Abstract
Abstract. Snow avalanche occurring in a micro-climatic condition causing hydro-geo (Hydrological and geological) hazard to the deployed armed forces and nearby inhabitant to the North Western Himalaya about 3000 MSL. In recent years, frequencies of snow avalanche have increase and consequently the death toll have also surged to many folds. These unavoidable occurrences not only cause road blocks which disrupts transportation connectivity in the rugged terrain of Himalaya as well as loss of infrastructure and life. Here, in this study an attempt has been made to assess the susceptibility of road network of Alaknanda Basin from snow avalanche. Potential avalanche formation zones have been generated using Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM. Advance Thermal Emission Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) Global Digital Elevation (GDEM) 30 meter has been used to generate static parameters like slope, aspect, curvature etc. using GIS platform. ISRO-Geosphere Biosphere Program Land Use Land Cover (LULC) used as another static parameter. Weights are generated using comparison matrix and ratings to different static parameter layers assigned on the basis of field visit and literature review while the road network are digitized from Google earth. A methodology has been prepared to categorize the road stretches on the basis of potential snow avalanche formation zone including hydrological processing. Buffer zone are assigned with weights according to potential snow avalanche formation zones. Later roads are intersected with sub basin with assigned values that resulted very high avalanche potential zonation, considered as most susceptible to snow avalanche hazard.
Highlights
A snow avalanche is an enormous slide of snow, rock, ice or debris down a mountain slope
Global Advance Thermal Emission Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) (GDEM) was prepared using visible-near infrared band of ASTER sensor on board on Terra satellite launched by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1999
ASTER GDEM was generated using stereo-pair images of ASTER sensor on board Terra satellite, first version was released in June 2009, and another update version (GDEM V2) with more vertical and horizontal accuracy, less artifacts and improved special coverage was released in October 17, 2011
Summary
A snow avalanche (here after only avalanche word is used to define snow avalanche as mostly snow avalanche occur in India) is an enormous slide of snow, rock, ice or debris down a mountain slope. 2009 proposed methodology for the use of high resolution airborne data to detect and map the avalanche deposits in Davos, Switzerland He developed a tool for automatic detection of potential avalanche release area using high spatial resolution DEM, and validate over in Davos and applied it near Rohtang tunnel axis, India. Problems of survival in avalanche prone areas faced by the armed forces, literally re-minded the Indian government about a fact that enormous areas of India were affected so heavily by snow and avalanches. To combat this hazard and to enhance socio-. Occurrence of snowfall in North West Himalayas depends on the western disturbance known as extra tropical pressure system
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