Articles | Volume 9, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1279-2021
© Author(s) 2021. 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-9-1279-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
20 Sep 2021
Research article |
| 20 Sep 2021
| 20 Sep 2021
Hilltop curvature as a proxy for erosion rate: wavelets enable rapid computation and reveal systematic underestimation
Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona
85721, USA
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon
97403, USA
Joshua J. Roering
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon
97403, USA
Related authors
Greg Balco, Alan J. Hidy, William T. Struble, and Joshua J. Roering
Geochronology, 6, 71–76, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-71-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-71-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We describe a new method of reconstructing the long-term, pre-observational frequency and/or intensity of wildfires in forested landscapes using trace concentrations of the noble gases helium and neon that are formed in soil mineral grains by cosmic-ray bombardment of the Earth's surface.
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.
Ian D. Wachino, Joshua J. Roering, Reuben Cash, and Annette I. Patton
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1168, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1168, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Rockfalls are a common hazard in steep mountain valleys, especially near Skagway, Alaska, where recent events have threatened public safety and infrastructure. This study identifies zones prone to rockfall by analyzing rock formations, past rockfall deposits, and computer models predicting how rocks travel downslope. Our findings highlight high-risk areas and provide insights to improve hazard mitigation, helping protect communities and tourism in the region.
Greg Balco, Alan J. Hidy, William T. Struble, and Joshua J. Roering
Geochronology, 6, 71–76, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-71-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-71-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We describe a new method of reconstructing the long-term, pre-observational frequency and/or intensity of wildfires in forested landscapes using trace concentrations of the noble gases helium and neon that are formed in soil mineral grains by cosmic-ray bombardment of the Earth's surface.
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.
Annette I. Patton, Lisa V. Luna, Joshua J. Roering, Aaron Jacobs, Oliver Korup, and Benjamin B. Mirus
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3261–3284, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-3261-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-3261-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Landslide warning systems often use statistical models to predict landslides based on rainfall. They are typically trained on large datasets with many landslide occurrences, but in rural areas large datasets may not exist. In this study, we evaluate which statistical model types are best suited to predicting landslides and demonstrate that even a small landslide inventory (five storms) can be used to train useful models for landslide early warning when non-landslide events are also included.
David Jon Furbish, Joshua J. Roering, Tyler H. Doane, Danica L. Roth, Sarah G. W. Williams, and Angel M. Abbott
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 539–576, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-539-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-539-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Sediment particles skitter down steep hillslopes on Earth and Mars. Particles gain speed in going downhill but are slowed down and sometimes stop due to collisions with the rough surface. The likelihood of stopping depends on the energetics of speeding up (heating) versus slowing down (cooling). Statistical physics predicts that particle travel distances are described by a generalized Pareto distribution whose form varies with the Kirkby number – the ratio of heating to cooling.
David Jon Furbish, Sarah G. W. Williams, Danica L. Roth, Tyler H. Doane, and Joshua J. Roering
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 577–613, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-577-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-577-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The generalized Pareto distribution of particle travel distances on steep hillslopes, as described in a companion paper (Furbish et al., 2021a), is entirely consistent with measurements of travel distances obtained from laboratory and field-based experiments, supplemented with high-speed imaging and audio recordings that highlight the effects of bumpety-bump particle motions. Particle size and shape, in concert with surface roughness, strongly influence particle energetics and deposition.
Susan L. Brantley, David M. Eissenstat, Jill A. Marshall, Sarah E. Godsey, Zsuzsanna Balogh-Brunstad, Diana L. Karwan, Shirley A. Papuga, Joshua Roering, Todd E. Dawson, Jaivime Evaristo, Oliver Chadwick, Jeffrey J. McDonnell, and Kathleen C. Weathers
Biogeosciences, 14, 5115–5142, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-5115-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-5115-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
This review represents the outcome from an invigorating workshop discussion that involved tree physiologists, geomorphologists, ecologists, geochemists, and hydrologists and developed nine hypotheses that could be tested. We argue these hypotheses point to the essence of issues we must explore if we are to understand how the natural system of the earth surface evolves, and how humans will affect its evolution. This paper will create discussion and interest both before and after publication.
