landslide (total area approximatively 3.8·10<sup>6</sup> m<sup>2</sup>) composed by three sub-blocks slide exhibiting diverse geometries, multiple failure surfaces, and magnitudes.</p><p>For investigating the spatiotemporal characteristics of the landslide motion, Sentinel-1 time series from October 2014 to December 2019 were analysed. A new geometric inversion method was also proposed to determine the best-fit sliding direction and inclination of the landslide. Results of the Sentinel-1 time series show two substantial accelerations in early 2018 and 2019, coinciding with an increment of precipitations in the late rainy season. It allows supposing the rainy as the most likely triggers of the identified accelerations.</p><p>The seismic noise measurements (more than one hundred spreaded over the whole landslide), analysed according to the Vertical to Horizontal Spectral Ratio technique (H/V), were calibrated and validated by means of the geotechnical data derived by three boreholes and 13 between rock and soil samples. H/V data allowed identifying the different dynamic characteristics of the three sub-blocks: movements are possibly due to the different properties of shallow and deep slip surfaces. The landslides caused damage on the edifices, probably mainly caused by the shallow slip interface (located at a mean depth of 5 m) since the foundation depth of the buildings is at most 2 m. In the town centre a deeper failure surfaces, approximatively with depth between 15 and 75 m, can be identified which may be responsible for its different direction and acceleration magnitude of sliding (inferred by InSAR) compared to the other parts of the landslides. Finally, the determination of the slip surface depths allowed to estimate the overall landslide volume assessed approximatively 9.18·10<sup>7</sup> m<sup>3</sup>.</p><p>The study shows the great potential for landslide motion characterization and mechanism investigation by combing InSAR, seismic noise and geotechnical measurements.</p>


2007 ◽  
Vol 178 (2) ◽  
pp. 137-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ombeline Méric ◽  
Stéphane Garambois ◽  
Jean-Philippe Malet ◽  
Héloïse Cadet ◽  
Philippe Guéguen ◽  
...  

Abstract In order to better understand the mechanics and dynamic of landslides, it is of primary interest to image correctly their internal structure and their slip surface. Several active geophysical methods are able to provide the geometry of a given landslide, but were rarely applied in 3 dimensions in the past. The main disadvantages of methods like seismic reflection and electrical tomography are that there are heavy to set up and/or to process, and they consequently are expensive and time consuming. Moreover, in the particular case of soft-rock landslides, their respective sensitivity and resolution are not always adequate to locate the potential slip surfaces. Passive methods may represent an interesting alternative particularly for landslides difficult to access, as they require lighter instrumentation and easier processing tools. Among them, the seismic noise based methods have shown increasing applications and developments, in particular for seismic hazard mapping in urban environment. In this paper, we present seismic noise investigations carried out on two different sites, the “Super Sauze” mudslide and the “Saint Guillaume” translational clayey landslide (France), where independent measurements (geotechnical and geophysical tests) were performed earlier. Our investigations were composed of electrical tomography profiles, seismic profiles for surface-wave inversions, H/V measurements, which are fast and easy to perform in the field, in order to image shear wave contrasts (slip surfaces), and seismic noise array method, which is heavier to apply and interpret, but provides (S)-waves velocity profile versus depth. For both sites, landslide bodies are characterized by lower S wave velocity (Vs < 300 m.s−1) and lower resistivity (ρ < 60 Ohm.m) than in the stable part (Vs > 550 m.s−1; ρ > 150 ohm.m). Their thickness vary from a few m to 50 m. Comparison between geophysical investigations and geotechnical data proved the applicability of such passive methods in 3D complex structures, with however some limitations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 234
Author(s):  
Rizqi Prastowo ◽  
Hurien Helmi ◽  
Obrin Trianda ◽  
Rofiqul Umam

