InSAR Coherence and Intensity Changes Detection

This research aims at differentiating human-induced effects over the landscape from the natural ones by exploiting a combination of amplitude and phase changes in satellite radar images. At a first step, ERS and Envisat data stacks are processed using COS software developed by the company SARMAP. Various features related to amplitude and phase as well as to their changes are then extracted from images of the same sensor. Combinations of the features extracted from one image, from several images of one sensor as well as from different sensors are performed to derive robust indicators of potential human-related changes. Finally, possibilities of exploiting and integrating other types of information sources such as various reports, maps, historical or agricultural data, etc. in the combination process are analyzed to improve the obtained results. The outcomes are used to evaluate the potential of this method applied to Sentinel-1 images

The Importance and the Problems of Cartography — An Example: The Cartography of Natural Constraints on a Territory of 74 km2 in Belgium (the Sprimont Territory)

peer reviewedA team of scientists from the Department of Physical Geography at the University of Liège have worked with A. Pissart on the present research; Damien Closson carried out the Arc-Info cartography and the studies on the protection of water catchments, on the sewage possibilities and on the fertility of soils; Camille Ek studied the karstic dangers; Michel Erpicum and Georges Mabille the climatological issues, while François Petit was concerned with the flood hazards

Sinkholes and uvalas in evaporite karst: spatio-temporal development with links to base-level fall on the eastern shore of the Dead Sea

Enclosed topographic depressions are characteristic of karst landscapes on Earth. The developmental relationship between depression types, such as sinkholes (dolines) and uvalas, has been the subject of debate, mainly because the long developmental timescales in classical limestone karst settings impede direct observation. Here we characterize the morphometric properties and spatio-temporal development of ∼1150 sinkholes and five uvalas formed from ∼1980 to 2017 in an evaporite karst setting along the eastern coast of the hypersaline Dead Sea (at Ghor Al-Haditha, Jordan). The development of sinkhole populations and individual uvalas is intertwined in terms of onset, evolution and cessation. The sinkholes commonly develop in clusters, within which they may coalesce to form compound or nested sinkholes. In general, however, the uvalas are not defined by coalescence of sinkholes. Although each uvala usually encloses several clusters of sinkholes, it develops as a larger-scale, gentler and structurally distinct depression. The location of new sinkholes and uvalas shows a marked shoreline-parallel migration with time, followed by a marked shoreline-perpendicular (i.e. seaward) growth with time. These observations are consistent with theoretical predictions of karstification controlled by a laterally migrating interface between saturated and undersaturated groundwater, as induced by the 35 m fall in the Dead Sea water level since 1967. More generally, our observations indicate that uvalas and the sinkhole populations within them, although morphometrically distinct, can develop near-synchronously by subsidence in response to subsurface erosion

Evaluation of the SBAS InSAR Service of the European Space Agency’s Geohazard Exploitation Platform (GEP)

The analysis of remote sensing data to assess geohazards is being improved by web-based platforms and collaborative projects, such as the Geohazard Exploitation Platform (GEP) of the European Space Agency (ESA). This paper presents the evaluation of a surface velocity map that is generated by this platform. The map was produced through an unsupervised Multi-temporal InSAR (MTI) analysis applying the Parallel-SBAS (P-SBAS) algorithm to 25 ENVISAT satellite images from the South of Spain that were acquired between 2003 and 2008. This analysis was carried out using a service implemented in the GEP called “SBAS InSAR”. Thanks to the map that was generated by the SBAS InSAR service, we identified processes not documented so far; provided new monitoring data in places affected by known ground instabilities; defined the area affected by these instabilities; and, studied a case where GEP could have been able to help in the forecast of a slope movement reactivation. This amply demonstrates the reliability and usefulness of the GEP, and shows how web-based platforms may enhance the capacity to identify, monitor, and assess hazards that are associated to geological processes.Spanish “Juan de la Cierva” grants support part of the work of Jorge P. Galve. The expenses related to the hired researcher contract of Jorge P. Galve and the field surveying were funded by the project CGL2015-67130-C2-1-R (FEDER and Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness)

Tectonics

The term tectonics refers to the study dealing with the forces and displacements that have operated to create structures within the lithosphere. The deformations affecting the Earth's crust are result of the release and the redistribution of energy from Earth's core. The concept of plate tectonics is the chief working principle. Tectonics has application to lunar and planetary studies, whether or not those bodies have active tectonic plate systems. Petroleum and mineral prospecting uses this branch of knowledge as guide. The present book is restricted to the structure and evolution of the terrestrial lithosphere with dominant emphasis on the continents. Thirteen original scientific contributions highlight most recent developments in seven relevant domains: Gondwana history, the tectonics of Europe and the Near East; the tectonics of Siberia; the tectonics of China and its neighbourhood; advanced concepts on plate tectonics are discussed in two articles; in the frame of neotectonics, two investigation techniques are examined; finally, the relation between tectonics and petroleum researches is illustrated in one chapter

Archaeological prospecting and geomorphology in the Terqa area (Euphrates Valley, Syria). Field survey and contribution of remote sensing

peer reviewedIn a region of the desertical world as the Euphrates Valley in Syria geomorphology can lend its support to the interpretation of prehistorical sites and eventually to their survey. The situation of the most recent sites in the midst of a riverplain (tells) puts them at the mercy of meander shifting. Owing to the archaeological inventory of the successive alluvial sheets, alternating human settlements and geomorphological degradations can be followed up. Besides a cartography perhaps less accurate but more up-to-date and richer in landmarks unavailable on other maps, remote sensing images five a diachronous view of meanders and alluvial sheets. With the help of remote sensing, disappearing linear constructions such as old channels can also be located. SPOT 2 images are usefu for this king of survey.Dans une région du monde désertique comme la vallée de l'Euphrate en Syrie, la géomorphologie peut apporter son concours dans l'interprétation des sites préhistoriques ainsi que dans une prospection éventuelle. La situation des sites les plus récents (tells) au sein d'une plaine alluviale les met à la merci des déplacements du fleuve et de ses méandres. Grâce à l'inventaire archéologique des nappes alluviales successives, il est possible de suivre l'alternance des établissements humains et de leur dégradation géomorphologique. L'imagerie satellitaire, outre une cartographie moins précise mais plus actuelle et riche en repères absents sur les cartes traditionnelles, fournit une étude diachronique des méandres avec une identification des différentes nappes alluviales ainsi qu'un repérage des constructions linéaires (anciens canaux) en voie d'oblitération. Les images de SPOT 2 semblent les plus aptes à fournir les renseignements souhaités

L'aménagement du territoire et les contraintes du milieu physique

Toutes les contraintes physiques susceptibles d'intervenir dans l'aménagement du territoire ont été cartographiées sur la commune de Sprimont, à savoir les pentes, leur exposition, l'épaisseur des formations meubles, l'aptitude des sols, les phénomènes karstiques, les inondations, les zones de protection des captages, les lignes de crêtes et l'assainissement. Le document final est une carte qui rassemble les contraintes importantes et qui peut servir de carte de référence pour réaliser le meilleur aménagement du territoire possible.The natural constraints of the Sprimont district (near Liège, 75 km²) were studied and mapped. These constraints are : I. flood hazards, 2. slopes which control a) rockfalls and mass movements, b) possibilities of mechanical cultivation, c) the amount of solar energy received (with orientation), 3. karstic dangers, 4. protection zones of mater catchments, 5. sewage possibilities, 6. fertility of soils, 7. the summits (which may be considered in landscape conservation). A synthetic map with all these constraints is presented as a useful tool for planners