The use of multivariate statistics to elucidate patterns of floodplain sedimentation at different spatial scales

Floodplains are depositional features of riverine landscapes that display complex sedimentation patterns that are amenable to multi‐scale approaches. We examined sedimentation in the Lower Balonne floodplain, Queensland, Australia, at three different spatial scales: the channel (10³ km), floodplain process zone (10 km) and geomorphic unit (10² m) scales, and compared scale‐related patterns evident from stratigraphy with those evident from quantitative multivariate analysis. Three stratigraphic sequences were found in the Lower Balonne floodplain: generally fining upward, episodic fining upward, and mud‐dominated. Stratigraphical analysis revealed the detailed character of sedimentary sequences embedded within the scale patterns derived from multivariate analysis. Multivariate statistical analyses of a range of textural and geochemical data revealed different patterns of floodplain sedimentation at each scale. At the channel scale, sediment texture and geochemistry were more heterogeneous in the Culgoa River than in Briarie Creek. At the floodplain process zone scale clear patterns of sediment texture and geochemistry were observed along the upper, mid and lower floodplain process zones of Briarie Creek, but not along the Culgoa River. At the geomorphic unit scale, clear patterns of sediment texture and geochemistry were observed among the bank, buried channel and flat floodplain units of the Culgoa River, but were not as clear in Briarie Creek. Recognition of rivers as hierarchically organized systems is an emerging paradigm in river science. Our study supports this paradigm by demonstrating that different sedimentation patterns occur at different scales to reveal a hierarchically organized floodplain environment. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Extreme flood‐driven fluvial bank erosion and sediment loads: direct process measurements using integrated Mobile Laser Scanning (MLS) and hydro‐acoustic techniques

This methods paper details the first attempt at monitoring bank erosion, flow and suspended sediment at a site during flooding on the Mekong River induced by the passage of tropical cyclones. We deployed integrated mobile laser scanning (MLS) and multibeam echo sounding (MBES), alongside acoustic Doppler current profiling (aDcp), to directly measure changes in river bank and bed at high (~0.05 m) spatial resolution, in conjunction with measurements of flow and suspended sediment dynamics. We outline the methodological steps used to collect and process this complex point cloud data, and detail the procedures used to process and calibrate the aDcp flow and sediment flux data. A comparison with conventional remote sensing methods of estimating bank erosion, using aerial images and Landsat imagery, reveals that traditional techniques are error prone at the high temporal resolutions required to quantify the patterns and volumes of bank erosion induced by the passage of individual flood events. Our analysis reveals the importance of cyclone‐driven flood events in causing high rates of erosion and suspended sediment transport, with a c. twofold increase in bank erosion volumes and a fourfold increase in suspended sediment volumes in the cyclone‐affected wet season. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of projected climate change on the hydrology in the Mono Lake Basin, California

The Californian Mono Lake Basin (MLB) is a fragile ecosystem, for which a 1983 ruling carefully balanced water diversions with ecological needs without the consideration of global climate change. The hydroclimatologic response to the impact of projected climatic changes in the MLB has not been comprehensively assessed and is the focus of this study. Downscaled temperature and precipitation projections from 16 Global Climate Models (GCMs), using two emission scenarios (B1 and A2), were used to drive a calibrated Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrologic model to assess the effects on streamflow on the two significant inflows to the MLB, Lee Vining and Rush Creeks. For the MLB, the GCM ensemble output suggests significant increases in annual temperature, averaging 2.5 and 4.1 °C for the B1 and A2 emission scenarios, respectively, with concurrent small (1–3 %) decreases in annual precipitation by the end of the century. Annual total evapotranspiration is projected to increase by 10 mm by the end of the century for both emission scenarios. SWAT modeling results suggest a significant hydrologic response in the MLB by the end of the century that includes a) decreases in annual streamflow by 15 % compared to historical conditions b) an advance of the peak snowmelt runoff to 1 month earlier (June to May), c) a decreased (10–15 %) occurrence of ‘wet’ hydrologic years, and d) and more frequent (7–22 %) drought conditions. Ecosystem health and water diversions may be affected by reduced water availability in the MLB by the end of the century.     

