X- and C-band SAR data to monitoring ground deformations and slow-moving landslides for the 2016 Manta and Portoviejo earthquake (Manabi, Ecuador)

Abstract

Ground deformation due to catastrophic natural events have a powerful destructive potential both on people and buildings. In recent years Remote Sensing techniques have proved to be very useful to detect and monitor earth surface and ground deformation phenomena, by helping with their a priori and a posteriori analysis. In particular, Differential SAR Interferometry is widely implemented for such scenarios. In this work, such technique has been applied to observe the effects of the 7.8 Mw earthquake that hit the coast of Ecuador on April 16, 2016. Displacement maps were generated from Sentinel-1 data and compared with the damage reported in the city of Portoviejo, highlighting several critical situations and showing very interesting results. The paper allows to underline the usefulness of using Differential SAR Interferometry and Remote Sensing together with ground truth data comparison. The results so far obtained provide a first base for further evaluations, by using also COSMO-SkyMed imagery, which will represent a valid support for land management authorities.