Ten years of landslide development after the Wenchuan earthquake: a case study from Miansi town, China

The earthquake outbreak on 12 May 2008, in Wenchuan County caused long-term instability and frequent geological hazards on the mountain slopes in the earthquake area. Considering Miansi town in the strong earthquake area as an example, this paper analyses the development and characteristics of landslides in the 10 years after the earthquake. We collected five periods of remote sensing images in the 10 years after the earthquake, obtained the corresponding landslide distribution and activity characteristics, and then analysed the development of landslide activity over the 10 years. The total area of the landslides grew intensively from 2008 to 2014, and then the growth rate slowed down significantly after the heavy rainfall event on 10 July 2013. At the same time, the influence of slope, slope aspect, distance to a river channel, elevation, and other factors on the probability of landslides is analysed by using the distribution of the landslides. The areas that are prone to landslides, which mainly include the areas with elevations of 1700-3200 m, the areas with slopes of 30-60 degrees, the areas with aspects of 90 degrees-225 degrees (with north having an aspect of 0 degrees), and the area that are less than 200 m from a river channel, are divided according to the distribution density.

Automated summary

This paper analyzes the development and characteristics of landslides in Miansi town, which is located in the strong earthquake area, in the 10 years after the earthquake. The study finds that the total area of landslides increased significantly in the initial years but slowed down after a heavy rainfall event in 2013. The study also investigates the factors influencing the probability of landslides.