The 2002 rock/ice avalanche at Kolka/Karmadon, Russian Caucasus: Assessment of extraordinary avalanche formation and mobility, and application of QuickBird satellite imagery

Natural Hazards and Earth System Science

Volumn 5, Issue 2, 2005, Pages 173-187

  Huggel, C ^a   Zgraggen Oswald, S ^a   Haeberli, W ^a   Kaab A ^a   Polkvoj, A ^b   Galushkin, I ^c   Evans, S G ^d  

^a UNIVERSITY OF ZURICH   (Switzerland)

^b Dept Nat Rsrc/Environ Protect ^*  (Russian Federation)

^c AIRBUS DEFENCE AND SPACE   (Germany)

^d UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO   (Canada)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

AVALANCHE; ROCK AVALANCHE; SATELLITE IMAGERY; SLOPE STABILITY;

CAUCASUS; EASTERN HEMISPHERE; EURASIA; RUSSIAN FEDERATION; WORLD;

EID: 17644396692     PISSN: 15618633     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.5194/nhess-5-173-2005     Document Type: Article

References (62)

1. Alean, J.: Ice avalanches: some empirical information about their formation and reach, J. Glaciol., 31, 109, 324-333, 1985.
2. Arakawa, M.: Collisional disruption of ice by high-velocity impact, Icarus, 142, 34-45, 1999.
3. Benz, W. and Asphaug, E.: Catastrophic disruptions revisited, Icarus, 142, 5-20, 1999.
4. Birk, R. J., Stanley, T., Snyder, G. I., Hennig, T. A., Fladeland, M. M., and Policelli, F.: Governement programs for research and operational uses of commercial remote sensing data, Remot. Sen. E., 88, 3-16, 2003.
5. Bogatikov, O. A., Melekestsev, I. V., Gurbanov, A. G., Katov, D. M., and Puriga, A. I.: The catastrophic paleolahars of the Elbrus Volcano, Northern Causcasus, Dokady Earth Sciences, 362, 7, 951-954, 1998.
6. Bogatikov, O. A., Melekestsev, I. V., Miller, D. K., Gurbanov, A. G., Lipman, P. W., Lovenstern, J. B., Sulerzbitskii, L. D., and Shevchenk, A. V.: Catastrophic rock-ice collapse and rapid shove of the Kukurtli Glacier (Elbrus Volcano, Northern Caucasus) in first and second centuries, Dokady Earth Sciences, 391, 5, 627-630, 2003.
7. Chow, V. T.: Open-channel hydraulics. McGraw-Hill, New York, 680, 1959.
8. Coaz, J.: Statistik und Verbau der Lawinen in den Schweizer Alpen, Eidgenössisches Departement des Innem, 20-25, 1910.
9. Corominas, J.: The angle of reach as a mobility index for small and large landslides, Can. Geotech. J., 33, 260-271, 1996.
10. Davies, M., Hamza, O., and Harris, C.: The effect of rise in mean annual air temperature on the stability of rock slopes containing ice-filled discontinuities, Permafr. P. P., 12, 137-144, 2001.
11. Dence, M. R.: Impact melts, J. Geophys. Res., 76, 5552-5565, 1971.
12. Desinov, L.: Surge of Kolka glacier in 2002, Bulletin of Vladikavkaz Scientific Centre (Vestnik Vladikavkazskogo Nauchnogo Centra), 4, 3, 72-87, 2004.
13. Digitalglobe, Product Information, http://www.digitalglobe.com, 2004.
14. Dypvik, H., Burchell, M. J., and Claeys, P.: Impacts into Marine and Icy Environments. In: Cratering in Marine Environments and on Ice, edited by Dypvik, H., Burchell, M. J., and Claeys, P., Springer, Berlin, 1-20, 2004.
15. Ebehart-Phillips, D., Haeussler, P. J., Freymueller, J. T., Frankel, A. D., Rubin, C. M., Craw, P., Ratchkovski, N. A., Anderson, G., Crone, A. J., Dawson, T. E., Fletcher, H., Hansen, R., Harp, E. L., Harris, R. A., Hill, D. P., Hreinsdottir, S., Jibson, R. W., Jones, L. M., Keefer, D. K., Larsen, C. F., Moran, S. C., Personlus, S. F., Plafker, G., Sherrod, B., Sieh, K., and Wallace, W. K.: The 2002 Denali Fault earthquake, Alaska: A large magnitude, slip-partitioned event, Science, 300, 1113-1118, 2003.
16. Evans, S. G. and Clague, J. J.: Catastrophic rock avalanches in glacial environment, Landslides, Proc. 5th International Symposium on Landslides, Lausanne, Switzerland, 10-15 July, 1153-1158, 1988.
17. Evans, S. G. and Clague, J. J.: Dynamics of the 1984 rock avalanche and associated distal debris flow on Mount Cayley, British Columbia, Canada; implication for landslide hazard assessment on dissected volcanoes, Eng. Geol., 61, 29-51, 2001.
18. Gruber, S., Hoelzle, M., and Haeberli, W.: Permafrost thaw and destabilization of Alpine rock walls in the hot summer of 2003, Geophys. R. L., 31, L13504, 2004.
