Articles | Volume 12, issue 6
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024
© Author(s) 2024. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Short communication
| 
04 Nov 2024
Short communication |
| 04 Nov 2024
| 04 Nov 2024
Short Communication: Numerically simulated time to steady state is not a reliable measure of landscape response time
Earth and Environmental Sciences Department, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
Adam M. Forte
Department of Geology & Geophysics, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
Katherine R. Barnhart
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
Department of Geological Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
now at: US Geological Survey, Geologic Hazards Science Center, Golden, CO, USA
Related authors
Angel D. Monsalve, Samuel R. Anderson, Nicole M. Gasparini, and Elowyn M. Yager
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 3427–3451, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3427-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3427-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Rivers shape landscapes by moving sediments and changing their beds, but existing computer models oversimplify these processes by only considering erosion. We developed new software that simulates how rivers transport sediments and change over time through both erosion and deposition. This helps scientists and engineers better predict river behavior for water management, flood prevention, and ecosystem protection.
Sam Anderson, Nicole Gasparini, and Joel Johnson
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 995–1011, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-995-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-995-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We measured rock strength and amount of fracturing in the two different rock types, sandstones and carbonates, in Last Chance Canyon, New Mexico, USA. Where there is more carbonate bedrock, hills and channels steepen in Last Chance Canyon. This is because the carbonate-type bedrock tends to be more thickly bedded, is less fractured, and is stronger. The carbonate bedrock produces larger boulders than the sandstone bedrock, which can protect the more fractured sandstone bedrock from erosion.
Nathan J. Lyons, Pedro Val, James S. Albert, Jane K. Willenbring, and Nicole M. Gasparini
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 893–912, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-893-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-893-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Organisms evolve in ever-changing environments under complex process interactions. We applied a new software modelling tool to assess how changes in river course impact the evolution of riverine species. Models illustrate the climatically and tectonically forced landscape changes that can drive riverine biodiversity, especially where topographic relief is low. This research demonstrates that river course changes can contribute to the high riverine biodiversity found in real-world lowland basins.
Katherine R. Barnhart, Eric W. H. Hutton, Gregory E. Tucker, Nicole M. Gasparini, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, Daniel E. J. Hobley, Nathan J. Lyons, Margaux Mouchene, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Jordan M. Adams, and Christina Bandaragoda
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 379–397, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Landlab is a Python package to support the creation of numerical models in Earth surface dynamics. Since the release of the 1.0 version in 2017, Landlab has grown and evolved: it contains 31 new process components, a refactored model grid, and additional utilities. This contribution describes the new elements of Landlab, discusses why certain backward-compatiblity-breaking changes were made, and reflects on the process of community open-source software development.
Ronda Strauch, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Christina Bandaragoda, Nicole M. Gasparini, and Gregory E. Tucker
Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 49–75, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-49-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-49-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
We develop a model of annual probability of shallow landslide initiation triggered by soil water from a hydrologic model. Our physically based model accommodates data uncertainty using a Monte Carlo approach. We found elevation-dependent patterns in probability related to the stabilizing effect of forests and soil and slope limitation at high elevations. We demonstrate our model in Washington, USA, but it is designed to run elsewhere with available data for risk planning using the Landlab.
Jordan M. Adams, Nicole M. Gasparini, Daniel E. J. Hobley, Gregory E. Tucker, Eric W. H. Hutton, Sai S. Nudurupati, and Erkan Istanbulluoglu
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 1645–1663, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-1645-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-1645-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
OverlandFlow is a 2-dimensional hydrology component contained within the Landlab modeling framework. It can be applied in both hydrology and geomorphology applications across real and synthetic landscape grids, for both short- and long-term events. This paper finds that this non-steady hydrology regime produces different landscape characteristics when compared to more traditional steady-state hydrology and geomorphology models, suggesting that hydrology regime can impact resulting morphologies.
Daniel E. J. Hobley, Jordan M. Adams, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Eric W. H. Hutton, Nicole M. Gasparini, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, and Gregory E. Tucker
Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 21–46, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-21-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-21-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Many geoscientists use computer models to understand changes in the Earth's system. However, typically each scientist will build their own model from scratch. This paper describes Landlab, a new piece of open-source software designed to simplify creation and use of models of the Earth's surface. It provides off-the-shelf tools to work with models more efficiently, with less duplication of effort. The paper explains and justifies how Landlab works, and describes some models built with it.
Angel D. Monsalve, Samuel R. Anderson, Nicole M. Gasparini, and Elowyn M. Yager
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 3427–3451, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3427-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-3427-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Rivers shape landscapes by moving sediments and changing their beds, but existing computer models oversimplify these processes by only considering erosion. We developed new software that simulates how rivers transport sediments and change over time through both erosion and deposition. This helps scientists and engineers better predict river behavior for water management, flood prevention, and ecosystem protection.
Alexander B. Prescott, Luke A. McGuire, Kwang-Sung Jun, Katherine R. Barnhart, and Nina S. Oakley
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2359–2374, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-2359-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-2359-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Fire can dramatically increase the risk of debris flows to downstream communities with little warning, but hazard assessments have not traditionally included estimates of inundation. We unify models developed by the scientific community to create probabilistic estimates of inundation area in response to rainfall at forecast lead times (≥ 24 h) needed for decision-making. This work takes an initial step toward a near-real-time postfire debris-flow inundation hazard assessment product.
Francis K. Rengers, Samuel Bower, Andrew Knapp, Jason W. Kean, Danielle W. vonLembke, Matthew A. Thomas, Jaime Kostelnik, Katherine R. Barnhart, Matthew Bethel, Joseph E. Gartner, Madeline Hille, Dennis M. Staley, Justin K. Anderson, Elizabeth K. Roberts, Stephen B. DeLong, Belize Lane, Paxton Ridgway, and Brendan P. Murphy
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2093–2114, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-2093-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-2093-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Every year the U.S. Geological Survey produces 50–100 postfire debris-flow hazard assessments using models for debris-flow likelihood and volume. To refine these models they must be tested with datasets that clearly document rainfall, debris-flow response, and debris-flow volume. These datasets are difficult to obtain, but this study developed and analyzed a postfire dataset with more than 100 postfire storm responses over a 2-year period. We also proposed ways to improve these models.
Katherine R. Barnhart, Christopher R. Miller, Francis K. Rengers, and Jason W. Kean
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1459–1483, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1459-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1459-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Debris flows are a type of fast-moving landslide that start from shallow landslides or during intense rain. Infrastructure located downstream of watersheds susceptible to debris flows may be damaged should a debris flow reach them. We present and evaluate an approach to forecast building damage caused by debris flows. We test three alternative models for simulating the motion of debris flows and find that only one can forecast the correct number and spatial pattern of damaged buildings.
Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Odin Marc, William Struble, and Katherine R. Barnhart
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 1117–1143, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1117-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1117-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Debris flows are mixtures of mud and rocks that can travel at high speeds across steep landscapes. Here, we propose a new model to describe how landscapes are shaped by debris flow erosion over long timescales. Model results demonstrate that the shapes of channel profiles are sensitive to uplift rate, meaning that it may be possible to use topographic data from steep channel networks to infer how erosion rates vary across a landscape.
Sam Anderson, Nicole Gasparini, and Joel Johnson
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 995–1011, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-995-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-995-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We measured rock strength and amount of fracturing in the two different rock types, sandstones and carbonates, in Last Chance Canyon, New Mexico, USA. Where there is more carbonate bedrock, hills and channels steepen in Last Chance Canyon. This is because the carbonate-type bedrock tends to be more thickly bedded, is less fractured, and is stronger. The carbonate bedrock produces larger boulders than the sandstone bedrock, which can protect the more fractured sandstone bedrock from erosion.
