Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 5 hrs ago
Hochvogel crack widens as experts monitor risk of rockfall
The Hochvogel, on the German-Austrian border, has a huge crack running through its summit.
The main crack is up to six metres wide and more than 60 metres deep, and it widens by about one to two millimetres a month on average.
Researchers at the Technical University of Munich monitor the mountain with more than 30 sensors that send data every 10 minutes.
A rock tower of about 2,000 cubic metres fell from the mountain in June, but researchers cannot say when a larger collapse might happen.
Experts say there is no immediate danger, though they say conditions could change.
Heavy rain and storms can widen the cracks, and researchers say climate change may speed up the process.
A collapse could involve 250,000 to 400,000 cubic metres of rock; the route up the mountain from Austria has been closed since 2014, and researchers expect the rock to fall into an uninhabited valley.
A crack on the 2,592-metre Hochvogel in the Allgäu Alps is up to six metres wide and more than 60 metres deep.
Researchers from the Technical University of Munich monitor the mountain with more than 30 sensors, which send data every 10 minutes.
A rockfall cannot be forecast, but researcher Johannes Leinauer said the mountain is relatively close to a major collapse in geological terms.
The main crack widens by an average of one to two millimetres a month, while side cracks are opening somewhat faster.
Researchers say heavy rain and thunderstorms, which they link to climate change, can accelerate the process.
- Who
- Researchers from the Technical University of Munich monitor the Hochvogel; Johannes Leinauer is quoted.
- What
- A large crack in the mountain is widening, raising concern about a possible rockfall.
- When
- The monitoring has been under way for years; the main crack widens by an average of one to two millimetres a month.
- Where
- Hochvogel, in the Allgäu Alps on the Germany-Austria border.
- Why
- Weather events such as heavy rain and thunderstorms can widen the crack; the article says climate change may accelerate the process.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
The Bäumenheimer Weg in the Tyrolean Hornbachtal, which leads to the Hochvogel summit, was closed.
A rock tower containing 2,000 cubic metres of rock fell into the valley.
Researchers measured a five-millimetre widening of a crack after heavy rain.
- Peak elevation
- 2,592 metres
- Main crack width
- Up to 6 metres
- Main crack depth
- More than 60 metres
- Monitoring equipment
- More than 30 sensors; data every 10 minutes
- Monthly widening
- 1–2 millimetres on average
- Possible rockfall volume
- Estimated 250,000–400,000 cubic metres
What people are saying
We monitor the Hochvogel permanently, get measurement data every 10 minutes.
From a geological point of view, we are not talking about tomorrow or in a few days. But we are relatively close.
Thunderstorms and rain are becoming more frequent and stronger, and that naturally accelerates things.
We assume that the masses will fall into an uninhabited mountain valley.