Monitoring Potential Geological Hazards with Different InSAR Algorithms: The Case of Western Sichuan

Abstract

In recent years, the number of geological disasters in Sichuan Province has significantly increased due to the influence of earthquakes and extreme climate, as well as the disturbance to the geological environment by human activities. Thus, geological disaster monitoring is particularly important, which can provide some scientific basis for disaster prevention and reduction. In this paper, the interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) technology was introduced to monitor potential geological hazards, taking parts of Dujiangyan City, Wenchuan County, and Mao County in Sichuan Province, China as examples. Firstly, the data such as Sentinel-1A Terrain Observation with Progressive Scans (TOPS) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images and Precision Orbit Determination (POD) precise orbit ephemerides from 2018 to 2020, high-resolution optical satellite images and Digital Elevation Model (DEM) were collected. Secondly, the Differential InSAR (D-InSAR), Persistent Scatterer InSAR (PS-InSAR), Small Baseline Subset InSAR (SBAS-InSAR), Offset-Tracking, and Distributed Scatterer InSAR (DS-InSAR) algorithms were used to invert the surface deformation of the study area. Thirdly, according to the deformation results obtained by experiments, we used GF-1 and GF-2 optical images as a reference and combine the experimental results of InSAR algorithms to delineate the areas affected by geological disasters. A total of 49 geological disaster areas were obtained, mainly including landslides, collapses, and debris flow. Through field verification, the overall accuracy rate of InSAR deformation monitoring achieved 69.23%, and the accuracy rate of new potential hazards monitoring reached 63.64%. Among all InSAR methods, the DS-InSAR method outperformed and monitored the geological disaster areas well. Finally, the study area was divided into three elevation intervals and the applicability of different InSAR algorithms in different elevation intervals was discussed.

An Adaptive Identification Method for Potential Landslide Hazards Based on Multisource Data

“…InSAR is an important technical tool for acquiring surface deformation data. Limitations caused by errors in the processing of deformation data make it difficult to identify potential landslide hazards at various deformation scales using only one InSAR technique [19], and the results obtained may not be comprehensive enough [49,50]. Therefore, in this study, the techniques D-InSAR, PS-InSAR, and SBAS-InSAR were jointly used for processing to ensure the reliability of deformation results to the maximum extent.…”

“…Combined D-InSAR and MT-InSAR (PS-InSAR, SBAS-InSA) techniques were used to process Sentinel-1A data and to synthesize and analyze the ascending and descending orbit observation results, which effectively complemented the single-orbit deformation detection capability and thus ensured the comprehensiveness and reliability of deformation results to the maximum extent [49,50]. During the data processing, SAR data parameters, DEM correction parameters, orbital parameters, atmospheric parameters, and elevation parameters were appropriately adjusted according to the distribution characteristics of known landslide hazards in the study area to ensure reasonable and standardized surface deformation monitoring results.…”

Monitoring of Technological Approaches to Improve the Reliability of Hydraulic Engineering Facilities

“…Research by the Mining Institute of the Kola Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences highlights the inherent risks associated with hydraulic installations at mining sites, like tailings dam systems and enclosing dams, as potentially perilous. Incident investigations at facilities including the Kachkanarsky Mining and Processing Combine (Russian Federation), El Cobra mine (Chile), Karamkensky Mining and Metallurgical Combine (Russian Federation), and the Buffalo Creek coal preparation plant (USA) attribute dam failures primarily to the creation of water conduits within dam bodies and erosion [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18].…”

Creep features and mechanism of active-layer detachment slide on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau by InSAR

“…Table 1 shows the primary parameters of the Sentinel 1A. Additionally, precision orbit determination (with an accuracy of less than 5 cm) was collected in the InSAR processing for orbit error correction (Zheng et al,2022). The SAR data and precision orbit determination were downloaded in the EARTHDATA (https://search.asf.alaska.edu/).…”