Francis K. Rengers, Luke A. McGuire, Katherine R. Barnhart, Ann M. Youberg, Daniel Cadol, Alexander N. Gorr, Olivia J. Hoch, Rebecca Beers, and Jason W. Kean
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2075–2088, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2075-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2075-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Debris flows often occur after wildfires. These debris flows move water, sediment, and wood. The wood can get stuck in channels, creating a dam that holds boulders, cobbles, sand, and muddy material. We investigated how the channel width and wood length influenced how much sediment is stored. We also used a series of equations to back calculate the debris flow speed using the breaking threshold of wood. These data will help improve models and provide insight into future field investigations.
Gregory E. Tucker, Eric W. H. Hutton, Mark D. Piper, Benjamin Campforts, Tian Gan, Katherine R. Barnhart, Albert J. Kettner, Irina Overeem, Scott D. Peckham, Lynn McCready, and Jaia Syvitski
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 1413–1439, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1413-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1413-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Scientists use computer simulation models to understand how Earth surface processes work, including floods, landslides, soil erosion, river channel migration, ocean sedimentation, and coastal change. Research benefits when the software for simulation modeling is open, shared, and coordinated. The Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System (CSDMS) is a US-based facility that supports research by providing community support, computing tools and guidelines, and educational resources.
Nathan J. Lyons, Pedro Val, James S. Albert, Jane K. Willenbring, and Nicole M. Gasparini
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 893–912, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-893-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-893-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Organisms evolve in ever-changing environments under complex process interactions. We applied a new software modelling tool to assess how changes in river course impact the evolution of riverine species. Models illustrate the climatically and tectonically forced landscape changes that can drive riverine biodiversity, especially where topographic relief is low. This research demonstrates that river course changes can contribute to the high riverine biodiversity found in real-world lowland basins.
Katherine R. Barnhart, Eric W. H. Hutton, Gregory E. Tucker, Nicole M. Gasparini, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, Daniel E. J. Hobley, Nathan J. Lyons, Margaux Mouchene, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Jordan M. Adams, and Christina Bandaragoda
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 379–397, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Landlab is a Python package to support the creation of numerical models in Earth surface dynamics. Since the release of the 1.0 version in 2017, Landlab has grown and evolved: it contains 31 new process components, a refactored model grid, and additional utilities. This contribution describes the new elements of Landlab, discusses why certain backward-compatiblity-breaking changes were made, and reflects on the process of community open-source software development.
Katherine R. Barnhart, Rachel C. Glade, Charles M. Shobe, and Gregory E. Tucker
Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 1267–1297, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-1267-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-1267-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Terrainbento 1.0 is a Python package for modeling the evolution of the surface of the Earth over geologic time (e.g., thousands to millions of years). Despite many decades of effort by the geomorphology community, there is no one established governing equation for the evolution of topography. Terrainbento 1.0 thus provides 28 alternative models that support hypothesis testing and multi-model analysis in landscape evolution.
Adam M. Forte and Kelin X. Whipple
Earth Surf. Dynam., 7, 87–95, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-7-87-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-7-87-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Quantitative analysis of digital topography is an important part of many modern geologic investigations. We have constructed a series of software tools, the Topographic Analysis Kit (TAK), built on top of the existing TopoToolbox library, to allow for efficient and easy analysis of topography that limits the required computing and domain-specific knowledge necessary to successfully produce robust analyses of topographic data.
Ronda Strauch, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Christina Bandaragoda, Nicole M. Gasparini, and Gregory E. Tucker
Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 49–75, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-49-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-49-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
We develop a model of annual probability of shallow landslide initiation triggered by soil water from a hydrologic model. Our physically based model accommodates data uncertainty using a Monte Carlo approach. We found elevation-dependent patterns in probability related to the stabilizing effect of forests and soil and slope limitation at high elevations. We demonstrate our model in Washington, USA, but it is designed to run elsewhere with available data for risk planning using the Landlab.
Charles M. Shobe, Gregory E. Tucker, and Katherine R. Barnhart
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 4577–4604, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-4577-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-4577-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Rivers control the movement of sediment and nutrients across Earth's surface. Understanding how rivers change through time is important for mitigating natural hazards and predicting Earth's response to climate change. We develop a new computer model for predicting how rivers cut through sediment and rock. Our model is designed to be joined with models of flooding, landslides, vegetation change, and other factors to provide a comprehensive toolbox for predicting changes to the landscape.
Jordan M. Adams, Nicole M. Gasparini, Daniel E. J. Hobley, Gregory E. Tucker, Eric W. H. Hutton, Sai S. Nudurupati, and Erkan Istanbulluoglu
Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 1645–1663, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-1645-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-1645-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
OverlandFlow is a 2-dimensional hydrology component contained within the Landlab modeling framework. It can be applied in both hydrology and geomorphology applications across real and synthetic landscape grids, for both short- and long-term events. This paper finds that this non-steady hydrology regime produces different landscape characteristics when compared to more traditional steady-state hydrology and geomorphology models, suggesting that hydrology regime can impact resulting morphologies.
Daniel E. J. Hobley, Jordan M. Adams, Sai Siddhartha Nudurupati, Eric W. H. Hutton, Nicole M. Gasparini, Erkan Istanbulluoglu, and Gregory E. Tucker
Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 21–46, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-21-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-21-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Many geoscientists use computer models to understand changes in the Earth's system. However, typically each scientist will build their own model from scratch. This paper describes Landlab, a new piece of open-source software designed to simplify creation and use of models of the Earth's surface. It provides off-the-shelf tools to work with models more efficiently, with less duplication of effort. The paper explains and justifies how Landlab works, and describes some models built with it.
