We use a climate model and statistics to provide an overview of regional climates from different times in the late Cenozoic. We focus on tectonically active mountain ranges in particular. Our results highlight significant changes in climates throughout the late Cenozoic, which should be taken into consideration when interpreting erosion rates. We also document the differences between model- and proxy-based estimates for late Cenozoic climate change in South America and Tibet.

The importance of increasing the degree of automation in the context of monitoring natural hazards or geological phenomena is apparent. A vital step in the processing chain of monitoring deformations is the transformation of captured epochs into a common reference systems. This led to the motivation to develop an algorithm that realistically carries out this task. The algorithm was tested on three different geomorphic events while the results were quite satisfactory.

We used a numerical model to assess the effect of grain size and rock composition on chemical weathering and grain detachment. Our simulations showed that grain detachment represents more than a third of the overall weathering rate. We also found that as grain size increases, the weathering rate initially decreases; however, beyond a critical size, the rate became approximately constant. Our results could help predict the sometimes complex relationship between rock type and weathering rate.

Measurements of cosmogenic nuclides ¹⁰Be and ²⁶Al in sediment along central Australian streams show that lithologically controlled magnitudes of source-area erosion rates (0.2–11 m Myr^-1) are preserved downstream despite sediment mixing. Conversely, downstream-increasing sediment burial signals (> 400 kyr) indicate sediment incorporation from adjacent, long-exposed storages, which, combined with low sediment supply and discontinuous flux, likely favours source-area ¹⁰Be–²⁶Al signal masking.

The Oroville Dam flood control spillway suffered catastrophic erosion damage in February 2017. We find that seismic waves recorded by a seismometer 2 km away contain information about the flow turbulence and damage location in the spillway. We show that enhanced turbulence due to spillway damage excites louder seismic waves at a given flow rate, which can be used to detect the onset and track the migration of erosion damage. The methods we use could be used to monitor other structures or rivers.

The Ebro and Duero basins share a very common geological history. However, since the late Miocene, the Ebro basin has recorded important unfilling and excavation, whereas the Duero basin has only recorded limited incision and is considered to be still almost endorheic. Such a morphologic contrast led to important drainage reorganization and divide migration toward the Duero basin. Drainage area loss results in the lowering of the incision capacity of the Duero River, increasing this contrast.

Tracking the position of tracer particles entrained in a river is a popular method to investigate sediment transport. Using numerical simulations, we study the propagation of these tracers and find a transition between two regimes: an early regime in which the tracers are progressively set into motion and a late regime in which the tracers spread linearly. We derive analytical expressions for the behavior of the tracers in each regime. These expressions might help to interpret field data.

This article is a contribution to a special issue on Two centuries of modelling across scales. It describes the historical observations, evolving hypotheses, and early calculations that led to the development of the field of glacial isostatic sdjustment (GIA) modelling, which seeks to understand feedbacks between ice-sheet change, sea-level change, and solid Earth deformation. Recent and future advances are discussed. Future progress will likely involve an interdisciplinary approach.

This research presents a new method for quantifying the geologic controls on modern barrier island evolution. We used statistical time series analysis to evaluate the scale-dependent vs. scale-independent behavior of a barrier island in southern Texas, USA. By integrating subsurface geophysical with surface geomorphological measurements, we show that the island exhibits both free and forced evolutionary behavior that has important implications for how the island may respond to rising sea levels.

Here we provide the first results on the evolution of the Ayeyarwady delta, the last unstudied megadelta of Asia. In addition to its intrinsic value as a founding study on the Holocene development of this region, we advance new ideas on the climate control of monsoonal deltas as well as describe for the first time a feedback mechanism between tectonics and tidal hydrodynamics that can explain the peculiarities of the Ayeyarwady delta.

On 21 July 2014, a voluminous landslide entered the caldera lake at Askja, Iceland, and created tsunami waves inundating famous tourist spots. The high hazard potential of the site motivated our study in which we analysed seismic data and found a precursory tremor signal intensifying in the 30 min before the landslide. Our paper shows the potential of seismic monitoring techniques to detect precursory activity before a big landslide that could be used for an early-warning system.

Channel bends and bars make up an important physical and ecological unit within rivers. Many riparian vegetation species need river bars for their life cycle, colonizing bars after flooding events. Once vegetation is established on bars, they can alter the flow and patterns of erosion and deposition. We used a hydraulic model to quantify the impact such riparian vegetation of various sizes and densities has on flow dynamics and inferred the expected changes in river erosion and deposition.

Rivers can reveal information about erosion rates, tectonics, and climate. In order to make meaningful inferences about these influences, one must be able to compare headwaters to downstream parts of the river network. We describe new methods for normalizing river steepness for drainage area to better understand how rivers record erosion rates in eroding landscapes.

Seismic monitoring of active landslides enables the detection of microseismic signals generated by slope activity. We propose a classification of microseismic signals observed at two active clay-rich debris slides and a simple method to constrain their source origin and their size based on their signal amplitudes. A better understanding of landslide-induced microseismicity is crucial for the development of early warning systems based on landslide-induced microseismic signal precursors.