Development Of Drainage System Research Articles

Impact of an extreme melt event on the runoff and hydrology of a high Arctic glacier

AbstractOn 28–30 July 2000, an extreme melt event was observed at John Evans Glacier (JEG), Ellesmere Island (79° 40′N, 74° 00′W). Hourly melt rates during this event fell in the upper 4% of the distribution of melt rates observed at the site during the period 1996–2000. Synoptic conditions during the event resulted in strong east‐to‐west flow over the northern sector of the Greenland Ice Sheet, with descending flow on the northwest side reaching Ellesmere Island. On JEG, wind speeds during the event averaged 8·1 m s−1 at 1183 m a.s.l., with hourly mean wind speeds peaking at 11·6 m s−1. Air temperatures reached 8°C, and rates of surface lowering measured by an ultrasonic depth gauge averaged 56 mm day−1. Calculations with an energy balance model suggest that increased turbulent fluxes contributed to melt enhancement at all elevations on the glacier, while snow albedo feedback resulted in increased melting due to net radiation at higher elevations. The event was responsible for 30% of total summer melt at 1183 m a.s.l. and 15% at 850 m a.s.l. Conditions similar to those during the event occurred on only 0·1% of days in the period 1948–2000, but 61% of events occurred in the summer months and there was an apparent clustering of events in the 1950s and 1980s. Such events have the potential to impact significantly on runoff, mass balance and drainage system development at high Arctic glaciers, and changes in their incidence could play a role in determining how high Arctic glaciers respond to climate change and variability. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Influence of subglacial drainage system evolution on glacier surface motion: Haut Glacier d'Arolla, Switzerland

The relationship between the evolution of subglacial drainage system morphology and spatial patterns of glacier surface velocity was investigated using dye tracing experiments and ground surveying throughout the 1995 melt season at Haut Glacier d'Arolla, Switzerland. With the onset of high and variable melt season discharges, subglacial drainage changed from a predominantly distributed system to a predominantly channelized system. The change occurred later farther up glacier. During the period of drainage evolution the glacier was subjected to three periods of rapidly rising meltwater discharge. The magnitude and spatial pattern of the glacier's velocity response differed between these periods and can be explained in terms of the impact of the evolving drainage system morphology on the amplitude and spatial distribution of basal hydrological forcing. Increasing discharge through a distributed drainage system caused widespread basal forcing and high glacier velocity. Increasing discharge through incipient channels below moulins, not yet connected to the main channel, caused more localized basal forcing and slightly increased glacier velocity. Increasing discharge through a fully channelized drainage system caused no significant basal forcing and glacier velocity was not significantly different from the annual deformation flow pattern. Empirical orthogonal function analysis of flow patterns defined two distinct spatial modes of surface velocity which corresponded closely with the drainage system morphologies inferred to be present during each event. The relative importance of these modes changed through the melt season, suggesting a temporal change in the spatial pattern of hydrologically induced basal forcing.

Detrital zircon provenance analysis of the Great Valley Group, California: Evolution of an arc-forearc system

