ISRO: Joshimath Might Completely Sink

NEW DELHI: According to a preliminary assessment by the satellite agency ISRO, Joshimath's entire town may sink as a result of the area's rapid ground subsidence (Indian Space Research Organisation). A recent study by the space agency revealed that the settlement was rapidly sinking throughout. In just 12 days, the holy town in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district submerged 5.4 centimetres.

The entire town of Joshimath, the army helipad, and Narsingh Mandir are included in the area that is experiencing significant sinking, which has been identified on satellite photographs by the ISRO. The space agency has just reported the rate of sinking and the area affected, despite the images suggesting a very ominous situation.

Joshimath, which has a very shaky foundation, is facing an existential threat as a result of the land beneath it sinking due to land subsidence. The area marked in the image is Joshimath town (ISRO). The entire area has been deemed unsafe because at least 700 homes in nine wards and several roadways have developed cracks. 170 households and about 600 individuals have been relocated to safer areas.

The National Remote Sensing Center of the space agency examined the satellite photos to pinpoint the potential site and degree of land subsidence over both long and short time periods. Using a satellite-based remote sensing method called DInSAR (Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar), the agency analysed the picture. To estimate centimeter-level surface displacements, DInSAR analyses radar pictures.

New Cartosat-2S satellite data that ISRO acquired on January 7 and 10 2023 were connected with the discovered subsidence zone. The roads of Joshimath are indicated in this figure by red lines. The drainage activity under the ground is indicated by the colour blue. (ISRO)

The ISRO looked at two-time frames: between April and November 2022 and between 27 December and 8 January 2023. The space agency discovered that steady subsidence happened between April and November 2022 over a period of seven months, with a maximum of 8.9 cm. Additionally, during the months of December and January of this year, the ground sank 5.4 cm in just 12 days, indicating a high pace of subsidence.

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