K. R. Barnhart, I. Overeem, and R. S. Anderson
The Cryosphere, 8, 1777–1799, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1777-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-8-1777-2014, 2014
Related subject area
Physical: Landscape Evolution: modelling and field studies
A fractal framework for channel–hillslope coupling
Hillslope diffusion and channel steepness in landscape evolution models
Modeling memory in gravel-bed rivers: A flow history-dependent relation for evolving thresholds of motion
Old orogen – young topography: lithological contrasts controlling erosion and relief formation in the Bohemian Massif
Channel concavity controls planform complexity of branching drainage networks
Knickpoints and fixed points: the evolution of fluvial morphology under the combined effect of fault uplift and dam obstruction on a soft bedrock river
GraphFlood 1.0: an efficient algorithm to approximate 2D hydrodynamics for landscape evolution models
Modeling the formation of toma hills based on fluid dynamics with a modified Voellmy rheology
A numerical model of microplastic erosion, transport, and deposition for fluvial systems
Drainage rearrangement in an intra-continental mountain belt: a case study from the central South Tian Shan, Kyrgyzstan
The roles of surface processes on porphyry copper deposits preservation
Autogenic vs Subsidence Controls on Grain Size Fining through Multi-Channel Landscape Evolution Modelling
Flexural isostatic response of continental-scale deltas to climatically driven sea level changes
Scaling between volume and runout of rock avalanches explained by a modified Voellmy rheology
Past anthropogenic land use change caused a regime shift of the fluvial response to Holocene climate change in the Chinese Loess Plateau
Steady-state forms of channel profiles shaped by debris flow and fluvial processes
Refining patterns of melt with forward stratigraphic models of stable Pleistocene coastlines
Optimising global landscape evolution models with 10Be
Self-organization of channels and hillslopes in models of fluvial landform evolution and its potential for solving scaling issues
Stream laws in analog tectonic-landscape models
A control volume finite-element model for predicting the morphology of cohesive-frictional debris flow deposits
Erosion and weathering in carbonate regions reveal climatic and tectonic drivers of carbonate landscape evolution
Patterns and rates of soil movement and shallow failures across several small watersheds on the Seward Peninsula, Alaska
River incision, 10Be production and transport in a source-to-sink sediment system (Var catchment, SW Alps)
Simulating the effect of subsurface drainage on the thermal regime and ground ice in blocky terrain in Norway
An experimental study of drainage network development by surface and subsurface flow in low-gradient landscapes
The push and pull of abandoned channels: how floodplain processes and healing affect avulsion dynamics and alluvial landscape evolution in foreland basins
Climate changes and the formation of fluvial terraces in central Amazonia inferred from landscape evolution modeling
Investigation of stochastic-threshold incision models across a climatic and morphological gradient
Comparing the transport-limited and ξ–q models for sediment transport
Autogenic knickpoints in laboratory landscape experiments
Transmissivity and groundwater flow exert a strong influence on drainage density
Graphically interpreting how incision thresholds influence topographic and scaling properties of modeled landscapes
Escarpment retreat rates derived from detrital cosmogenic nuclide concentrations
Hilltop curvature as a proxy for erosion rate: wavelets enable rapid computation and reveal systematic underestimation
Short communication: Analytical models for 2D landscape evolution
Effect of rock uplift and Milankovitch timescale variations in precipitation and vegetation cover on catchment erosion rates
Modeling glacial and fluvial landform evolution at large scales using a stream-power approach
Topographic disequilibrium, landscape dynamics and active tectonics: an example from the Bhutan Himalaya
Last-glacial-cycle glacier erosion potential in the Alps
The rate and extent of wind-gap migration regulated by tributary confluences and avulsions
Inferring potential landslide damming using slope stability, geomorphic constraints, and run-out analysis: a case study from the NW Himalaya
Groundwater erosion of coastal gullies along the Canterbury coast (New Zealand): a rapid and episodic process controlled by rainfall intensity and substrate variability
Erosional response of granular material in landscape models
Transport-limited fluvial erosion – simple formulation and efficient numerical treatment
Dimensional analysis of a landscape evolution model with incision threshold
Computing water flow through complex landscapes – Part 2: Finding hierarchies in depressions and morphological segmentations
Rivers as linear elements in landform evolution models
Interactions between main channels and tributary alluvial fans: channel adjustments and sediment-signal propagation
Drainage divide networks – Part 1: Identification and ordering in digital elevation models
Benjamin Kargère, José Constantine, Tristram Hales, Stuart Grieve, and Stewart Johnson
Earth Surf. Dynam., 13, 403–415, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-403-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-403-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
In this study, we analyze contributing drainage regions, a proxy for discharge in channel–hillslope coupling using landscape evolution models. We present a fractal framework which reveals that drainage area is not well defined for steady-state unchannelized locations. This clarifies the interaction between geomorphic parameters and grid resolution, furthering our understanding of channel–hillslope interactions in both computational and real-world settings.
David G. Litwin, Luca C. Malatesta, and Leonard S. Sklar
Earth Surf. Dynam., 13, 277–293, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-277-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-277-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Channel–hillslope coupling in landscape evolution models can strongly affect channel profiles. When hillslope diffusion is applied everywhere and only topography is tracked, a new scaling predicts how detachment-limited channels steepen with hillslope diffusion. Field data support channel steepening to transport sediment but not as predicted by the scaling, highlighting the need for a critical inspection of channel–hillslope coupling approaches.
Claire C. Masteller, Joel P. L. Johnson, Dieter Rickenmann, and Jens M. Turowski
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3250, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3250, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a novel model that predicts the how gravel riverbeds may evolve in response to differences in the frequency and severity of flood events. We test our model using a 23-year long record of river flow and gravel transport from the Swiss Prealps. We find that our model reliably captures yearly patterns in gravel transport in this setting. Our new model is a major advance towards better predictions of river erosion that account for the flood history of a gravel bed river.
Jörg Christian Robl, Fabian Dremel, Kurt Stüwe, Stefan Hergarten, Christoph von Hagke, and Derek Fabel
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3256, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3256, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The Bohemian Massif is one of several low mountain ranges in Europe, which rises more than 1 km above the surrounding lowlands. Landscape characteristics indicate relief rejuvenation due to recent surface uplift. To constrain the pace of relief formation we determined erosion rates of 20 catchments that range from 22 to 51 m per million years. Correlating these rates with topographic properties reveals that contrasts in bedrock erodibility represent a critical control of landscape evolution.
Liran Goren and Eitan Shelef
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1347–1369, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1347-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1347-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
To explore the pattern formed by rivers as they crisscross the land, we developed a way to measure how these patterns vary, from straight to complex, winding paths. We discovered that a river's degree of complexity depends on how the river slope changes downstream. Although this is strange (i.e., why would changes in slope affect twists of a river in map view?), we show that this dependency is almost inevitable and that the complexity could signify how arid the climate is or used to be.
Hung-En Chen, Yen-Yu Chiu, Chih-Yuan Cheng, and Su-Chin Chen
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1329–1346, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1329-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1329-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study explores the fluvial morphology evolution in three rivers in Taiwan caused by natural tectonic movements (the 1999 Mw 7.6 Chi-Chi earthquake) and human-made structures (dams). Knickpoints resulting from riverbed uplift shift, leading to gradual evolution from instability to equilibrium. Dams, on the other hand, cause continuous degradation of the bed. When both effects exist on a reach, the impact of the knickpoint gradually fades away, but the effects of the dam on the river persist.
Boris Gailleton, Philippe Steer, Philippe Davy, Wolfgang Schwanghart, and Thomas Bernard
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1295–1313, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1295-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1295-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We use cutting-edge algorithms and conceptual simplifications to solve the equations that describe surface water flow. Using quantitative data on rainfall and elevation, GraphFlood calculates river width and depth and approximates erosive power, making it a suitable tool for large-scale hazard management and understanding the relationship between rivers and mountains.
Stefan Hergarten
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1193–1203, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1193-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1193-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Toma hills are relatively isolated hills found in the deposits of rock avalanches, and their origin is still enigmatic. This paper presents the results of numerical simulations based on a modified version of a friction law that was originally introduced for snow avalanches. The model produces more or less isolated hills (which look much like toma hills) on the valley floor. The results provide, perhaps, the first explanation of the occurrence of toma hills based on a numerical model.
John J. Armitage and Sébastien Rohais
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3696866/v2, https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3696866/v2, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Rivers transport microplastic pollution from its source to its eventual marine sink. Rivers are not simple conveyor belts of this pollution. Microplastic will become entrained within the sediments, becoming part of the river catchment environment. We develop a reduced complexity model to capture the transport and deposition of microplastic. By comparing our model to observations from the Têt River, France, we find that large quantities of microplastic must be stored within the river sediments.
Lingxiao Gong, Peter van der Beek, Taylor F. Schildgen, Edward R. Sobel, Simone Racano, Apolline Mariotti, and Fergus McNab
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 973–994, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-973-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-973-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We choose the large Saryjaz river from South Tian Shan to analyse topographic and fluvial metrics. By quantifying the spatial distribution of major metrics and comparing with modelling patterns, we suggest that the observed transience was triggered by a big capture event during the Plio-Pleistocene and potentially affected by both tectonic and climate factors. This conclusion underlines the importance of local contingent factors in driving drainage development.
Beatriz Hadler Boggiani, Tristan Salles, Claire Mallard, and Nicholas Atwood
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1868, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1868, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We studied how erosion and tectonic forces can affect the exposure and preservation of copper deposits formed in subduction zones in the past 65 million years. We used a global model that simulates landscape changes over time based on climate and elevation changes. Our findings show that climate is more important in preserving or exposing copper deposits than previously described. We help improve methods for locating copper deposits offering new insights for mineral exploration.
