Minimum froude number and the equilibrium of alluvial sand rivers

Rivers adjust towards an equilibrium condition, the stability of which depends upon a set of controlling factors expressed by the Froude number. As alluvial river channels approach stable conditions, the Froude number of the channel flow will tend to attain a minimum value which reflects minimum bed material motion and maximum channel stability, under the constraints imposed by water discharge, sediment load, and particle size. Computer simulations for sand bed rivers show that the Froude number of the flow tends to a minimum value when the equilibrium river tends to a certain hydraulic geometry. Evidence from 57 alluvial sand material rivers and stable canals shows that this simulated hydraulic geometry with minimum Froude number corresponds to the natural equilibrium state.     

Analysis of the effect of short dikes on flow hydraulics and sedimentation in Karun River within urban boundaries of Ahwaz

Identification, analysis and prediction of the erosion and sedimentation or the increase and decrease in river bed level are among the most complex and yet up-to-date topics of deposit hydraulics and river engineering. If cross structures in rivers and canals are also to be considered the complexity of flow pattern and deposit transfer increases. In this research using the one-dimensional mathematical model HEC-RAS 4.1 the effect of short dikes on flow hydraulic and the trend of sedimentation and erosion in the Karun River were simulated and analyzed within the boundaries of Ahwaz City. The area introduced into the model started from the Ghir dike to Khoramshahr. Moreover, the Mollathani, Farsiat and Ahwaz hydrometric stations were used as the upper limit, lower limit and calibration limit of the model, respectively. The flow was assumed to be quasi-unsteady and based on the existing knowledge of different methods and experiences with the methods in other studies the Toffaleti method was used to solve the deposit equations. The model was prepared and applied in the following four states: without dike and with dikes 0.7, 1.2 and 1.7 m above the average level in the desired areas. Finally, results of the model applied with and without short dikes revealed that the short dikes and dikes 1.2 m above the average floor level of modeled areas were significantly ineffective under hydraulic conditions and morphological changes. Moreover, the majority of changes in the river bed and all the morphological changes, in general, were the result of other factors. Dikes with heights of 1.7 m above the average floor level significantly caused sedimentation in the upstream and affected the hydraulics of flow.     

Accuracy,reproducibility and sensitivity of acoustic Doppler technology for velocity and discharge measurements in medium-sized rivers

Abstract

With increased interest and requirements in surface water quality and hydrodynamics, additional information is needed about water flow in streams. The mobile OTT Qliner with acoustic Doppler technology (ADQ) provides a highly efficient and accurate way of collecting this information. For this study we completed 366 measurements of flow velocity, water depth and discharge with ADQ from September 2010 to June 2011 at 174 cross-sections in eight catchments of different sizes located in northern Germany, central Germany and southeastern China. The measurements were used to study the accuracy, reproducibility and sensitivity of the device, and to improve the hydrodynamic sampling for medium-sized rivers and channels by investigating its internal settings. The observations reported clearly show that the results of flow average, profile, layer and point values obtained with the ADQ compare very well with those of electromagnetic or ultrasonic devices. In general, the average flow velocity gives the highest agreement. Vertical velocity has a better quality than the layer velocity, which indicates a greater precision in the horizontal than in the perpendicular direction. Point velocity, the composite of vertical velocity and layer velocity, has intermediate precision. Tests on internal settings revealed that measurement is more sensitive to cell size than to time interval setting. A cell size to depth ratio of between 0.1 and 0.2 m produced the highest reliability. A measurement period of 30 s is needed for velocities faster than 0.3 m/s; for shallow and slow-flowing rivers, an interval of 50 s or even greater is recommended. The closer the measured points were to the river bank or bed, the greater the measurement error. The river bed can also influence the measurement more distinctly than the river bank.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor A. Montanari

Citation Song, S., Schmalz, B., Hörmann, G., and Fohrer, N., 2012. Accuracy, reproducibility and sensitivity of acoustic Doppler technology for velocity and discharge measurements in medium-sized rivers. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 57 (8), 1626–1641.     

