4 August 2021

A rockfall video from the Couloir du Gypaète in France

Posted by Dave Petley

A rockfall video from the Couloir du Gypaète in France

With thanks to those who spotted this on Youtube, a very surprising rockfall video was posted online last week by Rémi Bourdelle, who was flying above the Couloir du Gypaète in France when a rockfall developed.  The video provides an utterly unique perspective on rockfall processes.  Take a look:-

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My first reaction to this is of course wow!  The video shows boulders bouncing down the gulley and then through the trees below.  As noted previously the force of these rocks is extraordinary.

But the most surprising element of this video is the trajectory of the rock seen at the start of the video.  Fortunately, this boulder (which appears to have been fragmenting) left a trail of dust that marks its path through the air:

The trajectory of the boulder at Couloir du Gypaète in France.

The trajectory of the boulder at Couloir du Gypaète in France. Still from a Youtube video by Rémi Bourdelle.

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This is the sort of trajectory that is normally associated with fly rock from blasting rather than a rockfall.  It is quite extraordinary; I have not seen this previously (have any readers?).

Presumably, the boulder struck an inclined surface, whilst travelling at a very high velocity, causing a ricochet that created this ballistic trajectory.

The other obviously possibility would be ejection during fracturing, but this seems less likely to me.

I’m not sure if this is a freak, or something that is quite common.  Any views?