An Interactive Web-based Application for Earthquake-triggered Ground Failure Inventories

Inventories of landslides and liquefaction triggered by major earthquakes are key research tools that can be used to develop and test hazard models. To eliminate redundant effort, we created a centralized and interactive repository of ground failure inventories that currently hosts 32 inventories generated by USGS and non-USGS authors and designed a pipeline for adding more as they become available. The repository consists of (1) a ScienceBase community page where the data are available for download and (2) an accompanying web application that allows users to browse and visualize the available datasets. We anticipate that easier access to these key datasets will accelerate progress in earthquake-triggered ground failure research, ultimately benefiting the mission of the USGS to apply hazard science to protect the Nation’s safety, security, and economic well-being. Our solution also provides a template for other USGS groups seeking to create customized interactive tools using existing resources.