Investigation on Mining Subsidence Based on Sentinel-1A Data by SBAS-InSAR technology—Case Study of Ningdong Coalfield, China

Ground deformation characterization was difficult to obtain over large spatial areas before the invention of the Satellite radar interferometry (InSAR) technique. Especially underground mining in the Loess Plateau of China, it causes large-scale ground damage within a short period of time. A small baseline subset (SBAS) algorithm can overcome some limitations of InSAR technology, such as temporal decorrelation, spatial decorrelation, and atmospheric delay. In this study, SBAS-InSAR technology was applied to process 19 scenes of Sentinel-1A data in Ningdong Coalfield, China. We investigated and analyzed the mining subsidence status from March 2015 to June 2016. There are 6 ground deformation areas in the cumulative subsidence maps, and the maximum cumulative subsidence value is -178cm distributed in the Renjiazhuang mining area during this period. The deformation rate map shows that the maximum deformation rate was -117cm/year. GPS data above the working tunnel was collected in six mining areas in Shigouyi. The subsidence value of SBAS data is consistent with GPS observation station data. The results reveal the evolution process of subsidence in mining subsidence and are helpful to the early warning of the mine disaster.