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Reconstruction of a large runout landslide in the Krušné hory Mts. (Czech Republic)

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Abstract

The aims of this study were to summarize current knowledge of a large runout prehistoric landslide, critically review all of the existing data and, in particular, gather new data in order to estimate the age of the accumulation and reveal the movement mechanism. The reconstruction of a large rockslide-rock avalanche in the NW part of the Czech Republic was supported by the analysis and interpretation of 216 boreholes and by GIS analysis of the original 1950s pre-mining surface using digitized old military topographic maps. For the age estimation, we used the Schmidt hammer test. The total volume of the quaternary deposit was calculated to be between 25.4 and 27.4 mil m3, occupying an area of 778,000 m2 and consisting of six to eight generations of colluvial sediments. Three main landslide events were identified based on extensive Schmidt hammer sampling, and the approximate age was established using a regression equation assembled by Engel (2007). All three of the documented events occurred around the time of significant climate change. The oldest event occurred due to the Oldest Dryas warming, the largest event probably occurred at the end of the Younger Dryas (11,700 yBP), and the youngest of the documented events was purely of a Holocene age, with the highest landslide frequency being during the Atlantic temperature fluctuations (approximately 8200 yBP). The slope deformation occurred on a fault slope with a relative height of over 400 m and in tectonically weakened rocks. Sediments in the Most Basin were weakened from meltwater during rapid warming periods, which allowed mobilization of rockslide deposits and runout of up to 1000 m from the mountain foothills.

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Notes

  1. The term landslide has been used here to refer to all types of mass wasting processes and their accumulations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Brown Coal Research Institute j.s.c., Tř. Budovatelů 2830/3, Most, Czech Republic

    J. Burda, M. Veselý & M. Řehoř

  2. Faculty of Science, Charles University, Albertov 6, Prague 2, Czech Republic

    V. Vilímek

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  1. J. Burda
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  2. M. Veselý
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  3. M. Řehoř
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  4. V. Vilímek
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Correspondence to V. Vilímek.

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Burda, J., Veselý, M., Řehoř, M. et al. Reconstruction of a large runout landslide in the Krušné hory Mts. (Czech Republic). Landslides 15, 423–437 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-017-0881-0

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