Amanda Lily Wild, Jean Braun, Alexander C. Whittaker, and Sebastien Castelltort
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-351, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-351, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Sediments deposited within river channels form the stratigraphic record, which has been used to interpret tectonic events, basin subsidence, and changes in precipitation long after ancient mountain chains have eroded away. Our work combines methods for estimating gravel fining with a landscape evolution model in order to analyze the grain size preserved within the stratigraphic record with greater complexity (e.g. considering topography and channel dynamics) than past approaches.
Sara Polanco, Mike Blum, Tristan Salles, Bruce C. Frederick, Rebecca Farrington, Xuesong Ding, Ben Mather, Claire Mallard, and Louis Moresi
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 301–320, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-301-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-301-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Two-thirds of the world's most populated cities are situated close to deltas. We use computer simulations to understand how deltas sink or rise in response to climate-driven sea level changes that operate from thousands to millions of years. Our research shows that because of the interaction between the outer layers of the Earth, sediment transport, and sea level changes deltas develop a self-regulated mechanism that modifies the space they need to gain or lose land.
Stefan Hergarten
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 219–229, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-219-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-219-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Large landslides turn into an avalanche-like mode of flow at high velocities, which allows for a much longer runout than predicted for a sliding solid body. In this study, the Voellmy rheology widely used in models for hazard assessment is reinterpreted and extended. The new approach predicts the increase in runout length with volume observed in nature quite well and may thus be a major step towards a more consistent modeling of rock avalanches and improved hazard assessment.
Hao Chen, Xianyan Wang, Yanyan Yu, Huayu Lu, and Ronald Van Balen
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 163–180, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-163-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-163-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The Wei River catchment, one of the centers of the agricultural revolution in China, has experienced intense land use changes since 6000 BCE. This makes it an ideal place to study the response of river systems to anthropogenic land use change. Modeling results show the sensitivity of discharge and sediment yield to climate change increased abruptly when the agricultural land area exceeded a threshold at around 1000 BCE. This regime shift in the fluvial catchment led to a large sediment pulse.
Luke A. McGuire, Scott W. McCoy, Odin Marc, William Struble, and Katherine R. Barnhart
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 1117–1143, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1117-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1117-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Debris flows are mixtures of mud and rocks that can travel at high speeds across steep landscapes. Here, we propose a new model to describe how landscapes are shaped by debris flow erosion over long timescales. Model results demonstrate that the shapes of channel profiles are sensitive to uplift rate, meaning that it may be possible to use topographic data from steep channel networks to infer how erosion rates vary across a landscape.
Patrick Boyden, Paolo Stocchi, and Alessio Rovere
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 917–931, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-917-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-917-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Preservation bias often hampers the extraction of sea level changes from the stratigraphic record. In this contribution, we use a forward stratigraphic model to build three synthetic subtropical fringing reefs for a site in southwestern Madagascar (Indian Ocean). Each of the three synthetic reefs represents a different ice sheet melt scenario for the Pleistocene. We then evaluate each resultant reef sequence against the observed stratigraphic record.
Gregory A. Ruetenik, John D. Jansen, Pedro Val, and Lotta Ylä-Mella
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 865–880, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-865-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-865-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We compare models of erosion against a global compilation of long-term erosion rates in order to find and interpret best-fit parameters using an iterative search. We find global signals among exponents which control the relationship between erosion rate and slope, as well as other parameters which are common in long-term erosion modelling. Finally, we analyse the global variability in parameters and find a correlation between precipitation and coefficients for optimised models.
Stefan Hergarten and Alexa Pietrek
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 741–755, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-741-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-741-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The transition from hillslopes to channelized flow is typically attributed to a threshold catchment size in landform evolution models. Here we propose an alternative concept directly based on topography. Using this concept, channels and hillslopes self-organize, whereby the catchment size of the channel heads varies over some range. Our numerical results suggest that this concept works better than the established idea of a strict threshold catchment size.
Riccardo Reitano, Romano Clementucci, Ethan M. Conrad, Fabio Corbi, Riccardo Lanari, Claudio Faccenna, and Chiara Bazzucchi
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 731–740, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-731-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-731-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Tectonics and surface processes work together in shaping orogens through their evolution. Laboratory models are used to overcome some limitations of direct observations since they allow for continuous and detailed analysis of analog orogens. We use a rectangular box filled with an analog material made of granular materials to study how erosional laws apply and how erosion affects the analog landscape as a function of the applied boundary conditions (regional slope and rainfall rate).
Tzu-Yin Kasha Chen, Ying-Chen Wu, Chi-Yao Hung, Hervé Capart, and Vaughan R. Voller
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 325–342, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-325-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-325-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Predicting the extent and thickness of debris flow deposits is important for assessing and mitigating hazards. We propose a simplified mass balance model for predicting the morphology of terminated debris flows depositing over complex topography. A key element in this model is that the termination of flow of the deposit is determined by prescribed values of yield stress and friction angle. The model results are consistent with available analytical solutions and field and laboratory observations.
Richard Ott, Sean F. Gallen, and David Helman
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 247–257, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-247-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-247-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We compile data on carbonate denudation, the sum of mechanical erosion and chemical weathering, from cosmogenic nuclides and use them in conjunction with weathering data to constrain the partitioning of denudation into erosion and weathering. We show how carbonate erosion and weathering respond to different climatic and tectonic conditions and find that variations in denudation partitioning can be used to explain the vastly different morphology of carbonate landscapes on Earth.
Joanmarie Del Vecchio, Emma R. Lathrop, Julian B. Dann, Christian G. Andresen, Adam D. Collins, Michael M. Fratkin, Simon Zwieback, Rachel C. Glade, and Joel C. Rowland
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 227–245, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-227-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-227-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
In cold regions of the Earth, thawing permafrost can change the landscape, impact ecosystems, and lead to the release of greenhouse gases. In this study we used many observational tools to better understand how sediment moves on permafrost hillslopes. Some topographic change conforms to our understanding of slope stability and sediment transport as developed in temperate landscapes, but much of what we observed needs further explanation by permafrost-specific geomorphic models.
Carole Petit, Tristan Salles, Vincent Godard, Yann Rolland, and Laurence Audin
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 183–201, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-183-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-183-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We present new tools in the landscape evolution model Badlands to simulate 10Be production, erosion and transport. These tools are applied to a source-to-sink system in the SW French Alps, where the model is calibrated. We propose a model that fits river incision rates and 10Be concentrations in sediments, and we show that 10Be in deep marine sediments is a signal with multiple contributions that cannot be easily interpreted in terms of climate forcing.
Cas Renette, Kristoffer Aalstad, Juditha Aga, Robin Benjamin Zweigel, Bernd Etzelmüller, Karianne Staalesen Lilleøren, Ketil Isaksen, and Sebastian Westermann
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 33–50, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-33-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-33-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
One of the reasons for lower ground temperatures in coarse, blocky terrain is a low or varying soil moisture content, which most permafrost modelling studies did not take into account. We used the CryoGrid community model to successfully simulate this effect and found markedly lower temperatures in well-drained, blocky deposits compared to other set-ups. The inclusion of this drainage effect is another step towards a better model representation of blocky mountain terrain in permafrost regions.
Brian G. Sockness and Karen B. Gran
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 581–603, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-581-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-581-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
To study channel network development following continental glaciation, we ran small physical experiments where networks slowly expanded into flat surfaces. By changing substrate and rainfall, we altered flow pathways between surface and subsurface. Initially, most channels grew by overland flow. As relief increased, erosion through groundwater sapping occurred, especially in runs with high infiltration and low cohesion, highlighting the importance of groundwater in channel network evolution.
Harrison K. Martin and Douglas A. Edmonds
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 555–579, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-555-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-555-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
River avulsions (rivers suddenly changing course) redirect water and sediment. These floods can harm people and control how some landscapes evolve. We model how abandoned channels from older avulsions affect where, when, and why future avulsions occur in mountain-front areas. We show that abandoned channels can push and pull avulsions, and the way they heal controls landscapes. Avulsion models should include abandoned channels; we also highlight opportunities for future field workers.
