Articles | Volume 8, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-103-2020
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-103-2020
Research article
 | 
13 Feb 2020
Research article |  | 13 Feb 2020

Mass balance, grade, and adjustment timescales in bedrock channels

Jens Martin Turowski

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Cited articles

Abbot, J. E. and Francis, J. R. D.: Saltation and suspension trajectories of solid grains in a water stream, Philos. Trans. A, 284, 225–254, 1977. 
An, C., Moodie, A. J., Ma, H., Fu, X., Zhang, Y., Naito, K., and Parker, G.: Morphodynamic model of the lower Yellow River: flux or entrainment form for sediment mass conservation?, Earth Surf. Dynam., 6, 989–1010, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-6-989-2018, 2018. 
Auel, C., Albayrak, I., Sumi, T., and Boes, R. M.: Sediment transport in high-speed flows over a fixed bed: 1. Particle dynamics, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 42, 1365–1383, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4128, 2017a. 
Auel, C., Albayrak, I., Sumi, T., and Boes, R. M.: Sediment transport in high-speed flows over a fixed bed: 2. Particle impacts and abrasion prediction, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 42, 1384–1396, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4132, 2017b. 
Beer, A. R. and Turowski, J. M.: Bedload transport controls bedrock erosion under sediment-starved conditions, Earth Surf. Dynam., 3, 291–309, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-3-291-2015, 2015. 
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Short summary
Bedrock channels are the conveyor belts of mountain regions, evacuating sediment produced by erosion. Bedrock channel morphology and dynamics affect sediment transport rates and local erosion and set the base level for hillslope response. Here, using mechanistic considerations of the processes of fluvial erosion and transport, and considerations of the mass balance of sediment and bedrock, I discuss the principles governing steady-state channel morphology and the dynamic paths to achieve it.
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