Geomorphological observations and related natural hazards using merged remotely sensed data: a case study in the Corinthos area (NE Peloponnese, S. Greece)

Natural hazards are mostly related to the activation of combined geomorphological and geological processes that control landform development. The study area is located in the NE part of Peloponnese (Corinthos prefecture). It is a typical agricultural area with intense relief, the result of active tectonics and important human intervention. This study demonstrates the benefits from the synergism of SAR data (ERS-2) and optical data (SPOT2-XS) in order to highlight the possible natural-hazardprone areas. These data give different and complementary information since the radar signal depends mostly on topography, surface roughness and soil moisture, whereas the visible/infrared channels provide spectral information mostly on vegetation and land use/cover. The application presented here was focused on the enhancement of the high erosion risk areas, the improvement of the terrain interpretation, the mapping and highlighting of the landform morphology, and a more accurate determination of the main factors that control the flooding risk of Corinthos town.