19. Gudmundsson, M. T., Sigmundsson, F., Björnsson, H., and Högnadóttir, T.: The 1996 eruption at Gjálp, Vatnajökull ice cap, Iceland: efficiency of heat transfer, ice deformation and subglacial water pressure, Bull. Volcanol., 66, 46-65, 2004.
20. Haeberli, W., Wegmann, M., and Vonder Mühll, D.: Slope stability problems related to glacier shrinkage and permafrost degradation in the Alps, Eclog. Geol., 90, 407-414, 1997.
21. Haeberli, W., Huggel, C., Kääb, A., Polkvoj, A., Zotikov, I., and Osokin, N.: Permafrost conditions in the starting zone of the Kolka-Karmadon rock/ice slide of 20 September 2002 in North Osetia (Russian Caucasus), in: Extended Abstracts on Current Research and Newly Available Information, edited by Haeberli, W. and Brandovà, D., 8th International Conference on Permafrost, Zurich, 21-25 July, 49-50, 2003.
22. Haeberli, W., Huggel, C., Kääb, A., Oswald, S., Polkvoj, A., Zotikov I., and Osokin, N.: The Kolka-Karmadon rock/ice slide of 20 September 2002 - an extraordinary event of historical dimensions in North Ossetia (Russian Caucasus), J. Glaciol., in press, 2005.
23. Heim, A.: Bergsturz und Menschenleben, Zürich, Fretz and Wasmuth, 1932.
24. Hoinkes, H.: Die Ausbrüche (surges) des Kolka-Gletschers in Nord-Ossetien, Zentraler Kaukasus, Z. Gletscherkd. Glazialgeol., 8, 1-2, 253-270, 1972.
25. Hsü, K. J.: Catastrophic debris streams (Sturzstroms) generated by rockfalls, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 86, 129-140, 1975.
26. Huggel, C., Kääb, A., Haeberli, W., Teysseire, P., and Paul, F.: Remote sensing based assessment of hazards from glacier lake outbursts: a case study in the Swiss Alps, Can. Geotech. J., 39, 2, 316-330, 2002.
27. Huggel, C., Kaab, A., Haeberli, W. and Krummenacher, B.: Regional-scale GIS-models for assessment of hazards from glacier lake outbursts: evaluation and application in the Swiss Alps, Nat. Haz. Earth Sys. Sci., 3, 6, 647-662, 2003, SRef-ID: 1684-9981/nhess/2003-3-647.
28. Huggel, C., Haeberli, W., Kääb, A., Bieri, D., and Richardson, S.: An assessment procedure for glacial hazards in the Swiss Alps, Can. Geotech. J., 41, 6, 1068-1083, 2004.
29. Hungr, O., Evans, S. G., Bovis, M., and Hutchinson, J. N.: Review of the classification of landslides of the flow type, Env. Eng. Geol., 7, 3, 221-238, 2001.
30. Iverson, R. M.: The physics of debris flows, Rev. Geophys., 35, 245-296, 1997.
31. Iverson, R. M. and Denlinger, R. P.: Flow of variably fluidized granular masses across three-dimensional terrain: 1. Coulomb mixture theory, J. Geophys. Res., 106, 537-552, 2001.
32. Kääb, A.: Monitoring high-mountain terrain deformation from repeated air- and spaceborne optical data: examples using digital aerial imagery and ASTER data, ISPRS J. Photogramm, Remote Sens., 57, 1-2, 39-52, 2002.
33. Kääb, A., Wessels, R., Haeberli, W., Huggel, C., Kargel, J. S., and Khalsa, S. J. S.: Rapid Aster imaging facilitates timely assessments of glacier hazards and disasters, EOS, TransAGU, 13, 84, 117, 121, 2003a.
34. Kääb, A., Paul, F., Huggel, C., Kieffer, H., Kargel, J., and Wessels, R.: Glacier monitoring from ASTER imagery: accuracy and applications, in: EARSeL eProceedings, 2, 1/2003, Observing our Cryosphere from Space, EARSeL, BIS-Verlag, Oldenburg, 43-53, 2003b.
35. Kerle, N. and Oppenheimer, C.: Satellite remote sensing as a tool in lahar disaster management, Disasters, 26, 2, 140-160, 2002.
36. Kieffer, S. W. and Simonds, C. H.: The role of volatiles and the lithology in the impact cratering process, Space Physics, 18, 143-181, 1980.
37. Körner, H. J.: Zur Mechanik der Bergsturzströme vom Huascaran, Peru. Hochgebirgsforschung (Innsbruck), 6, 71-110, 1983.
38. Kotlyakov, V. M., Rototaeva, O. V., Desinov, L. V., Zotikov, I. A., and Osokin, N. I.: Causes and effects of a catastrophic surge of Kolka Glacier in the Central Caucasus, Z. Gletscherkd. Glazialgeol., 38, 2, 117-128, 2002.
39. Kotlyakov, V. M., Rototaeva, O. V, and Nosenko, G. A.: The September 2002 Kolka glacier catastrophe in North Ossetia, Russian Federation: evidence and analysis, Mt. Res. and Dev., 24, 1, 78-83, 2004.
