Landslides, also known as landslips, or rockslides,[1][2][3] are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, mudflows, shallow or deep-seated slope failures and debris flows.[4] Landslides occur in a variety of environments, characterized by either steep or gentle slope gradients, from mountain ranges to coastalcliffs or even underwater,[5] in which case they are called submarine landslides.
Gravity is the primary driving force for a landslide to occur, but there are other factors affecting slope stability that produce specific conditions that make a slope prone to failure. In many cases, the landslide is triggered by a specific event (such as a heavy rainfall, an earthquake, a slope cut to build a road, and many others), although this is not always identifiable.