Article
Environmental Sciences
Sebastian Cedillo, Esteban Sanchez-Cordero, Luis Timbe, Esteban Samaniego, Andres Alvarado
Summary: The study compared different equations for predicting river flow velocity and found that nondimensional hydraulic geometry equations provided the most accurate predictions. A methodology for defining parameters using easily measured field data was proposed, leading to improved predictability. The authors encourage further application of the methodology to enhance understanding of parameters related to reach characteristics.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Martin Janiga, Marian Janiga, Martina Haas
Summary: Flash floods pose a serious threat to wildlife, water biota, and human life in pre-alpine regions, impacting the concentration of chemical elements in fish skulls and water quality. The study sheds light on the long-term effects of floods on fish populations and bioindicators in mountain streams.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Costanza Di Stefano, Vincenzo Palmeri, Vincenzo Pampalone, Vito Ferro
Summary: This study validated the flow resistance equation previously used for mobile bed rills by measuring fixed bed rills, and determined the scale factor for flume and stream conditions. The Darcy-Weisbach friction factor values in flumes and streams were found to be higher on average compared to those in rills.
FLOW MEASUREMENT AND INSTRUMENTATION
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marwan A. Hassan, Matteo Saletti, Conor McDowell, Wenqi Li
Summary: Based on an extensive 18-year data set from East Creek in British Columbia, field observations indicate that the step-pool morphology remains stable under a wide range of flows. Most events show no significant changes in sediment storage, and the mobility of sediment particles is controlled by sediment supply rather than flow magnitude.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Matthias Jakob, Sarah Davidson, Gemma Bullard, Matthias Busslinger, Beatrice Collier-Pandya, Patrick Grover, Carie-Ann Lau
Summary: This paper discusses the occurrence and categorization of debris floods in steep mountain channels and small gravel bed rivers. Debris floods are classified into three categories based on their triggers, and their hazards involve inundation, scour, sediment transport, and bank erosion. The study introduces an approach for hazard quantification and mapping, aiming to homogenize debris-flood hazard assessments and mapping methodologies.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Sruthi Thazhathe Kalathil, Venu Chandra
Summary: The study found significant differences in velocity and turbulent intensities among different morphological units in step-pools. A regression equation was proposed to relate the normalized turbulent kinetic energy with velocity magnitude, and the study estimated the range of Reynolds shear stress and energy dissipation factor in the step-pool systems. The results showed insufficient pool volume for adequate energy dissipation in the three step-pool systems tested.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Geography, Physical
V. Pampalone, C. Di Stefano, A. Nicosia, V. Palmeri, V. Ferro
Summary: The study analyzed the morphology of step-pool features in streams and rills, comparing the relationships between step height and length, gradient, flow resistance, and formation processes. Results showed similar relationships between streams and rills, but inconsistencies in pool formation and profiles. Step-pool units in rills significantly increased flow resistance compared to flat bed segments. The Froude number over step-pool units in rills was slightly below the range corresponding to maximum flow resistance.
EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Eun-A Hwang, Ha-Kyung Kim, In-Hwan Cho, Chen Yi, Baik-Ho Kim
Summary: In this study, epilithic diatoms were collected from central South Korea and classified using both morphological and molecular analysis. The results showed clear differences among the species in terms of morphology and molecular markers. Ultrastructure analysis further revealed the unique characteristics of these diatoms.
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Rei Itsukushima
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between step-pool structures and stream bed morphology in the headstream areas of rhyolitic mountains through field observations. The results confirmed the transition of stream bed morphology associated with different bed slopes, with a dominant change from falls to cascades to steps from upstream to downstream. Furthermore, it was found that the formation processes of steps (hydraulic control and keystone types) had different relationships with jamming state, which can be caused by the supply process of boulders or external forces.
Article
Engineering, Civil
Mushfiqur Rahman Khan, Jonathan J. Gourley, Jorge A. Duarte, Humberto Vergara, Daniel Wasielewski, Pierre-Alain Ayral, John W. Fulton
Summary: Accounting for freshwater resources and monitoring floods are crucial tasks for societies globally. Remote-sensing methods using radar units show great potential for expanding stream monitoring in developing countries and smaller streams. This study evaluated the use of radar units to estimate discharge at various sites in the US, highlighting error characteristics and adjustments needed for accurate estimates. Results show that noncontact radar measurements can provide cost-effective solutions for monitoring ungauged streams and for early detection of flash floods.