40. Legros, F.: The mobility of long-runout landslides, Eng. Geol., 63, 301-331, 2002.
41. Major, J. J.: Gravity-driven consolidation of granular slurries: implications for debris-flow deposition and deposit characteristics, J. Sediment. Res., 70, 64-83, 2000.
42. McSaveney, M. J.: Sherman Glacier rock avalanche, Alaska, USA, in: Rockslides and Avalanches, 1; Natural Phenomena, edited by Voight, B., Amsterdam, Elsevier, 197-258, 1978.
43. Melosh, H. J.: The mechanics of large rock avalanches. In: Debris Flows/ Avalanches: Process, Recognition, and Mitigation, edited by Costa, J. E. and Wieczorek, G. F., Geol. Soc. Am., Rev. Eng. Geol., 7, 41-49, 1987.
44. O'Brien, J. S., Julien, P. Y., and Fullerton, W. T.: Two-dimensional water flood and mudflow simulation, J. Hydr. Eng., 119, 2, 244-261, 1993.
45. Petrakov, D. A., Tutubalina, O. V., and Chernomorets, S. S.: The 2002 Genaldon glacial catastrophe: one year later, Kryosfera Semlu VIII, 1, 29-39, 2004.
46. Pierson, T. C.: Flow characteristics of large eruption-triggered debris flows at snow-clad volcanoes: constraints for debris flow models, J. Volcanol., 66, 283-294, 1995.
47. Pierson, T. C. and Costa, J. E.: A rheologic classification of subaerial sediment-water flows, in: Debris Flows/Avalanches: Process, Recognition, and Mitigation, edited by Costa, J. E. and Wieczorek, G. F., Geol. Soc. Am., Rev. Eng. Geol., 7, 1-12, 1987.
48. Plafker, G. and Ericksen, F. E.: Nevados Huascaran avalanches, Peru. In: Rockslides and Avalanches, 1; Natural Phenomena, edited by Voight, B., Amsterdam, Elsevier, 277-314, 1978.
49. Poggenpohl, N. V.: About the northern valleys of the Kazbek massif and the first ascent of the Maili Kok. Ezhegodnik russkovo gornovo ob-va, vyp. 3, 1903, Moscow (in Russian), 1903/1905.
50. Polyak, B. G., Tolstikhin, I. N., Kamensky, I. L., Yakolev, L. E., Marty, B., and Cheshko, A. L.: Helium isotopes, tectonics and heat flow in the Northern Caucasus, Geo. Cos. A., 64, 11, 1925-1944, 2000.
51. Popovnin, V. V., Petrakov, D. A., Tutubalina, O. V., and. Tchernomorets, S. S.: Catastrophe glaciaire 2002 en Ossetie du Nord. Unpublished french translation of an original article published in Kriosfera Zemli ("Earth Cryosphere"), 7, 1, 1-10, 2003.
52. Rickenmann, D.: Empirical relationships for debris flows, Nat. Hazards, 19, 47-77, 1999.
53. Rototaev, K. P., Khodakov, V. G., and Krenke, A. N.: Recherche sur le glacier à pulsation Kolka. M., Nauka, 1983.
54. Salzmann, N., Kääb, A., Huggel, C., Allgöwer, B., and Haeberli, W.: Assessment of the hazard potential of ice avalanches using remote sensing and GIS-modelling, Norwegian Journal of Geography, 58, 74-84, 2004.
55. Scheidegger, A.: On the prediction of the reach and velocity of catastrophic landslides, Rock Mech., 5, 231-236, 1973.
56. Shreve, R. L.: Leakage and fluidisation in air-layer lubricated avalanches, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 79, 653-658, 1968.
57. Smith, R. B. and Braile, L. W.: The Yellowstone Hotspot, J. Volcanol., 61, 121-188, 1994.
58. Swartz, M., Mc Ardell, B., Huggel, C., and Zgraggen-Oswald, S.: Modelling the Kolka-Karmadon rock/ice slide of 20 September 2002, Proc. International Conference High Mountain Hazard Prevention, Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, Russia, 23-26 June, Abstracts, 78, 2004.
59. Tolstykh, M. L., Naumov, V. B., Gurbanov, A. G., Gazeev, V. M., Bogatikov, O. A., and Kononkova, N. N.: Composition of magmatic melts of Elbrus and Kazbek volcanoes, Caucasus: evidence from inclusions in minerals, Geochemistry International, 39, 4, 391-397, (translated from Geokhimiya), 4, 2001, 441-448, 2001.
60. Voight, B. and Sousa, J.: Lessons from Ontake-san: a comparative analysis of debris avalanche dynamics, Eng. Geol., 38, 261-297, 1994.
61. Waythomas, C. F., Miller, T. P., and Begét, J. E.: Record of Late Holocene debris avalanche and lahars at Iliamna Volcano, Alaska, J. Volcanol., 104, 97-130, 2000.
62. Wessels, R. L., Kargel, J. S., and Kieffer, H. H.: ASTER measurement of supraglacial lakes in the Mount Everest region of the Himalaya, Ann. Glaciol., 34, 399-408, 2002.