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
Short Communication: Numerically simulated time to steady state is not a reliable measure of landscape response time
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
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.
Nicole M. Gasparini, Adam M. Forte, and Katherine R. Barnhart
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1227–1242, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1227-2024, 2024
Short summary
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.
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.
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
Almond, P., Roering, J., and Hales, T. C.: Using soil residence time to delineate spatial and temporal patterns of transient landscape response, J. Geophys. Res., 112, F03S17, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000568, 2007.
Andrews, D. J. and Bucknam, R. C.: Fitting degradation of shoreline scarps by
a nonlinear diffusion model, J. Geophys. Res., 92, 12857–12867,
https://doi.org/10.1029/JB092iB12p12857, 1987.
Audet, P.: Toward mapping the effective elastic thickness of planetary
lithospheres from a spherical wavelet analysis of gravity and topography,
Phys. Earth Planet. In., 226, 48–82, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pepi.2013.09.011, 2014.
Balco, G., Stone, J. O., Lifton, N. A., and Dunai, T. J.: A complete and easily accessible means of calculating surface exposure ages or erosion rates from 10Be and 26Al measurements, Quat. Geochronol., 3, 174–195, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2007.12.001, 2008.
Balco, G., Finnegan, N., Gendaszek, A., Stone, J. O., and Thompson, N.:
Erosional response to northward-propagating crustal thickening in the
coastal ranges of the US Pacific Northwest. Am. J. Sci., 313, 790–806, 2013.
Baldwin, E. M.: Geologic map of the lower Siuslaw River area, Oregon, Oil and Gas Investigations 186, scale
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, 2020.
Benda, L. and Dunne, T.: Stochastic forcing of sediment supply to channel
networks from landsliding and debris flow, Water Resour. Res., 33, 2849–2863, https://doi.org/10.1029/97WR02388, 1997.
BenDror, E. and Goren, L.: Controls Over Sediment Flux Along Soil-Mantled
Hillslopes: Insights from Granular Dynamics Simulations, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 123, 924–944, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JF004351, 2018.
Bierman, P., Clapp, E., Nichols, K., Gillespie, A., and Caffee, M. W.: Using
cosmogenic nuclide measurements in sediments to understand background rates
of erosion and sediment transport, in: Landscape Erosion and Evolution
Modeling, Springer, Boston, MA, 89–115, 2001.
Black, B. A., Perron, J. T., Hemingway, D., Bailey, E., Nimmo, F., and Zebker, H.: Global drainage patterns and the origins of topographic relief on Earth, Mars, and Titan, Science, 356, 727–731, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aag0171, 2017.
Booth, A. M., Roering, J. J., and Perron, J. T.: Automated landslide mapping
using spectral analysis and high-resolution topographic data: Puget Sound
lowlands, Washington, and Portland Hills, Oregon, Geomorphology, 109,
132–147, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2009.02.027, 2009 (available at: http://web.pdx.edu/~boothad/tools.html, last access: 14 September 2021).
Burbank, D. W., Leland, J., Fielding, E., Anderson, R. S., Brozovic, N., Reid, M. R., and Duncan, C.: Bedrock incision, rock uplift and threshold hillslopes in the northwestern Himalayas, Nature, 379, 505–510, https://doi.org/10.1038/379505a0, 1996.
Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Milodowski, D. T., Hurst, M. D., and Slater, L. J.: Objective extraction of channel heads from high-resolution topographic data, Water Resour. Res., 50, 4283–4304, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013WR015167, 2014.
Clubb, F. J., Mudd, S. M., Hurst, M. D., and Grieve, S. W. D.: Differences in
channel and hillslope geometry record a migrating uplift wave at the
Mendocino triple junction, California, USA, Geology, 48, 184–188,
https://doi.org/10.1130/G46939.1, 2020.
Deshpande, N., Furbish, D., Arratia, P., and Jerolmack, D.: The perpetual
fragility of creeping hillslopes, Nat. Commun., 12, 3909,
https://doi.org/10.31223/OSF.IO/QC9JH, 2021.