Research Article| December 01, 2002 Detrital zircon provenance analysis of the Great Valley Group, California: Evolution of an arc-forearc system Kathleen DeGraaff-Surpless; Kathleen DeGraaff-Surpless 1Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305-2115, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Stephan A. Graham; Stephan A. Graham 1Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305-2115, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Joseph L. Wooden; Joseph L. Wooden 2U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, California 90425, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Michael O. McWilliams Michael O. McWilliams 3Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305-2115, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar GSA Bulletin (2002) 114 (12): 1564–1580. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(2002)114<1564:DZPAOT>2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 29 Sep 2001 rev-recd: 20 Mar 2002 accepted: 11 Apr 2002 first online: 01 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share MailTo Twitter LinkedIn Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Kathleen DeGraaff-Surpless, Stephan A. Graham, Joseph L. Wooden, Michael O. McWilliams; Detrital zircon provenance analysis of the Great Valley Group, California: Evolution of an arc-forearc system. GSA Bulletin 2002;; 114 (12): 1564–1580. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(2002)114<1564:DZPAOT>2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract The improved resolution of sediment provenance from detrital zircon analysis of Great Valley stratigraphy enables recognition of previously undocumented arc magmatism and the evolution of regional drainage systems within the Cretaceous arc-forearc system related to uplift, magmatism, and structure in the arc. Great Valley detrital zircon age data confirm previous studies that indicate that the locus of the sediment source in the southern Sierra Nevada arc migrated east with the active volcanic front and suggest rapid rates of uplift and unroofing of the southern arc. Sacramento Valley detrital zircon age data indicate a more complex history of drainage in the northern Klamath-Sierran arc than previously documented. Detrital zircon age distributions from the Cache Creek section of the Great Valley Group broaden through time from nearly unimodal age distributions to signatures with multiple age peaks. This transition to more broadly distributed detrital zircon age spectra likely results from a combination of (1) expanding subaerial drainage systems from highly localized to more broadly distributed catchments; (2) changing shelf and submarine-canyon morphology with rising sea level and/or basin subsidence; (3) increased degree of dissection of the Klamath-Sierran arc; and (4) potential drainage capture and redirection within the arc. Sacramento Valley detrital zircon age data also record a pulse of Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous magmatism in the northwestern Sierra Nevada arc, an age of Cordilleran magmatism and deformation represented by limited exposure in the modern Sierra Nevada. These results offer significant new insights into the evolution of a well-studied arc-forearc system. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Geomorphic implications of subglacial drainage configuration: rates of basal sediment evacuation controlled by seasonal drainage system evolution

Although basal sediment evacuation by subglacial meltwater is widely assumed to dominate the sediment budget of most temperate glaciers and ice caps, its potential influence for glacial geomorphic processes and landforms has largely been overlooked in the glacial literature. Data collected at Haut Glacier d'Arolla, Switzerland during the 1998 ablation season are used to test theoretical predictions that subglacial drainage configuration should exert a primary control on rates of basal sediment evacuation by subglacial meltwater. Seasonal evolution of the subglacial drainage system enables observation of sediment evacuation from both distributed and channelised drainage systems. Daily suspended sediment load exhibits an extreme, nonlinear increase with respect to discharge between winter and summer periods, which correspond to periods of predominantly distributed and channelised subglacial drainage, respectively. These results suggest that subglacial drainage configuration should significantly impact upon: (a) rates of subglacial erosion and debris production; (b) the nature of debris transport and the proportion of sediment in glacial versus fluvioglacial transport pathways; and (c) rates and styles of ice-marginal sedimentation. In contrast to their distributed counterparts, channelised drainage configurations are predicted to encourage subglacial erosion through the removal of basal sediment from the ice–bedrock interface and, with the exception of supraglacial transport, will discourage sediment transport by alternative glacial mechanisms. Direct sedimentation at the glacier margin may therefore be reduced, resulting in smaller moraines despite an overall increase in sediment production. An appreciation of the coupling between glacier hydrology and geomorphic processes suggests new frameworks for the understanding of rates and styles of glacial erosion, sediment transfer and deposition, and the complex geomorphology of ice-marginal environments.

Evolution of drainage systems and its developing trend in connection with tectonic uplift of Eastern Kunlun Mt.

The Eastern Kunlun Mt. had been subjected to uplift together with the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibet) Plateau before the Early Pleistocene, and yet the Mt, did not protrude out of the Plateau surface. During that period lakes spread all over the studied region, with the drainage systems being all short rivers flowing into the lakes. At the end of the Early Pleistocene, intensive tectonic uplift led to the rising of the Eastern Kunlun Mt. and made the Mt. protrude onto the Plateau surface. As a result, a fault depression valley formed extending nearly from west to east along the fault belt of the Southern Kunlun Mt. Lakes in this region died out, surface runoffs joined into the valley of the Southern Kunlun Mt. resulting in a large river streaming nearly from west to east. Around 150 kaBP, because of the strong differential movement, rivers, such as the Jialu River and the Golmud River, retrogressively eroded seriously, cutting through the Burhan Budai Mt. Then they pirated the large river and divided it into four portions. Owing to the uplift of the Eastern Kunlun Mt., strongly retrogressive erosion of the upper reaches of the Jialu River has made the watershed of the Buqingshan Mt. migrate 6–10 km southward since Holocene. At present, it remains a stronger trend of retrogressive erosion developing upward to the basin of the Yellow River Source and it seems that the Jialu River is scrambling for the streamhead of the Yellow River.

