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Dynamics of the Niumiangou Creek rock avalanche triggered by 2008 Ms 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake, Sichuan, China

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Abstract

The Niumiangou Creek rock avalanche was triggered by an Ms 8.0 earthquake that happened on 12 May 2008 in the Sichuan Province, China. The rock avalanche traveled a horizontal distance of 3.0 km over a vertical elevation difference of 0.89 km, equivalent to a coefficient of friction of only 0.29. The travel path of the rock avalanche can be divided into three segments: (1) failing and disintegrating, (2) flying, (3) flowing. In the failing and disintegrating segment, the rock slope failed because of the coupled action of horizontal and vertical force of the earthquake, then smashed into the opposite mountain and disintegrated. In the flying segment, the disintegrating rock mass changed direction and flew into the Lianhuaxin Creek, which was different from the previous research results that concluded rock debris flowed in Lianhuaxin Creek. A great amount of air trapped and compressed under the rock debris acted as air cushion and supported the rock debris to fly a further distance. In the flowing segment, the rock debris flowed on the ground surface in Niumiangou Creek. The flowing velocity has been estimated from the maximum elevation and runup according to the damaged trimlines of the debris. The saturated fine material in Niumiangou Creek entrained by the failed debris mass is thought to have contributed to the long runout of the debris. The Niumiangou Creek rock avalanche is one of the three longest rock avalanches triggered by Wenchuan earthquake. The conclusions of the paper have implications for hazard assessment of potential rock avalanches in the earthquake area and the other similar mountainous area in west China.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Basic Science Foundation of the Institute of Geomechanics, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (Grant No. DZLXJK201011), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant No. 20100470393), and the China Geological Survey Foundation (Grant No. 1212011014032).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Geomechanics, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, 11#, Min Zu Da Xue Nan Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100081, People’s Republic of China

    Ming Zhang, Shuren Wu, Yongshuang Zhang & Jinliang Han

  2. China Geological Survey, 45#, Fu Wai Da Jie, Beijing, 100037, People’s Republic of China

    Yueping Yin

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  1. Ming Zhang
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  2. Yueping Yin
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  3. Shuren Wu
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  4. Yongshuang Zhang
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Correspondence to Ming Zhang.

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Zhang, M., Yin, Y., Wu, S. et al. Dynamics of the Niumiangou Creek rock avalanche triggered by 2008 Ms 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake, Sichuan, China. Landslides 8, 363–371 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-011-0265-9

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