JOURNAL OF HYDROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Helen V. Ford, Jamison M. Gove, Andrew J. Davies, Nicholas A. J. Graham, John R. Healey, Eric J. Conklin, Gareth J. Williams
Summary: This study, based on benthic community data collected around five uninhabited central Pacific oceanic islands, reveals the autocorrelated nature of coral reef seascapes, with differences in patterns across geographies but similarities between islands in closer proximity and of similar size. Physical environmental drivers, particularly surface wave energy, play a key role in governing the spatial scaling properties of benthic competitors on coral reefs.
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Devon Kerins, Li Li
Summary: Warming in mountains leads to higher concentrations of dissolved carbon in streams, especially in arid mountain areas. This indicates deteriorating water quality and changes in soil carbon dynamics, which have significant implications for global water resources and environmental sustainability.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Limnology
Binbin Wang, Clifford E. Kraft
Summary: The study found that thiamine is a limiting nutrient for primary producers in stream ecosystems and has a significant impact on the growth of stream periphyton, with effects similar to nitrogen. This extends the previous understanding of thiamine's influence on marine photosynthetic eukaryotes to freshwater ecosystems.
LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Zuzana Stefunkova, Viliam Macura, Andrej Skrinar, Peter Ivan, Milan Cisty, Martina Majorosova, Viktoria Tyukosova
Summary: This study evaluated the relationship between abiotic flow characteristics and habitat quality by assessing 59 reference reaches of mountain and piedmont streams in Slovakia. The analysis showed a strong correlation between stream depth and width with habitat quality, with increasing surface area leading to a significantly higher AWS value in mountain streams. These results can be used to derive regression equations for simplifying habitat quality evaluation in aquatic ecosystems.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ellen Wohl, Emily P. Iskin
Summary: We used 11 years of annual surveys to examine the persistence and geomorphic effects of logjams in streams of the Southern Rockies of Colorado, USA. We found that site persistence and logjam persistence differ significantly between different types of river reaches, while backwater storage is significantly greater in multithread reaches. Riparian forest age and average logjams per channel length were found to explain variation in jam and site persistence and backwater storage.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Water Resources
Marius G. Floriancic, Daniel Spies, Ilja H. J. van Meerveld, Peter Molnar
Summary: This study assesses the impact of catchment characteristics on the spatial variability of low-flow metrics, finding positive correlations between specific geological and topographic features and low-flow magnitudes. The random forest model accurately predicts low-flow metrics, but local catchment characteristics may affect their variability.
HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES
(2022)
Article
Agronomy
Daniela Anghileri, Veronica Bozzini, Peter Molnar, Andrew A. J. Jamali, Justin Sheffield
Summary: In this study, we assess the best proxy indicators for rainfed maize yield in Malawi using remote sensing datasets. We find that precipitation, particularly the standardized March precipitation anomaly, has the highest correlations with maize yield. Soil moisture and NDVI do not add much value to precipitation in anticipating maize yield. We also identify key considerations for determining weather index-based insurances (WIIs) indexes.
AGRICULTURAL WATER MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Jacob Hirschberg, Brian W. McArdell, Georgina L. Bennett, Peter Molnar
Summary: This study investigates the effects of climate and sediment supply on geomorphic systems, and finds that sediment yields estimated from short records are highly uncertain, especially in supply-limited systems. Therefore, determining the geomorphic system response requires sediment supply detection and uncertainty analysis.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Water Resources
Jorge Sebastian Moraga, Nadav Peleg, Peter Molnar, Simone Fatichi, Paolo Burlando
Summary: Assessing the impacts of climate change on hydrological processes is challenging due to the uncertainty in future climate projections. This uncertainty comes from both intrinsic randomness of climate phenomena and the use of numerical models in predicting hydrological responses. Despite improvements in models, high levels of uncertainty persist, especially at small temporal and spatial scales. By quantifying uncertainty in hydrological projections, this study found that annual streamflow projections are largely influenced by natural variability of precipitation, with small signal-to-noise ratios (<1) in most sub-catchments.
HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Junhan Du, Gordon G. D. Zhou, Hui Tang, Jens M. M. Turowski, Kahlil F. E. Cui
Summary: Extreme rainfall events in mountainous environments can pose significant threats due to sediment runoff, such as debris flows and stream flows. However, there is still incomplete understanding of the sediment transport mechanisms controlling these processes. This study uses field data to investigate the characteristics of sediment-laden flows in different channels, and proposes a universal criterion for classifying different flows based on measurable parameters, improving upon existing methods that rely solely on sediment concentration.
WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Shuai Li, Hui Tang, Chong Peng, Jens M. Turowski, Anne Schoepa, Huicong An, Xiaoqing Chen, Chaojun Ouyang, Jiangang Chen
Summary: Numerical prediction is crucial for estimating landslide risk and developing mitigation plans. In this study, two constitutive models were evaluated using a three-dimensional smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method to simulate a catastrophic landslide event. The results show that both soil mechanic and fluid models are able to capture the dynamic runout and deposition morphology by adjusting input parameters. Point-wise comparison of deposit elevation reduces calibration error. The 3D SPH method demonstrates great potential for modeling large-scale complex landslides.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Heidi E. J. Smith, Angel D. D. Monsalve, Jens M. M. Turowski, Dieter Rickenmann, Elowyn M. M. Yager
Summary: Steep, boulder bed streams often have sediment patches with distinct grain size distributions. The critical Shields stress for a given grain size is influenced by the underlying grain size distribution, which can be predicted using hiding functions. However, the effect of local grain size distribution on sediment mobility between sediment patches is poorly understood. In this study, we examined the effects of patch-scale grain size distribution on sediment mobility in a steep stream and found that patches can modulate relative sediment mobility through both the underlying grain size distribution and local shear stresses.
EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
F. McNab, T. F. Schildgen, J. M. Turowski, A. D. Wickert
Summary: Alluvial rivers adjust their sediment-transport rates and form landforms such as river terraces in response to changing sediment and water supply. Using a model, we found that the likelihood of terrace formation is greater upstream and in shorter and/or wetter catchments. The evolution of sediment-transport rates depends on whether water or sediment supply is varied, leading to diverse responses to environmental change in alluvial valleys.
GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Yan Yan, Hui Tang, Kaiheng Hu, Jens M. Turowski, Fangqiang Wei
Summary: The impact forces exerted by debris flows are quantified in this study using real-time measurements and field observations of debris flows recorded in Jiangjia Ravine, China. The variability of particle impact forces increases with the mean impact force. Solid-dominated surges and fluid-dominated intersurge flows have similar impact-force distributions, but surges usually have heavy tails. A simple particle impact model is developed to understand the relationship between flow dynamics and the impact force inside debris flows.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-EARTH SURFACE
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Sophie Lagarde, Michael Dietze, Conny Hammer, Martin Zeckra, Anne Voigtlaender, Luc Illien, Anne Schoepa, Jacob Hirschberg, Arnaud Burtin, Niels Hovius, Jens M. Turowski
Summary: Prediction of gravitational mass wasting requires understanding the factors controlling failure, such as cracks in weakened rock. By using a hidden Markov machine learning model applied to seismic data, the temporal evolution of cracks before a major rockslide event in the Swiss Alps was revealed. A simple mechanistic model showed that total crack boundary length is the key factor controlling failure plane evolution before mass movement. These findings suggest that cracks should be treated as 2-D objects and offer a novel approach for early warning of slope failures.
