Catastrophic Indian Flood Appears Caused by Landslide, Not Glacier Collapse

Preliminary analysis of satellite images reveals that the massive, catastrophic floods in the Chamoli region of northern India last weekend could be the result of a large landslide. The slab – made of ice and rock – was 500 m across at the top and 150 m thick. The huge mass came crashing down the valley 2 km below, triggering destructive and fatal flash floods. Many questions remain unanswered, and will require further investigation. At this stage, scientists cannot tell whether melting of ice in the landslide mass destabilized it; whether this event could be linked to intense drilling at the base of this young mountain; or what role other dynamics related to climate change, such as unseasonable rainfall might have played in these catastrophic floods and loss of life.

https://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2021/02/08/chamoli-2/

Compiled by Amy Imdieke.