Threshold relations for the transport of sediment by overland flow on desert hillslopes

Although the Shields relation was developed for rivers, it has been applied to sediment transport by overland flow. According to the Shields relation, where the critical boundary Reynolds number Re_*c exceeds 40, the critical Shields number F_*c is independent of both Re_*c and the ratio of the critical flow depth to particle diameter d_c/D. Analyses of data collected from runoff plots in southern Arizona reveal that F_*c is positively correlated with both Re_*c and d_c/D. Thus the Shields relation does not apply to overland flow on debris-covered desert hillslopes. Multiple regression analysis is employed to develop alternative threshold relations in which critical boundary shear stress τ_c is related to D and d_c/D (R² = 0.782) and to D and S_c (critical gradient) (R² = 0.625). The computed R² values derive in large part from the spurious correlations of d_c/D and S_c with τ_c. Nevertheless, the relations may be utilized to predict τ_c. In this regard, the latter relation is likely to prove more useful than the former because S_c is generally known, whereas d_c is not. An investigation of the functional relation between τ_c and D reveals that τ_c varies approximately with D² for overland flow on the desert hillslopes under study, whereas the Shields relation predicts a linear relation (i.e. a D exponent of 1). This result is consistent with Cheng's data which show that F_*c varies with (d_c/D)^?1 where 0.4 < d_c/D < 2 and may be explained in terms of increased energy dissipation both in separation zones downslope of particles and in distortion of the water surface as d_c/D decreases. Consequently, larger values of τ_c, and hence F_*c, are required to initiate the transport of particles of a given size D as d_c decreases.     

Tracing sediment movement in interrill overland flow on a semi-arid grassland hillslope using magnetic susceptibility

Experiments were undertaken to determine the feasibility of tracing sediment movement in interrill overland flow. Crushed magnetite was introduced as a source-line 10 cm wide by 8 m long on a runoff plot 18 m wide by 29 m long located in southern Arizona. Initial magnetic susceptibilities along this source line, and along three transects located 0·25, 2·95 and 5 m downslope of the source-line, were measured. Movement of the magnetite in response to three rainfall simulation experiments was monitored. During the first two experiments, overland flow discharge was sampled at miniature flumes located along two cross sections on the plot downslope of the source-line, and at a supercritical flume at the plot outlet. Magnetic susceptibilities along the source-line and transects were measured after all three experiments. Results show that the magnetite moves very early in the experiments and that it reaches one of the flumes 2 m downslope of the source-line in 3 min. Most of the tracer moves a very short distance: 29·7 per cent is deposited within 25 cm of the source-line and only 2·2 per cent is deposited 2·95 m away. The deposition rate appears to decrease exponentially away from the source-line. Very little magnetite is recorded in the flow through the miniature flumes: in general it makes up less than 1 per cent of the total sediment load. No temporal pattern in these percentages is observed. Magnetite appears to be an effective tracer of sediment movement in interrill overland flow, though its higher density than natural soil may affect its detachment and transport.     

Scaling and regionalization of flood flows in British Columbia,Canada

A regionalization of flood data in British Columbia reveals a common scaling with drainage area over the range 0·5×10²<A_d<10⁴ km². This scaling is not a function of flood return period, which implies that simple scaling—consistent with a snowmelt‐dominated flow regime—applies to the province. The observed scale relation takes the form , similar to values reported in previous studies. The scaling relation identified was used to define the regional pattern of hydroclimatic variability for flood flows in British Columbia after discounting the effect of drainage area. The pattern was determined by kriging a scale‐independent runoff factor k for the mean annual flood, 5 year flood and 20 year flood. The analysis permits quantification of uncertainty of the estimates, which can be used in conjunction with the mapped k‐fields to calculate a mean and range for floods with the identified return period for ungauged basins. Owing to the sparsity of data, the precision is relatively poor. The standard error is generally less than 75% of the estimate in the southern half of the province, whereas in the northern half it is often between 75 and 100%. Examination of the relative increase in flood magnitude with increasing return period reveals spatially consistent but statistically insignificant differences. Flood magnitude tends to increase more rapidly in the western regions, where rain events may contribute to flood generation. The relative increase in flood magnitude with return period is consistently lower in the eastern mountain ranges, where snowmelt dominates the flood flow regime. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bedforms: views and new perspectives from the third international workshop on Marine and River Dune Dynamics (MARID3)

This Commentary introduces a Special Issue of Earth Surface Processes and Landforms dedicated to the memory of Stephen Coleman (1966–2012) who sadly passed away on July 23, 2012. Stephen was an incredible enthusiast for the study of bedforms and made seminal contributions to our knowledge and understanding of flow, sediment transport and bedform dynamics. Stephen presented a keynote address at MARID 3, which has led to this Special Issue (see Coleman SE, Nikora VI. 2011. Fluvial dunes: initiation, characterization, flow structure. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 36 : 39–57. DOI. 10.1002/esp.2096) and was always keen to discuss research, from theory to techniques to experiments. He was always generous with his time and touched many with the influence of his thoughts and intellect. Our community has lost an outstanding scientist and Stephen will be greatly missed by us all. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Velocity Mapping Toolbox (VMT): a processing and visualization suite for moving‐vessel ADCP measurements