COMMUNICATIONS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Gilles Antoniazza, Michael Dietze, Davide Mancini, Jens M. Turowski, Dieter Rickenmann, Tobias Nicollier, Stefan Boss, Stuart N. Lane
Summary: Seismic sensors and appropriate physical models can provide time-varying estimates of bedload transport at watershed scale, contributing to a better understanding of the dynamics of coarse material in Alpine rivers during high-magnitude events. This study deployed a network of 24 seismic sensors to estimate coarse material fluxes in a 13.4 km(2) Alpine watershed, revealing inefficiencies in evacuating coarse material and the need for multiple competent flows to fully evacuate the mobilized material.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-EARTH SURFACE
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Ci-Jian Yang, Pei-Hao Chen, Erica D. Erlanger, Jens M. Turowski, Sen Xu, Tse-Yang Teng, Jiun-Chuan Lin, Jr-Chuang Huang
Summary: Chemical weathering driven by physical erosion is a natural process that affects the Earth's surface in terms of chemical and solid matter budgets. The influence of extreme climatic erosion on chemical weathering dynamics is not well understood. Badland landscapes formed in highly erodible substrates have the ability to respond to individual events that can be directly observed. This study assesses the geochemical and grain-size composition of suspended sediment and riverine chemistry during typhoons in Taiwan, finding that evaporite weathering at peak rainfall is followed by silicate weathering at maximum discharge.
EARTH SURFACE DYNAMICS
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Jens M. Turowski, Gunnar Pruss, Markus Reich
Summary: The impacts of moving bedload particles on hydraulic structures or natural bedrock in rivers can cause substantial erosion. This technical note describes an experimental setup and protocol to measure the relative erodibility of natural rocks under fluvial impact erosion.
JOURNAL OF HYDRAULIC ENGINEERING
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Stefanie Tofelde, Aaron Bufe, Jens M. Turowski
Summary: River-valley morphology provides valuable information on the tectonic and climatic conditions that shape landscapes. However, current models fail to fully explain the range of cross-sectional valley shapes, suggesting unquantified controls on valley width. This study shows that the total cumulative terrace height explains a significant proportion of the variance in valley width, indicating that valley height is an additional control on valley width. This finding helps improve existing models and facilitates the reconstruction of past climatic and tectonic conditions from valley topography.
Article
Water Resources
Marius G. Floriancic, Daniel Spies, Ilja H. J. van Meerveld, Peter Molnar
Summary: This study evaluated the key catchment characteristics influencing low-flow metrics at different scales and proposed a method for predicting low-flow metrics. The findings suggest that considering local catchment characteristics can improve regional low-flow predictions.
HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
A. Securo, C. Del Gobbo, L. Rettig, S. Pillon, A. De Luca, D. Fontana, E. Benedetti Fasil, R. R. Colucci
Summary: Small glaciers in temperate mountain regions have experienced significant reduction and unprecedented melt rates in recent years. Some glaciers have transitioned from clean ice to debris-covered or even rock glaciers. This study examines the surface elevation change of the Popera Alto glacier in the Sesto Dolomites using LiDAR and Structure from Motion surveys, and analyzes its evolution in terms of surface cover and geomorphic processes. The glacier has lost an average of 0.35 m water equivalent per year over the past 16 years, with active modification of its surface cover by geomorphic processes. The role of debris and local topography feedback has allowed the resilience of the glacier, leading to a marked difference between the current environmental equilibrium line altitude (envELA) and the effective ELA (effELA) of the glacier.
Article
Geography, Physical
Zhenzhen Yan, Yaolin Shi, Lili Kang, Xiangtao Fan
Summary: This study proposes a quantitative regional deformation model based on global positioning system (GPS) data to quantitatively analyze the morphological evolution of rivers in the Three Rivers Region. It finds that tectonic deformation phases significantly control regional landscape development and drainage features.
Article
Geography, Physical
Said Mukhtar Ahmad, Nitheshnirmal Sadhasivam, Mona Lisa, Luigi Lombardo, Mustafa Kemal Emil, Amira Zaki, Cees J. Van Westen, Islam Fadel, Hakan Tanyas
Summary: In this study, we investigated a large slow-moving landslide in Northern Pakistan, using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) analysis. Our results showed that the crown of the landslide is moving faster than the surrounding regions, while the footslope experienced high deformations. We discussed the possible roles of meteorologic and anthropogenic factors in causing these deformations.
Article
Geography, Physical
Shuang Bian, Xibin Tan, Yiduo Liu, Suoya Fan, Junfeng Gong, Chao Zhou, Feng Shi, Michael A. Murphy
Summary: The Yarlung River's drainage divide is primarily moving north due to variations in precipitation across the Himalayas. The Gangdese drainage divide shows predominantly northward and southward migration, controlled by base-level rise and downstream influences. The presence of north-trending rifts separates the drainage divides into five zones, each with a distinct migration pattern.
