Author: Martin David HurstPublisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
Book Description
Hillslope Morphology as an Indicator of Landscape Evolution in Tectonically Active Landscapes
Author: Martin David HurstHillslope Morphology as an Indicator of Landscape Evolution in Tectonically Active Landscapes
Author: Martin D. HurstTopographic, Experimental and Numerical Investigations of Nonlinear Sediment Transport and Hillslope Evolution
Author: Joshua Joseph RoeringPublisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
Bedrock Fracture Spacing Controls on Hillslope and Channel Erosion in Steep Landscapes
Author: Alexander NeelyPublisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :
Book Description
Steep topography is commonly associated with rapid rates of tectonic uplift, erosion, and a higher risk of geologic hazards; however, steep topography can also be supported in tectonically inactive regions by bedrock that resist erosion. Distinguishing between steep, tectonically active, landscapes and steep tectonically-dormant landscapes underlain by resistant bedrock, requires and understanding of how rock material properties affect the relationship between topography and erosion. Bedrock fractures reduce rock strength by orders of magnitude relative to intact rock samples and control the size of detached sediment that must be transported; therefore, bedrock fractures serve as a measureable rock strength property that can be coupled to erosional process. Here, I compare topography and erosion rates between two mountain ranges that have similar topographic and climatic drivers of erosion, but large differences in bedrock fracture density. I use new structure-from-motion photogrammetry remote-sensing techniques to measure fracture spacing at high resolution and over large spatial scales, and I show how measurements of bedrock fracture density can be incorporated into conceptual models that describe the erosion of hillslopes, debris-flow dominated channels, and fluvial rivers. I highlight three findings: (1) for a given hillslope morphology, higher bedrock fracture density increases soil cover, soil transport, and hillslope erosion; (2) higher bedrock fracture density reduces the grain size of sediment supplied to rivers; and (3) reduced sediment grain size resulting from denser bedrock fracture spacing increases the mobility of sediment, which leads to more frequent sediment transport and river incision. While tectonic processes generate topographic relief through rock uplift, tectonic fracturing also lowers topographic relief by reducing sediment grain size and bedrock strength. This feedback may lead to a dichotomy where high-relief topography either reflects young, tectonically-active landscapes with densely fractured bedrock, or tectonically-inactive landscapes underlain by sparsely-fractured crystalline bedrock exhumed as the core of ancient mountain ranges.
Tectonic Geomorphology
Author: Douglas W. BurbankPublisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1444345044
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 494
Book Description
Tectonic geomorphology is the study of the interplay between tectonic and surface processes that shape the landscape in regions of active deformation and at time scales ranging from days to millions of years. Over the past decade, recent advances in the quantification of both rates and the physical basis of tectonic and surface processes have underpinned an explosion of new research in the field of tectonic geomorphology. Modern tectonic geomorphology is an exceptionally integrative field that utilizes techniques and data derived from studies of geomorphology, seismology, geochronology, structure, geodesy, stratigraphy, meteorology and Quaternary science. While integrating new insights and highlighting controversies from the ten years of research since the 1st edition, this 2nd edition of Tectonic Geomorphology reviews the fundamentals of the subject, including the nature of faulting and folding, the creation and use of geomorphic markers for tracing deformation, chronological techniques that are used to date events and quantify rates, geodetic techniques for defining recent deformation, and paleoseismologic approaches to calibrate past deformation. Overall, this book focuses on the current understanding of the dynamic interplay between surface processes and active tectonics. As it ranges from the timescales of individual earthquakes to the growth and decay of mountain belts, this book provides a timely synthesis of modern research for upper-level undergraduate and graduate earth science students and for practicing geologists. Additional resources for this book can be found at: www.wiley.com/go/burbank/geomorphology.
