304. Stochasticity of Rockfall Tracjectory Revealed by a Field Experiment Repeated on a Single Sample

The complexity of rockfall processes induces potential uncertainties in the modeling of rockfall trajectory. However, the stochasticity of rockfall trajectory has not yet been well addressed owing to either the over-simplification of numerical models or the over-complexity of real rockfall cases. In this paper, a field experiment was implemented to investigate the stochasticity of rockfall trajectory. A single sample of rock block was repeatedly used throughout the experiment to avoid complications derived from diversities of the properties of samples. The results showed that significant scattering of rockfall trajectory exist among different trials of rockfall using the same sample released from the same height on the same site. This suggests that minor variations of parameters and conditions can propagate during rockfall processes and finally result in significant stochasticity of rockfall trajectory. To the best knowledge of the authors, the stochasticity of rockfall trajectory is for the first time revealed by a physical experiment using a single sample strategy.