Freeze-thaw cycles and rainfall as triggering factors of mass movements in a warm Mediterranean region: the case of the Tramuntana Range (Majorca, Spain)

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dc.contributor.author Mateos, R.M.
dc.contributor.author García-Moreno, I.
dc.contributor.author Azañón, J.M.
dc.date.accessioned 2019-11-26T07:42:17Z
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/11201/150336
dc.description.abstract [eng] Between 2008 and 2010, the island of Majorca (Spain) experienced the coldest and wettest winters of the last 40 years. Accumulated rainfall was twice the average and values of intense rainfall up to 296 mm/24h were recorded, very similar to those calculated for a return period of 100 years. Additionally, high precipitation coincided with anomalous, low temperatures, with abundant snowfall and freezing in the highest zones of the Tramuntana Range, in the northwest sector of the island. As a result, 34 mass movements were recorded on the range, which seriously affected the road network in an area of great importance for tourism, as it welcomes 8.5million visitors each year. Fourteen rockfalls, 1 rock avalanche, 15 landslides and 4 karstic collapses were inventoried. The geological structure, formed by a series of NW overlapping thrusts, determines the distribution as well as the failure pattern of the movements. Thus, the northern face of the range registered 68% of the mass movements: nine rockfalls with planar failure took place as well as all the landslides recorded. Likewise, south-facing slopes have been affected by longer runout rockfalls with a wedge-type failure. The thorough analysis of the meteorological data shows that most of the movements have taken place after antecedent rainfall over 800mm. Additionally, the rockfalls have also occurred after several freeze-thaw cycles, being a determining and unusual factor in this warm region. Intense rainfall >90 mm/24h also caused rockfalls as well as exceptional very intense rainfall >120 mm/24h caused landslides. The results aim to contribute to the design of an early warning system coordinating emergency, infrastructure services and meteorological centres in a region of high risk.
dc.format application/pdf
dc.relation.isformatof https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-011-0290-8
dc.relation.ispartof Landslides, 2012, vol. 9, num. 3, p. 417-432
dc.rights , 2012
dc.subject.classification Geologia
dc.subject.classification Geografia
dc.subject.other Geology
dc.subject.other Geography
dc.title Freeze-thaw cycles and rainfall as triggering factors of mass movements in a warm Mediterranean region: the case of the Tramuntana Range (Majorca, Spain)
dc.type info:eu-repo/semantics/article
dc.date.updated 2019-11-26T07:42:19Z
dc.date.embargoEndDate info:eu-repo/date/embargoEnd/2026-12-31
dc.embargo 2026-12-31
dc.subject.keywords Landslides
dc.subject.keywords Rockfalls
dc.subject.keywords Rainfall
dc.subject.keywords Freezethaw cycles
dc.subject.keywords High risk
dc.rights.accessRights info:eu-repo/semantics/embargoedAccess
dc.identifier.doi https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-011-0290-8


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