| Title | Reconnaissance observations of the July 24, 2007 rock and ice avalanche at Mount Steele, St. Elias mountains, Yukon, Canada |
| Author | Lipovsky, P S; Evans, S G; Clague, J J; Hopkinson, C; Couture, R; Bobrowsky, P; Ekström, G; Demuth, M N; Delaney, K B; Roberts, N J; Clarke, G; Schaeffer, A |
| Source | Comptes rendus de la 4e Conférence canadienne sur les géorisques: des causes à la gestion/Proceedings of the 4th Canadian Conference on Geohazards : From Causes to Management; by Locat, J (ed.); Perret, D
(ed.); Turmel, D (ed.); Demers, D (ed.); Leroueil, S (ed.); 2008 p. 323-330 |
| Year | 2008 |
| Alt Series | Earth Sciences Sector, Contribution Series 20070457 |
| Meeting | 4th Canadian Conference on Geohazards / 4e Conférence canadienne sur les géorisques; Laval; CA; May 20-24, 2008 |
| Document | book |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper |
| Province | Yukon |
| NTS | 115F/01 |
| Area | Mount Steele; Steele Glacier; St. Elias Mountains |
| Lat/Long WENS | -140.3500 -140.2333 61.1667 61.0833 |
| Subjects | surficial geology/geomorphology; engineering geology; landslides; landslide deposits; slope deposits; slope failures; slope stability; slope stability analyses; glaciers; ice; ice movement; avalanches;
rock avalanches; snow avalanches |
| Illustrations | location maps; photographs |
| Program | Reducing Risk from Natural Hazards |
| Abstract | A catastrophic rock and ice avalanche occurred on the north face of Mount Steele, Yukon Territory, on July 24, 2007, depositing debris onto Steele Glacier. In the days and weeks preceding the event, at
least three smaller landslides initiated from the same slope. Earlier landslide activity at this location is evident on historical photographs dating back to the 1930s. The July 24 event was one of the largest rock avalanches documented in the St.
Elias Mountains in the past century and is one of 16 rock avalanches known to have occurred from rock slopes adjacent to glaciers in the Canadian Cordillera since 1947. Seismic records indicate that it lasted approximately 100 seconds and had a
long-period surface-wave magnitude of 5.2. We have initiated research to study the morphology of the landslide deposits, the causes and mechanisms of failure, and impacts on glacier mass balance. Our work highlights the value of multi-disciplinary
cooperation for investigating catastrophic events. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 224620 |
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