Are geological disasters really just disasters?

Geological hazards (Geologic Hazard / Geohazard) refers to geological phenomena caused by natural or human factors, causing losses to human life, property and the environment. Broadly speaking, landslides, mudslides, ground cracks, ground collapse, ground subsidence, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, etc., are all geological disasters. It often causes a lot of economic losses and casualties, bringing us painful memories.

But, at the end of the day, geological "disasters" are essentially just a natural phenomenon on Earth. Whether it is earthquakes, volcanoes or collapses, landslides, mudslides, itself is a process of release of the energy accumulated by the earth. Their occurrence not only proves the vitality of the earth, but also brings "benefits" to mankind in addition to "disasters".

Figure 1 Geological activity, reflecting the vitality and vitality of the earth.

(Image source: Wikipedia)

Create colorful natural landscapes

Geological activities have created a rich and colorful natural landscape on the earth, and volcanoes, earthquakes, landslides, etc., which we regard as "geological disasters", are one of the important contributors to the creation of surface landscapes. The sea is rotten, the bucket turns to the stars, and the earth is also a living body, constantly accumulating - releasing energy. In this one piece of relaxation, the world is fully displayed and the magic is created.

Volcanoes, blazing hot. The lava that cannot be held deep underground has pushed out a mountain bag on the earth, gushing out, bringing out the material inside the earth. Billowing smoke can cover an area of several kilometers. Volcanic ash is rich in nutrients and is an excellent nutrient for plant growth; after volcanic activity, the crater accumulates water sources and can form a beautiful crater lake; the continuous heat underground creates steaming hot springs, like a fairyland... Volcanic action has created a large number of natural landscapes: Changbai Mountain, Wudalianchi, Tengchong on the mainland, Mt. Fuji in Japan, Hawaii and Huangshi Park in the United States, these famous scenic spots are inseparable from the role of volcanoes.

Figure 2 The volcano is erupting, the lava is splashing, and volcanic ash covers the entire sky.

Figure 3 Changbai Mountain Tianchi is a crater lake formed after the eruption of the volcano, which is covered with snow and the lake water and the sky are interesting.

Fig. 4 Mt. Fuji, Japan, is a dormant volcano and a symbol of Japan's spiritual culture.

Figure 5 Volcanoes bring heat from the ground to the surface, creating massive hot springs that steam like a fairyland.

Crashing and slippery, surging and surging. The mountain collapses, landslides, and the collapsed rock and soil enter the river, hindering the flow of the river, forming a dammed lake. Some dammed lakes, close to human living areas, the river continues to pour in, but can not flow out, once broken, will lead to disasters; but in inaccessible areas, under the action of nature, the dammed lake will also become a landscape; mudslides, in the mountains for thousands of miles, carrying a large amount of soil, after rushing out of the valley, deposited, become an alluvial fan, help to conserve water sources; under the action of collapse, can form a high cliff cliff, steep and upright, a grand view.

Figure 6 Ranwu Lake in Tibet is a dammed lake created by a landslide blocking a river. The blue water is like a mirror, the snow is white, and the landscape of heaven and earth reflect each other.

Fig. 7 Yigong Lake, formed by mudslides blocking the river in 1900, formed a beautiful wetland after the collapse in 2000.

Figure 8 The southern Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, China, straddles a massive alluvial fan between the Kunlun and Argin Mountains. Many oases in the desert are on alluvial fans. (Image source: Wikipedia)

Figures 9 and 10 The Seven Sisters, Sussex, located in the English Channel, are formed by the erosion of rock walls by seawater and the collapse of rock walls.

Produce rich resources

Human beings are able to live comfortably on the earth and develop civilizations, thanks to the rich resources provided by the earth. The vast majority of resources are inseparable from the activities of the earth. Taking volcanoes as an example, it is not only a unique landscape, but also produces many resources. There are countless volcanic gold mines, copper mines, etc. The formation of many jewels, such as diamonds, is also inseparable from volcanic action. Even volcanic ash produced during volcanic eruptions can become a rich nutrient for plant growth, creating 10,000 acres of fertile land.

Figure 11 Geological activities such as volcanoes have brought abundant minerals to mankind.

Fig. 12 Volcanic eruptions and sediment deposits in rivers create large areas of fertile land. The picture shows a painting of a rice field in Zhumadian City, Henan Province.

Helping humans produce

In the face of nature, human beings are small; in the face of natural forces, even with the most advanced tools and equipment, human power is insignificant. The greatness of human beings lies in the fact that they recognize the limitations of their own power and are able to use the power of nature for their own use. We build hydropower stations and send out a steady stream of electricity from rushing rivers; we study the mysteries of nature and invent a series of tools such as airplanes, radars, sonars; we domesticate animals, cultivate crops, and build our own shelters on the vast land... And the powerful forces nurtured in geological "disasters" are also used by us.

Figure 13 Learning to harness the power of nature is the way for human beings to survive.

