## 3 Methods and Data
### Data  
Various controlling factors influence the spatial distribution of landslides. Based on previous studies [7; 9; 10], this study selected six influential factors for analyzing the relationship between different factors and landslides. In this study, ALOS PALSAR DEM  
Figure 2: Map showing the satellite images of typical landslide disasters in the Zhaotong area provided by Google Earth: (**a**) The geographical location is 27.50\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.98\({}^{\circ}\) E. (**b**) The geographical location is 27.28\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.22\({}^{\circ}\) E. (**c**) The geographical location is 27.22\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.25\({}^{\circ}\) E. (**d**) The geographical location is 28.52\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.12\({}^{\circ}\) E. (**e**) The geographical location is 27.05\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.35\({}^{\circ}\) E. (**f**) The geographical location is 28.45\({}^{\circ}\) N, 103.97\({}^{\circ}\) E.  
with a 12.5m resolution was selected as the elevation data ([[https://vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu/vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu](https://vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu/vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu)]([https://vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu/vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu](https://vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu/vertex.daac.asf.alaska.edu)), accessed on 7 September 2023). Based on the ArcGIS platform, topographic index information was extracted from these DEM data, including slope angle and slope orientation information, which were obtained by ArcGIS software (Figure 3b,d). Information about the river systems was also derived from these DEM data (Figure 3d). Geological unit information was sourced from a 1:200,000 scale geological map published by the China Geological Survey (Figure 1). Rainfall information was sourced from the Loess Plateau Scientific Data Center ([[http://loess.geodata.cn/](http://loess.geodata.cn/)]([http://loess.geodata.cn/](http://loess.geodata.cn/)), accessed on 11 October 2023) and generated using the Delta spatial downscaling scheme with the global 0.5\({}^{\circ}\) climate data released by the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) and the global high-resolution climate data released by Worldclim. By spatially overlaying the average values of each pixel in multiple monthly average precipitation grid images from 2018 to 2022, scale-up was achieved to obtain the 5-year average precipitation data (Figure 3e). Figure 3: Maps show the distribution of the influencing factors in the study area. (**a**) Elevation; (**b**) slope angle; (**c**) distance to rivers; (**d**) slope orientation; (**e**) rainfall. Based on the 12.5 m resolution ALOS DEM data, the elevation of the study area was categorized into 14 classes at 200 m intervals: <460 m; 460\(-\)660 m; 660\(-\)860 m; 860\(-\)1060 m; 1060\(-\)1260 m; 1260\(-\)1460 m; 1460\(-\)1660 m; 1660\(-\)1860 m; 1860\(-\)2060 m; 2060\(-\)2260 m; 2260\(-\)2460 m; 2460\(-\)2660 m; 2660\(-\)2860 m; and >2860 m. The slope of the study area ranged from 0\({}^{\circ}\) to 83\({}^{\circ}\), and was categorized into six classes at 10\({}^{\circ}\) intervals: <10\({}^{\circ}\); 10\(-\)20\({}^{\circ}\); 20\(-\)30\({}^{\circ}\); 30\(-\)40\({}^{\circ}\); 40\(-\)50\({}^{\circ}\); and >50\({}^{\circ}\). The slope orientation of the study area was categorized into nine classes: East 67.5\(-\)112.5\({}^{\circ}\); South 157.5\(-\)202.5\({}^{\circ}\); West 247.5\(-\)292.5\({}^{\circ}\); North 337.5\(-\)22.5\({}^{\circ}\); Northeast 22.5\(-\)67.5\({}^{\circ}\); Southeast 112.5\(-\)157.5\({}^{\circ}\); Southwest 202.5\(-\)247.5\({}^{\circ}\); Northwest 292.5\(-\)337.5\({}^{\circ}\); and flat (\(-\)1\({}^{\circ}\)). The geological unit of the study area was classified into six types based on the geological era: Quaternary (dominated by sand, mud, clay, and clastic rocks); Neogene (primarily mudstone and clay); Mesozoic (mainly Triassic mudstone and clay); Upper Paleozoic (dominated by Perminant basalt); Lower Paleozoic (primarily Ordovician shale); and Pre-Cambrian (dominated by sandstone and clay).