High-Level Project Summary
In our project, we are sending out early warning signals by predicting small debris flows. While trying to predict a landslide, there are lot of factors that must be taken under consideration. Weather, location, soil composition etc. We have made an effort to minimize the damage caused by landslides by considering warning signals as an alternative, for which we have used an Accelerometer. Or provide immediate assistance to the people affected by providing emergency services just a click away through the GUI.
Link to Project "Demo"
Link to Final Project
Detailed Project Description
A landslide is the movement of rock, earth, or debris down a sloped section of land. Landslides are caused by rain, earthquakes, volcanoes, or other factors that make the slope unstable. It is a natural disaster, which creates huge losses of property, agriculture and mankind. In hilly areas, where there are considerable amounts of rainfall, and the weather conditions are not so favorable, landslides occur due to the loosening of soil. The loosening of soil increases due to the increase in moisture content of soil or when gravity overcomes friction.
In our project, we are sending out early warning signals by predicting small debris flows. While trying to predict a landslide, there are lot of factors that must be taken under consideration. Weather, location, soil composition etc.
For instance, in the incident of the landslide that occurred in Washington on 22nd March 2014, a portion of an unstable hill collapsed. During this disaster, engulfing a rural neighborhood, and covering an area of approximately 1 square mile (2.6 km2). Shockingly, the landslide travelled 1.4 kms, which is a remarkable distance given the geologic and geographic context. This lethal landslide occurred due to the seasonal high water in the 20th century, which began eroding the hill, causing it to eventually give way in 2014. The debris was around 20 meters deep, 460 meters long and 1300 meters wide. National geologists stated this landslide as an extreme one because of the extraordinary run-out of mud and debris.
Similarly, the 2010 Gansu mudslide occurred at midnight on 8th August 2010. The floods were triggered after decades of clear-cut logging practices had reduced the ability of the watershed to absorb heavy rainfall. This was the major reason of the occurrence of this disaster. It was the deadliest individual disaster of the 2010 China floods. After the heavy rain, there was a build-up of water behind a dam of debris blocking a small river to the north of the city of Zhug Qu; when the dam broke, around 1,800,000 cubic meters of mud and rocks swept through the town, in a surge reported as up to five stories high, covering more than 300 low-rise homes and burying at least one village entirely. The mudslide left an area 5 kilometers long by 300 meters wide in average levelled by mud with average thickness of 5 meters.
We have tried to warn the nearby communities by using a device that generates electric signals when it is subject to vibrations of a specific range of frequency. This device consists of a built-in accelerometer and a circuit board which is powered by solar panels. An accelerometer is a device that measures the vibration, or acceleration of motion of the structure in which the electrical charge that is produced is directly connected to a transmitter, which in turn transmits the warning signals to the nearby communities and the emergency services. Now, the important aspect to be kept in mind is that the Accelerometer will generate electric charge even during small vibrations, which isn’t a landslide. Hence, to avoid false signals, it is particularly important to consider the power rating of the transmitter and the vibrations produced by the Accelerometer. The power rating of the transmitter should be exactly equal to the electric charge produced by the accelerometer when the landslide occurs, so that the false signals aren’t generated. This problem can be solved by writing an if-else control statement in the program of the circuit board.
Summarizing our project, we have tried to minimize the damage caused by landslides by considering warning signals as an alternative, for which we have used an Accelerometer. Or provide immediate assistance to the people affected by providing emergency services just a click away through the GUI.
Space Agency Data
ArcGIS Web Application - We have studied real-time data from previous centuries, which aided our approach in identifying the primary elements that cause majority of landslides.
Hackathon Journey
This is being our first hackathon with NASA, and it has helped us look at real-world challenges in a conservative and imaginative way. This assignment forced us to think outside the box and improved our teamwork and cooperation abilities. The Space Apps journey was very engaging for all of us. It helped us in improving our teamworking skills and made us think in a very innovative way.
References
The prototyping tool for teams | Framer - for GUI
Model Finds Landslide Threats in Near Real-Time During Heavy Rains | NASA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cU5Rt0rcGA&t=108s
Global Judging
This project has been submitted for consideration during the Judging process.