40-4 Geospatial Reconstruction of the 1976 Teton Dam Flood for Public Geoscience Communication: A 50-Year Commemoration

Abstract:

Spatial reconstruction of historic flood disasters provides opportunities to examine relationships among earth processes, landscape change, infrastructure failure, and community impact. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the June 5, 1976, Teton Dam failure, BYU–Idaho students, faculty, museum collaborators, and library personnel developed a GIS-based virtual field trip to reconstruct and communicate the flood’s historical, spatial, and geologic significance as a place-based earth science case study for public geoscience communication. The project integrates archival records, post-flood aerial imagery, flood-extent data, historical photographs, newspaper accounts, and firsthand narratives within an interactive web map and story map. Methods included georeferencing post-flood aerial imagery, mapping the flood extent, and linking archival materials to specific locations using 1976 aerial imagery and modern GIS tools. These spatially referenced materials document the flood’s physical damage, economic impacts, and effects across the Teton Dam flood inundation zone. The resulting virtual field trip allows users to visualize how floodwaters moved through the Teton River system, affected the floodplain, and shaped community experience. This project demonstrates the value of integrating geospatial analysis and historical archives to communicate flood hazards, landscape change, and infrastructure failure while engaging students and the public in earth science, spatial thinking, and hazard awareness.

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