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Analyzing the triggering factors of glacial lake outburst floods with SAR and optical images: a case study in Jinweng Co, Tibet, China

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Abstract

On June 25, 2020, Jinweng Co in Yiga, Tibet, experienced an outburst flood that resulted in catastrophic damage to farmland and roads. The complex causal factors for glacial lake outburst flooding (GLOF) are not fully understood. This paper provides a systematic analysis of the contributing factors leading to the GLOF disaster in terms of meteorological triggering, glacial activity, lake expansion, landslide, and glacial collapse. The analysis is based on multi-source remote sensing approaches. Pixel offset tracking of Sentinel-1 images shows changes in the glacier flow velocity from 2017 to 2020. Sentinel-2 and Landsat-8 images and inventory data have revealed the expansion of the lake since 1998. The satellite precipitation measurements revealed that the highest daily rainfall in recent years occurred approximately 4 days before the GLOF. Time series synthetic aperture radar (SAR) backscattering images and interferograms suggest that a landslide had occurred from the western lateral moraine into the lake. Additionally, SAR images suggest possible ice collapse from the glacier tongue into the lake. The causal mechanism for the June 2020 GLOF event was likely the dam failure triggered by heavy rainfall and combined with landslides and ice collapses. Our research can provide a reference to identify and mitigate glacial lake outburst disasters in mountainous regions based on satellite optical and radar images.

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Source: Guoxiong Zheng (used with permission)

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Acknowledgements

Sentinel-1/2 data were provided by the Sentinel Scientific Data Hub of the European Space Agency (ESA). Landsat-8 data were acquired using the Geospatial Data Cloud (http://www.gscloud.cn/). Lake inventory data were obtained from the National Tibetan Plateau Data Center (TPDC) (https://data.tpdc.ac.cn). We thank the editor and anonymous reviewers for their helpful suggestions and Zheng Guoxiong for providing the photos used in this investigation.

Funding

This research was funded by the Scientific Innovation Practice Project of Postgraduates of Chang’an University (Grants No. 300103714010, 300203211263) and the Shuler-Foscue Endowment at Southern Methodist University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geology Engineering and Geomatics, Chang’an University, Xi’an, 710054, People’s Republic of China

    Liye Yang, Chaoying Zhao, Chengsheng Yang, Baohang Wang, Xiaojie Liu & Zhe Wang

  2. Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX, 75275, USA

    Zhong Lu & Jinwoo Kim

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  1. Liye Yang
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  2. Zhong Lu
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  3. Chaoying Zhao
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  4. Jinwoo Kim
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  5. Chengsheng Yang
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  6. Baohang Wang
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  7. Xiaojie Liu
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  8. Zhe Wang
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Correspondence to Zhong Lu.

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Yang, L., Lu, Z., Zhao, C. et al. Analyzing the triggering factors of glacial lake outburst floods with SAR and optical images: a case study in Jinweng Co, Tibet, China. Landslides 19, 855–864 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-021-01831-1

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