Home > Landslide
This entry refers to the geological term landslide. For the word's political usage, see landslide victory.
A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rock falls, deep failure of slopes, and shallow debris flows, see flow. Although gravity acting on an over steepened slope is the primary reason for a landslide, there are other contributing factors:
- erosion by rivers, glaciers, or ocean waves create oversteepened slopes
- rock and soil slopes are weakened through saturation by snowmelt or heavy rains
- earthquakes create stresses that make weak slopes fail (see the Hope Slide)
- volcanic eruptions produce loose ash deposits, heavy rain, and debris flows.
- vibrations from machinery, trafficThis article is about Vehicular traffic . For other meanings of "Traffic" see Traffic (disambiguation . Organized traffic Western vehicular traffic is generally organized, flowing in lanes of travel for a particular direction, with interchanges, traffic s, blastingThis article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. There are many other varieties of more exotic explosive material, and theoretical methods of causing explosions such as nuclear explosives and antimatter, and other methods of producing explosions, and even thunderThunder is the sound of the shockwave caused when lightning instantly heats the air around it to up to 30 000 °C (54 000 ° F). That super-heated air expands rapidly, then contracts as it cools. The rapid expansion/contraction generates sound waves, making may triggerIn its earliest usage, trigger refers to a mechanical mechanism, the pulling or pushing of which sets a device into action. This includes the lever that sets off the chain of events that fires a gun, the release mechanisms on a crossbow, or the lever that failure of weak slopes
- excess weight from accumulation of rain or snow, stockpiling of rock or ore, from waste piles, or from man-made structures may stress weak slopes to failure and other structures
Slope material that become saturated with water may develop a debris flow or mud flow. The resulting slurry of rock and mud may pick up trees, houses, and cars, thus blocking bridgeThis article is about the edifice. For other meanings, see Bridge (disambiguation). suspended deck compression arch bridges A bridge is a structure built to span a gorge, valley, road, railroad track, river or other body of water, or any other physical obs and tributaries causing flooding along its path.
Similarly, ice floes can form in rivers that are clogged with ice, but are generally much slower moving. Nonetheless, they can generate forces strong enough to collapse bridges.
An avalancheThis article refers to the natural event known as an avalanche . For other uses, see below Chevrolet has produced a car named Avalanche The Avalanches are an Australian dance music group An Avalanche diode is an electronic device An avalanche is caused wh is similar in mechanism to landslide and it involves a large
amount of ice, snow and rock falling quickly down the side of a mountain. Usually the ice builds in cornices or forms over a weaker layer of snow, creating the danger of an avalanche.
A pyroclastic flowPyroclastic flows are a common and devastating result of some volcanic eruptions. They are fast moving fluidized bodies of hot gas, ash and rock (collectively known as tephra) which can travel away from the vent at up to 150 km/h. The gas is usually at a is caused by a collapsing cloud of ash, poisonous gas and hot rocks from a volcanic explosion that moves rapidly down an erupting volcano.
1 See also
- laharA lahar is a mixture of rock, mud, and water that flows down from a volcano (or occasionally other mountains), typically along a river valley. The term originated in Indonesia, meaning "lava" in Javanese. Lahars have the consistency of concrete: wet when
- shear stress
- geotechnical engineering