Response of river channel patterns to the spatially varying suspended sediment concentrations

River channel pattern transformation is dealt with in a broad background of suspended sediment concentration, varying from low, medium, high to hyperconcentration. Based on data from about 100 alluvial rivers in China, suspended sediment transport rate has been plotted against mean annual water discharge, showing that all points can be divided into four belts by three straight lines, as stable braided pattern, meandering pattern with ordinary sediment concentrations, wandering braided pattern, and meandering pattern with hyperconcentration of sediment. This picture of channel pattern transformation can be well explained by the law of the water flow's energy expenditure varying with its sediment concentration. The energy expenditure increases with sediment concentration, reaching a maximum, then declines. Rivers falling in different ranges of sediment concentrations adjust their own energy expenditure in different manners, leading to occurrence of different channel patterns. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 49671011).     

Distribution functions of spring discharges according to their lithologies and the influence of lower limit to flow: an example from Spain

Specific functions of distribution of the number of springs and of their contributions according to flow for each of nine lithological groups are established. These functions confirm the suitability of a general type of distribution (Sanz 1996), which is a borderline case of the lognormal distribution. The statistical methods proposed for the lithological types presented can be applied to any region if data on flow and lithology of the aquifers drained by springs are available. These methods have been applied to Spain, a representative region with varied geology, climate and topography; 71.2% of spring flow is supplied by limestones, 19.17% by alluvial sediments and marls, 6.7% by conglomerates and sandstones, and 3% by slates, plutonic rocks, quartzites, and other groups. Springs with discharge rates exceeding 2000 L/s exist only in limestones. The majority of springs with low flow occur in marls. If we consider springs with flow greater than 0.5 L/s, alluvial sediments, sandstones, marls, and limestones have the greatest density of springs per surface area, although the average flow varies greatly from one lithology to the next. The cumulative estimated discharge and the estimated number of springs depend upon the definition of the lower limit of flow. For example, total discharge is reduced by 30% if we eliminate all springs with flow lower than 0.5 L/min.     

Geometry of alluvial fans: Effect of discharge and sediment size

The slope of an alluvial fan increases with increasing debris size and sediment concentration in the flow, and decreases with increasing discharge. Laboratory studies suggest that the discharge which controls this slope, or dominant discharge, is that which is equalled or exceeded one quarter to one third of the time that flow occurs on the fan. In contrast, the dominant discharge in perennial alluvial rivers is equalled or exceeded only about 5 per cent of the time that flow occurs in the river. The dominant discharge on fans increases with increasing debris size, reflecting the importance of threshold stress. The slope of some natural and most laboratory alluvial fans is steepest on the flanks and gentlest along the axis. Consideration of the momentum of water debouching onto a fan at its apex suggests that the difference in slope between axis and flank should be greatest on steep fans composed of relatively non-cohesive materials because on such fans higher discharges tend to flow down the axis, whereas lower discharges can be turned to course down the flanks. On fans with gentle slopes or composed of more cohesive material the higher discharges can also be turned toward the flanks, so on such fans the difference in slope between the axis and flank is less pronounced. Field and laboratory observations support this interpretation. Because deposition at any one time on an alluvial fan is localized, some areas aggrade while others remain at a fixed elevation. This process is treated as a Markov process with the probability of diversion from an area of active deposition into an adjacent lower area increasing as the height of the active area above the mean or ‘ideal’ surface increases. Analysis of data from laboratory and natural fans suggests that the amplitude of such surface irregularities is greater on fans composed of coarser material. The data on natural fans also suggest an increase in amplitude of the irregularities with increasing fan area.     