Controlled Experiments of Hillslope Coevolution at the Biosphere 2 Landscape Evolution Observatory: Toward Prediction of Coupled Hydrological, Biogeochemical, and Ecological Change
Author: Till H. M.Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages :
Book Description
Understanding the process interactions and feedbacks among water, porous geological media, microbes, and vascular plants is crucial for improving predictions of the response of Earth's critical zone to future climatic conditions. However, the integrated coevolution of landscapes under change is notoriously difficult to investigate. Laboratory studies are limited in spatial and temporal scale, while field studies lack observational density and control. To bridge the gap between controlled laboratory and uncontrollable field studies, the University of Arizona built a macrocosm experiment of unprecedented scale: the Landscape Evolution Observatory (LEO). LEO comprises three replicated, heavily instrumented, hillslope-scale model landscapes within the environmentally controlled Biosphere 2 facility. The model landscapes were designed to initially be simple and purely abiotic, enabling scientists to observe each step in the landscapes' evolution as they undergo physical, chemical, and biological changes over many years. This chapter describes the model systems and associated research facilities and illustrates how LEO allows for tracking of multiscale matter and energy fluxes at a level of detail impossible in field experiments. Initial sensor, sampler, and soil coring data are already providing insights into the tight linkages between water flow, weathering, and microbial community development. These interacting processes are anticipated to drive the model systems to increasingly complex states and will be impacted by the introduction of vascular plants and changes in climatic regimes over the years to come. By intensively monitoring the evolutionary trajectory, integrating data with mathematical models, and fostering community-wide collaborations, we envision that emergent landscape structures and functions can be linked, and significant progress can be made toward predicting the coupled hydro-biogeochemical and ecological responses to global change.
Catastrophic Landslides
Author: Stephen G. EvansPublisher: Geological Society of America
ISBN: 0813741157
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 420
Book Description
This volume documents advances in our knowledge of catastrophic landslides, providing a worldwide survey of catastrophic landslide events. It draws on South America to illustrate dramatically the impact of these phenomena on human populations. The occurrence of catastrophic landslides, including site-specific insights, is shown through six events of the past 20 years. Several other chapters focus on the mechanisms involved with catastrophic landsides both in relation to geologic factors in a particular geographic area as well as to specific geologic processes.
Landscapes on the Edge
Author: National Research CouncilPublisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309140242
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 180
Book Description
During geologic spans of time, Earth's shifting tectonic plates, atmosphere, freezing water, thawing ice, flowing rivers, and evolving life have shaped Earth's surface features. The resulting hills, mountains, valleys, and plains shelter ecosystems that interact with all life and provide a record of Earth surface processes that extend back through Earth's history. Despite rapidly growing scientific knowledge of Earth surface interactions, and the increasing availability of new monitoring technologies, there is still little understanding of how these processes generate and degrade landscapes. Landscapes on the Edge identifies nine grand challenges in this emerging field of study and proposes four high-priority research initiatives. The book poses questions about how our planet's past can tell us about its future, how landscapes record climate and tectonics, and how Earth surface science can contribute to developing a sustainable living surface for future generations.
Tectonically Active Landscapes
Author: William B. BullPublisher: Wiley-Blackwell
ISBN:
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 344
Book Description
This book explores how mountainous landscapes respond to tectonic deformation. It integrates previously unpublished concepts and ideas with recent articles about hills and streams. Readers will learn which landforms change quickly in response to uplift, which parts of the landscape are slowest to adjust to tectonic perturbations, and which landform characteristics are most useful for describing tectonically active and inactive terrains. Study areas include diverse landscapes and tectonic settings: seacoasts, soil-mantled hills, and lofty mountains. The humid Southern Alps of New Zealand change quickly because of rapid uplift and erosion. The semiarid Panamint Range of southeastern California has such miniscule annual stream power that tectonic landforms persist for millions of years. Tectonically Active Landscapes addresses diverse key topics about tectonics and topography. It is essential reading for research geologists and advance-level undergraduate and graduate students in the earth sciences.
Tectonics, Climate, and Landscape Evolution
Author: Sean D. WillettPublisher: Geological Society of America
ISBN: 0813723981
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 464
Book Description
"The Liwu River runs a short course; its channel head at the water divide in Taiwan's Central Range is a mere 35 km from its outflow into the Pacific Ocean. But in those short 35 km, the Liwu has carved one of the world's geographic wonders: the spectacular Taroko Gorge with marble and granite walls soaring nearly 1000 m above the river channel. Taroko Gorge was a fitting venue for a 2003 Penrose Conference that addressed the coupled processes of tectonics, climate, and landscape evolution. The young mountains, extreme weather, and dramatic landforms provided an appropriate backdrop to wide-ranging discussions of geomorphic processes, climate and meteorology, sediment generation and transport, the effects of erosion on tectonics, and new analytical and modeling tools used to address these processes and problems. This volume's papers extend that discussion, reaching across fields that have experienced rapid advances in the past decade."--Publisher's website.