High resolution measurement of earthquake impacts on rock slope stability and damage using pre- and post-earthquake remote sensing

Assessment of the effects of earthquakes on rock slopes requires detailed measurements both before and after the shaking. However, at present, there is a lack of high resolution data that enables this, partly as it is unusual to have good data from prior to earthquakes. This information is important for validating models that are used to back-analyze rock slope behaviour during and following earthquake shaking.
The proposed work involves the novel integration of a range of new remote sensing techniques to assess the effects of seismic shaking and subsequent annual monsoon rains on two case study slopes in Central Nepal, where some of the most intense damage due to landsliding was experienced following the 2015 earthquake sequence. Rock slope characterization and change detection to identify earthquake damage will be employed to assess slope response to seismic shaking and monsoonal rainfall. TO BE CONT’D

Faculty Supervisor:

Douglas Stead

Student:

Lauren Hockin

Partner:

BGC Engineering

Discipline:

Geography / Geology / Earth science

Sector:

Environmental industry

University:

Program: