Week 8

Nepal is a mountainous country, approximately 86 percent of the country is characterized by steep hills and mountains. Due to a country extremely prone to earthquakes, comes its hazardous consequences. As a result of the constant earthquakes, dangerous landslides then begin to plague even further the inhabitants of Nepal. One year after the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal the destruction didn’t stop with the shaking, The earthquake unleashed more than 10,000 landslides that blocked rivers and damaged houses, roads and other key pieces of infrastructure across the country. Landslides are the most widespread hazard and the primary agent of hillslope erosion in the Nepalese Himalayas. Landslides and debris flows induced by strong coseismic ground shaking are potentially the most destructive earthquake effects, as evidenced by the serious damage and casualties resulting from the 2015 earthquake. In a effort to combat ongoing hazards, geoscientist are actively monitering the seismic activity of the Nepalese mountains and that of other regional countries. By monitoring how hillsides evolve, researchers are learning why strong shaking weakens a slope and makes it more prone to give way during aftershocks or rainstorms. The lessons from such studies could help to pinpoint when and where the side of a mountain will collapse.

References:

 https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/killer-landslides-the-lasting-legacy-of-nepal-s-quake/

Wu, Guo & Cunningham, Dickson & Yuan, Ren-Mao & Zhou, Qing & Zeng, Xinfu & Yang, Xiao-ping. (2017). Mass-wasting effects induced by the 2015 Gorkha (Nepal)