Rockfall susceptibility and runout in the Valley of the Kings

Marija, Lukovic; Ziegler, Martin; Aaron, Jordan; Perras, Matthew A.

doi:10.1007/s11069-021-04954-9

Cited by 9 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…The KV is surrounded by steep cliffs of up to 30 m in height (Figure 2b) and small hills with gentle slopes. Other important features were described by Lukovic et al [14] and include low slope angles from the crest of cliffs to the upper plateau, overhanging blocks in cliff walls, gullies crossing the valley, and branching channels used as tourist paths dipping towards the north (<10 • ). Lukovic et al [14] also reported bedding angles from subhorizontal (15 • ) for unfaulted sections to steep angles (30 • ) for those affected by listric faults.…”

Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Other important features were described by Lukovic et al [14] and include low slope angles from the crest of cliffs to the upper plateau, overhanging blocks in cliff walls, gullies crossing the valley, and branching channels used as tourist paths dipping towards the north (<10 • ). Lukovic et al [14] also reported bedding angles from subhorizontal (15 • ) for unfaulted sections to steep angles (30 • ) for those affected by listric faults. The current morphology is a result of the tectonic fracture network, allowing for rock falls and slides, as well as repetitive fluvial erosion, cycles of flooding, and colluvium accumulation.…”

Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…However, it is difficult to note the presence of Member I at the central section of the KV because of an accumulation of debris, colluvial materials (angular in shape; formed during flooding with limited length of transport), and finer gravel and aeolian sediments. This debris has caused a rise of the ground surface of up to 10 m in some areas within the KV [14,33].Conversely, the upper Esna Shale Formation is only visible at the entrance to the KV and in some of the deepest tombs, such as KV20, KV17, and KV7 [9]. The upper members of the Esna Shale Formation are water-sensitive rock units (i.e., high contents of smectite and illite) [21,34].…”

Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, a joint geological team aids the Kings' Valley Project and comprises members from York University (Toronto, ON, Canada), ETH Zurich (Zurich, Switzerland) and South Valley University (Qena, Egypt). Our team assessed the current condition of the cliffs around the valley to determine their stability, triggering agents for rock falls, and (in particular) the effect of climatic conditions on the evolution of rock damage in subvertical cliffs of marlstone and limestone belonging to Member I of the Thebes Limestone Formation [13,14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rock Mechanical Laboratory Testing of Thebes Limestone Formation (Member I), Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt

et al. 2022

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The Thebes Limestone Formation of Lower Eocene age is one of the most extensive rock units in Egypt. It is of importance to the apogee of the ancient Egyptian civilization, particularly in Luxor (South-Central Egypt), where the rock formation hosts the Theban Necropolis, a group of funerary chambers and temples from the New Kingdom Egyptian era (3500–3000 BP). In this work, we investigated the petrophysical and rock mechanical properties (e.g., rock strength, critical crack stress thresholds) through laboratory tests on eleven rock blocks collected from one area within the Theban Necropolis known as the Valley of the Kings (KV). The blocks belong to Member I of the Thebes Limestone Formation, including six blocks of marly limestone, three blocks of micritic limestone, one block of argillaceous limestone from the Upper Esna Shale Formation, and one block of silicified limestone of unknown origin. Special attention was given to the orientation of bedding planes in the samples: tests were conducted in parallel (PA) and perpendicular (PE) configurations with respect to bedding planes. We found that the marly limestone had an average unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of 30 MPa and 39 MPa for the PA and PE tests, respectively. Similarly, the micritic limestone tests showed an average UCS of 24 MPa for the PA orientation and 58 MPa for the PE orientation. The critical crack thresholds were the first ever reported for Member I, as measured with strain gauge readings. The average crack initiation (CI) stress thresholds for the marly limestone (PA: 14 MPa) and the micritic limestone (PA: 11 MPa; PE: 24 MPa) fall within the typical ratio of CI to UCS (0.36–0.52). The micritic limestone had an average Young’s modulus (E) of 19.5 GPa and 10.3 GPa for PA and PE, respectively. The Poisson’s ratios were 0.2 for PA and 0.1 for PE on average. Both marly and micritic limestone can be characterised by a transverse isotropic strength behaviour with respect to bedding planes. The failure strength for intact anisotropic rocks depends on the orientation of the applied force, which must be considered when assessing the stability of tombs and cliffs in the KV and will be used to understand and improve the preservation of this UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Rock Formations and Morphology Of The Valley Of The Kingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rock Mechanical Laboratory Testing of Thebes Limestone Formation (Member I), Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt

