Hard X-ray imaging for landslide research.

Synchrotron phase-contrast hard X-ray imaging is used to provide highly efficient direct visualization of landslide dynamics and granular flows in fully wet granular piles. High penetration capability and phase-contrast enhancement of hard X-rays offer marked advantages in the precise tracking of individual granular movements through a thick water medium. It is revealed that the stress accumulation follows a power-law evolution while the relaxation follows an exponential one. The onset of landslide emerges at the trade-off of the two evolutions.