Geomorphological Observations Research Articles

Understanding the triggering mechanism and possible kinematic evolution of a reactivated landslide in the Three Gorges Reservoir

More than 5000 landslides or potential landslides have been induced in the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) region since the impoundment in 2003, which have caused great damage and remain a huge threat to the dam and people living in the reservoir area. Understanding the deformation characteristics and failure mechanism of the landslides can be helpful in stability evaluation and landslide prediction. The primary aim of this study is to research the characteristics of the landslide motion and its relationships with environmental triggers, taking the Quchi landslide, a large, slow-moving, reactivated landslide in the TGR region, as an example. The instability clearly showed visible signs of movements since 2002, and after that, the slope has been experiencing persistent deformation. By combining 4 years of meteorological, hydrological data with displacement measurements from open fractures, deep boreholes, and surface points, as well as in situ observations, this paper reports the geological and geotechnical investigations performed to define the movement. The deformation is believed to be governed by reservoir water levels, while the precipitation has a minor effect. Seasonally, the slope movement has a very distinctive pattern with large deformation starting abruptly right after reservoir drawdown in June and lasting into late summer (September). Then there is a rapid transition to constant deformation (almost no displacement) as the reservoir level rises. The slope displacements appear to gradually increase every year, which suggests very high possibility of the large and overall failure of the slide. Both monitoring results and geomorphological observations have highlighted that the two active slide masses Q1 and Q2 would probably collapse in different kinematic evolution modes, i.e., the multistage failure and whole sliding motion.

Morphometric analysis of relative tectonic activity in the Baturagung Mountain, Central Java, Indonesia

Special Region of Yogyakarta and Klaten district, Central Java is one of areas in Indonesia that is prone to earthquake caused by subduction in Indian Ocean and active fault in land. The earthquake sources from active fault probable from Opak and other faults located in Baturagung Mountain. Active faults controlling landform development in tectonically active regions, and it has significantly affected fluvial systems and mountain – front landscapes in the Baturagung Mountain. To assess tectonic activities in the area used quantitative analysis (morphometric). Morphometric analysis consists of 5 parameters geomorphic indices: drainage basin asymmetry (AF), hypsometric curve and integral (Hc and Hi), stream length gradient (SL) index, basin shape index (Bs), and mountain-front sinuosity (Smf). These indices were combined to yield the relative tectonic activity index (RTAI) using geographic information systems (GIS). The result found that RTAI in the study area are divided into three classes: Class 2 (high 0.6% of the watershed area (1.32 km2)); Class 3 (moderate 58.9% (122.1 km2)); and Class 4 (low 40.4% (83.75 km2)). All of morphometric analysis generally indicates this area more influenced by tectonics than erosion. The results are consistent with geomorphological observations.

Impact of permafrost thaw on the turbidity regime of a subarctic river: the Sheldrake River, Nunavik, Quebec

In order to assess the impact of seasonal active layer thaw and thermokarst on river flow and turbidity, a gauging station was installed near the mouth of the Sheldrake River in the discontinuous permafrost zone of northern Quebec. The station provided 5 years of water level data and 3 years of turbidity data. The hydrological data for the river showed the usual high water stage occurring at spring snowmelt, with smaller peaks related to rain events in summer. Larger and longer turbidity peaks also occurred in summer in response to warm air temperature spells, suggesting that a large part of the annual suspension load was carried during midsummer turbidity peaks. Supported by geomorphological observations across the catchment area, the most plausible interpretation is that the rapid thawing of the active layer during warm conditions in July led to the activation of frostboils and triggered landslides throughout the river catchment, thus increasing soil erosion and raising sediment delivery into the hydrological network. These results indicate that maximum sediment discharge in a thermokarst-affected region may be predominantly driven by the rate of summer thawing and associated activation of erosion features in the catchment.