Landslides are a significant threat to the environment, infrastructure, and human activity, especially in mountainous and hilly areas. It is, therefore, important to accurately identify the social movements that trigger these processes. The resistivity method can investigate subsurface geological variations, including the potential for landslides. This research was conducted to investigate the subsurface structures in the Kalirejo Village area, Kokap District, Kulon Progo Regency, Yogyakarta regarding identifying the sliding location. This investigation includes five lines of tomographic geoelectric measurements. The results show that the slips surface is at a depth of about 5-10 m with a high resistivity value and the landslide material is weathered soil, and the slip surface is andesite. The resistivity of andesite in range 668-1600 Ωm. The landslide material's thickness is around 5-8 m with resistivity in the range 4,01-22.1 Ωm. Landslide material is water-saturated soil.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Richard D. Ray ◽  
Kristine M. Larson ◽  
Bruce J. Haines

Abstract New determinations of ocean tides are extracted from high-rate Global Positioning System (GPS) solutions at nine stations sitting on the Ross Ice Shelf. Five are multi-year time series. Three older time series are only 2–3 weeks long. These are not ideal, but they are still useful because they provide the only in situ tide observations in that sector of the ice shelf. The long tide-gauge observations from Scott Base and Cape Roberts are also reanalysed. They allow determination of some previously neglected tidal phenomena in this region, such as third-degree tides, and they provide context for analysis of the shorter datasets. The semidiurnal tides are small at all sites, yet M2 undergoes a clear seasonal cycle, which was first noted by Sir George Darwin while studying measurements from the Discovery expedition. Darwin saw a much larger modulation than we observe, and we consider possible explanations - instrumental or climatic - for this difference.


Author(s):  
Reinhold Steinacker

AbstractTime series with a significant trend, as is now being the case for the temperature in the course of climate change, need a careful approach for statistical evaluations. Climatological means and moments are usually taken from past data which means that the statistics does not fit to actual data anymore. Therefore, we need to determine the long-term trend before comparing actual data with the actual climate. This is not an easy task, because the determination of the signal—a climatic trend—is influenced by the random scatter of observed data. Different filter methods are tested upon their quality to obtain realistic smoothed trends of observed time series. A new method is proposed, which is based on a variational principle. It outperforms other conventional methods of smoothing, especially if periodic time series are processed. This new methodology is used to test, how extreme the temperature of 2018 in Vienna actually was. It is shown that the new annual temperature record of 2018 is not too extreme, if we consider the positive trend of the last decades. Also, the daily mean temperatures of 2018 are not found to be really extreme according to the present climate. The real extreme of the temperature record of Vienna—and many other places around the world—is the strongly increased positive temperature trend over the last years.


1990 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. N. Chowdhury ◽  
S. Zhang

This note is concerned with the multiplicity of solutions for the factor of safety that may be obtained on the basis of the method of slices. Discontinuities in the function for the factor of safety are discussed and the reasons for false convergence in any iterative solution process are explored, with particular reference to the well-known Bishop simplified method (circular slip surfaces) and Janbu simplified or generalized method (slip surfaces of arbitrary shape). The note emphasizes that both the solution method and the method of searching for the critical slip surface must be considered in assessing the potential for numerical difficulties and false convergence. Direct search methods for optimization (e.g., the simplex reflection method) appear to be superior to the grid search or repeated trial methods in this respect. To avoid false convergence, the initially assumed value of factor of safety F0 should be greater than β1(=−tan α1 tan [Formula: see text]) where α1 and [Formula: see text] are respectively the base inclination and internal friction angle of the first slice near the toe of a slope, the slice with the largest negative reverse inclination. A value of F0 = 1 + β1, is recommended on the basis of experience. If there is no slice with a negative slope for any of the slip surfaces generated in the automatic, search process, then any positive value of F0 will lead to true convergence for F. It is necessary to emphasize that no slip surface needs to be rejected for computational reasons except for Sarma's methods and similarly no artificial changes need to be made to the value of [Formula: see text] except for Sarma's methods. Key words: slope stability, convergence, limit equilibrium, analysis, optimization, slip surfaces, geological discontinuity, simplex reflection technique.


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