Utilizing cloud-computation to analyze the causative factors of rainfall-induced landslide

Abstract

Among the various natural hazards, landslides are among the most widespread and damaging one. It can be triggered by various external stimuli and pose significant threat to human safety and natural environment. Geospatial computingis currentlyfacing a daunting challenge in data management and processing with ever-increasing complexity and heterogeneity.Different approaches have been developed to produce landslide susceptibility maps. This paper reports a pilot study of analyzing the causative factors of landslide and proposes to utilize the geospatial cloud-computing method in mapping the rainfall-induced landslide susceptibility. A series of geospatial data of triggering stimulus are acquired. The cloud computation platform is utilized to analyze some selected environmental parameters in Lantau Island, Hong Kong. The emergence of cloud computing brings potential solutions to solve the geospatial intensity problems and will enable the public to better prepare for such deadly events and to help mitigate any potential damages. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013.