Mapping damage in the Jammu and Kashmir caused by 8 October 2005 Mw 7.3 earthquake from the Cartosat–1 and Resourcesat–1 imagery

Abstract

A massive earthquake of Mw = 7.3 struck the western Himalaya on 8 October 2005 at 03:50:40 (UTC) causing widespread damage to property and lives. This earthquake is the result of thrusting of the Indian plate under the Eurasian plate. It is one of the deadliest earthquakes in South Asia in recent times. The recently launched Indian remote sensing satellite Cartosat–1, providing 2.5 m panchromatic along‐track stereoscopic data have been analysed for damage assessment along with Resourcesat–1 multispectral data for understanding the regional tectonics. In this study, nearly 25% of the buildings are identified as fully collapsed in Uri and Punch region of the Jammu and Kashmir, India. Other damage such as bridge collapse, road blockage owing to landslides etc. is also identified from the satellite data. The coseismic landslides show clear spatial association with the pre‐existing faults such as the Jhelum Fault and Main Boundary Thrust (MBT). A new trend in the alignment of landslides is found, which indicates reactivation of a new fault in this region. The effectiveness of the fine resolution stereoscopic satellite data for damage assessment in rugged mountainous terrain is also highlighted in this study.