Topographic Reorganisation and Hydrodynamic Implications of the Hemenkou Landslide After Wudongde Reservoir Impoundment: Evidence from Multi-Scale Space–Air–Ground Observations

Abstract

Reservoir impoundment can reactivate pre-existing landslides and reorganize slope topography, thereby changing seepage conditions and subsequent deformation. However, crack mapping, geomorphic interpretation, and hydrodynamic diagnosis are still often treated as separate tasks. This study investigates the Hemenkou (HMK) landslide in the Wudongde Reservoir area, China, using multi-scale space–air–ground observations, including multi-temporal optical satellite images, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry, pyramid scene parsing network (PSPNet)-based crack segmentation, global navigation satellite system (GNSS) monitoring, and convergent cross mapping (CCM). The remote sensing record shows a progressive damage sequence: cracks were mainly restricted to the upper source area in 2012, crown cracking intensified and propagated downslope by December 2020, and the UAV survey of 10 June 2024 revealed a mature tension-crack network concentrated in Zone II. ResNet-50-PSPNet achieved the best crack-extraction performance among the tested models, with Precision = 0.9120, Recall = 0.9041, F1 = 0.9081, and IoU = 0.8316. The mapped cracks are dominated by short, narrow, northeast–southwest-oriented tension cracks. GNSS monitoring reveals strong spatial heterogeneity, with stepwise deformation concentrated in Zone II. CCM provides strong directional evidence for the influence of reservoir water-level fluctuation on Zone II deformation, whereas the weaker rainfall signal is consistent with a secondary reinforcing role. The apparent increase in the rainfall-related CCM signal from 2021 to 2023 is consistent with progressive crack expansion and potentially enhanced hydraulic connectivity in Zone II. Taken together, these observations support the interpretation that post-deformation topography, particularly the tension-crack network and disturbed toe, may organise preferential seepage pathways and increase the sensitivity of the landslide to reservoir drawdown. The study provides an integrated remote sensing and monitoring framework for process-based interpretation of reservoir landslides.