Movie:LandslideJapan

Information Page: LandslideJapan

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Landslide in Japan

Key Attributes

Domain:	terrestrial
Keywords:	Landslide
Model name:	Animation model name
Name:	Unknown, Unknown
Where:	Nara Prefecture, Japan
When:	August 10th, 2004

Short Description

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Statement: Landslide in Japan

Abstract: A major landslide in Japan takes out part of the highway 168. The first coverage shows the vegetation sliding by the camera. Helicopter footage shows the landslide scar in the perspective of the river valley. The comments associated with this film indicate that two typhoons preceded this events.

Theory

A landslide is a mass movement along a failure plane on a slope. Landslides occur when the stability threshold of a slope is overcome. The trigger can be abrupt, like an earthquake or more gradual due to a number of factors including:

1. porewater pressure built up due to extensive rainfall, snow of glacier melt.
2. undercutting of a slope by a river or wave erosion.

Fires and deforestation that change the water infiltration capacity of a slope do influence the probability of a landslide event happening.

A elaborate discussion on classification can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landslide_classification

Links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landslide classification