Suspended sediment in the Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers in Bangladesh: observation from TM and AVHRR data

Remote sensing was used to understand the seasonal and spatial variation of suspended sediment in the Ganges and Brahmaputra Rivers in Bangladesh for two different discharge periods. Suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in these rivers was estimated from the reflectance of Landsat TM band 3. During the high discharge period, SSC in the Ganges is higher than that in the Brahmaputra. But in the low discharge period, this is reversed. Both erosional and depositional processes are active on their flood plains. Significant fluctuations in SSC and in suspended sediment load were observed along their courses because of river bank erosion and deposition and/or scouring and aggradation of river beds. Owing to scouring and turbulence, SSC increases markedly at the confluence of these rivers. Reflectance of AVHRR band 1 data was also analysed to study the distribution of suspended sediment along other reaches of these rivers. Like SSC, reflectance at the confluence zone increases compared with that in the Brahmaputra. However, this increase is not marked compared with the Ganges. The influence of their tributaries on the suspended sediment load could be inferred from the pattern of reflectance. Remote sensing data used in this study was corrected for atmospheric effects. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Inbank and overbank velocity conditions in an arid zone anastomosing river

Relative to those at sub‐bankfull flow, hydraulic conditions at overbank flow, whether in the channel or on the floodplain, are poorly understood. Here, velocity conditions are analysed over an unusually wide range of flows in the arid zone river of Cooper Creek with its complex system of anastomosing channels and large fluctuations in floodplain width. At‐a‐station hydraulic geometry relationships reveal sharp discontinuities in velocity at the inbank–overbank transition, the nature of the discontinuity varying with the degree of flow confinement and the level of channel–floodplain interaction. However, despite inter‐sectional differences, velocities remain modest throughout the flow range in this low‐gradient river, and the large increases in at‐a‐station discharge are principally accommodated by changes in cross‐sectional area. Velocity distribution plots suggest that within‐channel conditions during overbank flow are characterized by a central band of high velocity which penetrates far toward the bed, helping to maintain already deep cross‐sections. Floodplain resistance along Cooper Creek is concentrated at channel bank tops where vegetation density is highest, and the subsequent flow retardation is transmitted across the surface of the channels over distances as large as 50–70 m. The rough floodplain surface affects flood wave transmission, producing significant decreases in wave speeds downstream. The character of the wave‐speed–discharge relationship also changes longitudinally, from log–linear in the upper reaches to nonlinear where the floodplain broadens appreciably. The nonlinear form is similar in several respects to relationships proposed for more humid rivers, with flood wave speed reaching an intermediate maximum at about four‐fifths bankfull discharge before decreasing to a minimum at approximately Q_2·33. It does not regain the value at the intermediate maximum until the 10 year flood, by which time floodplain depths have become relatively large and broad floodways more active. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The problem of underpowered rivers

This study has hypothesized that for many rivers the trade-off between flow accumulation and the decrease in slope along channel length means that stream power increases downstream and, moreover, that given the low slope angles in headwater and low-order streams, they would have insufficient stream power to erode let alone transport sediment. The study considered the stream power profile, the particle travel distances and the application of the Hjulström curve based on the velocity profile of nine, large UK catchments. The study showed that:

1. Some rivers never showed a maximum in their longitudinal stream power profile, implying that some rivers never develop a deposition zone before they discharge at the tidal limit.
2. Particle travel distances during a bankfull discharge event showed that for some rivers 91% of the upper main channel would not be cleared of sediment. Furthermore, while some rivers could transport a 2 mm particle their entire length in one bankfull event, for another river it would take 89 such events.
3. The Hjulström curve shows that for three of the study rivers the upper 20 km of the river was not capable of eroding a 2 μm particle.
4. The study has shown that for all rivers studied, erosion is focused downstream and deposition upstream. Many UK rivers have a dead zone where, on time scales of the order of centuries, no erosion or transport occurs and erosion only occurs in the lower courses of the channel where discharge rather than slope dominates – we propose these as underpowered rivers.

