RECONSTRUCTING THE TETON DAM FAILURE: A VIRTUAL FIELD TRIP THROUGH DATA AND DISCOVERY

In anticipation of the 50th anniversary of the Teton Dam failure in southeastern Idaho on June 5, 2026, a multidisciplinary team of undergraduate students, faculty, and collaborators is developing a preliminary Virtual Field Trip to enhance geoscience education and public engagement. This project leverages data from both modern and historical sources, including drone imagery, soil analyses, geospatial analyses, geotechnical reports, and peer-reviewed literature to create an interactive GIS-based StoryMap. The scientific analysis focuses on the technical causes of the dam failure, incorporating modern flood models, soil tests, and updated GIS analyses of archived data to examine the disaster's mechanisms and environmental impacts on the surrounding communities. The project integrates both historical and modern data to provide a comprehensive understanding of the event, while also including spatial analyses of first-hand accounts from individuals who experienced the flood and dam failure. The project is being developed in collaboration with the Museum of Rexburg and faculty from Brigham Young University–Idaho's Geology and Environmental Science, Civil Engineering, and History departments by synthesizing both the technical data with historical narratives. By combining these perspectives, the Virtual Field Trip will foster an immersive and multidimensional understanding of the Teton Dam failure that will serve both the general public, educational, and scientific communities.