Giant Landslides Triggered by the 1718 Tongwei Earthquake in Pan'an, Gansu Province, China

Great earthquakes in mountain areas always trigger severe geologic hazards such as landslides, debris flows and rock falls, thereby causing tremendous property damage and casualties. On 19th June, 1781, a Ms 7.5 earthquake occurred in Tongwei of Pan＇an, Gansu Province, west China,

Insights into a giant landslide-prone area on the eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau,China

A good understanding of giant landslide-prone areas could greatly enhance the understanding of the formation and failure mechanisms of giant landslides.In this study,a classic giant landslide-prone area named the Diexi area located along the upstream stretch of the Minjiang River on the eastern Tibetan Plateau is adopted to analyze the failure mechanism and evolution process by detailed field investigations,Unmanned Aerial Vehicle(UAV)images and a digital surface model(DSM).The results show that among the 37 giant landslides located in the Diexi area,18 landslides are transverse landslides(wedge failure),and the others are consequent landslides(buckling failure).All landslides blocked rivers,and some barrier lakes still remain.The Diexi area features special geological structural conditions related to the hinge section of the Jiaochang arc tectonic belt,the intersection of two active fault zones(the Songpinggou and Minjiang fault zones)and high levels of geostress.The numerous radial fissures induced by the Jiaochang arcuate belt provided lateral sliding boundaries for buckling deformation(consequent landslides)and head scarps for wedge failure(transverse landslides).The rapid incision(1.88 mm/yr)since the middle Pleistocene formed a deep gorge with steep slopes and strong lateral unloading.Frequent earthquakes and rainfall further reduced the rock mass integrity,and strong earthquakes or other factors triggered the landslides.

Characteristics of Landslides Induced by the Great Wenchuan Earthquake

The great Wenchuan （汶川） earthquake induced a large quantity of landslides. They are widely distributed and caused tremendous damages. The sliding mechanism and characteristics of these earthquake-induced landslides are different from those of conventional gravity landslides. Their occurrences are apparently controlled by the powerful earthquake, and they are characterized by high potential energy sliding and ejection sliding. In this article, the earthquake-induced landslides are classified, the characteristics of the sliding and destruction of these landslides are described, and the rela- tionship between the earthquake and the landslides is analyzed. The Donghekou （东河口） landslide is used as an example to characterize fast-moving long-distance earthquake-induced ejection slippage and landslide. This research suggests that many phenomena and issues related to earthquake-induced land- slide are beyond current recognition and knowledge, and new methodologies should be adopted to consider the effect of the earthquake as the paramount factor in the development of landslides. Furthermore, the study of fast-moving long-distance earthquake-induced landslides can also shed light on the formation of old and ancient landslides.