Quantifying peakflow attenuation/amplification in a karst river using the diffusive wave model with lateral flow

The aim of this paper is to quantify peakflow attenuation and/or amplification in a river, investigating lateral flow from the intermediate catchment during floods. This is a challenge for the study of the hydrological response of permeable/intermittent streams, and our contribution refers to a modelling framework based on the inverse problem for the diffusive wave model applied in a karst catchment. Knowing the upstream and downstream hydrographs on a reach between two stations, we can model the lateral one, given information on the hydrological processes involved in the intermediate catchment. The model is applied to 33 flood events in the karst reach of the Iton River in French Normandy where peakflow attenuation is observed. The monitored zone consists of a succession of losing and gaining reaches controlled by strong surface‐water/groundwater (SW/GW) interactions. Our results show that despite a high baseflow increase in the reach, peakflow is attenuated. Model application shows that the intensity of lateral outflow for the flood component is linked to upstream discharge. A combination of river loss and overbank flow for highest floods is proposed for explaining the relationships. Our approach differentiates the role of outflow (river loss and overbank flow) and that of wave diffusion on peakflow attenuation. Based on several sets of model parameterization, diffusion is the main attenuation process for most cases, despite high river losses of up to several m³/s (half of peakflow for some parameterization strategies). Finally, this framework gives new insight into the SW/GW interactions during floods in karst basins, and more globally in basins characterized by disconnected river‐aquifer systems.     

Evapotranspiration response to multiyear dry periods in the semiarid western United States

Analysis of measured evapotranspiration shows that subsurface plant‐accessible water storage (PAWS) can sustain evapotranspiration through multiyear dry periods. Measurements at 25 flux tower sites in the semiarid western United States, distributed across five land cover types, show both resistance and vulnerability to multiyear dry periods. Average (±standard deviation) evapotranspiration ranged from 660 ± 230 mm yr^?1 (October–September) in evergreen needleleaf forests to 310 ± 200 mm yr^?1 in grasslands and shrublands. More than 52% of the annual evapotranspiration in Mediterranean climates is supported on average by seasonal drawdown of subsurface PAWS, versus 29% in monsoon‐influenced climates. Snowmelt replenishes dry‐season PAWS by as much as 20% at sites with significant seasonal snow accumulation but was insignificant at most sites. Evapotranspiration exceeded precipitation in more than half of the observation years at sites below 35°N. Annual evapotranspiration at non‐energy‐limited sites increased with precipitation, reaching a mean wet‐year evapotranspiration of 833 mm for evergreen needleleaf forests, 861 mm for mixed forests, 558 mm for woody savannas, 367 mm for grasslands, and 254 mm for shrublands. Thirteen sites experienced at least one multiyear dry period, when mean precipitation was more than one standard deviation below the historical mean. All vegetation types except evergreen needleleaf forests responded to multiyear dry periods by lowering evapotranspiration and/or significant year‐over‐year depletion of subsurface PAWS. Sites maintained wet‐year evapotranspiration rates for 8–33 months before attenuation, with a corresponding net PAWS drawdown of as much as 334 mm. Net drawdown at many sites continued until the dry period ended, resulting in an overall cumulative withdrawal of as much as 558 mm. Evergreen needleleaf forests maintained high evapotranspiration during multiyear dry periods with no apparent PAWS drawdown; these forests currently avoid drought but may prove vulnerable to longer and warmer dry periods that reduce snowpack storage and accelerate evapotranspiration.     

Detailed bed topography and sediment load measurements for two stepdown flows in a laboratory flume

Streams and rivers, particularly smaller ones, often do not maintain steady flow rates for long enough to reach equilibrium conditions for sediment transport and bed topography. In particular, streams in small watersheds may be subject to rapidly changing hydrographs, and relict bedforms from previous high flows can cause further disequilibrium that complicates the prediction of sediment transport rates. In order to advance the understanding of how bedforms respond to rapid changes in flow rate,...     

Structures of Mesocirculations Producing Tornadoes Associated with Tropical Cyclone Frances (1998)

Radar structures of one mesocyclone and one mesocirculation (the term mesocirculation refers to a class of rotating updrafts, which may or may not be as spatially and temporally large as a typical mesocyclone) that developed a total of four tornadoes in association with Tropical Cyclone (TC) Frances 1998 are presented. One tornado developed within an inner rainband near the time of landfall while three of the other tornadoes developed within an outer rainband nearly 24 hours after the landfall. Radar reflectivities of the tornadic circulations averaged upwards of 40 dBZ while Doppler radar wind components directed toward the radar averaged 11 m s−1. It is realized that although TC Frances was a minimal hurricane it spawned several tornadoes (four of which were studied) causing damage exceeding $2 million. These tornadoes were not all located close to the TC center, serving as a caution to forecasters and emergency personnel that the immediate landfalling area is not the only place to watch.While it is difficult to accurately predict the TC tornado location and time of occurrence, the degree of low-level baroclinicity seems to play an important role in tornadogenesis. Another significant finding is that the tornadoes were produced on the inward side of an inner rainband, as well as the inward side of an outer rainband. Consistent with climatology, the forward right quadrant of the TC developed the four tornadoes studied here.The lead author, Professor G. V. Rao died 31 July 2004 at the age of 70. He fell victime to the waves while swimming in Mazatlan, Mexico. This is the last paper he publilshed as lead author.     

