Category: Responding to Natural Disasters and Environmental Changes
Project Team: Himalayan Disasters
Team Location: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center – Greenbelt, Maryland
The Sudden Landslide Identification Product (SLIP) detects landslides in highly sloped areas by utilizing Landsat images using light reflected from visible red, green, and blue wavelengths. Image Credit: Himalayan Disasters Team
Authors:
Amanda Rumsey
Jamie Shiplet
Jessica Fayne
Justin Roberts-Pierel
Mentors/Advisors:
Dr. Dalia B. Kirschbaum (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)
Dr. John D. Bolten (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)
Thomas A. Stanley (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)
Abstract:
The Koshi River Basin is a hotspot for landslide activity due to its complex topography, monsoon rains and often poor building practices. On average, the Koshi River Basin experiences 135 causalities and loses millions of dollars annually due to landslide damages. There have been few regional or global efforts that document where landslides have occurred or estimate potential landslide conditions in near-real time. This study utilized NASA Earth observations including Landsat 5 and 8, MODIS, Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), ASTER and TRMM information, along with various ancillary datasets to create a sudden landslide identification product (SLIP) and a landslide hazard assessment model for the Koshi River Basin. The hazard assessment model and SLIP will be used by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) to protect and manage the river basin ecosystem and to reduce poverty through integrated natural resource management and basin-wide cooperation.
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