DiBiase, R. A., Heimsath, A. M., and Whipple, K. X.: Hillslope response to
tectonic forcing in threshold landscapes, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 37, 855–865, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3205, 2012.
Dietrich, W. E. and Dunne, T.: Sediment budget for a small catchment in
mountainous terrain, Z. Geomorphol. N.F., 29, 191–206, 1978.
Dietrich, W. E., Bellugi, D. G., Sklar, L. S., Stock, J. D., Heimsath, A. M., and Roering, J. J.: Geomorphic transport laws for predicting landscape form and dynamics, in: Geophysical Monograph Series, edited by: Wilcock, P. R. and Iverson, R. M., American Geophysical Union, Washington, D.C., 103–132, 2003.
Doane, T. H., Roth, D. L., Roering, J. J., and Furbish, D. J.: Compression and Decay of Hillslope Topographic Variance in Fourier Wavenumber Domain, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 124, 60–79, https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JF004724, 2019.
Ferdowsi, B., Ortiz, C. P., and Jerolmack, D. J.: Glassy dynamics of landscape evolution, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 115, 4827–4832,
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1715250115, 2018.
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.
Foufoula-Georgiou, E. and Kumar, P.: Wavelet Analysis in Geophysics, in:
Wavelet Analysis and Its Applications, Academic Press, New York, 1–43, https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-052087-2.50007-4, 1994.
Fox, M.: A linear inverse method to reconstruct paleo-topography,
Geomorphology, 337, 151–164, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2019.03.034, 2019.
Franczyk, J. J., Burns, W. J., and Calhoun, N. C.: Statewide Landslide
Information Database for Oregon Release-4.0, SLIDO 4.0, Digital Data Series.
Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries, Portland, OR, 2019.
Gabet, E. J.: Gopher bioturbation: Field evidence for non-linear hillslope
diffusion, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 25, 1419–1428, https://doi.org/10.1002/1096-9837(200012)25:13<1419::AID-ESP148>3.0.CO;2-1, 2000.
Gabet, E. J., Mudd, S. M., Wood, R. W., Grieve, S. W. D., Binnie, S. A., and
Dunai, T. J.: Hilltop Curvature Increases with the Square Root of Erosion
Rate, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 126, e2020JF005858, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JF005858, 2021.
Ganti, V., Passalacqua, P., and Foufoula-Georgiou, E.: A sub-grid scale
closure for nonlinear hillslope sediment transport models, J. Geophys. Res.,
117, F02012, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF002181, 2012.
García-Serrana, M., Gulliver, J. S., and Nieber, J. L.: Description of
soil micro-topography and fractional wetted area under runoff using fractal
dimensions: Soil micro-topography, fractional wetted area, and fractal
dimensions, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 43, 2685–2697, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.4424, 2018.
Gilbert, G. K.: Report on the Geology of the Henry Mountains, US Government
Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1–152, 1877.
Gilbert, G. K.: The Convexity of Hilltops, J. Geol., 17, 344–350, https://doi.org/10.1086/621620, 1909.
Godard, V., Hippolyte, J.-C., Cushing, E., Espurt, N., Fleury, J., Bellier, O., Ollivier, V., and the ASTER Team: Hillslope denudation and morphologic response to a rock uplift gradient, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 221–243, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-221-2020, 2020.
Grieve, S. W. D., Mudd, S. M., Hurst, M. D., and Milodowski, D. T.: A nondimensional framework for exploring the relief structure of landscapes, Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 309–325, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-309-2016, 2016a.
Grieve, S. W. D., Mudd, S. M., Milodowski, D. T., Clubb, F. J., and Furbish, D. J.: How does grid-resolution modulate the topographic expression of geomorphic processes?, Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 627–653, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-627-2016, 2016b.
Heimsath, A. M., Dietrich, W. E., Kunihiko, N., and Finkel, R. C.: The soil
production function and landscape equilibrium, Nature, 388, 358–361, 1997.