Seasonal variability in hydrologic-system response to intense rain events, Matanuska Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A.

AbstractTwo rain events at Matanuska Glacier illustrate how subglacial drainage system development and snowpack conditions affect hydrologic response at the terminus. On 21 and 22 September 1995, over 56 mm of rain fell in the basin during a period usually characterized by much drier conditions. This event caused an 8-fold increase in discharge and a 47-fold increase in suspended-sediment concentration. Peak suspended-sediment concentration exceeded 20 kg m —3, suggesting rapid evacuation of stored sediment. While water discharge returned to its pre-storm level nine days after the rain ceased, suspended- sediment concentrations took about 20 days to return to pre-storm levels. These observations suggest that the storm influx late in the melt season probably forced subglacial water into a more distributed system. In addition, subglacially transported sediments were supplemented to an unknown degree by the influx of storm-eroded sediments off hillslopes and from tributary drainage basins.A storm on 6 and 7 June 1997, dropped 28 mm of rain on the basin demonstrating the effects of meltwater retention in the snowpack and englacial and subglacial storage early in the melt season. Streamflow before the storm event was increasing gradually owing to warming temperatures; however, discharge during the storm and the following week increased only slightly. Suspended-sediment concentrations increased only a small amount, suggesting the drainage system was not yet well developed, and much of the run off occurred across the relatively clean surface of the glacier or through englacial channels.

Late glacial drainage systems along the northwestern margin of the Laurentide Ice Sheet

The evolution of drainage systems along the retreating northwestern Laurentide Ice Sheet was complex. The interaction of ice-margin configuration, topography and glacioisostasy resulted in a network of meltwater rivers that variably overflowed to the Arctic and Pacific Oceans and to the Gulf of Mexico. Glacial lakes also changed dramatically in size and location during the period of deglaciation. At the last (and all time) glacial maximum, the ice sheet extended into the eastern Cordillera, blocking northward and eastward drainage to the Arctic Ocean. Some meltwater and most non-glacial runoff were diverted through the mountains to the Yukon River basin, into Alaska and the Pacific Ocean. Retreat from the glacial maximum prior to 21 ka BP allowed proglacial drainage from the western margin of the ice sheet to flow into the Beaufort Sea/Arctic Ocean. Deglaciation was rapid after about 13 ka BP, with the present route of the lower Mackenzie River established between 13 and 11.5 ka BP. Continued ice retreat led to significant southward expansion of the Mackenzie/Beaufort drainage basin at about 11.5 ka BP through drainage capture of glacial Lake Peace, which previously had drained southeastward into the Missouri River and to the Gulf of Mexico. Very rapid ice retreat between 10.5 and 10 ka BP allowed glacial lake McConnell to expand down-slope in contact with the ice margin.Numerous glacial lakes occurred along the northwestern margin of the ice sheet during the maximum and retreat phases. These include ice-dammed glacial Lake Old Crow, which occupied unglaciated terrain of the northern Yukon, and glacial Lake Peace, which utilized a number of outlets as it migrated eastward with the ice front along the Peace Valley. The largest glacial lakes in the region were the result of glacioisostatic depression reversing the regional drainage. The Mackenzie Phase of glacial Lake McConnell was the second largest Pleistocene lake in North America (> 215,000 km2). Late glacial and post-glacial changes in drainage systems were largely in response to isostatic rebound.