Ariel Henrique do Prado, Renato Paes de Almeida, Cristiano Padalino Galeazzi, Victor Sacek, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 457–471, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Our work is focused on describing how and why the terrace levels of central Amazonia were formed during the last 100 000 years. We propose to address this question through a landscape evolution numerical model. Our results show that terrace levels at lower elevation were established in response to dry–wet climate changes and the older terrace levels at higher elevations most likely formed in response to a previously higher elevation of the regional base level.
Clément Desormeaux, Vincent Godard, Dimitri Lague, Guillaume Duclaux, Jules Fleury, Lucilla Benedetti, Olivier Bellier, and the ASTER Team
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 473–492, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-473-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-473-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Landscape evolution is highly dependent on climatic parameters, and the occurrence of intense precipitation events is considered to be an important driver of river incision. We compare the rate of erosion with the variability of river discharge in a mountainous landscape of SE France where high-magnitude floods regularly occur. Our study highlights the importance of the hypotheses made regarding the threshold that river discharge needs to exceed in order to effectively cut down into the bedrock.
Jean Braun
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 301–327, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-301-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-301-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
By comparing two models for the transport of sediment, we find that they share a similar steady-state solution that adequately predicts the shape of most depositional systems made of a fan and an alluvial plain. The length of the fan is controlled by the size of the mountain drainage area feeding the sedimentary system and its slope by the incoming sedimentary flux. We show that the models differ in their transient behavior to external forcing and are characterized by different response times.
Léopold de Lavaissière, Stéphane Bonnet, Anne Guyez, and Philippe Davy
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 229–246, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-229-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-229-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Rivers are known to record changes in tectonic or climatic variation through long adjustment of their longitudinal profile slope. Here we describe such adjustments in experimental landscapes and show that they may result from the sole effect of intrinsic geomorphic processes. We propose a new model of river evolution that links long profile adjustment to cycles of river widening and narrowing. This result emphasizes the need to better understand control of lateral erosion on river width.
Elco Luijendijk
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 1–22, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-1-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-1-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
The distance between rivers is a noticeable feature of the Earth's surface. Previous work has indicated that subsurface groundwater flow may be important for drainage density. Here, I present a new model that combines subsurface and surface water flow and erosion, and demonstrates that groundwater exerts an important control on drainage density. Streams that incise rapidly can capture the groundwater discharge of adjacent streams, which may cause these streams to become dry and stop incising.
Nikos Theodoratos and James W. Kirchner
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1545–1561, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1545-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1545-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We examine stream-power incision and linear diffusion landscape evolution models with and without incision thresholds. We present a steady-state relationship between curvature and the steepness index, which plots as a straight line. We view this line as a counterpart to the slope–area relationship for the case of landscapes with hillslope diffusion. We show that simple shifts and rotations of this line graphically express the topographic response of landscapes to changes in model parameters.
Yanyan Wang and Sean D. Willett
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1301–1322, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1301-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1301-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Although great escarpment mountain ranges are characterized by high relief, modern erosion rates suggest slow rates of landscape change. We question this interpretation by presenting a new method for interpreting concentrations of cosmogenic isotopes. Our analysis shows that erosion has localized onto an escarpment face, driving retreat of the escarpment at high rates. Our quantification of this retreat rate rationalizes the high-relief, dramatic landscape with the rates of geomorphic change.
William T. Struble and Joshua J. Roering
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1279–1300, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1279-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1279-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We used a mathematical technique known as a wavelet transform to calculate the curvature of hilltops in western Oregon, which we used to estimate erosion rate. We find that this technique operates over 1000 times faster than other techniques and produces accurate erosion rates. We additionally built artificial hillslopes to test the accuracy of curvature measurement methods. We find that at fast erosion rates, curvature is underestimated, raising questions of measurement accuracy elsewhere.
Philippe Steer
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1239–1250, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1239-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1239-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
How landscapes respond to tectonic and climatic changes is a major issue in Earth sciences. I have developed a new model that solves for landscape evolution in two dimensions using analytical solutions. Compared to numerical models, this new model is quicker and more accurate. It can compute in a single time step the topography at equilibrium of a landscape or be used to describe its evolution through time, e.g. during changes in tectonic or climatic conditions.
Hemanti Sharma, Todd A. Ehlers, Christoph Glotzbach, Manuel Schmid, and Katja Tielbörger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1045–1072, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1045-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1045-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We study effects of variable climate–vegetation with different uplift rates on erosion–sedimentation using a landscape evolution modeling approach. Results suggest that regardless of uplift rates, transients in precipitation–vegetation lead to transients in erosion rates in the same direction of change. Vegetation-dependent erosion and sedimentation are influenced by Milankovitch timescale changes in climate, but these transients are superimposed upon tectonically driven uplift rates.
Stefan Hergarten
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 937–952, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-937-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-937-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a new approach to modeling glacial erosion on large scales. The formalism is similar to large-scale models of fluvial erosion, so glacial and fluvial processes can be easily combined. The model is simpler and numerically less demanding than established models based on a more detailed description of the ice flux. The numerical implementation almost achieves the efficiency of purely fluvial models, so that simulations over millions of years can be performed on standard PCs.
Martine Simoes, Timothée Sassolas-Serrayet, Rodolphe Cattin, Romain Le Roux-Mallouf, Matthieu Ferry, and Dowchu Drukpa
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 895–921, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-895-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-895-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Elevated low-relief regions and major river knickpoints have for long been noticed and questioned in the emblematic Bhutan Himalaya. We document the morphology of this region using morphometric analyses and field observations, at a variety of spatial scales. Our findings reveal a highly unstable river network, with numerous non-coeval river captures, most probably related to a dynamic response to local tectonic uplift in the mountain hinterland.
Julien Seguinot and Ian Delaney
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 923–935, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-923-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-923-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Ancient Alpine glaciers have carved a fascinating landscape of piedmont lakes, glacial valleys, and mountain cirques. Using a previous supercomputer simulation of glacier flow, we show that glacier erosion has constantly evolved and moved to different parts of the Alps. Interestingly, larger glaciers do not always cause more rapid erosion. Instead, glacier erosion is modelled to slow down during glacier advance and peak during phases of retreat, such as the one the Earth is currently undergoing.
Eitan Shelef and Liran Goren
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 687–700, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-687-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-687-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Drainage basins are bounded by water divides (divides) that define their shape and extent. Divides commonly coincide with high ridges, but in places that experienced extensive tectonic deformation, divides sometimes cross elongated valleys. Inspired by field observations and using simulations of landscape evolution, we study how side channels that drain to elongated valleys induce pulses of divide migration, affecting the distribution of water and erosion products across mountain ranges.
Vipin Kumar, Imlirenla Jamir, Vikram Gupta, and Rajinder K. Bhasin
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 351–377, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-351-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-351-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Despite a history of landslide damming and flash floods in the NW Himalaya, only a few studies have been performed. This study predicts some potential landslide damming sites in the Satluj valley, NW Himalaya, using field observations, laboratory analyses, geomorphic proxies, and numerical simulations. Five landslides, comprising a total landslide volume of 26.3 ± 6.7 M m3, are found to have the potential to block the river in the case of slope failure.
Aaron Micallef, Remus Marchis, Nader Saadatkhah, Potpreecha Pondthai, Mark E. Everett, Anca Avram, Alida Timar-Gabor, Denis Cohen, Rachel Preca Trapani, Bradley A. Weymer, and Phillipe Wernette
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1–18, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
We study coastal gullies along the Canterbury coast of New Zealand using field observations, sample analyses, drones, satellites, geophysical instruments and modelling. We show that these coastal gullies form when rainfall intensity is higher than 40 mm per day. The coastal gullies are formed by landslides where buried channels or sand lenses are located. This information allows us to predict where coastal gullies may form in the future.
