Visualizing Landslides

  • Released Thursday, August 27, 2015
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Scientists map the location of more than 6,500 landslides.

Scientists map the location of more than 6,500 landslides.

Landslides are one of the most dangerous natural hazards on the planet. Between 2007 and 2015, there were more than 25,000 reported deaths due to rainfall-triggered landslides around the world. Heavy rains set off landslides by forming fast-moving flows of rock, mud and debris that pour down hillsides, causing destruction to life, property and homes. Most landslides occur during the Northern Hemisphere summer, coinciding with tropical cyclone and East Asian monsoon seasons. In 2010, NASA scientists released the first publicly available catalog of rainfall-triggered landslides using information collected from online databases and media reports that date back to 2007. Recently, the catalog has been updated to include landslide events from the last five years. Scientists have begun to compare events with satellite rainfall measurements to determine where and when landslides are likely to occur. Watch the video to see the distribution of rainfall-triggered landslides that took place from 2007 to 2015.

This visualization shows the location of rainfall-triggered landslides and reported number of deaths from 2007 to 2015.

This map shows the location of the 1,543 rainfall-triggered landslides and 5,363 fatalities reported in 2010.

This map shows the location of the 1,543 rainfall-triggered landslides and 5,363 fatalities reported in 2010.

This map shows the location of the 1,213 rainfall-triggered landslides and 2,151 fatalities reported in 2011.

This map shows the location of the 1,213 rainfall-triggered landslides and 2,151 fatalities reported in 2011.

This map shows the location of the 575 rainfall-triggered landslides and 1,462 fatalities reported in 2012.

This map shows the location of the 575 rainfall-triggered landslides and 1,462 fatalities reported in 2012.

This map shows the location of the 1,055 rainfall-triggered landslides and 6,361 fatalities reported in 2013.

This map shows the location of the 1,055 rainfall-triggered landslides and 6,361 fatalities reported in 2013.

This map shows the location of the 880 rainfall-triggered landslides and 3,848 fatalities reported in 2014.

This map shows the location of the 880 rainfall-triggered landslides and 3,848 fatalities reported in 2014.

Credits

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

This page was originally published on Thursday, August 27, 2015.
This page was last updated on Wednesday, May 3, 2023 at 1:49 PM EDT.