Sedimentary basin destruction inferred from the evolution of drainage systems in the Betic Cordillera, southern Spain

The Guadix continental basin developed during the uppermost Miocene, the Pliocene and the Pleistocene. One axial fluvial system and two transverse systems are interpreted in its alluvial infill. In addition there are areas of lacustrine sedimentation, permanent in the eastern sector and ephemeral in the western part of the basin. From a sedimentological point of view, the Holocene drainage network shows significant similarities with that which occupied the ancient basin, although there are some differences in location. These provide information about the processes involved in the transformation of the sedimentary basin into an erosional basin with external drainage. Most of the data seem to indicate that the capture of drainage from the Guadix Basin by the Guadalquivir River was accelerated principally by tectonic processes related to a recent uplift of a sector of the Betic Cordillera, together with the disappearance of subsident points of the Basin. The high rate of Holocene erosion is partially conditioned by the type of sediment deposited in the basin (a low degree of lithification, textural heterogeneity, etc.) in comparison with the basement, and mainly by the position of the ancient basin in relation to the new relative base level, located almost 500 m lower than the position actually occupied by the Pleistocene relative base level of the basin.

Denudation, isostasy and landscape evolution

AbstractThe idea that the isostatic response to progressive denudational unloading can be episodic over cyclic timescales is widely cited in the geomorphological literature. We demonstrate, however, that this notion, which has been regarded as a possible mechanism of widespread landscape rejuvenation, is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the principles of flexural isostasy. Rather than a discontinuous response, in cases where the half‐width of the applied load is greater than a few tens of kilometres the lithosphere experiences a continuous compensation which is dependent upon the wavelength of the applied load rather than upon a lateral, or vertical, threshold of unloading which has to be exceeded before isostatic recovery is initiated. Although a flexural isostatic response cannot account for episodic uplift during a denudational cycle, it can explain the growth and persistence of significant marginal upwarps along passive margins across which there is a marked contrast in denudation rates. Such marginal upwarps, in turn, probably play a critical role in the long‐term evolution of drainage systems and landscapes in adjacent continental hinterlands.

Sedimentpetrographie und -geochemie des Urnaab-Flußsystems - ein Beitrag zur Flußentwicklung und Abtragungsgeschichte in Ostbayern

Sedimentpetrographie und -geochemie des Urnaab-Flußsystems - ein Beitrag zur Flußentwicklung und Abtragungsgeschichte in Ostbayern

Trends in the USSR water resources development policies

Historically, large-scale integrated programs were the major instruments for solving numerous water management problems accompanying the USSR's economic development. Such programs as inland transportation systems, river impoundments for hydroenergy production and flood control, and agricultural irrigation were, in fact, the largest public works in the USSR. The large majority of these programs were executed in the form of all-out campaigns. Until recently, the premises for large-scale drainage system development were three enviro-ideological concepts: (i) inexhaustibility of river flows; (ii) dominance of a leading water user selected for a specific time period; (iii) all-purpose utilization of storage reservoirs and other hydrotechnical constructions. Persistant adherence to these three concepts as well as the rotation of leading water users (river transportation, followed by hydroenergy and then by irrigation) resulted in the depletion of surface waters and the deterioration of their quality. The existing economic mechanisms which control industrial productive systems within the non-market economy, poorly fit water management and do not prevent ecological disruption. In order to replenish already depleted and degraded water resources in the most populous and industrialized S regions, a long-distance N-to-S river flow diversion was designed and started in 1984. This integrated program could produce irreversible damage for soil structures, surbsurface water reserves, forests and estuarine regions.

Drainage of the Austre Okstindbreen Ice-dammed Lake, Okstindan, Norway

AbstractObservations of the discharge, electrical conductivity, cationic content, and isotopic composition of glacier-river water indicate that drainage of the lake dammed at the margin of the glacier Austre Okstindbreen, Okstindan, Norway, is preceded by disruption of the glacier’s drainage system(s). Annual studies over a period of 12 years have demonstrated that intense storm precipitation, changes of ablation conditions, and the stage of development of drainage systems all may play a role in triggering drainage of the ice-dammed lake. Water temperature may influence the course of the outburst. The lake has drained on at least ten occasions in the last 12 years. Three of the events (1979, 1985, and 1986) occurred early in the summer, whilst melting of the winter’s snow cover was contributing substantially to glacier-river discharge: high basal water pressure and rapid sliding may have facilitated disruption of drainage conditions within the glacier. In 1982, the lake drained during a severe storm, in 1977 and 1984 shortly after a period of heavy rainfall. During the 1977 and 1984 events, water under pressure burst up through the glacier surface. The lake basin remained partly filled throughout one summer (1980): in-flow of water was balanced by out-flow into the glacier.