© 2020 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd     

Ground-water surface-water interactions and long-term change in riverine riparian vegetation in the southwestern United States

Riverine riparian vegetation has changed throughout the southwestern United States, prompting concern about losses of habitat and biodiversity. Woody riparian vegetation grows in a variety of geomorphic settings ranging from bedrock-lined channels to perennial streams crossing deep alluvium and is dependent on interaction between ground-water and surface-water resources. Historically, few reaches in Arizona, southern Utah, or eastern California below 1530 m elevation had closed gallery forests of cottonwood and willow; instead, many alluvial reaches that now support riparian gallery forests once had marshy grasslands and most bedrock canyons were essentially barren. Repeat photography using more than 3000 historical images of rivers indicates that riparian vegetation has increased over much of the region. These increases appear to be related to several factors, notably the reduction in beaver populations by trappers in the 19th century, downcutting of arroyos that drained alluvial aquifers between 1880 and 1910, the frequent recurrence of winter floods during discrete periods of the 20th century, an increased growing season, and stable ground-water levels. Reductions in riparian vegetation result from agricultural clearing, excessive ground-water use, complete flow diversion, and impoundment of reservoirs. Elimination of riparian vegetation occurs either where high ground-water use lowers the water table below the rooting depth of riparian species, where base flow is completely diverted, or both. We illustrate regional changes using case histories of the San Pedro and Santa Cruz Rivers, which are adjacent watersheds in southern Arizona with long histories of water development and different trajectories of change in riparian vegetation.     

Self‐adjustment in rivers: Evidence for least action as the primary control of alluvial‐channel form and process

Least action principle (LAP) in rivers is demonstrated by maximum flow efficiency (MFE) and is the foundation of variational mechanics based on energy and work rather than Newtonian force and momentum. Empirical evidence shows it to be the primary control for the adjustment of alluvial channels. Because most rivers flow with imposed water and sediment loads down valley gradients they have largely inherited, they self‐regulate energy expenditure to match the work they are required to do to remain stable. Overpowered systems develop a variety of channel patterns to expend excess energy and remain stable. Australia offers an opportunity to study low‐energy rivers closely adjusted to very low continental gradients. The anabranching Marshall and single‐thread Plenty Rivers flow down nearly straight channels with average H numbers [ratio between excess bed shear and width/depth (W/D) ratio] close to the optimum of 0.3 for stationary equilibrium. Ridge‐form divisions of the original channel width create anabranches that radically alter W/D ratios relative to bed shear, the same being true for short‐wide islands on the large low‐gradient Yangtze River in China. In contrast, Mount Chambers Creek in Australia's tectonically more active Flinders Ranges is accreting an alluvial fan with unstable distributary channels exhibiting H numbers well below the optimum. LAP also explains profound biases in Earth's stratigraphic record. Because meandering is an energy‐shedding mechanism, sinuous rivers sequester relatively little sediment resulting in all sequences being just a few tens of metres thick. In contrast, low‐energy braided disequilibrium systems can sequester sediment piles over a kilometre in thickness and tens of kilometres wide. LAP provides a new paradigm for river research by identifying the attractor state controlling river channel evolution. It links advances in theoretical physics to fluvial geomorphology, stratigraphy and hydraulic engineering and opens opportunities for diverse investigations in Earth system science. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Estimation of ecological high flow

Floods can destroy fish habitat. During a flood a fish has to seek shelters (refuges) to survive. It is necessary to know the maximum discharge that the fish can sustain against the strong current. Ecological and hydraulic engineers can simulate the flow condition of high flow for designing the refuge when restoring and enhancing the rivers are needed. Based on the average ratio of the mean and maximum velocities invariant with time, discharge and water level, this paper tries to introduce the concept of ecological high flow. The mean‐maximum velocity ratio can be used to estimate the mean velocity of the river. If the maximum velocity of the cross section is replaced by the maximum sustained swimming speeds of fish, the mean velocity of ecological high flow can be calculated with the constant ratio. The cross‐sectional area can be estimated by the gage height. Then the ecological high flow can be estimated as the product of mean velocity of ecological high flow multiplied by the cross‐sectional area. The available data of the upstream of the Dacha River where is the habitat of the Formosan landlocked salmon were used to illustrate the estimation of the ecological high flow. Any restoration project at Sonmou that try to improve the stream habitat can use the ecological high flow to design the hydraulic structure at suitable location to offer refuges for the Formosan landlocked salmon that is an endangered species in Taiwan Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Climate change and hydrology at the prairie margin: Historic and prospective future flows of Canada's Red Deer and other Rocky Mountain rivers

