Detección de deslizamientos activos usando MT-InSAR en la Sección Salsipuedes de la carretera Tijuana-Ensenada

Detection of active landslides using MT-InSAR on the Salsipuedes Section of the Tijuana-Ensenada highway 

Olga Sarychikhina1,*, Luis A. Delgado-Argote1, Cristian A. Gallegos-Castillo1  

1 División de Ciencias de la Tierra, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada. Carr. Tijuana-Ensenada 3918, Zona Playitas, 22860 Ensenada, Baja California, México.

* Autor para correspondencia: (O. Sarychikhina) This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

How to cite this article: 

Sarychikhina, O., Delgado-Argote, L.A., Gallegos-Castillo, C.A., 2025, Detección de deslizamientos activos usando MT-InSAR en la Sección Salsipuedes de la carretera Tijuana-Ensenada: Boletín de la Sociedad Geológica Mexicana, 77(3), A020625. http://dx.doi.org/10.18268/BSGM2025v77n3a020625    

Manuscript received: March 14, 2025. Corrected manuscript received: May 24, 2025. Manuscrito accepted: May 27, 2025. 

ABSTRACT

Satellite InSAR technology is a powerful tool for detecting unstable slopes and characterizing the spatial and temporal patterns of displacement. In this study, two multitemporal InSAR (MT-InSAR) approaches, SBAS and IPTA, were employed to assess the activity status of landslides in the Tijuana-Ensenada coastal corridor in Baja California, specifically in the Salsipuedes region, after nine years of stabilization works. Sixty-one Sentinel-1A images collected during the descending orbital pass from December 2021 to December 2023 were used for this purpose. The results led to the identification of four active landslides, three of which directly affected the Tijuana-Ensenada toll road and its surrounding infrastructure. The fourth landslide, although not immediately altering the road, is relevant due to its proximity to a proposed alternate route. The displacements in these areas exhibited non-linear behavior, with 70% of the total displacement occurring in 2023, a year of abundant rainfall during the rainy season. Furthermore, it was found that precipitation influences not only immediate displacement but also its persistence over time. While rainfall is a key triggering factor, the study indicates that other factors also contribute to landslide activity, requiring further investigations to fully understand their behavior. Both MT-InSAR approaches facilitated the identification of active landslides; however, the SBAS method demonstrated superior reliability in characterizing the temporal and spatial displacement patterns due to its broader results coverage and its ability to measure non-linear displacement patterns.

Keywords: landslides, MT-InSAR, SBAS, IPTA, Tijuana-Ensenada toll road, Salsipuedes.