Drainage of the Austre Okstindbreen Ice-dammed Lake, Okstindan, Norway

Abstract Observations of the discharge, electrical conductivity, cationic content, and isotopic composition of glacier-river water indicate that drainage of the lake dammed at the margin of the glacier Austre Okstindbreen, Okstindan, Norway, is preceded by disruption of the glacier’s drainage system(s). Annual studies over a period of 12 years have demonstrated that intense storm precipitation, changes of ablation conditions, and the stage of development of drainage systems all may play a role in triggering drainage of the ice-dammed lake. Water temperature may influence the course of the outburst. The lake has drained on at least ten occasions in the last 12 years. Three of the events (1979, 1985, and 1986) occurred early in the summer, whilst melting of the winter’s snow cover was contributing substantially to glacier-river discharge: high basal water pressure and rapid sliding may have facilitated disruption of drainage conditions within the glacier. In 1982, the lake drained during a severe storm, in 1977 and 1984 shortly after a period of heavy rainfall. During the 1977 and 1984 events, water under pressure burst up through the glacier surface. The lake basin remained partly filled throughout one summer (1980): in-flow of water was balanced by out-flow into the glacier.

Optimal Angular Geometry Models of River Branching

Geographical AnalysisVolume 15, Issue 2 p. 87-96 Free Access Optimal Angular Geometry Models of River Branching Andre G. Roy, Andre G. Roy Andre G. Roy is postdoctoral fellow in geography, University of Montreal. I would like to thank Michael Woldenberg for stimulating my interest in this topic and for his helpful suggestions on earlier drafts of this paper.Search for more papers by this author Andre G. Roy, Andre G. Roy Andre G. Roy is postdoctoral fellow in geography, University of Montreal. I would like to thank Michael Woldenberg for stimulating my interest in this topic and for his helpful suggestions on earlier drafts of this paper.Search for more papers by this author First published: April 1983 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1538-4632.1983.tb00771.xCitations: 26 Andre G. Roy is postdoctoral fellow in geography, University of Montreal. I would like to thank Michael Woldenberg for stimulating my interest in this topic and for his helpful suggestions on earlier drafts of this paper. AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat LITERATURE CITED Hess, W. R. (1903). “Eine Mechanisch be dingte Gesetzmässigkeit in Bau des Blutgefässystems. Archiv für Entwicklungs-Mechanik, 16, 632. Horton, R. E. (1926). “On Flood Characteristics. Transactions of American Society of Civil Engineers, 89, 1081– 86. Horton, R. E. (1932). “Drainage Basin Characteristics. Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, 13, 350– 61. Horton, R. E. (1945). “Erosional Development of Streams and Their Drainage Basins, Hydrophysical Approach to Quantitative Morphology. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 56, 275– 370. Howard, A. D. (1971). “Optimal Angles of Stream Junction: Geometric Stability to Capture, and Minimum Power Criteria. Water Resources Research, 7, 863– 73. Leopold, L. B., and T. J. Maddock (1953). “The Hydraulic Geometry of Stream Channels and Some Physiographic Implications. U.S.G.S. Professional Paper, 252, 53 pp. Leopold, L. B., M. G. Wolman, and J. P. Miller (1964). Fluvial Processes in Geomorphology. San Francisco: Freeman. Lubowe, J. R. (1964). “Stream Junction Angles in the Dendritic Drainage Patterns. American Journal of Science, 262, 325– 39. Murray, C. D. (1926). “The Physiological Principle of Minimum Work Applied to the Angle of Branching of Arteries. Journal of General Physiology, 9, 835– 41. Pieri, D. C. (1979). Geomorphology of Martian Valleys. Ph.D. dissertation, Cornell University, 280 pp. Playfair, J. (1802). Illustrations of the Huttonian Theory of the Earth. Edinburgh. Rosen, R. (1967). Optimality Principles in Biology. New York: Butterworths Mathematical texts. Roy, A. G. (1982). Optimality and Its Relationship to the Hydraulic and Angular Geometry of Rivers and Lungs. Ph.D. dissertation, State University of New York at Buffalo. Roy, A. G., and M. J. Woldenberg (1982). “A Generalization of the Optimal Models of Arterial Branching. Bulletin of Mathematical Biology, 44, 349– 60. Schumm, S. A. (1956). “Evolution of Drainage Systems and Slopes in Badlands at Perth Amboy, New Jersey. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 67, 597– 646. Weber, A. (1929). Theory of the Location of Industries. New York: Russell and Russell. Wesolowsky, G. O. (1973). “Location in Continuous Space. Geographical Analysis, 5, 95– 112. Zamir, M. (1976). “Optimality Principles in Arterial Branching. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 62, 227– 51. Zernitz, E. R. (1932). “Drainage Patterns and Their Significance. Journal of Geology, 40, 498– 521. Citing Literature Volume15, Issue2April 1983Pages 87-96 ReferencesRelatedInformation

