Regional extraction of flexural-toppled slopes in epicentral regions of subduction earthquakes along the Nankai Trough using DEMs

In the epicentral region of subduction earthquakes, large-scale landslides are triggered by strong shaking of slopes weakened by flexural toppling. The distribution of flexural-toppled slopes is the primary information for predicting and mitigating landslide damage beforehand. This study proposes and tests a simple algorithm for extracting flexural-toppled slopes on a regional basis from a 10-m resolution digital elevation model by windows of two sizes. Local relief is extracted with a large window (200 × 200 pixels), and microtopography is extracted with a small window (3 × 3 pixels). The algorithm was derived from the region of the Kanagi-kuzure landslide in Shikoku, and tested at Aka-kuzure landslide in Honshu in Japan. Both areas are underlain by strongly tilted sedimentary rocks in epicentral regions of subduction earthquakes along the Nankai Trough.