Heat as a tracer to estimate dissolved organic carbon flux from a restored wetland

Heat was used as a natural tracer to characterize shallow ground water flow beneath a complex wetland system. Hydrogeologic data were combined with measured vertical temperature profiles to constrain a series of two-dimensional, transient simulations of ground water flow and heat transport using the model code SUTRA (Voss 1990). The measured seasonal temperature signal reached depths of 2.7 m beneath the pond. Hydraulic conductivity was varied in each of the layers in the model in a systematic manual calibration of the two-dimensional model to obtain the best fit to the measured temperature and hydraulic head. Results of a series of representative best-fit simulations represent a range in hydraulic conductivity values that had the best agreement between simulated and observed temperatures and that resulted in simulated pond seepage values within 1 order of magnitude of pond seepage estimated from the water budget. Resulting estimates of ground water discharge to an adjacent agricultural drainage ditch were used to estimate potential dissolved organic carbon (DOC) loads resulting from the restored wetland. Estimated DOC loads ranged from 45 to 1340 g C/(m2 year), which is higher than estimated DOC loads from surface water. In spite of the complexity in characterizing ground water flow in peat soils, using heat as a tracer provided a constrained estimate of subsurface flow from the pond to the agricultural drainage ditch.     

Sediment detachment and transport processes associated with internal erosion of soil pipes

Subsurface flow can be an important process in gully erosion through its impact on decreasing soil cohesion and erosion resistance as soil water content or pressure increases and more directly by the effects of seepage forces on particle detachment and piping. The development of perched water tables fosters lateral flow that can result in seepage at the surface and/or formation of soil pipes by internal erosion of preferential flow paths. Continued internal erosion of soil pipes can lead to gullies, dam and levee failures. However, the processes involved in particle and aggregate detachment from soil pipe walls and transport processes within soil pipes have not been well studied or documented. This paper reviews the limited research on sediment detachment and transport in macropores and soil pipes and applies the knowledge learned from the much more extensive studies conducted on streams and industrial pipes to hydrogeologic conditions of soil pipes. Knowledge gaps are identified and recommendations are made for future research on sediment detachment and transport in soil pipes. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Marine control over negative power law scaling of mass wasting events in chalk sea cliffs with implications for future recession under the UKCP09 medium emission scenario

Coastal cliff erosion represents a significant geohazard for people and infrastructure. Forecasting future erosion rates is therefore of critical importance to ensuring the resiliency of coastal communities. We use high precision monitoring of chalk cliffs at Telscombe, UK to generate monthly mass movement inventories between August 2016 and July 2017. Frequency–magnitude analysis of our inventories demonstrate negative power law scaling over 7 orders of magnitude and, for the first time, we report statistically significant correlations between significant wave height (H_s) and power law scaling coefficients (r² values of 0.497 and 0.590 for β and s respectively). Applying these relationships allows for a quantitative method to predict erosion at the site based on H_s probabilities and sea level forecasts derived from the UKCP09 medium emission climate model (A1B). Monte‐Carlo simulations indicate a range of possible erosion scenarios over 70 years (2020–2090) and we assess the impact these may have on the A259 coastal road which runs proximal to the cliffs. Results indicate a small acceleration in erosion compared with those based on current conditions with the most likely scenario at the site being 21.7 m of cliff recession by 2090. However, low‐probability events can result in recession an order of magnitude higher in some scenarios. In the absence of negative feedbacks, we estimate an ~11% chance that the A259 will be breached by coastal erosion by 2090. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Non-invasive Geophysical Surveys in Search of the Roman Temple of Augustus Under the Cathedral of Tarragona (Catalonia,Spain): A Case Study

An integrated geophysical survey has been conducted at the Tarragona’s Cathedral (Catalonia, NE Spain) with the aim to confirm the potential occurrence of archaeological remains of the Roman Temple dedicated to the Emperor Augustus. Many hypotheses have been proposed about its possible location, the last ones regarding the inner part of the Cathedral, which is one of the most renowned temples of Spain (twelfth century) evolving from Romanesque to Gothic styles. A geophysical project including electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and ground probing radar (GPR) was planned over 1 year considering the administrative and logistic difficulties of such a project inside a cathedral of religious veneration. Finally, both ERT and GPR have been conducted during a week of intensive overnight surveys that provided detailed information on subsurface existing structures. The ERT method has been applied using different techniques and arrays, ranging from standard Wenner–Schlumberger 2D sections to full 3D electrical imaging with the advanced Maximum Yield Grid array. Electrical resistivity data were recorded extensively, making available many thousands of apparent resistivity data to obtain a complete 3D image after a full inversion. In conclusion, some significant buried structures have been revealed providing conclusive information for archaeologists. GPR results provided additional information about shallowest structures. The geophysical results were clear enough to persuade religious authorities and archaeologists to conduct selected excavations in the most promising areas that confirmed the interpretation of geophysical data. In conclusion, the significant buried structures revealed by geophysical methods under the cathedral were confirmed by archaeological digging as the basement of the impressive Roman Temple that headed the Provincial Forum of Tarraco, seat of the Concilium of Hispania Citerior Province.