The South Saskatchewan River Basin of southern Alberta drains the transboundary central Rocky Mountains region and provides the focus for irrigation agriculture in Canada. Following extensive development, two tributaries, the Oldman and Bow rivers, were closed for further water allocations, whereas the Red Deer River (RDR) remains open. The RDR basin is at the northern limit of the North American Great Plains and may be suitable for agricultural expansion with a warming climate. To consider irrigation development and ecological impacts, it is important to understand the regional hydrologic consequences of climate change. To analyse historic trends that could extend into the future, we developed century‐long discharge records for the RDR, by coordinating data across hydrometric gauges, estimating annual flows from seasonal records, and undertaking flow naturalization to compensate for river regulation. Analyses indicated some coordination with the Pacific decadal oscillation and slight decline in summer and annual flows from 1912 to 2016 (?0.13%/year, Sen's slope). Another forecasting approach involved regional downscaling from the global circulation models, CGCMI‐A, ECHAM4, HadCM3, and NCAR‐CCM3. These projected slight flow decreases from the mountain headwaters versus increases from the foothills and boreal regions, resulting in a slight increase in overall river flows (+0.1%/year). Prior projections from these and other global circulation models ranged from slight decrease to slight increase, and the average projection of ?0.05%/year approached the empirical trend. Assessments of other rivers draining the central and northern Rocky Mountains revealed a geographic transition in flow patterns over the past century. Flows from the rivers in Southern Alberta declined (around ?0.15%/year), in contrast to increasing flows in north‐eastern British Columbia and the Yukon. The RDR watershed approaches this transition, and this study thus revealed regional differentiation in the hydrological consequences from climate change.     

Sediment yield of the lower Tana River,Kenya, is insensitive to dam construction: sediment mobilization processes in a semi‐arid tropical river system

Dam construction in the 1960s to 1980s significantly modified sediment supply from the Kenyan uplands to the lower Tana River. To assess the effect on suspended sediment fluxes of the Tana River, we monitored the sediment load at high temporal resolution for 1 year and complemented our data with historical information. The relationship between sediment concentration and water discharge was complex: at the onset of the wet season, discharge peaks resulted in high sediment concentrations and counterclockwise hysteresis, while towards the end of the wet season, a sediment exhaustion effect led to low concentrations despite the high discharge. The total sediment flux at Garissa (c. 250 km downstream of the lowermost dam) between June 2012 and June 2013 was 8.8 Mt yr^‐1. Comparison of current with historical fluxes indicated that dam construction had not greatly affected the annual sediment flux. We suggest that autogenic processes, namely river bed dynamics and bank erosion, mobilized large quantities of sediments stored in the alluvial plain downstream of the dams. Observations supporting the importance of autogenic processes included the absence of measurable activities of the fall‐out radionuclides ⁷Be and ¹³⁷Cs in the suspended sediment, the rapid lateral migration of the river course, and the seasonal changes in river cross‐section. Given the large stock of sediment in the alluvial valley of the Tana River, it may take centuries before the effect of damming shows up as a quantitative reduction in the sediment flux at Garissa. Many models relate the sediment load of rivers to catchment characteristics, thereby implicitly assuming that alterations in the catchment induce changes in the sediment load. Our research confirms that the response of an alluvial river to external disturbances such as land use or climate change is often indirect or non‐existent as autogenic processes overwhelm the changes in the input signal. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A comparison of short-wave and long-wave velocities in layered media

Summary Ray theory based on Snell's law is strictly valid only when the variation of physical constants is small within a wavelength. In explosion seismology, Snell's law may apply to the arrival times of the first breaks, but not to those of the seismic reflections. For a stack of homogeneous, isotropic plane layers, the average velocity at its short-wavelength limit is greater than that at the long-wavelength limit for any given angle of incidence. Considering a few example of layered media, calculations are made for both short-wave and long-wave average velocities as a function of the angle of incidence. The former velocity shows a steady increase with the angle of incidence whereas the latter velocity may sometimes pass through a minimum before attaining its maximum value for horizontal propagation.     