In mining, quarrying, stone processing and other activities, collapse and landslides are promising. Collapse and landslides are the process of destruction and collapse of rock masses and mountains. Mining, quarrying and other activities are also to cut and break the rock mass, and then smelt it after transportation. Before the invention of gunpowder, these could only be achieved with a hammer and a chisel. If the ore body can be artificially treated to cause it to collapse and landslide, wouldn't it save time and effort? Such a practice is still promising even today, when gunpowder has been widely used.

Figure 14 When mining minerals, trenches can be excavated at the bottom of the ore body, and the upper ore body can easily slide down the layer, which greatly improves the mining efficiency. (Photo by the author)

Figure 15 Marble quarry in Italy. The stones of the mine are neatly cut. This is not a cut like "kitchen knife cutting meat", but the result of using the law of rock destruction and skillfully exerting force to make the rock itself destroy along the weak side.

Fig. 16 Ancient stonemasons were able to cut hard rocks with only simple tools. Punch holes in the direction of cutting on the intact rock, so that the rock is split and the section is smooth and flat.

On April 10, 2013, the Bingham open-pit mine in Utah, USA, experienced the largest non-volcanic activity-induced landslide in North America in record, and about 65-70 million cubic meters of mud and rock poured down in an instant. The landslide was so violent that even the seismic network detected the loud noise of the landslide. Fortunately, the researchers predicted the landslide based on the movement of the landslide before the landslide, and evacuated all the staff of the mine in advance. The accident did not cause casualties except for some equipment and building damage. Although this is a "disaster", from another point of view, the landslide collected a large amount of ore for the mine, saving manpower and material resources, which is also a beautiful thing. It can be seen that as long as it is discovered in a timely manner and handled properly, we can "turn geological disasters into jade".

Figure 17 Aerial picture of a mine landslide. As can be seen from the picture, the landslide area is several kilometers long and more than five hundred meters wide. (Image source: NASA)

Figure 18 Overview of the landslide in the mine. (Image source: https://www.upr.org/utah-news/2013-04-12/kennecott-mining-to-continue-after-slide-in-bingham-mine)

Promote scientific and technological progress

In order to prevent the occurrence of geological disasters and reduce the losses caused by geological disasters, countless scientists and engineers have devoted themselves to related research. In the process of "fighting" against geological disasters, human beings have become more and more profound in their understanding of the earth and have made a large number of scientific and technological achievements. Therefore, to a certain extent, the occurrence of geological disasters has promoted the progress of human science and technology.

Take landslides, landslides, and mudslides, for example. Their occurrence is often caused by the loss of stability and destruction of the rock and soil. In order to prevent the occurrence of these disasters and reduce the losses caused by disasters, many scientists and engineers have conducted a lot of research on the mechanical properties of rock and soil bodies, and their understanding of the law of destruction of rock and soil bodies has become more and more profound.

Figure 19 Through rock mechanics tests, the law of rock deformation and destruction is explored, which increases human understanding of nature, and can use the research results in engineering construction and disaster prevention. (Photo by the author)

On the one hand, we learned how to stop the destruction. This can be applied to engineering construction and industrial production, such as the excavation of tunnels and underground caverns, the mining of minerals, the construction of protective projects, etc., reducing the occurrence of construction accidents and greatly increasing the safety of engineering buildings.

Figure 20 The splendor of the Moscow Metro. Today, underground rail transit has become an indispensable part of the city.

Figure 21 Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group, miners working under the mine. With the continuous advancement of engineering technology, the safety of mine work has been greatly improved.

On the other hand, we also learned how to lead to destruction. This can be applied to the exploitation of minerals and energy, so that human beings can efficiently develop and utilize resources. For example, as the depth increases, the rock underground bears the weight of the upper rock, and the pressure on it increases, so its structure is also denser and more difficult to be destroyed. If you want to exploit minerals and energy, you have to overcome the problem of how to "destroy". This technology has a wide range of application prospects in geothermal energy development and shale gas exploitation.

Fig. 22 For every 1000 meters of underground depth, the temperature increases by about 25 °C, the pressure increases, and the rock temperature is higher and denser, making it more difficult to create cracks. (Illustrated by the author)

Figure 23 It is a challenge to create fissures in dense shale layers thousands of meters underground and extract shale oil and gas.

Whether it is collapse, landslide, mudslide, volcanic eruption, earthquake, etc., it is the process of releasing the energy accumulated by the earth, reflecting the vitality of the earth's life. Once these activities disappear, the earth will fall into a dead silence, and humanity will lose its beautiful homeland. We cannot stop geological activity, but in the face of geological disasters, if we handle them properly, we can not only reduce and avoid losses, but even use them. As long as we can fully grasp its laws, we can turn "disasters" into nothing and create a vibrant earth together.

Note: Unlabeled images are from Figureworm Ideas.

Resources

1. Wikipedia: Geohazard

2. Wikipedia: Alluvial fan

3. Wikipedia: Seven Sisters, Sussex

4、Kennecott Mining to Continue after Slide in Bingham Mine：https://www.upr.org/utah-news/2013-04-12/kennecott-mining-to-continue-after-slide-in-bingham-mine

| Marizer

Proofreading | Liu Qiang