Heimsath, A. M., Dietrich, W. E., Nishiizumi, K., and Finkel, R. C.: Stochastic processes of soil production and transport: erosion rates, topographic variation and cosmogenic nuclides in the Oregon Coast Range, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 26, 531–552, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.209, 2001
Heller, P. L. and Dickinson, W. R.: Submarine Ramp Facies Model for
Delta-Fed, Sand-Rich Turbidite Systems. AAPG Bulletin, 69, 960–976,
https://doi.org/10.1306/AD462B37-16F7-11D7-8645000102C1865D, 1985
Howard, A. D.: A detachment-limited model of drainage basin evolution, Water
Resour. Res., 30, 2261–2285, 1994.
Hurst, M. D., Mudd, S. M., Walcott, R., Attal, M., and Yoo, K.: Using hilltop
curvature to derive the spatial distribution of erosion rates, J. Geophys. Res., 117, F02017, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JF002057, 2012.
Hurst, M. D., Mudd, S. M., Attal, M., and Hilley, G.: Hillslopes Record the
Growth and Decay of Landscapes, Science, 341, 868–871,
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1241791, 2013.
Hurst, M. D., Grieve, S. W. D., 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.
Jordan, G. and Schott, B.: Application of wavelet analysis to the study of
spatial pattern of morphotectonic lineaments in digital terrain models. A
case study, Remote Sens. Environ., 94, 31–38, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2004.08.013, 2005.
Kelsey, H. M., Ticknor, R. L., Bockheim, J. G., and Mitchell, E.: Quaternary
upper plate deformation in coastal Oregon, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 108, 843–860, 1996.
Kirby, E. and Whipple, K.: Quantifying differential rock-uplift rates via
stream profile analysis, Geology, 29, 415–418, 2001.
Kirby, E. and Whipple, K. X.: Expression of active tectonics in erosional
landscapes, J. Struct. Geol., 44, 54–75, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2012.07.009, 2012.
Konowalczyk, M.: randnd, GitHub [code], available at: https://github.com/MarcinKonowalczyk/randnd/, last access: 14 September 2021.
LaHusen, S. R., Duvall, A. R., Booth, A. M., Grant, A., Mishkin, B. A.,
Montgomery, D. R., Struble, W., Roering, J. J., and Wartman, J.: Rainfall
triggers more deep-seated landslides than Cascadia earthquakes in the Oregon
Coast Range, USA, Science Advances, 6, eaba6790, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aba6790, 2020.
Larsen, I. J. and Montgomery, D. R.: Landslide erosion coupled to tectonics
and river incision, Nat. Geosci., 5, 468–473, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1479, 2012.
Lashermes, B., Foufoula-Georgiou, E., and Dietrich, W. E.: Channel network
extraction from high resolution topography using wavelets, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L23S04, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007GL031140, 2007.
Lovell, J. P. B.: Tyee Formation: Undeformed Turbidites and their Lateral
Equivalents: Mineralogy and Paleogeography, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 80, 9–22,
https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1969)80[9:TFUTAT]2.0.CO;2, 1969.
Malamud, B. D. and Turcotte, D. L.: Wavelet analyses of Mars polar
topography, J. Geophys. Res., 106, 17497–17504,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2000JE001333, 2001.
Marshall, J. A. and Roering, J. J.: Diagenetic variation in the Oregon Coast
Range: Implications for rock strength, soil production, hillslope form, and
landscape evolution, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 119, 1395–1417, https://doi.org/10.1002/2013JF003004, 2014.
Marshall, J. A., Roering, J. J., Bartlein, P. J., Gavin, D. G., Granger, D. E., Rempel, A. W., Praskievicz, S. J., and Hales, T. C.: Frost for the trees: Did climate increase erosion in unglaciated landscapes during the late
Pleistocene?, Science Advances, 1, e1500715,
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1500715, 2015.
Minár, J., Evans, I. S., and Jenčo, M.: A comprehensive system of
definitions of land surface (topographic) curvatures, with implications for
their application in geoscience modelling and prediction, Earth-Sci. Rev., 211, 103414, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2020.103414, 2020.
Mohren, J., Binnie, S. A., Ritter, B., and Dunai, T. J.: Development of a
steep erosional gradient over a short distance in the hyperarid core of the
Atacama Desert, northern Chile, Global Planet. Change, 184, 103068,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2019.103068, 2020.