Riccardo Reitano, Claudio Faccenna, Francesca Funiciello, Fabio Corbi, and Sean D. Willett
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 973–993, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-973-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-973-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Looking into processes that occur on different timescales that span over thousands or millions of years is difficult to achieve. This is the case when we try to understand the interaction between tectonics and surface processes. Analog modeling is an investigating technique that can overcome this limitation. We study the erosional response of an analog landscape by varying the concentration of components of analog materials that strongly affect the evolution of experimental landscapes.
Stefan Hergarten
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 841–854, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-841-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-841-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Many contemporary models of large-scale fluvial erosion focus on the detachment-limited regime where all material entrained by the river is immediately excavated. This limitation facilitates the comparison with real river profiles and strongly reduces the numerical complexity. Here a simple formulation for the opposite case, transport-limited erosion, and a new numerical scheme that achieves almost the same numerical efficiency as detachment-limited models are presented.
Nikos Theodoratos and James W. Kirchner
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 505–526, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-505-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-505-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We non-dimensionalized a commonly used model of landscape evolution that includes an incision threshold. Whereas the original model included four parameters, we obtained a dimensionless form with a single parameter, which quantifies the relative importance of the incision threshold. Working with this form saves computational time and simplifies theoretical analyses.
Richard Barnes, Kerry L. Callaghan, and Andrew D. Wickert
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 431–445, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-431-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-431-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Maps of elevation are used to help predict the flow of water so we can better understand landslides, floods, and global climate change. However, modeling the flow of water is difficult when elevation maps include swamps, lakes, and other depressions. This paper explains a new method that overcomes these difficulties, allowing models to run faster and more accurately.
Stefan Hergarten
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 367–377, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-367-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-367-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Models of fluvial erosion have a long history in landform evolution modeling. Interactions between rivers and processes acting at hillslopes (e.g., landslides) are receiving growing interest in this context. While present-day computer capacities allow for applying such coupled models, there is still a scaling problem when considering rivers to be linear elements on a topography. Based on a reinterpretation of old empirical results, this study presents a new approach to overcome this problem.
Sara Savi, Stefanie Tofelde, Andrew D. Wickert, Aaron Bufe, Taylor F. Schildgen, and Manfred R. Strecker
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 303–322, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-303-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-303-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Fluvial deposits record changes in water and sediment supply. As such, they are often used to reconstruct the tectonic or climatic history of a basin. In this study we used an experimental setting to analyze how fluvial deposits register changes in water or sediment supply at a confluence zone. We provide a new conceptual framework that may help understanding the construction of these deposits under different forcings conditions, information crucial to correctly inferring the history of a basin.
Dirk Scherler and Wolfgang Schwanghart
Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 245–259, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-245-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-245-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Drainage divides are believed to provide clues about divide migration and the instability of landscapes. Here, we present a novel approach to extract drainage divides from digital elevation models and to order them in a drainage divide network. We present our approach by studying natural and artificial landscapes generated with a landscape evolution model and disturbed to induce divide migration.
Cited articles
Adams, B. A., Whipple, K. X., Forte, A. M., Heimsath, A. M., and Hodges, K. V.: Climate controls on erosion in tectonically active landscapes, Sci. Adv., 6, eaaz3166, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaz3166, 2020. a
Allen, P. A. and Densmore, A.: Sediment flux from an uplifting fault block, Basin Res., 12, 367–380, 2000. a
Anders, A. M., Roe, G. H., Montgomery, D. R., and Hallet, B.: Influence of precipitation phase on the form of mountain ranges, Geology, 36, 479, https://doi.org/10.1130/G24821A.1, 2008. a, b
Armitage, J. J., Duller, R. A., Whittaker, A. C., and Allen, P. A.: Transformation of tectonic and climatic signals from source to sedimentary archive, Nat. Geosci., 4, 231–235, 2011. a
Armitage, J. J., Whittaker, A. C., Zakari, M., and Campforts, B.: Numerical modelling of landscape and sediment flux response to precipitation rate change, Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 77–99, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-77-2018, 2018. a
Attal, M., Tucker, G., Whittaker, A. C., Cowie, P., and Roberts, G. P.: Modeling fluvial incision and transient landscape evolution: Influence of dynamic channel adjustment, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 113, F03013, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JF000893, 2008. a, b
Attal, M., Cowie, P. A., Whittaker, A. C., Hobley, D., Tucker, G. E., and Roberts, G. P.: Testing fluvial erosion models using the transient response of bedrock rivers to tectonic forcing in the Apennines, Italy, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 116, F02005, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JF001875, 2011. a
Barnhart, K. R., Hutton, E. W. H., Tucker, G. E., Gasparini, N. M., Istanbulluoglu, E., Hobley, D. E. J., Lyons, N. J., Mouchene, M., Nudurupati, S. S., Adams, J. M., and Bandaragoda, C.: Short communication: Landlab v2.0: a software package for Earth surface dynamics, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 379–397, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-379-2020, 2020a. a
Barnhart, K. R., Tucker, G. E., Doty, S. G., Shobe, C. M., Glade, R. C., Rossi, M. W., and Hill, M. C.: Inverting Topography for Landscape Evolution Model Process Representation: 1. Conceptualization and Sensitivity Analysis, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 125, e2018JF004961, https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004961, 2020b. a
Barnhart, K. R., Tucker, G. E., Doty, S. G., Shobe, C. M., Glade, R. C., Rossi, M. W., and Hill, M. C.: Inverting Topography for Landscape Evolution Model Process Representation: 2. Calibration and Validation, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 125, e2018JF004963, https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004963, 2020c. a
Beeson, H. W., McCoy, S. W., and Keen-Zebert, A.: Geometric disequilibrium of river basins produces long-lived transient landscapes, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 475, 34–43, 2017. a
Braun, J. and Deal, E.: Implicit algorithm for threshold Stream Power Incision Model, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 128, e2023JF007140, https://doi.org/10.1029/2023JF007140, 2023. a
Brocard, G. Y., Willenbring, J. K., Miller, T. E., and Scatena, F. N.: Relict landscape resistance to dissection by upstream migrating knickpoints, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 121, 1182–1203, 2016. a
Campforts, B. and Govers, G.: Keeping the edge: A numerical method that avoids knickpoing smearing when solving the stream power law, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 120, 1189–1205, https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JF003376, 2015. a
