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Catastrophic landslides triggered by the 1950 Medog—Zayu Ms8.6 earthquake in Xizang Autonomous Region, China
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Yueping YIN1, *, Shaohua GAO1, Wenpei WANG1, Bin LI2, Yang GAO2
Chinese Journal of Rock Mechanics and Engineering | 2026, 45(2) : 321 - 341
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Chinese Journal of Rock Mechanics and Engineering | 2026, 45(2): 321-341
Catastrophic landslides triggered by the 1950 Medog—Zayu Ms8.6 earthquake in Xizang Autonomous Region, China
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Yueping YIN1, *, Shaohua GAO1, Wenpei WANG1, Bin LI2, Yang GAO2
Affiliations
  • 1.Guide Center of Prevention Technology for Geo-Hazard, MNR, China Institute of Geo-Environment Monitoring, Beijing 100081, China
  • 2.Institute of Geomechanics, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Published: 2026-02-01 doi: 10.3724/1000-6915.jrme.2025.0400
Outline
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On 15 August 1950, an Ms8.6 earthquake struck the Medog—Zayu region in the Eastern Himalayan syntaxis, with a maximum intensity of XII and an area with intensity≥VIII of about 2.19×105 km2. This mainshock-dominated event released seismic energy in a highly concentrated manner and triggered extensive landslides and related geological hazards. To systematically reveal the spatial distribution and the river-blocking patterns of coseismic landslides, we integrate multi-temporal historical imagery since 1961, archival records and field investigations to analyse the intensity distribution. For the high-intensity zone (X–XII) from Milin Wolong to downstream of Duden in the Namcha Barwa region, a coseismic landslide inventory is constructed for the first time, resulting in a dataset of 920 landslides. Quantitative analysis reveals that landslides predominantly occurred at 2 000–4 000 m elevation, on 20°–50° slopes, and within 4 km of active faults. The landslide distribution is strongly controlled by the main central thrust fault, the Motuo fault, and the Apalong fault. Based on statistical analysis and morphological characteristics, we delineate four types of earthquake-induced landslide-damming patterns: seated landslides, high-altitude remote hazards, whole gully-scale landslides and multi-landslide clusters, typified by the Gengbangla, Zelongnong Gully, the Jamaqiming Gully, and Zhaqu—Xirang landslide groups, respectively. The maximum duration of river blockage reached 15–16 hours. The unique geomorphic and tectonic environment of the Eastern Himalayan Syntaxis provides favorable conditions for the occurrence and evolution of high-altitude remote geological hazards. As the region is currently in a seismically active phase, it is critical to enhance research on the failure mechanisms and early warning of under extreme earthquake conditions, thereby improving disaster preparedness, resilience, and emergency response capabilities in the region.

slope engineering  /  Medog—Zayu Ms8.6 earthquake  /  extreme earthquake  /  earthquake-induced landslides  /  high-altitude remote geological hazards  /  Eastern Himalayan Syntaxis
Yueping YIN, Shaohua GAO, Wenpei WANG, Bin LI, Yang GAO. Catastrophic landslides triggered by the 1950 Medog—Zayu Ms8.6 earthquake in Xizang Autonomous Region, China[J]. Chinese Journal of Rock Mechanics and Engineering, 2026 , 45 (2) : 321 -341 . DOI: 10.3724/1000-6915.jrme.2025.0400
  • National Natural Science Foundation of China(U2244227; U2244226)
Year 2026 volume 45 Issue 2
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doi: 10.3724/1000-6915.jrme.2025.0400
  • Receive Date:2025-06-11
  • Online Date:2026-06-18
  • Published:2026-02-01
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  • Received:2025-06-11
  • Revised:2025-11-30
Funding
National Natural Science Foundation of China(U2244227; U2244226)
Affiliations
    1.Guide Center of Prevention Technology for Geo-Hazard, MNR, China Institute of Geo-Environment Monitoring, Beijing 100081, China
    2.Institute of Geomechanics, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing 100081, China

Corresponding:

* YIN Yueping (1960–), research fellow, is engaged in geological hazard prevention and mitigation. E-mail:
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表12种不同金属材料的力学参数

Family
属数
Number of
genus
种数
Number of
species
占总种数比例
Percentage of
total species (%)

Genus
种数
Number of
species
占总种数比例
Percentage of total
species (%)
鹅膏菌科Amanitaceae 2 11 5.26 鹅膏菌属 Amanita 10 4.78
小菇科 Mycenaceae 2 12 5.74 丝盖伞属 Inocybe 5 2.39
多孔菌科 Polyporaceae 8 14 6.70 蜡蘑属 Laccaria 5 2.39
红菇科 Russulaceae 3 23 11.00 小皮伞属 Marasmius 6 2.87
小菇属 Mycena 11 5.26
光柄菇属 Pluteus 5 2.39
红菇属 Russula 17 8.13
栓菌属 Trametes 5 2.39
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