Development of the Thames drainage system in Early and Middle Pleistocene times

SummaryPre-Anglian terrace stages of the proto-Thames system are traced from the present middle Thames area into Essex and south East Anglia. Gravel composition indicates that each of the main terrace stages is associated with an influx of far-travelled material, probably signifying at least three phases of pre-Anglian glaciation in the south Midlands. Gravel composition also indicates the occurrence of major changes during Early and Middle Pleistocene times in the extent of the Thames catchment, and in the disposition of the main drainage lines. The important role of the Goring Gap in the development of the drainage system is noted, and the nature and distribution of Anglian fluvioglacial gravels are described.

Der Einfluß von Paläostrukturen auf die Entwicklung der Entwässerungssysteme Westafrikas und die Quartärgeschichte des Niger-Benue Stromgebietes

Der Einfluß von Paläostrukturen auf die Entwicklung der Entwässerungssysteme Westafrikas und die Quartärgeschichte des Niger-Benue Stromgebietes

Development of drainage systems on an upraised lake floor

Study over a two-year period of the newly upraised lake floor at Hebgen Lake, Montana, suggests that the rate of drainage development, as well as stream morphology, depends on slope of the initial land surface and type of material rather than on the stage of the erosion cycle.

EVOLUTION OF DRAINAGE SYSTEMS AND SLOPES IN BADLANDS AT PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY

Research Article| May 01, 1956 EVOLUTION OF DRAINAGE SYSTEMS AND SLOPES IN BADLANDS AT PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY STANLEY A SCHUMM STANLEY A SCHUMM BUILDING 25, FEDERAL CENTER, DENVER, COLORADO Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar GSA Bulletin (1956) 67 (5): 597–646. https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1956)67[597:EODSAS]2.0.CO;2 Article history received: 24 Mar 1955 first online: 02 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation STANLEY A SCHUMM; EVOLUTION OF DRAINAGE SYSTEMS AND SLOPES IN BADLANDS AT PERTH AMBOY, NEW JERSEY. GSA Bulletin 1956;; 67 (5): 597–646. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1956)67[597:EODSAS]2.0.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract To analyze the development of erosional topography the writer studied geomorphic processes and landforms in a small badlands area at Perth Amboy, New Jersey. The badlands developed on a clay-sand fill and were morphologically similar to badlands and areas of high relief in semiarid and arid regions. A fifth-order drainage system was selected for detailed study.Composition of this drainage network conforms to Horton's laws. Within an area of homogeneous lithology and simple structure the drainage network develops in direct relation to a fixed value for the minimum area required for channel maintenance. Observed relationships between channel length, drainage-basin area, and stream-order number are dependent on this constant of channel maintenance which is in turn dependent on relative relief, lithology, and climate of any area.Other characteristics of the drainage network and topography such as texture, maximum slope angles, stream gradients, drainage-basin shape, annual sediment loss per unit area, infiltration rate, drainage pattern, and even the morphologic evolution of the area appear related to relative relief expressed as a relief ratio, the height of the drainage basin divided by the length. Within one topographic unit or between areas of dissimilar but homogeneous lithology the relief ratio is a valuable means of comparing geomorphic characteristics.Hypsometric curves are available for a series of 11 second-order drainage basins ranging in stage of development from initial to mature. Relief ratio and stream gradients attain a constant value when approximately 25 per cent of the mass of the basin has been eroded. Basin shape becomes essentially constant at 40 per cent of mass removed in accord with Strahler's hypothesis of time-independent