Reenvisioning velocity reversal as a diversity of hydraulic patch behaviours

Past research investigated the surpassing of mean velocity at riffle cross sections by that at pool cross sections for flows up to bankfull, termed ‘velocity reversals’, to understand one mechanism by which riffle–pool relief is maintained. This study reenvisioned the classic velocity reversal by documenting stage‐dependent changes to the locations of peak velocity without cross sections. Instead, the dynamics of peak velocity patches were considered for flows spanning 0.2 to 22 times bankfull discharge through the use of a high‐resolution DEM and two‐dimensional hydrodynamic modelling. A remarkable diversity in peak velocity patch behaviour was found across discharges, including gradual expansion and shifting as well as abrupt disappearance and emergence relative to the low‐flow patch locations. These behaviours blended together to varying degrees to produce many reversals in peak velocity across morphological units, but it took substantially higher than bankfull discharge for peak velocities to move from riffles and chutes to fast glides and pools. The discharges at which reversals occurred among morphological units were significantly higher for the valley‐confined reach than for the anastomosing reach. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The multivariate controls of hydraulic geometry: A causal investigation in terms of boundary shear distribution

Most downstream hydraulic geometry exponents have been found to be very close to the classic values reported by Leopold and Maddock (1953). These have been viewed as the simplified cases to general trends because the hydraulic geometry of alluvial channels is actually the product of ‘multivariate controls’ (Richards, 1982). This paper is an attempt to develop a soundly based foundation for the explanation of the physical mechanisms of these controls. A quantitative relationship between channel shape and boundary shear distribution developed from experimental flume results is found to be applicable in some instances to alluvial channels, particularly to stable canals. On the basis of this relationship, it is shown that downstream hydraulic geometry is determined not only by flow discharge, but also by channel slope, channel average roughness and sediment composition of the channel boundary. This is strongly supported by our analysis of 529 observations from both stable canals and natural rivers in the U.S.A. and the U.K. The difference between regime relations in canals and the hydraulic geometry of rivers appears to be caused mainly by channel slope and average roughness, which can be regarded as constants only in stable canals. The close relationship between discharge and channel average roughness observed in canals is not repeated in natural channels, partly because of the variety of flow values used to define the channel-forming discharge. Furthermore, it is indicated that the effects of the sediment composition of the channel boundary on hydraulic geometry are significant and need further investigation.     