Campforts, B., Schwanghart, W., and Govers, G.: Accurate simulation of transient landscape evolution by eliminating numerical diffusion: the TTLEM 1.0 model, Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 47–66, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-47-2017, 2017 (code available at: https://github.com/wschwanghart/topotoolbox, last access: 28 October 2024). a, b, c
Campforts, B., Shobe, C. M., Overeem, I., and Tucker, G. E.: The art of landslides: How stochastic mass wasting shapes topography and influences landscape dynamics, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 127, e2022JF006745, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JF006745, 2022. a, b
Carretier, S., Martinod, P., Reich, M., and Godderis, Y.: Modelling sediment clasts transport during landscape evolution, Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 237–251, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-237-2016, 2016. a
Castelltort, S. and Van Den Driessche, J.: How plausible are high-frequency sediment supply-driven cycles in the stratigraphic record?, Sediment. Geol., 157, 3–13, 2003. a
Croissant, T. and Braun, J.: Constraining the stream power law: a novel approach combining a landscape evolution model and an inversion method, Earth Surf. Dynam., 2, 155–166, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-2-155-2014, 2014. a
Davy, P. and Lague, D.: Fluvial erosion/transport equation of landscape evolution models revisited, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 114, F03007, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JF001146, 2009. a
Densmore, A. L.: Footwall topographic development during continental extension, J. Geophys. Res., 109, F03001, https://doi.org/10.1029/2003JF000115, 2004. a
Densmore, A. L., Allen, P. A., and Simpson, G.: Development and response of a coupled catchment fan system under changing tectonic and climatic forcing, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 112, F01002, hhttps://doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000474, 2007. a
Fernandes, N. F. and Dietrich, W. E.: Hillslope evolution by diffusive processes: The timescale for equilibrium adjustments, Water Resour. Res., 33, 1307–1318, 1997. a
Ferrier, K. L., Huppert, K. L., and Perron, J. T.: Climatic control of bedrock river incision, Nature, 496, 206–209, 2013. a
Forte, A. M. and Whipple, K. X.: Criteria and tools for determining drainage divide stability, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 493, 102–117, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2018.04.026, 2018. a
Forzoni, A., Storms, J. E., Whittaker, A. C., and de Jager, G.: Delayed delivery from the sediment factory: Modeling the impact of catchment response time to tectonics on sediment flux and fluvio-deltaic stratigraphy, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 39, 689–704, 2014. a
Gasparini, N. M., Tucker, G. E., and Bras, R. L.: Network-scale dynamics of grain-size sorting: Implications for downstream fining, stream profile concavity, and drainage basin morphology, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 29, 401–421, 2004. a
Gasparini, N. M., Whipple, K. X., and Bras, R. L.: Predictions of steady state and transient landscape morphology using sediment-flux-dependent river incision models, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 112, F03S09, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000567, 2007. a, b
Gasparini, N., Forte, A., and Barnhart, K.: Input files and codes for Gasparini, Forte, and Barnhart, ESURF, 2024 [Data set], Zenodo [data set], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13984467, 2024. a
Godard, V., Tucker, G. E., Burch Fisher, G., Burbank, D. W., and Bookhagen, B.: Frequency-dependent landscape response to climatic forcing, Geophys. Res. Lett., 40, 859–863, 2013. a
Goren, L.: A theoretical model for fluvial channel response time during time‐dependent climatic and tectonic forcing and its inverse applications, Geophys. Res. Lett., 43, 10753–10763, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GL070451, 2016. a
Goren, L., Willett, S. D., Herman, F., and Braun, J.: Coupled numerical–analytical approach to landscape evolution modeling, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 39, 522–545, 2014. a
Hack, J. T.: Studies of longitudinal stream profiles in Virginia and Maryland, in: vol. 294, US Government Printing Office, https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=BMHMKaKYdl0C&oi=fnd&pg=PA45&dq=Studies+of+longitudinal+stream+profiles+in+Virginia+and+Maryland&ots=wbRlAYT9ho&sig=2E3Y8Jfr-UtrVtZpJ6EO3qkEjBo#v=onepage&q=Studies of longitudinal stream profiles in Virginia and Maryland&f=false (last access: 24 October 2024), 1957. a
Han, J., Gasparini, N. M., Johnson, J. P., and Murphy, B. P.: Modeling the influence of rainfall gradients on discharge, bedrock erodibility, and river profile evolution, with application to the Big Island, Hawai'i, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 119, 1418–1440, 2014. a
Hilley, G., Strecker, M. R., and Ramos, V.: Growth and erosion of fold-and-thrust belts with an application to the Aconcagua fold-and-thrust belt, Argentina, J. Geophys. Res.-Solid, 109, B01410, https://doi.org/10.1029/2002JB002282, 2004. a
Hobley, D. E. J., Adams, J. M., Nudurupati, S. S., Hutton, E. W. H., Gasparini, N. M., Istanbulluoglu, E., and Tucker, G. E.: Creative computing with Landlab: an open-source toolkit for building, coupling, and exploring two-dimensional numerical models of Earth-surface dynamics, Earth Surf. Dynam., 5, 21–46, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-5-21-2017, 2017. a
Howard, A. D.: A detachment-limited model of drainage basin evolution, Water Resour. Res., 30, 2261–2285, https://doi.org/10.1029/94WR00757, 1994. a, b
Hurst, M. D., Grieve, S. W., Clubb, F. J., and Mudd, S. M.: Detection of channel-hillslope coupling along a tectonic gradient, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 522, 30–39, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.06.018, 2019. a
Hutton, E., Barnhart, K., Hobley, D., Tucker, G., Nudurupati, S., Adams, J., Gasparini, N., Shobe, C., Strauch, R., Knuth, J., Mouchene, M., Lyons, N., Litwin, D., Glade, R., Giuseppecipolla95, Manaster, A., Abby, L., Thyng, K., and Rengers, F.: landlab [Computer software], Zenodo [code], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.595872, 2020. a
Istanbulluoglu, E. and Bras, R. L.: Vegetation-modulated landscape evolution: Effects of vegetation on landscape processes, drainage density, and topography, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 110, F02012, https://doi.org/10.1029/2004JF000249, 2005. a
Kirby, E. and Whipple, K. X.: Expression of active tectonics in erosional landscapes, J. Struct. Geol., 44, 54–75, 2012. a
Kwang, J. and Parker, G.: Extreme memory of initial conditions in numerical landscape evolution models, Geophys. Res. Lett., 46, 6563–6573, 2019. a
Kwang, J. S. and Parker, G.: Landscape evolution models using the stream power incision model show unrealistic behavior when
Kwang, J. S., Langston, A. L., and Parker, G.: The role of lateral erosion in the evolution of nondendritic drainage networks to dendricity and the persistence of dynamic networks, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 118, e2015770118, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2015770118, 2021. a
Lague, D.: The stream power river incision model: evidence, theory and beyond, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 39, 38–61, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3462, 2014. a
Lyons, N. J., Val, P., Albert, J. S., Willenbring, J. K., and Gasparini, N. M.: Topographic controls on divide migration, stream capture, and diversification in riverine life, Earth Surf. Dynam. 8, 893–912, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-893-2020, 2020. a, b
Mackey, B. H., Scheingross, J. S., Lamb, M. P., and Farley, K. A.: Knickpoint formation, rapid propagation, and landscape response following coastal cliff retreat at the last interglacial sea-level highstand: Kaua'i, Hawai'i, Bulletin, 126, 925–942, 2014. a
O'Hara, D., Karlstrom, L., and Roering, J. J.: Distributed landscape response to localized uplift and the fragility of steady states, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 506, 243–254, 2019. a
Refice, A., Giachetta, E., and Capolongo, D.: SIGNUM: A Matlab, TIN-based landscape evolution model, Comput. Geosci., 45, 293–303, 2012. a
Roe, G. H., Whipple, K. X., and Fletcher, J. K.: Feedbacks among climate, erosion, and tectonics in a critical wedge orogen, Am. J. Sci., 308, 815–842, 2008. a
Roering, J. J.: How well can hillslope evolution models “explain” topography? Simulating soil transport and production with high-resolution topographic data, GSA Bull., 120, 1248–1262, https://doi.org/10.1130/B26283.1, 2008. a
Roering, J. J., Kirchner, J. W., and Dietrich, W. E.: Hillslope evolution by nonlinear, slope-dependent transport: Steady state morphology and equilibrium adjustment timescales, J. Geophys. Res.-Solid, 106, 16499–16513, 2001. a