The role of fault length, overlap and spacing in controlling extensional relay ramp fluvial system geometry

AbstractRelay ramps are integral components of normal fault systems that control sediment transport pathways in evolving rifts. We attribute differences in the geometry of fluvial systems that drain relay ramps to the scale of the ramp bounding fault segments, the spacing between segments and the amount of overlap between segments. Previous conceptual models for relay ramp geomorphological evolution have assumed that ramp fluvial catchments develop on the ramp surfaces and flow parallel to fault strike into the adjacent basin. Numerous examples exist in nature, however, that show that this is not ubiquitous. The fundamental question of what drives differences in fluvial geometry in these settings has, to date, not been fully addressed. We selected 27 relay ramps across the Basin and Range, western North America, and mapped, via GPS and remote sensing, the faults and ramp fluvial systems associated with each site. The sites represent a range of fault scales, which we define by the total outboard fault length, and a range of spacing and overlap values in order to better understand the structural controls on differences among ramp fluvial systems. Results show that the majority of a relay ramp surface drains parallel to fault strike when the outboard fault is less than about 15 km long. High overlap/spacing ratios are associated with relays along shorter (<15 km long) outboard faults, whereas lower overlap/spacing ratios are associated with relays along longer faults. Relays with lower overlap/spacing values may be more common along longer outboard faults because they survive for longer periods of time in the landscape. Our geomorphological observations can be used to predict synrift depocenter locations along segmented faults, but these observations only apply if the faults are short (<15 km long) and in early rifting stages. At longer fault lengths, ramp fluvial system geometry has no discernable relationship with any specific structural parameter.

Regional mid-Pleistocene glaciation in central Patagonia

Southern South America contains a glacial geomorphological record that spans the past million years and has the potential to provide palaeoclimate information for several glacial periods in Earth's history. In central Patagonia, two major outlet glaciers of the former Patagonian Ice Sheet carved deep basins ∼50 km wide and extending over 100 km into the Andean plain east of the mountain front. A succession of nested glacial moraines offers the possibility of determining when the ice lobes advanced and whether such advances occurred synchronously. The existing chronology, which was obtained using different methods in each valley, indicates the penultimate moraines differ in age by a full glacial cycle. Here, we test this hypothesis further using a uniform methodology that combines cosmogenic nuclide ages from moraine boulders, moraine cobbles and outwash cobbles. 10Be concentrations in eighteen outwash cobbles from the Moreno outwash terrace in the Lago Buenos Aires valley yield surface exposure ages of 169–269 ka. We find 10Be inheritance is low and therefore use the oldest surface cobbles to date the deposit at 260–270 ka, which is indistinguishable from the age obtained in the neighbouring Lago Pueyrredón valley. This suggests a regionally significant glaciation during Marine Isotope Stage 8, and broad interhemispheric synchrony of glacial maxima during the mid to late Pleistocene. Finally, we find the dated outwash terrace is 70–100 ka older than the associated moraines. On the basis of geomorphological observations, we suggest this difference can be explained by exhumation of moraine boulders.

Impacts of Geomorphic Disturbances on Plant Colonization in Ebba Valley, Central Spitsbergen, Svalbard

AbstractGlobal warming observed nowadays causes an increase in geomorphic activity in polar regions. Within the areas influenced by cold climatic conditions, relief dynamics and vegetation development are the main landscape shaping processes. The study is limited to the Ebba Valley (78°43’N; 16°37’E) in central Spitsbergen (Svalbard), where geomorphologic observations and vegetation sampling were conducted in 2007. The valley was divided into three zones differentiated by dominating geomorphic activity and stability of deposits. The settlement and the evolution of plant cover have been documented there. The main factors that control well developed vegetation cover within raised marine terraces are frost heave and solifluction. In deeper parts of the valley, aeolian processes dominate and high differentiation of microsite conditions causes high variability in plant coverage. The area close to the Ebba glacier marginal zone is characterized by initial stages of plant colonisation where disturbance to vegetation is mainly caused by hydrological processes.

New evidence of sea‐level lowstands and paleoenvironment during MIS 6 and 4 in the Cantabrian coastal karst: the Cobiheru cave (North Iberia)