Montgomery, D. R.: Slope distributions, threshold hillslopes, and
steady-state topography, Am. J. Sci., 301, 432–454, 2001.
Montgomery, D. R.: Soil erosion and agricultural sustainability, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 104, 13268–13272, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0611508104, 2007.
Moore, I. D., Grayson, R. B., and Ladson, A. R.: Digital terrain modelling: A
review of hydrological, geomorphological, and biological applications,
Hydrol. Process., 5, 3–30, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.3360050103, 1991.
Mudd, S. M.: Detection of transience in eroding landscapes: Detection of
Transience in Eroding Landscapes, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 42, 24–41,
https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3923, 2017.
Mudd, S. M. and Furbish, D. J.: Lateral migration of hillcrests in response
to channel incision in soil-mantled landscapes, J. Geophys. Res., 110, F04026, https://doi.org/10.1029/2005JF000313, 2005.
Mudd, S. M. and Furbish, D. J.: Responses of soil-mantled hillslopes to
transient channel incision rates, J. Geophys. Res., 112, F03S18,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2006JF000516, 2007.
Neely, A. B., DiBiase, R. A., Corbett, L. B., Bierman, P. R., and Caffee, M. W.: Bedrock fracture density controls on hillslope erodibility in steep, rocky landscapes with patchy soil cover, southern California, USA, Earth
Planet. Sc. Lett., 522, 186–197, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2019.06.011, 2019.
Oregon Lidar Consortium and Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries: available at: https://www.oregongeology.org/lidar/, last access: 14 September 2021.
Ouimet, W. B., Whipple, K. X., and Granger, D. E.: Beyond threshold hillslopes: Channel adjustment to base-level fall in tectonically active mountain ranges, Geology, 37, 579–582, https://doi.org/10.1130/G30013A.1, 2009.
Passalacqua, P., Do Trung, T., Foufoula-Georgiou, E., Sapiro, G., and
Dietrich, W. E.: A geometric framework for channel network extraction from
lidar: Nonlinear diffusion and geodesic paths, J. Geophys. Res., 115, F01002, https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JF001254, 2010.
Pelletier, J. D. and Field, J. P.: Predicting the roughness length of turbulent flows over landscapes with multi-scale microtopography, Earth Surf. Dynam., 4, 391–405, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-4-391-2016, 2016.
Penck, W.: Morphological Analysis of Landforms, Macmillan, Indianapolis,
Indiana, 1953.
Penserini, B. D., Roering, J. J., and Streig, A.: A morphologic proxy for
debris flow erosion with application to the earthquake deformation cycle,
Cascadia Subduction Zone, USA, Geomorphology, 282, 150–161,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2017.01.018, 2017.
Perron, J. T. and Royden, L.: An integral approach to bedrock river profile
analysis, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 38, 570–576, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3302, 2013.
Perron, J. T., Kirchner, J. W., and Dietrich, W. E.: Spectral signatures of
characteristic spatial scales and nonfractal structure in landscapes, J. Geophys. Res., 113, F04003, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JF000866, 2008.
Personius, S. F.: Late Quaternary stream incision and uplift in the forearc
of the Cascadia subduction zone, western Oregon, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 100, 20193–20210, https://doi.org/10.1029/95JB01684, 1995.
PRISM Climate Group: PRISM Climate Group: Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA, available at: https://prism.oregonstate.edu (last access: 14 September 2021), 2016.
Reneau, S. L. and Dietrich, W. E.: Erosion rates in the southern Oregon Coast
Range: Evidence for an equilibrium between hillslope erosion and sediment
yield, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 16, 307–322, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3290160405, 1991.
Richardson, P. W., Perron, J. T., and Schurr, N. D.: Influences of climate and life on hillslope sediment transport, Geology, 47, 423–426, https://doi.org/10.1130/G45305.1, 2019.
Roberts, G. G. and White, N.: Estimating uplift rate histories from river profiles using African examples, J. Geophys. Res., 115, B02406,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2009JB006692, 2010.
Roering, J. J.: How well can hillslope evolution models “explain”
topography? Simulating soil transport and production with high-resolution
topographic data, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 120, 1248–1262, https://doi.org/10.1130/B26283.1, 2008.