Article
Geography, Physical
Joon-Young Park, Seok Yoon, Deuk-Hwan Lee, Seung-Rae Lee, Hwan-Hui Lim
Summary: This study developed a multiple-regression model to estimate site-specific average growth rates of debris flow events. The proposed model was validated through a case study and showed reasonable predictions of debris flow velocities and heights.
Article
Geography, Physical
Nicholas Reilly Mccarroll, Arnaud Temme
Summary: New geochronological data from hillslope boulder armor in the Flint Hills reveal the rates and timing of lateral retreat in the landscape. Surfaces of limestone boulders dating back to the Pleistocene era were found, and the ages of the hillslope armor increased with distance from the limestone bench. The estimated rate of lateral retreat in this landscape is 0.02 mm/yr.
Article
Geography, Physical
Xinbo Yao, Yuntao Tian
Summary: By studying the Longmenshan-Minshan drainage divide, we found that it has reached a dynamic steady state, indicating a balance between erosion and rock uplift. This study also reveals the process of formation and evolution of the divide and raises questions about the effectiveness of divide migration metrics.
Article
Geography, Physical
Junhui Yu, Pin Yan, Yanlin Wang, Guangjian Zhong, Changliang Chen
Summary: The seafloor mounds in the Chaoshan Depression of the South China Sea are identified as mud volcanoes, with fluids coming from underlying mud-fluid diapirs. The hydrocarbon gases feeding the mud volcanoes and diapirs are reasoned to originate from deep Mesozoic source rocks, indicating significant Mesozoic hydrocarbon potential in the Chaoshan Depression.
Article
Geography, Physical
Marius Huber, Luc Scholtes, Jerome Lave
Summary: This paper investigates the relationships between hillslope stability and fabric anisotropy of brittle rock materials and the implications for landscape shaping. It explores the different stability modes and movement characteristics of anisotropic materials, and demonstrates the significant control of material anisotropy on landscape shaping.
Article
Geography, Physical
Shubhra Sharma, Anil D. Shukla
Summary: The study investigates the relationship between glacial dynamics and lake sedimentation during the mid-Holocene climate variability in the Southern Zanskar ranges. It utilizes geomorphological disposition, elemental geochemistry, and optical chronology of relict lake sediment to reconstruct the pattern of minor glacier responses to climate variability. The results indicate six centennial to millennial-scale climatic phases, with warmer phases represented by decreased mineralogical fine grain flux and increased coarse grain flux. The study highlights the potential of relict lake sediment and para/peri-glacial landforms in understanding glacial dynamics and climate change during the Holocene.
Article
Geography, Physical
Jean-Francois Bernier, Sydney W. Meury, Patrick Lajeunesse
Summary: In this study, an approach combining various data and observation methods was proposed to improve the monitoring of landfast ice dynamics and its geomorphic impact on sedimentary systems. The results demonstrate the ability of the approach to accurately measure interannual variations in landfast ice and constrain geomorphic changes. Additionally, the study found a strong relationship between the severity of freezing seasons and the response of landfast ice to hydrometeorological events, with different geomorphic responses observed under different winter conditions.
Article
Geography, Physical
Heping Shu, Fanyu Zhang
Summary: This study investigates the relationship between susceptibility of soil-water hazards and human activities, geoheritage sites in the Loess Plateau, China. Landslide and gully erosion susceptibility were obtained using gradient boosting and support vector machines, and a hazard matrix was formed to couple landslide and gully erosion susceptibility. The study found different trends in the magnification times of soil-water hazards chain under different scenarios.
Article
Geography, Physical
Guangqiang Qian, Zhuanling Yang, Xuegang Xing, Zhibao Dong, Youyuan Guo
Summary: Granule ripples are aeolian landforms armored against erosion by coarse grains. This study investigates their seasonal morphological evolution and migration in the Sanlongsha Dune Field. The findings show that wind events, especially those exceeding the threshold velocities of coarse grains, significantly influence the morphodynamics of granule ripples. The study highlights the importance of considering the reptation and saltation of coarse grains in future research on granule ripples.