Detection of Ground Subsidence in the City of Durrës, Albania, by Persistent Scatterer Interferometry of Sentinel-1 Radar Imagery

Abstract

Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI) analysis of multi-temporal Sentinel-1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery was carried out to detect ground displacement in the city of Durrës, Albania. The analyzed interferometric stack consisted of fifty-eight Sentinel-1 images in ascending orbit covering the time period January 2017-December 2018. The results show a zone of ground subsidence with values of up to -30 mm/year that occur within and very close to the boundaries of the reclaimed lands of the Durrës marsh. Rapid urbanization, generally in the form of informal settlements, has taken place in this area in the last twenty years. In the Port of Durrës, a recently constructed breakwater shows high rates of ground settlement up to -30 mm/year, as well. The study is the first application of satellite radar imagery for the detection of ground displacement in the city of Durrës, Albania. Further monitoring is needed to better understand the ground subsidence and ground settlement processes that occur in the city of Durrës.