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Rock Mechanics Letters

Open Access Review Article

The Vajont Landslide: an overview of 60 years of research

by Rafaela Oliveira Lapa 1,*  and  Gyula Bögöly 1
1
Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Department of Engineering Geology and Geotechnics, Budapest, Hungary
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
RML  2025 2(3):21; https://doi.org/10.70425/rml.202503.21
Received: 27 June 2025 / Accepted: 3 August 2025 / Published Online: 20 August 2025
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Abstract

The Vajont Landslide, one of the most catastrophic events in history, has been extensively studied for over 60 years. Navigating the extensive Vajont literature presents challenges due to the volume of information, persistent questions, ongoing controversies, and even unreliable information. This review offers a novel synthesis by identifying the most influential hypotheses through the lens of updated geomorphological reconstructions, evolving interpretations of the sliding surface, and conflicting assumptions. It highlights how certain long-held assumptions may have led to biased conclusions, presents a concise dataset of key geotechnical parameters, and stresses the need for future analyses that integrate rainfall and reservoir effects over time, account for possible progressive strength degradation, and revisit slope stability under more realistic boundary conditions. By clarifying closed questions and spotlighting persistent uncertainties, this paper aims to guide future research and reframe understanding of the Vajont landslide.

Keywords: Vajont Landslide; Slope Stability; Reservoir-Induced Landslides; Rock Slides;
Copyright: © 2025 by Oliveira Lapa and Bögöly. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

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ACS Style
Oliveira Lapa, R.; Bögöly, G. The Vajont Landslide: an overview of 60 years of research. Rock Mechanics Letters, 2025, 2, 21. doi:10.70425/rml.202503.21
AMA Style
Oliveira Lapa R, Bögöly G. The Vajont Landslide: an overview of 60 years of research. Rock Mechanics Letters; 2025, 2(3):21. doi:10.70425/rml.202503.21
Chicago/Turabian Style
Oliveira Lapa, Rafaela; Bögöly, Gyula 2025. "The Vajont Landslide: an overview of 60 years of research" Rock Mechanics Letters 2, no.3:21. doi:10.70425/rml.202503.21
APA Style
Oliveira Lapa, R., & Bögöly, G. (2025). The Vajont Landslide: an overview of 60 years of research. Rock Mechanics Letters, 2(3), 21. doi:10.70425/rml.202503.21

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