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IMAGE: A shallow landslide turned into a debris flow that swept away a house in Sausalito, California, at 3 a.m. on Feb. 14, 2019. A woman was buried in the remains. view more
Credit: Photo courtesy of the City of Sausalito
The threat of landslides is again in the news as torrential winter storms in California threaten to undermine fire-scarred hillsides and bring deadly debris flows crashing into homes and inundating roads.
But it doesn t take wildfires to reveal the landslide danger, University of California, Berkeley, researchers say. Aerial surveys using airborne laser mapping LiDAR (light detection and ranging) can provide very detailed information on the topography and vegetation that allow scientists to identify which landslide-prone areas could give way during an expected rainstorm. This is especially important for predicting where shallow landslides those just involving the soil mantle may mobilize and transform as they travel downslope into d