AbstractThe geomorphological evolution of the Cobiheru Cave shows the influence of the non‐carbonate coastal mountain ranges on coastal karst evolution, as well as the temporal distribution of the cold‐adapted fauna sites in the Cantabrian Coast. Geomorphological observation and uranium/thorium (U/Th) dating lead to the construction of an evolution model. The model comprises two episodes of cave deposition occurring at c. 60–70 and 130–150 ka, linked to cold climate conditions, global sea‐level lowstands and the erosion of alluvial fans that covered the karst. Moreover, the comparison between the Cobiheru record and some raised beaches identified in previous studies sets the beginning of the sea‐level lowering in the Cantabrian Sea during the marine isotope stages (MIS) 5–4 transition. Two palaeoenvironments are inferred based on finding Equus ferus and Elona quimperiana. A wet deciduous forest would have developed on the emerged marine terrace of the Cobiheru Cave since at least the Middle Pleistocene, and an open landscape with scarce vegetation would have been present at c. 65 ka. The erosional event identified in the Cobiheru Cave helps to understand the temporal distribution of cold‐adapted mammals located in the Asturias region. The probable sites of cold‐adapted fauna developed in caves and alluvial fans would have disappeared after 65 ka. Therefore, palaeontological and palaeoclimate research based on cold‐adapted mammals suggests the occurrence of an hiatus in the palaeontological record prior to 50 ka. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Long-term geomorphological evolution of the axial zone of the Campania-Lucania Apennine, southern Italy: a review

Abstract Uplift and erosion rates have been calculated for a large sector of the Campania-Lucania Apennine and Calabrian arc, Italy, using both geomorphological observations (elevations, ages and arrangement of depositional and erosional land surfaces and other morphotectonic markers) and stratigraphical and structural data (sea-level related facies, base levels, fault kinematics, and fault offset estimations). The values of the Quaternary uplift rates of the southern Apennines vary from 0.2 mm/yr to about 1.2–1.3 mm/yr. The erosion rates from key-areas of the southern Apennines, obtained from both quantitative geomorphic analysis and missing volumes calculations, has been estimated at 0.2 mm/yr since the Middle Pleistocene. Since the Late Pleistocene erosion and uplift rates match well, the axial-zone landscape could have reached a flux steady state during that time, although it is more probable that the entire study area may be a transient landscape. Tectonic denudation phenomena — leading to the exhumation of the Mesozoic core of the chain — followed by an impressive regional planation started in the Late Pliocene have to be taken into account for a coherent explanation of the morphological evolution of southern Italy.

Deglacial history of the Pensacola Mountains, Antarctica from glacial geomorphology and cosmogenic nuclide surface exposure dating

The retreat history of the Antarctic Ice Sheet is important for understanding rapid deglaciation, as well as to constrain numerical ice sheet models and ice loading models required for glacial isostatic adjustment modelling. There is particular debate about the extent of grounded ice in the Weddell Sea embayment at the Last Glacial Maximum, and its subsequent deglacial history. Here we provide a new dataset of geomorphological observations and cosmogenic nuclide surface exposure ages of erratic samples that constrain the deglacial history of the Pensacola Mountains, adjacent to the present day Foundation Ice Stream and Academy Glacier in the southern Weddell Sea embayment. We show there is evidence of at least two glaciations, the first of which was relatively old and warm-based, and a more recent cold-based glaciation. During the most recent glaciation ice thickened by at least 450 m in the Williams Hills and at least 380 m on Mt Bragg. Progressive thinning from these sites was well underway by 10 ka BP and ice reached present levels by 2.5 ka BP, and is broadly similar to the relatively modest thinning histories in the southern Ellsworth Mountains. The thinning history is consistent with, but does not mandate, a Late Holocene retreat of the grounding line to a smaller-than-present configuration, as has been recently hypothesized based on ice sheet and glacial isostatic modelling. The data also show that clasts with complex exposure histories are pervasive and that clast recycling is highly site-dependent. These new data provide constraints on a reconstruction of the retreat history of the formerly-expanded Foundation Ice Stream, derived using a numerical flowband model.

An Integrated Sedimentary Systems Analysis of the RíO Bermejo (Argentina): Megafan Character in the Overfilled Southern Chaco Foreland Basin