forms of the steady state.Comparison of the drainage pattern as mapped in 1948 with that of 1952 reveals a systematic change in angles of junction and a shift of the entire drainage pattern accompanying changes in the ratio between ground and channel slope.Field observations and experimental studies suggest that badland slopes may retreat in parallel planes and that the rate of erosion on a slope is a function of the slope angle. The retreat of slopes may not conform to accepted concepts of runoff action as a function of depth and distance downslope. Runoff occurs as surge and subdivided flow which may be closely analogous to surficial creep.Rills follow a definite cycle of destruction and reappearance throughout the year under the action of runoff and frost heaving.At Perth Amboy, slopes are initiated by channel degradation and maintained by runoff and by creep induced through frost heaving. Runoff or creep may form convex divides, and both parallel and declining slope retreat are important in the evolution of stream-carved topography.Hypsometric curves reveal that the point of maximum erosion within a drainage basin migrates upchannel and that the mass-distribution curve of any basin has a similar evolution to that of the longitudinal stream profile.Comparative studies in badland areas of South Dakota and Arizona confirm conclusions drawn at Perth Amboy and show the importance of infiltration of runoff on topographic development and of subsurface flow in slope retreat and miniature pediment formation. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Development of Drainage Systems and The Dynamic Cycle

IN recent papers Waldo S. Glock' has advanced the suggestion that physiography, or physical geography, should be regarded as dual in nature, having a static or passive phase called geomorphology and a or active phase which he would name geodynamics. I have elsewhere2 discussed the question as to whether geomorphology, which treats the active evolution of ever-changing land surfaces in terms of structure, process, and stage, can properly be regarded as static or passive. In the pages that follow it is desired to focus attention on another aspect of Glock's thought-provoking suggestion. He states that physiography may be approached from a purely viewpoint and proposes a dynamic cycle distinct from the geographic or geomorphic cycle. As concrete illustrations of the point of view he gives us a shorter and a longer discussion of the development of drainage systems in which successive phases of extension and integration of stream lines are illustrated by reproductions from selected topographic maps. The point of view is consistently adhered to in these illustrations, which show only streams of water and some of the associated marshes but no valleys. This gives the reader an opportunity to judge how effective may be the more restricted method of treatment.

The Development of Drainage Systems: A Synoptic View

P HYSICAL geography has a dual nature.1 It includes a static or passive phase involving the detailed form of the land surfaces and a dynamic or active phase involving the agents and processes modifying those surfaces. The first of these phases is known commonly as geomorphology; the second might well be called surficial geodynamics. The present work desires to confine its attention to streams. It is the purpose of the paper to trace in a summary manner the sequence of pattern during the development of a drainage system after a fashion as nearly ideal as possible for a region of simple rock structure and of humid climate. The following treatment has no intention or wish to ignore the influence of rock and structure nor has it the desire to minimize the fascination in the study of land forms. It does, however, intend to adopt the dynamic viewpoint for the time being. The sequential stages recognized in the evolution of a drainage system are and integration: the first, a stage of increasing complexity; the second, of simplification. The assumption that extension begins on a new land surface will be entertained for the present.