Romans, B. W., Castelltort, S., Covault, J. A., Fildani, A., and Walsh, J.: Environmental signal propagation in sedimentary systems across timescales, Earth-Sci. Rev., 153, 7–29, 2016. a
Rosenbloom, N. and Anderson, R. S.: Hillslope and channel evolution in a marine terraced landscape, Santa Cruz, California, J. Geophys. Res., 99, 14013–14029, 1994. a
Salles, T.: eSCAPE: Regional to Global Scale Landscape Evolution Model v2.0, Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 4165–4184, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-4165-2019, 2019. a
Schwanghart, W. and Scherler, D.: Short Communication: TopoToolbox 2 – MATLAB based software for topographic analysis and modeling in Earth surface sciences, Earth Surf. Dynam., 2, 1–7, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-2-1-2014, 2014. a
Shelef, E. and Hilley, G. E.: A unified framework for modeling landscape evolution by discrete flows, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 121, 816–842, 2016. a
Shobe, C. M., Tucker, G. E., and Barnhart, K. R.: The SPACE 1.0 model: a Landlab component for 2-D calculation of sediment transport, bedrock erosion, and landscape evolution, Geosci. Model Dev., 10, 4577–4604, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-10-4577-2017, 2017. a
Shobe, C. M., Tucker, G. E., and Rossi, M. W.: Variable-Threshold Behavior in Rivers Arising From Hillslope-Derived Blocks, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 123, 1931–1957, https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JF004575, 2018. a
Simpson, G. and Castelltort, S.: Model shows that rivers transmit high-frequency climate cycles to the sedimentary record, Geology, 40, 1131–1134, 2012. a
Snyder, N. P., Whipple, K. X., Tucker, G. E., and Merrits, D. J.: Landscape response to tectonic forcing: Digital elevation model analysis of stream profiles in the Mendocino triple junction region, northern California, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 112, 1250–1263, 2000. a
Stark, C. P. and Stark, G. J.: A channelization model of landscape evolution, Am. J. Sci., 301, 486–512, 2001. a
Steer, P.: Short communication: Analytical models for 2D landscape evolution, Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1239–1250, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1239-2021, 2021. a
Stolar, D., Roe, G., and Willett, S.: Controls on the patterns of topography and erosion rate in a critical orogen, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 112, F04002, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000713, 2007. a
Stolar, D. B., Willett, S. D., and Roe, G. H.: Climatic and tectonic forcing of a critical orogen, in: Tectonics, Climate, and Landscape Evolution, Geological Society of America, https://doi.org/10.1130/2006.2398(14), 2006. a
Straub, K. M., Duller, R. A., Foreman, B. Z., and Hajek, E. A.: Buffered, incomplete, and shredded: The challenges of reading an imperfect stratigraphic record, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth Surface, 125, e2019JF005079, https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JF005079, 2020. a
Tarboton, D. G.: A new method for the determination of flow directions and upslope areas in grid digital elevation models, Water Resour. Res., 33, 309–319, https://doi.org/10.1029/96wr03137, 1997. a
Theodoratos, N., Seybold, H., and Kirchner, J. W.: Scaling and similarity of a stream-power incision and linear diffusion landscape evolution model, Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 779–808, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-779-2018, 2018. a
Tofelde, S., Bernhardt, A., Guerit, L., and Romans, B. W.: Times associated with source-to-sink propagation of environmental signals during landscape transience, Front. Earth Sci., 9, 628315, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.628315, 2021. a
Tucker, G. and Whipple, K.: Topographic outcomes predicted by stream erosion models: Sensitivity analysis and intermodel comparison, J. Geophys. Res.-Solid, 107, 2179, https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JB000162, 2002. a
Tucker, G. E. and Bras, R. L.: Hillslope processes, drainage density, and landscape morphology, Water Resour. Res., 34, 2751–2764, https://doi.org/10.1029/98WR01474, 1998. a, b
Tucker, G. E., Gasparini, N. M., Bras, R. L., and Lancaster, S. L.: A 3D Computer Simulation Model of Drainage Basin and Floodplain Evolution: Theory and Applications, Technical report prepared for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Construction Engineering Research Laboratory, 1999. a
Tucker, G. E., Lancaster, S. T., Gasparini, N. M., and Bras, R. L.: The channel-hillslope intergrated landscape development model (CHILD), in: Landscape erosion and evolution modeling, edited by: Harmon, R. S. and Doe, W. W., Springer, New York, 349–388, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-0575-4_12, 2001a (code available at: https://github.com/childmodel/child, last access: 28 October 2024). a, b
Tucker, G. E., Lancaster, S. T., Gasparini, N. M., Bras, R. L., and Rybarczyk, S. M.: An object-oriened framework for distributed hydrologic and geomorphic modeling using triangulated irregular networks, Comput. Geosci., 27, 959–973, 2001b. a
Tucker, G. E., Hutton, E. W. H., Piper, M. D., Campforts, B., Gan, T., Barnhart, K. R., Kettner, A. J., Overeem, I., Peckham, S. D., McCready, L., and Syvitski, J.: CSDMS: a community platform for numerical modeling of Earth surface processes, Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 1413–1439, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-1413-2022, 2022. a
Val, P., Lyons, N. J., Gasparini, N., Willenbring, J. K., and Albert, J. S.: Landscape evolution as a diversification driver in freshwater fishes, Front. Ecol. Evol., 9, 788328, https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2021.788328, 2022. a
Ward, D. J. and Galewsky, J.: Exploring landscape sensitivity to the Pacific Trade Wind Inversion on the subsiding island of Hawaii, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 119, 2048–2069, 2014. a
Whipple, K. X. and Meade, B.: Controls on the strength of coupling among climate, erosion, and deformation in two-sided, frictional orogenic wedges at steady state, J. Geophys. Res., 109, F01011, https://doi.org/10.1029/2003JF000019, 2004. a
Whipple, K. X. and Meade, B.: Orogen response to changes in climatic and tectonic forcing, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 243, 218–228, 2006. a
Whipple, K. X. and Tucker, G. E.: Dynamics of the stream-power river incision model: Implications for height limits of mountain ranges, landscape response timescales, and research needs, J. Geophys. Res.-Solid, 104, 17661–17674, https://doi.org/10.1029/1999JB900120, 1999. a, b, c, d
Whipple, K. X. and Tucker, G. E.: Implications of sediment-flux-dependent river incision models for landscape evolution, J. Geophys. Res.-Solid, 107, ETG 3-1–ETG 3-20, https://doi.org/10.1029/2000JB000044, 2002. a
Whipple, K. X., Forte, A. M., DiBiase, R. A., Gasparini, N. M., and Ouimet, W. B.: Timescales of landscape response to divide migration and drainage capture: Implications for the role of divide mobility in landscape evolution, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 122, 248–273, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JF003973, 2017. a, b, c, d
Whittaker, A. C.: How do landscapes record tectonics and climate, Lithosphere, 4, 160–164, 2012. a
Whittaker, A. C. and Boulton, S. J.: Tectonic and climatic controls on knickpoint retreat rates and landscape response times, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 117, F02024, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF002157, 2012. a
Willett, S. D. and Brandon, M. T.: On steady states in mountain belts, Geology, 30, 175–178, 2002. a
Willett, S. D., McCoy, S. W., Perron, J. T., Goren, L., and Chen, C.-Y.: Dynamic reorganization of river basins, Science, 343, 1248765, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1248765, 2014. a
Willgoose, G., Bras, R. L., and Rodriguez-Iturbe, I.: A coupled channel network growth and hillslope evolution model: 1. Theory, Water Resour. Res., 27, 1671–1684, https://doi.org/10.1029/91WR00935, 1991. a
Zhang, Y., Slingerland, R., and Duffy, C.: Fully-coupled hydrologic processes for modeling landscape evolution, Environ. Model. Softw., 82, 89–107, 2016. a
Short summary
The time it takes for a landscape to adjust to new environmental conditions is critical for understanding the impacts of past and future environmental changes. We used different computational models and methods and found that predicted times for a landscape to reach a stable condition vary greatly. Our results illustrate that reporting how timescales are measured is important. Modelers should ensure that the measurement technique addresses the question.
The time it takes for a landscape to adjust to new environmental conditions is critical for...
