A landslide in Heifangtai, northwest of the Chinese Loess Plateau: triggered factors, movement characteristics, and failure mechanism

On 27 January 2021, at 21:00 (UTC + 8), a shallow loess landslide occurred in Heifangtai, Yongjing County, Gansu Province, northwest of the Chinese Loess Plateau. Fortunately, the independently developed global navigation satellite system predicted the landslide 7 h in advance. Although farmland and channels were buried and destroyed, no damage has been done to the lives and houses of residents. In order to explore the triggering factors and movement process of the landslide, based on the field investigation, we collected the precipitation and temperature data more than 1 year before the landslide and comprehensively used UAV photogrammetry, numerical simulation, and laboratory test for comprehensive research. It was found that as the temperature rose and freeze–thaw cycles, changes in mechanical properties of loess and unique stratum structure were the main factors triggering the landslide. The rise in temperature led to an increase in groundwater levels, and the strength of soil decreased gradually until shear liquefaction occurred. This landslide caused a substantial topographic change, which provided conditions for slope instability in the future. The process of landslide movement can be divided into three stages: start-up stage, severe sliding stage, and deceleration stage. Simulation results show that the maximum velocity was 22 m/s, and the maximum sliding distance was 393 m. The main movement period was 40 s, and the apparent friction angle was 5°. Finally, this study provides a reliable basis for studying the dynamic process and failure mechanism of loess landslides.