Abstract: The Chaco foreland is well known for its spectacular fluvial megafans, and this basin frequently serves as a modern analog for studies that use the geological record to investigate tectonic processes in convergent orogenic systems. Yet little sedimentary data has been recovered from the southern Chaco, particularly at the latitude of northern Argentina, which limits both its utility as an analog and our understanding of Andean megafan development in the subtropics. The southern Chaco is particularly amenable for a modern time-slice sedimentary systems analysis, as environmental gradients controlled by tectonics and climate are relatively well documented. Deposition in the southern Chaco foreland is dominated by the Rio Bermejo, which was studied by integrating geomorphological observations made using geographic information systems with analyses of composition, texture, and U-Pb ages of modern detrital sediments. Remote-sensing data reveal changes in Rio Bermejo channel width, sinuosity, and bifurcation from west to east across the foreland, which are compatible with aspects of geomorphic models for distributive fluvial systems. The Rio Bermejo fully spans the foreland and connects with the south-flowing Rio Paraguay; fluvial sediments and reworked loess bury and obscure any surficial expression of a flexural forebulge. Therefore, the Rio Bermejo megafan (RBM) stands as an important example of a megafan in an overfilled foreland basin. Variability in RBM morphology and landforms appears to have only subtle linkages to flexural partitioning of the Chaco, which is likely a consequence of sediment supply overwhelming available accommodation. Trend-surface analysis highlighted topographic contrasts in RBM architectural elements and indicates the presence of distributary channels with variable surficial expression. Shallow accommodation, marked by ponds, is most pervasively developed at the eastern end of the RBM; this pattern is consistent with model-predicted locations of a back-bulge depozone. Although three environmentally distinct hinterland areas contribute sediment to the RBM, sands from the foreland cannot distinguish these zones. Rather, provenance is controlled chiefly by parent lithologies and transport distance. Sands in the RBM plot within the recycled orogen provenance field (mean QtFL = 77\6\17), and compositional maturity increases with distance from the thrust front, such that quartzose sublitharenites dominate in the distal back-bulge. Distinct intra-foreland gradients are captured in sand texture and clay-mineral abundances. Rio Bermejo sand sizes become progressively finer towards the forebulge and back-bulge (mean = ∼ 98 μm), whereas mean particle sizes in the wedgetop and foredeep are ∼ 280 and 195 μm, respectively. Detrital clays suspended in the Rio Bermejo consist of illite, smectite, chlorite, and kaolinite (in rank order of abundance), with smectite concentrated in the foredeep due to reworking of the semiarid floodplain by water and wind. The results of this study provide novel sedimentary ground truth for distributive fluvial systems in overfilled retroarc forelands that can be used to improve facies models and interpretations of the geological record.

Evidence of fault-propagation folds in foreland basin: the case of Chemsi and Belkhir anticlines of southern Tunisian Atlas

Structural analysis of Jebel Chemsi and Belkhir located in southern Tunisian Atlas lead to propose the fault-propagation fold as a model for these anticlines. Geometric analogy is settled after dip surveys and observation of several anticline kinks. Several, independent geomorphologic observations support the hinge migration kinematics characterizing this numerical model. The geomorphological hallmarks used matches to (1) alluvial fan progradation, (2) knick points on longitudinal profiles of channel streams and (3) anomalies on the drainage net in the eastern limits of the fold. These anomalies proved a centrifugal hinge migration of, at least, last folding stages in the direction prospected by the model. Results of numerical modelling using Ramp EM software showed detachment layer at 5.5 km that matches to Triassic series. Shortening amplitude is about 2 km for Jebel Chemsi and 1.5 km for Jebel Belkhir. Locally, we highlighted the role of inherited faults in locating and controlling the compressive deformation. In active tectonic region, the use of geomorphological approach is suitable to highlight the folding kinematics and thus to prove the deformation model. In our case study, many special conditions, such as excellent outcropping resulting of arid climate, constant base level and good lithological contrast, allow objective interpretations

Extracting palaeoflood data from coarse‐grained Pleistocene river terrace archives: an example from SE Spain

AbstractField‐based palaeoflood event reconstruction has the potential to contribute to the development of our understanding of long‐term landscape evolution. However, the reconstruction of past flow event histories (magnitude and frequency) over long‐term (Quaternary) timescales is fraught with difficulties. Here we make a preliminary exploration of some of the practicalities of flood reconstruction from fluvial terrace archives using commonly available sedimentological and geomorphological observations from a field perspective. We utilize Manning and palaeostage indicators to reconstruct historic events that can be used as benchmarks for a lesser used competence based approach, which is applied to coarse‐grained strath terrace deposits. We evaluate the results against gauged records for extreme and catastrophic events that affected the same region in 1973 and 2012. The findings suggest that the competence approach is most effectively applied to terrace deposits if the channel geometry is taken into account when sampling both in cross‐section and in longitudinal section and calibrated against the sedimentology for palaeo‐flow depth. Problems can arise where constrictive channel geometries allow boulder jams to develop, acting as sediment traps for the coarsest material and leading to downstream ‘boulder starvation’. Useful sites to target for palaeoflood reconstruction, therefore, would be upstream of such constrictive reaches where the coarsest transportable bedload has been effectively trapped. Sites to avoid would be downflow, where the deposited material would poorly represent palaeoflood competence. Underestimation from maximum boulder preservation and limited section exposure issues would appear to outweigh possible overestimation concerns related to fluid density and unsteady flow characteristics such as instantaneous acceleration forces. Flood data derived from river terrace deposits suggests that basal terrace geometries and coarse boulder lags common to many terrace sequences are likely the result of extreme flow events which are subsequently filled by lesser magnitude flood events, in this environmental setting. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Morphodynamic changes as an impact of human intervention at the Ras El-Bar-Damietta Harbor coast, NW Damietta Promontory, Nile Delta, Egypt

