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Inventory data of rock avalanches in the Saint Elias Mountains of southeast Alaska, derived from Landsat imagery (1984-2019)

Dates

Publication Date

Citation

Bessette-Kirton, E.K., Coe, J.A., and Kellogg, I.N., 2020, Inventory data of rock avalanches in the Saint Elias Mountains of southeast Alaska, derived from Landsat imagery (1984-2019): U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P97JTGDH.

Summary

Glacial retreat and mountain-permafrost degradation resulting from rising global temperatures have the potential to impact the frequency and magnitude of landslides in glaciated environments. In the Saint Elias Mountains of southeast Alaska, the presence of weak sedimentary and metamorphic rocks and active uplift resulting from the collision of the Yakutat and North American tectonic plates create landslide-prone conditions (Winkler et al., 2000). We used Landsat imagery to create an inventory of large (>0.1 square km) rock avalanches that occurred along the south flank of the Saint Elias Mountains between 1984 and 2019 as a baseline for present and future changes in landslide magnitude and frequency. This data release presents geographic [...]

Contacts

Originator :
Erin K Bessette-Kirton, Jeffrey A Coe, Ian Kellogg
Metadata Contact :
Jeffrey A Coe
Point of Contact :
Jeffrey A Coe
Publisher :
U.S. Geological Survey
Distributor :
U.S. Geological Survey - ScienceBase
USGS Mission Area :
Natural Hazards
SDC Data Owner :
Earthquake Hazards Program

Attached Files

Click on title to download individual files attached to this item.

Metadata.zip
“metadata for GIS files”
18.31 KB application/zip
LandsatImagery.csv
“Landsat imagery used”
23.6 KB text/csv
StEliasRockAvalanches.zip
“Rock-avalanche polygons”
171.28 KB application/zip
StEliasRockAvHS.zip
“Rock-avalanche headscarps”
6.18 KB application/zip
StEliasRockAvTD.zip
“Rock-avalanche travel distances”
47.96 KB application/zip

Purpose

The purpose of this mapping was to create an inventory of historical rock avalanches in the Saint Elias Mountains of southeast Alaska. We used 30-m resolution Landsat imagery to consistently identify and map rock avalanches that occurred during the 36-year period between 1984 and 2019. This inventory provides a basis for research on the processes that condition and trigger large rock avalanches in an active tectonic setting that is undergoing climatic warming, and provides a baseline for present and future changes in rock avalanche magnitude and frequency.

Additional Information

Identifiers

Type Scheme Key
DOI https://www.sciencebase.gov/vocab/category/item/identifier doi:10.5066/P97JTGDH

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