Roering, J. J., Kirchner, J. W., and Dietrich, W. E.: Evidence for nonlinear,
diffusive sediment transport on hillslopes and implications for landscape
morphology, Water Resour. Res., 35, 853–870,
https://doi.org/10.1029/1998WR900090, 1999.
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., 106,
16499–16513, https://doi.org/10.1139/t01-031, 2001.
Roering, J. J., Kirchner, J. W., and Dietrich, W. E.: Characterizing structural and lithologic controls on deep-seated landsliding: Implications for topographic relief and landscape evolution in the Oregon Coast Range, USA, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 117, 654–668, https://doi.org/10.1130/B25567.1, 2005.
Roering, J. J., Perron, J. T., and Kirchner, J. W.: Functional relationships
between denudation and hillslope form and relief, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 264, 245–258, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2007.09.035, 2007.
Roering, J. J., Marshall, J., Booth, A. M., Mort, M., and Jin, Q.: Evidence
for biotic controls on topography and soil production, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 298, 183–190, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2010.07.040, 2010.
Roth, D. L., Doane, T. H., Roering, J. J., Furbish, D. J., and Zettler-Mann, A.: Particle motion on burned and vegetated hillslopes, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 117, 25335–25343, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1922495117, 2020.
Royden, L. and Perron, J. T.: Solutions of the stream power equation and
application to the evolution of river longitudinal profiles, J. Geophys. Res.-Earth, 118, 497–518, https://doi.org/10.1002/jgrf.20031, 2013.
Scherler, D. and Schwanghart, W.: Drainage divide networks – Part 1: Identification and ordering in digital elevation models, Earth Surf. Dynam., 8, 245–259, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-8-245-2020, 2020.
Schumm, S. A.: Rates of Surficial Rock Creep on Hillslopes in Western
Colorado, Science, 155, 560–562, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.155.3762.560, 1967.
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 (available at: https://topotoolbox.wordpress.com/download, last access: 14 September 2021).
Stock, J. and Dietrich, W. E.: Valley incision by debris flows: Evidence of
a topographic signature, Water Resour. Res., 39, 1089,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2001WR001057, 2003.
Strahler, A. N.: Equilibrium theory of erosional slopes approached by
frequency distribution analysis; Part 1, Am. J. Sci., 248, 673–696, https://doi.org/10.2475/ajs.248.10.673, 1950.
Struble, W. T.: HilltopCurvature, GitHub [code], available at:
https://github.com/wtstruble, last access: 14 September 2021.
Struble, W. T., Roering, J. J., Dorsey, R. J., and Bendick, R.: Characteristic Scales of Drainage Reorganization in Cascadia, Geophys. Res. Lett., 48, e2020GL091413, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL091413, 2021.
Sweeney, K. E., Roering, J. J., Almond, P., and Reckling, T.: How steady are
steady-state landscapes? Using visible–near-infrared soil spectroscopy to
quantify erosional variability, Geology, 40, 807–810, https://doi.org/10.1130/G33167.1, 2012.
Torrence, C. and Compo, G. P.: A Practical Guide to Wavelet Analysis, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 79, 61–78, 1998.
Willett, S. D., McCoy, S. W., Perron, J. T., Goren, L., and Chen, C.-Y.:
Dynamic Reorganization of River Basins, Science, 343, 1248765–1248765,
https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1248765, 2014.
Wobus, C., Whipple, K. X., Kirby, E., Snyder, N., Johnson, J., Spyropolou,
K., Crosby, B., and Sheehan, D.: Tectonics from topography: Procedures,
promise, and pitfalls, in: Special Paper 398: Tectonics, Climate, and
Landscape Evolution, Geological Society of America, 55–74,
https://doi.org/10.1130/2006.2398(04), 2006.
Download
The requested paper has a corresponding corrigendum published. Please read the corrigendum first before downloading the article.
- Article
(15337 KB) - Full-text XML
- Corrigendum
-
Supplement
(2646 KB) - BibTeX
- EndNote
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.
We used a mathematical technique known as a wavelet transform to calculate the curvature of...