Due to the absence of a national strategic plan for coastal management, the Nile Delta coast is no longer described as a fully dissipative, divergent, low-gradient beach face composed of fine to very fine sand. Instead, new patterns have emerged depending on rock type, geomorphology of the coast, direction of the shoreline in relation to waves and current, and the implemented defense measures. This study attempts to record the morphodynamic changes which occurred due to human intervention. Landsat satellite images acquired for the periods of time of 1973, 1984, 1989, 2003, and 2015 are used together with geomorphologic observations in order to monitor the changes along the coastal strip between Ras El-Bar and Damietta Harbor. This study reveals two beach segments; one of which lies to the east, it is protected with detached breakwater system, and shows average shoreline accretions of +4.73 myr−1, +5.0 myr−1, and +0.89myr−1 during the periods of 1984–1998, 1998–2003, and 2003–2015 respectively. This segment still has the geomorphologic imprints of the dissipative beach, wave divergence, low-gradient beach face, fine grained sand and spilling breakers. The second is to the west, between the detached breakwaters and the eastern jetty of the Damietta Harbor. It is an erosional segment with shoreline retreat of −7.43 myr−1, −10.90 myr−1, and −3.11myr−1 for the same periods. This segment shows intermediate “d” beach or intermediate-reflective, wave convergence, rip currents, with the characteristic steep sloped and cuspate beach face, cliffy, reworked sediments of coarse grained sands, mud clasts, discoidal gravels, shelly beach, and plunging breakings. The presence of convergent waves along this segment confirms the concept of an emergence of a new wave pattern of reversed eddy which enhances the steepness of the beach face, accelerates erosion, and increases the possibility of drowning of swimmers at Ras El-Bar resort. Under such circumstances the plunge step approaches the shore and its shell content forced by wave to accumulate forming the shelly beach. To secure the coastal strip against erosion and sea level changes the detached breakwaters should be extended to reach the eastern jetty of the Damietta Harbor. The protection of this segment is a matter of interest for investment projects related to industries and trading along the Damietta Harbor as well as the touristic investments at Ras El-Bar, as one of the important tourist destinations in Egypt. Millions of pounds spent by beach visitors and investment annually provide significant input to local and regional economy. Hazards associated with the morphodynamic effects on recreational beaches can influence the suitably of any given stretch of coast as a recreational resource, and thus impact tourist money spent in addition to the safety and well-being of beach visitors.

Coastal Geomorphology and Ground Thermal Regime of the Varandey Area, Northern Russia

ABSTRACT Guegan, E.; Sinitsyn, A.; Kokin, O., and Ogorodov, S., 2016. Coastal geomorphology and ground thermal regime of the Varandey area, northern Russia. This study documents a regional summary of the present geomorphology of the Varandey area coastline of northern Russia. Fieldwork was undertaken over three seasons (2011–2013) and combined with observations from 1999. The Varandey area has morphologies varying from low-gradient, wide sandy shores with dune belts that reflect stable and aggrading coasts (where sandy shore processes govern the coastal dynamics) to subvertical coastal ice-rich bluffs and narrow beaches, which reveal active coastal recession (where cohesive shore processes are dominant). In addition to these geomorphological observations, the study documents a continuous ground temperature recorded from July 2011 through August 2013 by six thermistor strings installed on a 500-m-long transect perpendicular to the coast. The thermal regime of the ground in permafrost areas controls its mec...