Recent variation in reach‐scale bankfull discharge in the Lower Yellow River

Bankfull discharge is a key parameter in the context of river engineering and geomorphology, as an indicator of flood discharge capacity in alluvial rivers, and varying in response to the incoming flow and sediment regimes. Bankfull channel dimensions have significantly adjusted along the Lower Yellow River (LYR) due to recent channel degradation, caused by the operation of the Xiaolangdi Reservoir, which has led to longitudinal variability in cross‐sectional bankfull discharges. Therefore, it is more representative to describe the flood discharge capacity of the LYR, using the concept of reach‐averaged bankfull discharge. Previous simple mean methods to estimate reach‐scale bankfull discharge cannot meet the condition of flow continuity or account for the effect of different spacing between two sections. In this study, a general method to calculate cross‐sectional bankfull discharge using the simulated stage‐discharge relation is outlined briefly, and an integrated method is then proposed for estimating reach‐scale bankfull discharge. The proposed method integrates a geometric mean based on the log‐transformation with a weighted average based on the spacing between two consecutive sections, which avoids the shortcomings of previous methods. The post‐flood reach‐scale bankfull discharges in three different channel‐pattern reaches of the LYR were estimated annually during the period from 1999 to 2010 using the proposed method, based on surveyed post‐flood profiles at 91 sedimentation sections and the measured hydrological data at seven hydrometric sections. The calculated results indicate that: (i) the estimated reach‐scale bankfull discharges can effectively represent the flood discharge capacity of different reaches, with their ranges of variation being less than those of typical cross‐sectional bankfull discharges; and (ii) the magnitude of the reach‐scale bankfull discharge in each reach can respond well to the accumulative effect of incoming flow and sediment conditions. Finally, empirical relationships for different reaches in the LYR were developed between the reach‐scale bankfull discharge and the previous four‐year average discharge and incoming sediment coefficient during flood seasons, with relatively high correlation coefficients between them being obtained, and the reach‐scale bankfull discharges in different reaches predicted by the delayed response model were also presented for a comparison. These relations for the prediction of reach‐scale bankfull discharges were validated using the cross‐sectional profiles and hydrological data measured in 2011. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Simulating the surface waters of the Amazon River basin: impacts of new river geomorphic and flow parameterizations

This paper describes the impacts of new river geomorphic and flow parameterizations on the simulated surface waters dynamics of the Amazon River basin. Three major improvements to a hydrologic model are presented: (1) the river flow velocity equation is expanded to be dependent on river sinuosity and friction in addition to gradient forces; (2) equations defining the morphological characteristics of the river, such as river height, width and bankfull volume, are derived from 31 622 measurements of river morphology and applied within the model; (3) 1 km resolution topographic data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) are used to provide physically based fractional flooding of grid cells from a statistical representation of sub‐grid‐scale floodplain morphology. The discharge and floodplain inundation of the Amazon River is simulated for the period 1968–1998, validated against observations, and compared with results from a previous version of the model. These modifications result in considerable improvement in the simulations of the hydrological features of the Amazon River system. The major impact is that the average wet‐season flooded area on the Amazon mainstem for the period 1983–1988 is now within 5% of satellite‐derived estimates of flooded area, whereas the previous model overestimates the flooded area by about 80%. The improvements are a consequence of the new empirical river geomorphologic functions and the SRTM topography. The new formulation of the flow velocity equation results in increased river velocity on the mainstem and major tributaries and a better correlation between the mean monthly simulated and observed discharge. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Defining and measuring braiding intensity

Geomorphological studies of braided rivers still lack a consistent measurement of the complexity of the braided pattern. Several simple indices have been proposed and two (channel count and total sinuosity) are the most commonly applied. For none of these indices has there been an assessment of the sampling requirements and there has been no systematic study of the equivalence of the indices to each other and their sensitivity to river stage. Resolution of these issues is essential for progress in studies of braided morphology and dynamics at the scale of the channel network. A series of experiments was run using small‐scale physical models of braided rivers in a 3 m ∞ 20 m flume. Sampling criteria for braid indices and their comparability were assessed using constant‐discharge experiments. Sample hydrographs were run to assess the effect of flow variability. Reach lengths of at least 10 times the average wetted width are needed to measure braid indices with precision of the order of 20% of the mean. Inherent variability in channel pattern makes it difficult to achieve greater precision. Channel count indices need a minimum of 10 cross‐sections spaced no further apart than the average wetted width of the river. Several of the braid indices, including total sinuosity, give very similar numerical values but they differ substantially from channel‐count index values. Consequently, functional relationships between channel pattern and, for example, discharge, are sensitive to the choice of braid index. Braid indices are sensitive to river stage and the highest values typically occur below peak flows of a diurnal (melt‐water) hydrograph in pro‐glacial rivers. There is no general relationship with stage that would allow data from rivers at different relative stage to be compared. At present, channel count indices give the best combination of rapid measurement, precision, and range of sources from which measurements can be reliably made. They can also be related directly to bar theory for braided pattern development. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.