Large-scale assessments and mapping of snow hazards in pastoral areas of the Tibetan Plateau using microwave remote sensing data and ground records

Jun Wang, Yang Wang (), Shunzi Lu and Shijin Wang
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Jun Wang: Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School
Yang Wang: China Meteorological Administration
Shunzi Lu: Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School
Shijin Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, 2018, vol. 90, issue 1, No 23, 476 pages

Abstract: Abstract The Tibetan Plateau frequently experiences snow hazards that endanger livelihoods of local herders. Fast mapping and risk assessments of snow hazards are significant and prerequisite for decision making in mitigating negative impacts of snow hazards and facilitating social adaptation. In this study, we intended to develop a method for fast mapping multiple grades of snow hazards happened on the Tibetan Plateau relying on satellite microwave remote sensing data that can represent critical snow conditions. First, we calculated pasture burial index and continuous days of snow cover and used the two factors to classify pixels of the study area into four grades of snow hazards. Second, we assessed the grades of snow hazards at county scale using the above two factors and the factor of snow cover percentage over each county. Finally, we assessed the accuracy of predicting multiple grades of snow hazards based on remotely sensed data by comparing the above results with ground-recorded historical snow hazards at county scale. The results indicated that the frequencies of four grades of snow hazards had similar spatial patterns with high frequencies in southeast areas and low frequencies in northeast and southwest areas of the Tibetan Plateau. The evaluation results showed that the overall accuracy of the method developed in this study was over 70% and the accuracy of predicting the severe grade of snow hazards was higher than that of the other grades. In conclusion, the method developed in this study was feasible and practical for mapping multiple grades of snow hazards happened on the Tibetan Plateau.

Keywords: Large-scale snow hazard mapping; Remote sensing data; Ground records; Tibetan Plateau (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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DOI: 10.1007/s11069-017-3055-4

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