The role of ice stream dynamics in deglaciation

AbstractSince the mid‐Pleistocene transition, deglaciation has occurred only after ice sheets have grown large while experiencing several precession and obliquity cycles, indicating that large ice sheets are more sensitive to Milankovitch forcing than small ice sheets are. Observations and model simulations suggest that the development of ice streams in the Laurentide Ice Sheet played an as yet unknown role in deglaciations. In this study, we propose a mechanism by which ice streams may enhance deglaciation and render large ice sheets more sensitive to Milankovitch forcing. We use an idealized configuration of the Parallel Ice Sheet Model that permits the formation of ice streams. When the ice sheet is large and ice streams are sufficiently developed, an upward shift in equilibrium line altitude, commensurate with Milankovitch forcing, results in rapid deglaciation, while the same shift applied to an ice sheet without fully formed ice streams results in continued ice sheet growth or slower deglaciation. Rapid deglaciation in ice sheets with significant streaming behavior is caused by ice stream acceleration and the attendant enhancement of calving and surface melting at low elevations. Ice stream acceleration is ultimately the result of steepening of the ice surface and increased driving stresses in ice stream onset zones, which come about due to the dependence of surface mass balance on elevation. These ice sheet simulations match the broad features of geomorphological observations and add ice stream dynamics that are missing from previous model studies of deglaciation.

Exploring Explanations of Subglacial Bedform Sizes Using Statistical Models

Sediments beneath modern ice sheets exert a key control on their flow, but are largely inaccessible except through geophysics or boreholes. In contrast, palaeo-ice sheet beds are accessible, and typically characterised by numerous bedforms. However, the interaction between bedforms and ice flow is poorly constrained and it is not clear how bedform sizes might reflect ice flow conditions. To better understand this link we present a first exploration of a variety of statistical models to explain the size distribution of some common subglacial bedforms (i.e., drumlins, ribbed moraine, MSGL). By considering a range of models, constructed to reflect key aspects of the physical processes, it is possible to infer that the size distributions are most effectively explained when the dynamics of ice-water-sediment interaction associated with bedform growth is fundamentally random. A ‘stochastic instability’ (SI) model, which integrates random bedform growth and shrinking through time with exponential growth, is preferred and is consistent with other observations of palaeo-bedforms and geophysical surveys of active ice sheets. Furthermore, we give a proof-of-concept demonstration that our statistical approach can bridge the gap between geomorphological observations and physical models, directly linking measurable size-frequency parameters to properties of ice sheet flow (e.g., ice velocity). Moreover, statistically developing existing models as proposed allows quantitative predictions to be made about sizes, making the models testable; a first illustration of this is given for a hypothesised repeat geophysical survey of bedforms under active ice. Thus, we further demonstrate the potential of size-frequency distributions of subglacial bedforms to assist the elucidation of subglacial processes and better constrain ice sheet models.

A Multi-Methodological Approach to Determine Permafrost Occurrence and Ground Surface Subsidence in Mountain Terrain, Tyrol, Austria

This study evaluates the potential of using high-resolution remote sensing data to detect permafrost patterns in a recently deglaciated alpine area on the mountain ridge of ‘Rofenberg’, Tyrol, Austria. Here, small but continuous settling of the surface was detected in differential digital terrain models throughout an annual airborne laser scanning (ALS) data series (2001–11). The settling is hypothesised to result from thawing of perennially frozen ground. To test this hypothesis, we applied a combination of established methods –geomorphological observations, permafrost modelling, near-surface ground temperature measurements (bottom of the winter snowpack and temperature logging) and geophysical surveys (electrical resistivity tomography, ground penetrating radar, seismic refraction) – that revealed the occurrence of permafrost in recently deglaciated terrain (above 3100 m asl). Consequently, the surface changes detected in the ALS data series are attributed to permafrost thaw and serve as a possible indicator of permafrost occurrence. The applied geophysical measurements also elucidate the recent development of permafrost after glacier recession since the Little Ice Age. However, to prove the existence of permafrost and its possible degradation, ALS data alone are insufficient and a combination of methods is recommended. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Relations between rainfall–runoff‐induced erosion and aeolian deposition at archaeological sites in a semi‐arid dam‐controlled river corridor

