Abstract:

Budongquan migrating pingos form within NE-trending active faults in the permafrost north Tibetan Plateau. Only one small pingo formed in southeast margin of Golmud-Lhasa highway in 2001, and the pingos migrated to northwest of the highway along the buried Budongquan fault zone in 2002. The pingos migrated to northeast section of Budongquan valley and changed to larger-scale pingo groups in 2004-2005. And scale, height and covering area of Budongquan migrating pingos further increased in 2006. Budongquan migrating pingos not only piered and etched the highway, but also destructed the culvert, depressed ground surface, bended oil-pipeline and formed ground fracture zones. Hazards of Budongquan migrating pingos can be decreased or protected by taking engineering measures as building underground water conduits or draining off the upward rushing spring water near ground surface.

Key words: migrating pingo, geological hazard, active fault, Budongquan, Golmud-Lhasa highway