et al. 2022

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“…It is worth mentioning that Rockyfor3D integrates the simulation of the blocking effect of trees on falling rocks, considering the protective effect of forests on falling rocks. Thus, the mitigating effect of forests on rockfalls can be evaluated by comparing the simulation results of the impact range of rockfalls on slopes with and without forests [45]. The Rockyfor3D model utilizes the GIS data format for model input, output, and visualization and allows the use of digital elevation models to represent the terrain and raster maps to represent the input parameters [46].…”

Section: Rockfall Simulations-rockyfor3dmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment and Mechanism Analysis of Forest Protection against Rockfall in a Large Rock Avalanche Area

Song,

Yang,

Liang

et al. 2023

Forests

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Trees in forests can obstruct falling rocks and serve as a natural barrier to reduce the velocity of falling rocks. Recently, there has been growing interest in utilizing forests to safeguard against potential rockfall. Nevertheless, there is a dearth of research regarding the impact of rock size and forest structure on forest preservation against rockfall. This study takes the Jiweishan rock avalanche that occurred in China in June 2009 as an example to discuss the protection mechanism of forests against rockfall in rock avalanche disasters. Three sizes of rockfalls from the Jiweishan rock avalanche were simulated and analyzed with and without forests using Rockyfor3D software. The findings indicate that forests can mitigate the energy impact of falling rocks. Especially in the debris flow area of rock avalanches, the protective effect of trees on small-sized falling rocks is most obvious, reducing the runout distance and damage range of the debris flow. Moreover, the protective effect of forest structures on rockfall risk was explored. It was found that broad-leaved forests had the best protection against falling rocks, followed by coniferous broad-leaved mixed forests, and coniferous forests had the worst protective effect. Furthermore, increasing forest planting density and tree diameter at breast height (DBH) can result in better protection against rockfall. Thus, rational planning of forest species and planting density in areas of rockfall can effectively reduce the threat of rockfall risk. The research ideas in this study can provide a basis for evaluating the mitigation of rockfall hazards by forests and provide a reference for constructing and planning protective forests in rockfall and rock avalanche hazard areas.

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Rock Slope Instabilities Affecting the AlUla Archaeological Sites (KSA)

Gallego,

Margottini,

Perissé Valero

et al. 2023

Progress in Landslide Research and Technology

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The paper focuses on the geomorphological processes and potential geo-hazards affecting the cultural heritage rock-cut sites of AlUla region. Its best-known site is Hegra, with more than 110 monumental tombs with elaborated façades carved directly into the sandstone rock. In addition, AlUla hosts a number of fascinating historical and archaeological sites such as its Old Town, surrounded by an ancient oasis, and Dadan, the capital of the Dadan and Lihyan kingdoms. The study is mainly aimed at investigating the local rock material, evaluating characteristics of rock masses, understanding rock degradation processes and characterizing the potential impact of slope instabilities on the conservation of cultural heritage.

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Rockfall susceptibility and runout in the Valley of the Kings

Cited by 9 publications

References 53 publications

Rock Mechanical Laboratory Testing of Thebes Limestone Formation (Member I), Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt

Rock Mechanical Laboratory Testing of Thebes Limestone Formation (Member I), Valley of the Kings, Luxor, Egypt

Assessment and Mechanism Analysis of Forest Protection against Rockfall in a Large Rock Avalanche Area

Rock Slope Instabilities Affecting the AlUla Archaeological Sites (KSA)

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