Mexico City is sinking so quickly, it can be seen from space
Mexico City is sinking at a rate of nearly 10 inches per year due to excessive groundwater extraction and its location on a drained lake bed, according to NASA satellite data. The subsidence is so severe that it can be observed from space and is damaging critical infrastructure like water systems, roads, and buildings. Researchers say improved satellite monitoring will help officials better understand and address the long-term risks.
- ▪Mexico City is sinking at an average rate of 9.5 inches (24 centimetres) per year, one of the fastest subsidence rates in the world.
- ▪The city was built on an ancient lake bed, and decades of groundwater pumping have caused the ground to compress and sink unevenly.
- ▪Critical infrastructure including the subway, drainage systems, and historic buildings like the Metropolitan Cathedral have been damaged by the ongoing subsidence.
- ▪NASA's NISAR satellite, a joint project with the Indian Space Research Organization, captured detailed measurements of the city's land deformation between October and January.
- ▪Scientists and Mexican officials hope the satellite data will improve long-term planning and mitigation efforts for the city's water and infrastructure challenges.
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Open this photo in gallery:Pedestrians walk past a slightly tilted historic building in downtown Mexico City in 2016. The city was built on a drained lake bed and many buildings sank unevenly into the soft earth over decades or centuries.Rebecca Blackwell/The Associated PressShareSave for laterPlease log in to bookmark this story.Log InCreate Free AccountMexico City is sinking by nearly 10 inches (about 25 centimetres) a year, according to new satellite imagery released this week by NASA, making it one of the world’s fastest-subsiding metropolises.One of the world’s most sprawling and populated urban areas, at 3,000 square miles (about 7,800 square kilometres) and some 22 million people, the Mexican capital and surrounding cities were built atop an ancient lake bed.
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