The use of acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) for discharge measurements and three‐dimensional flow mapping has increased rapidly in recent years and has been primarily driven by advances in acoustic technology and signal processing. Recent research has developed a variety of methods for processing data obtained from a range of ADCP deployments and this paper builds on this progress by describing new software for processing and visualizing ADCP data collected along transects in rivers or other bodies of water. The new utility, the Velocity Mapping Toolbox (VMT), allows rapid processing (vector rotation, projection, averaging and smoothing), visualization (planform and cross‐section vector and contouring), and analysis of a range of ADCP‐derived datasets. The paper documents the data processing routines in the toolbox and presents a set of diverse examples that demonstrate its capabilities. The toolbox is applicable to the analysis of ADCP data collected in a wide range of aquatic environments and is made available as open‐source code along with this publication. Published 2012. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.     

The Reykjanes Ridge: structure and tectonics of a hot-spot-influenced, slow-spreading ridge, from multibeam bathymetry, gravity and magnetic investigations

We report a comprehensive morphological, gravity and magnetic survey of the oblique- and slow-spreading Reykjanes Ridge near the Iceland mantle plume. The survey extends from 57.9°N to 62.1°N and from the spreading axis to between 30 km (3 Ma) and 100 km (10 Ma) off-axis; it includes 100 km of one arm of a diachronous ‘V-shaped' or ‘chevron' ridge. Observed isochrons are extremely linear and 28° oblique to the spreading normal with no significant offsets. Along-axis there are ubiquitous, en-echelon axial volcanic ridges (AVRs), sub-normal to the spreading direction, with average spacing of 14 km and overlap of about one third of their lengths. Relict AVRs occur off-axis, but are most obvious where there has been least axial faulting, suggesting that elsewhere they are rapidly eroded tectonically. AVRs maintain similar plan views but have reduced heights nearer Iceland. They are flanked by normal faults sub-parallel to the ridge axis, the innermost of which occur slightly closer to the axis towards Iceland, suggesting a gradual reduction of the effective lithospheric thickness there. Generally, the amplitude of faulting decreases towards Iceland. We interpret this pattern of AVRs and faults as the response of the lithosphere to oblique spreading, as suggested by theory and physical modelling. An axial, 10–15 km wide zone of high acoustic backscatter marks the most recent volcanic activity. The zone's width is independent of the presence of a median valley, so axial volcanism is not primarily delimited by median valley walls, but is probably controlled by the lateral distance that the oblique AVRs can propagate into off-axis lithosphere. The mantle Bouguer anomaly (MBA) exhibits little mid- to short-wavelength variation above a few milliGals, and along-axis variations are small compared with other parts of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Nevertheless, there are small axial deeps and MBA highs spaced some 130 km along-axis that may represent subdued third-order segment boundaries. They lack coherent off-axis traces and cannot be linked to Oligocene fracture zones on the ridge flanks. The surveyed chevron ridge is morphologically discontinuous, comprising several parallel bands of closely spaced, elevated blocks. These reflect the surrounding tectonic fabric but have higher fault scarps. There is no evidence for off-axis volcanism or greater abundance of seamounts on the chevron. Free-air gravity over it is greater than expected from the observed bathymetry, suggesting compensation via regional rather than pointwise isostasy. Most of the observed variation along the ridge can be ascribed to varying distance from the mantle plume, reflecting changes in mantle temperature and consequently in crustal thickness and lithospheric strength. However, a second-order variation is superimposed. In particular, between 59°30′N and 61°30′N there is a minimum of large-scale faulting and crustal magnetisation, maximum density of seamounts, and maximum axial free-air gravity high. To the north the scale of faulting increases slightly, seamounts are less common, and there is a relative axial free-air low. We interpret the 59°30′N to 61°30′N region as where the latest chevron ridge intersects the Reykjanes Ridge axis, and suggest that the morphological changes that culminate there reflect a local temperature high associated with a transient pulse of high plume output at its apex.     

Bathymetry of the Reykjanes Ridge

We present a series of 1:200,000 scale maps of the bathymetry of the Reykjanes Ridge. The data are divided into four maps, extending 630 km along the ridge axis and between 30 and 100 km off-axis. This compilation of bathymetry data is extremely detailed, gridded at approximately 100 m resolution, and with almost no gaps. The Reykjanes Ridge is one of the best examples of a hotspot-dominated ridge, whose characteristics are influenced by its proximity to the Iceland plume. Many fundamental questions may be addressed at the Reykjanes Ridge, which is why the BRIDGE programme identified it as one of its four regional projects. These maps represent a BRIDGE contribution to the general scientific community.