AbstractProcess dynamics in fluvial‐based dryland environments are highly complex with fluvial, aeolian, and alluvial processes all contributing to landscape change. When anthropogenic activities such as dam‐building affect fluvial processes, the complexity in local response can be further increased by flood‐ and sediment‐limiting flows. Understanding these complexities is key to predicting landscape behavior in drylands and has important scientific and management implications, including for studies related to paleoclimatology, landscape ecology evolution, and archaeological site context and preservation. Here we use multi‐temporal LiDAR surveys, local weather data, and geomorphological observations to identify trends in site change throughout the 446‐km‐long semi‐arid Colorado River corridor in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA, where archaeological site degradation related to the effects of upstream dam operation is a concern. Using several site case studies, we show the range of landscape responses that might be expected from concomitant occurrence of dam‐controlled fluvial sand bar deposition, aeolian sand transport, and rainfall‐induced erosion. Empirical rainfall‐erosion threshold analyses coupled with a numerical rainfall–runoff–soil erosion model indicate that infiltration‐excess overland flow and gullying govern large‐scale (centimeter‐ to decimeter‐scale) landscape changes, but that aeolian deposition can in some cases mitigate gully erosion. Whereas threshold analyses identify the normalized rainfall intensity (defined as the ratio of rainfall intensity to hydraulic conductivity) as the primary factor governing hydrologic‐driven erosion, assessment of false positives and false negatives in the dataset highlight topographic slope as the next most important parameter governing site response. Analysis of 4+ years of high resolution (four‐minute) weather data and 75+ years of low resolution (daily) climate records indicates that dryland erosion is dependent on short‐term, storm‐driven rainfall intensity rather than cumulative rainfall, and that erosion can occur outside of wet seasons and even wet years. These results can apply to other similar semi‐arid landscapes where process complexity may not be fully understood. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA

Cave development in an uplifting fold-and-thrust belt: case study of the Tatra Mountains, Poland

Detailed structural analysis and geomorphological observations supplemented by the analysis of the distribution of karst conduit directions have been performed in 23 morphologically diverse caves in the Tatra Mountains. Based on these studies, a development scheme of vadose cave passages has been proposed for the most common geological settings in the fold-and-thrust-belt: (1) single-plain faults, (2) multiple fault cores, (3) bedding plane fractures and (4) hinge zones of recumbent folds. Results indicate that the dynamics of the massif (local gravity sliding in the nearby slope zone and regional stress fields), along with the structural pattern, influences the predisposition of structural and stratigraphic discontinuities to karst drainage. Constant tectonic stress fields affected the massif during the entire speleogenesis. This led to the rejuvenation of the same displacements in successive tectonic events, which resulted in promoting this reactivated structures in successive speleogenetic phases. Structures along which older cave levels had developed were also utilized later by vadose and phreatic drainage, leading to the intersection of the vadose passages with elevated paleo-phreatic cave levels. Independently, formation of entirely vadose caves, guided by the same group of weak and rejuvenated planes, was enabled. In the Tatras, the concentric and recumbent geometry of the main folds resulted in steep dipping of the bedding planes over a distance up to a few hundred meters which makes the bedding plane fractures subject to karst water circulation in these geologic and geodynamic settings.

Quaternary faulting in the Tatra Mountains, evidence from cave morphology and fault-slip analysis

Abstract Tectonically deformed cave passages in the Tatra Mts (Central Western Carpathians) indicate some fault activity during the Quaternary. Displacements occur in the youngest passages of the caves indicating (based on previous U-series dating of speleothems) an Eemian or younger age for those faults, and so one tectonic stage. On the basis of stress analysis and geomorphological observations, two different mechanisms are proposed as responsible for the development of these displacements. The first mechanism concerns faults that are located above the valley bottom and at a short distance from the surface, with fault planes oriented sub-parallel to the slopes. The radial, horizontal extension and vertical σ1 which is identical with gravity, indicate that these faults are the result of gravity sliding probably caused by relaxation after incision of valleys, and not directly from tectonic activity. The second mechanism is tilting of the Tatra Mts. The faults operated under WNW-ESE oriented extension with σ1 plunging steeply toward the west. Such a stress field led to normal dip-slip or oblique-slip displacements. The faults are located under the valley bottom and/or opposite or oblique to the slopes. The process involved the pre-existing weakest planes in the rock complex: (i) in massive limestone mostly faults and fractures, (ii) in thin-bedded limestone mostly inter-bedding planes. Thin-bedded limestones dipping steeply to the south are of particular interest. Tilting toward the N caused the hanging walls to move under the massif and not toward the valley, proving that the cause of these movements was tectonic activity and not gravity.